Neck pain is common, and long hours at a desk or a screen are one of the usual suspects. The NHS and Mayo Clinic both list poor posture as a common cause (NHS, 2023; Mayo Clinic Staff, 2026). The Global Burden of Disease Study estimated that 203 million people worldwide had neck pain in 2020 (GBD 2021 Neck Pain Collaborators, 2024).
Strength training comes up a lot as a fix. The research is real, but it's thin, and the reviews don't agree on the details. This post goes through what they found and how sure anyone can be. Then it covers what a sensible start looks like in the studio.
Please read first. This post is general information, not medical advice. If your neck pain started after a fall or a car accident, or it spreads into your arms or legs, talk to your doctor before you train. If something hurts sharply during an exercise, stop and get medical care.
How common neck pain is
The 2020 estimate was 203 million people (95% uncertainty interval 163 to 253 million). Women had a higher rate than men: about 2,890 per 100,000 compared with 2,000. The rate was stable from 1990 to 2020. The forecast for 2050 is 269 million people, mostly because the population is growing (GBD 2021 Neck Pain Collaborators, 2024). Those are global numbers, so don't read them as a Canadian count.
How common neck pain is, worldwide
Estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study. These are global numbers, not Canadian ones. Pick a view.
Source: GBD 2021 Neck Pain Collaborators. Lancet Rheumatol 2024;6(3):e142-e155. Read the study. Rates are per 100,000 people and adjusted for differences in population age. The small numbers under each label are the 95% uncertainty interval. The 2050 numbers are a forecast from a statistical model, not a count.
Most neck pain isn't a sign of something serious, according to Mayo Clinic, and the NHS says most of it only lasts a few weeks (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2026; NHS, 2023). The research below is about chronic neck pain. In these reviews that means pain lasting 12 weeks or more.
What the biggest comparison found
A 2021 network meta analysis pooled 40 randomized trials. That's a method for ranking several treatments against each other, using many trials at once. Compared with no treatment, strengthening exercise lowered pain (Hedges' g -1.21, 95% CI -1.63 to -0.78) and disability (-0.75, -1.28 to -0.22). Motor control exercise and a group of whole body practices (yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi and Qigong) landed in about the same place (de Zoete et al., 2021).
Hedges' g is a standardized effect size. A negative number means less pain than the no treatment group, and a bigger number means a bigger gap. The authors converted the strengthening result to roughly 2.4 points on a 10 point pain scale, using an assumed spread in scores (de Zoete et al., 2021). Treat that as an estimate.
Exercise types versus no treatment for chronic neck pain
Each dot is a type of exercise compared with no treatment, from a review that pooled 40 randomized trials. The gold dot is strengthening. The line is the 95% confidence interval. If the line touches the black zero line, the result wasn't clearly different from no treatment. Pick an outcome.
Source: de Zoete RM, et al. Br J Sports Med 2021;55(13):730-742. Read the study. Values are Hedges' g, a standardized effect size, so they are not points on a pain scale. Negative means less pain or less disability. The authors rated the certainty of the whole body of evidence as very low. The pain results also showed a lopsided funnel plot, which can point to publication bias (Egger test p = 0.0006). Balance exercise is left out of the disability view because the paper's text doesn't give its number.
The authors' own conclusion is the part to remember. No type of exercise was clearly better than the others, and the certainty of the evidence was very low. The pain results also looked lopsided on a funnel plot, which can mean that small trials with weak results never got published (de Zoete et al., 2021). In plain terms, exercise looks better than no treatment. The data can't say strengthening beats anything else.
Strengthening for neck pain usually targets the neck and the shoulder area together, so those trials couldn't separate neck only work from the rest (de Zoete et al., 2021).
An older Cochrane review update, which searched trials up to May 2014, graded the strengthening evidence higher. It found moderate certainty that strengthening the neck and upper body gave moderate to large pain reductions in chronic neck pain, right after treatment and in the short term. Its authors said future research should work out the best dose (Gross et al., 2016).
Where the evidence disagrees
A 2023 umbrella review, which is a review of reviews, covered 25 systematic reviews and 17,321 participants. It didn't adjust for trials appearing in more than one review. It found low to high certainty that every exercise type it looked at, resistance training included, helped pain in the short term. For disability, every type showed a positive effect except resistance training. The authors said no optimal exercise can be recommended. The reviews it included ranged from critically low quality to moderate or high (Rasmussen-Barr et al., 2023).
That disability result conflicts with the network meta analysis above, where strengthening did lower disability. One study pooled trials and the other pooled reviews, so they can disagree. Nobody can say yet which is closer to the truth.
A 2023 meta analysis of 68 trials looked for a dose, meaning how often and how long to train. For resistance exercise it found no dose response relationship. For motor control exercise, more sessions and longer sessions went with bigger pain effects. The same paper reported very large differences between trials (I2 of 96% for resistance exercise and pain), and it rated its certainty as very low to moderate. It also found that yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi and Qigong did better than other exercise types for pain, and motor control did better for disability (Mueller et al., 2023).
So strength training is one reasonable option among several. At best it's about as good as the others, and none of these reviews shows it's the best one. We'd rather tell you that than say it fixes neck pain.
What two workplace trials add
Two trials of office workers add some detail on schedules and sticking with a plan (Andersen et al., 2012; Andersen et al., 2008).
What two workplace strength training trials found
Both trials studied office workers, not people sent for neck pain. Pick a trial.
Sources: Andersen CH, et al. Br J Sports Med 2012;46(14):1004-1010 (study). 447 office workers were randomized by group to supervised high intensity neck and shoulder strength training, one hour a week split three ways, or to no training. The chart shows the drop in neck pain on a 0 to 9 scale compared with no training, among those who started at 3 or higher (256 people, average starting score 3.2, so the scale only runs to 3.5 here). Andersen LL, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2008;40(6):983-990 (study). 549 office workers followed for one year. The percentages are regular participation among the people who answered the questionnaire. These were workplace studies with a specific design, so they can't tell us what happens in any one person's training.
In the 20 week trial, 447 office workers were randomized by group to supervised, high intensity strength training for the neck and shoulder muscles, or to no training. All the training groups did one hour a week, split three ways. Among the 256 people who started with neck pain of 3 or more on a 0 to 9 scale, every schedule cut neck pain more than no training did, by between 1.14 and 1.88 points. The schedules didn't differ from each other statistically, and the authors read that as some flexibility in how the weekly hour is spread (Andersen et al., 2012).
The one year trial followed 549 office workers. Among those who started with neck pain, pain fell from 5.0 to 3.4 in the strength training group, and it didn't change in the reference group, which got general health counseling. Regular participation was highest in the strength group, at 54% in the first half of the year. It fell to 35% in the second half (Andersen et al., 2008). Those percentages come from the people who answered the questionnaire.
Be careful with these. The people were office workers, and some had no neck pain at the start. The researchers set up the programs. The trials show that strength training at work was doable and helped on average. They don't predict what will happen for you.
The drop in participation is the part we pay attention to. A plan only works if you keep doing it, and the participation rate in the strength group fell by about a third over the year. These trials can't tell us that a coach fixes that. We can say that supervised sessions are the setup the 20 week trial tested.
What this can look like in the studio
Nobody can promise a result, and a coach isn't a doctor. What a coach can do is set up strength work that's supervised and adjusted to how your neck feels that week.
- Get medical care first if the pain follows an injury. Mayo Clinic says to get medical care for severe neck pain after an injury such as a car accident or a fall (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2026).
- Check with your doctor if it spreads or won't settle. Mayo Clinic says to contact a healthcare professional if neck pain is very intense, doesn't get better after a few days, spreads into your arms or legs, or comes with a headache, numbness, weakness or tingling. The NHS says a few weeks, not a few days (NHS, 2023). Either way, get it checked before you start a plan.
- Tell your coach where it hurts and what makes it worse. They'll choose movements you can control and change them on the spot.
- Expect more than neck work. The research programs worked the neck and shoulder area together. A coach can pick pulling and pressing work for your upper back and shoulders, and decide whether any neck specific work fits you.
- Pick a schedule you can keep. The Canadian 24 Hour Movement Guidelines call for muscle strengthening at least twice a week (CSEP, n.d.). Two coached sessions a week can meet that, as long as you actually show up for them.
- Break up the sitting. Mayo Clinic suggests regular breaks to move around and stretch your neck and shoulders, and a screen set at eye level (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2026).
Come lift in the studio with a coach in Vaughan
Start with our small group classes. Classes are capped at 16 people, so a coach can see how you move. Tell the coach at the door that your neck is sore. The studio is open 5:45 AM to 8 PM on weekdays and 8:30 AM to 4 PM on weekends, with parking on site.
If you want more attention, look at personal training in Vaughan. We also offer one on one training focused on balance and strength.
Other sore spots work the same way. Our posts on exercises for lower back pain and knee pain exercises cover them.
Try the $30 seven day trial (+ HST). Join by day 5 and your $30 is credited toward your membership. Call (289) 536-8066 or email g-squad@innerg.ca.
References
- Andersen, C. H., Andersen, L. L., Gram, B., Pedersen, M. T., Mortensen, O. S., Zebis, M. K., & Sjøgaard, G. (2012). Influence of frequency and duration of strength training for effective management of neck and shoulder pain: a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 46(14), 1004-1010. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2011-090813 | PubMed
- Andersen, L. L., Jørgensen, M. B., Blangsted, A. K., Pedersen, M. T., Hansen, E. A., & Sjøgaard, G. (2008). A randomized controlled intervention trial to relieve and prevent neck/shoulder pain. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 40(6), 983-990. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181676640 | PubMed
- Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology. (n.d.). Canadian 24 Hour Movement Guidelines for Adults 18-64 (official title shortened). https://csepguidelines.ca/guidelines/adults-18-64/
- de Zoete, R. M. J., Armfield, N. R., McAuley, J. H., Chen, K., & Sterling, M. (2021). Comparative effectiveness of physical exercise interventions for chronic non-specific neck pain: a systematic review with network meta-analysis of 40 randomised controlled trials. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 55(13), 730-742. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2020-102664 | PubMed
- GBD 2021 Neck Pain Collaborators. (2024). Global, regional, and national burden of neck pain, 1990-2020, and projections to 2050: a systematic analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021. The Lancet Rheumatology, 6(3), e142-e155. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2665-9913(23)00321-1 | PubMed
- Gross, A. R., Paquin, J. P., Dupont, G., Blanchette, S., Lalonde, P., Cristie, T., Graham, N., Kay, T. M., Burnie, S. J., Gelley, G., Goldsmith, C. H., Forget, M., Santaguida, P. L., Yee, A. J., Radisic, G. G., Hoving, J. L., Bronfort, G., & Cervical Overview Group. (2016). Exercises for mechanical neck disorders: A Cochrane review update. Manual Therapy, 24, 25-45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.math.2016.04.005 | PubMed
- Mayo Clinic Staff. (2026, May 13). Neck pain: Symptoms and causes. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/neck-pain/symptoms-causes/syc-20375581
- Mueller, J., Weinig, J., Niederer, D., Tenberg, S., & Mueller, S. (2023). Resistance, motor control, and mindfulness-based exercises are effective for treating chronic nonspecific neck pain: a systematic review with meta-analysis and dose-response meta-regression. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 53(8), 420-459. https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2023.11820 | PubMed
- NHS. (2023). Neck pain (page last reviewed 27 April 2023). https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/neck-pain/
- Rasmussen-Barr, E., Halvorsen, M., Bohman, T., Boström, C., Dedering, Å., Kuster, R. P., Olsson, C. B., Rovner, G., Tseli, E., Nilsson-Wikmar, L., & Grooten, W. J. A. (2023). Summarizing the effects of different exercise types in chronic neck pain - a systematic review and meta-analysis of systematic reviews. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 24(1), 806. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12891-023-06930-9 | PubMed