Sore Neck After Squats!

[Daniel0636]

I started squatting for the first time today! I've always done leg press instead as I have always been too scared to do squats. After doing them today I don't know why, I think I feel safer doing squats than db bench press and I've never been scared to do that lol weird. Anyway, the back of my neck is really sore now is this normal? I know it's just from where the bar was, but does your neck get used to it after a while?

[BZBantam]

Lost of people experience that when first doing squats...make sure you are resting the bar in the proper position, you do not want it directly on your neck, but rather resting on your lower traps (assuming you are doing high bar squats). Also, adding mass to your traps will help if it feels uncomfortable resting a weight on your back.

[Daniel0636]

Lost of people experience that when first doing squats...make sure you are resting the bar in the proper position, you do not want it directly on your neck, but rather resting on your lower traps (assuming you are doing high bar squats). Also, adding mass to your traps will help if it feels uncomfortable resting a weight on your back.

Ok thanks for the reply. And yeah I should have mentioned I was doing high bar squats, I'll try and rest the bar a bit lower next time.

[BZBantam]

No prob, saw your edit. Yea you should get used to it rather quickly, I still think the more meat on the traps you have the more comforatble it will be.

And congrats on getting over the fear of squatting, adds a lot of work to the core that the leg press doesn't address..you should start seeing nice gains soon.

[SquattsAndOats]

I started squatting for the first time today! I've always done leg press instead as I have always been too scared to do squats. After doing them today I don't know why, I think I feel safer doing squats than db bench press and I've never been scared to do that lol weird. Anyway, the back of my neck is really sore now is this normal? I know it's just from where the bar was, but does your neck get used to it after a while?

If you build some traps you can let the bar rest on them, if you're doing high-bar squatts.

Squatts are amazing. If you do squatts 3 times a week, master the technique and get up to a good weight you can really feel the mass on your legs.


Try putting a towel on the bar so when it rests on your neck it doesn't rub.


Hope this helps mate, good luck with the squatts! Let us know how you conquer this!

[pMbeast]

Lost of people experience that when first doing squats...make sure you are resting the bar in the proper position, you do not want it directly on your neck, but rather resting on your lower traps (assuming you are doing high bar squats). Also, adding mass to your traps will help if it feels uncomfortable resting a weight on your back.

^This. Same thing happened to me OP. My neck was sore for 3 weeks after starting squatting 3 days per week until I started looking around for answers as well. Turns out, I was resting the bar on my NECK and not my TRAPS. Zero problems ever since I corrected the bar placement. There's a really good picture floating around for bar placement. Maybe someone will post it...

[wadboram]

To avoid this pain I used a towel around the bar or folded around my shoulders that covers the part hurts... as all here say, rest the bar on the traps for better results

[5TR0NGMAN]

This may sound stupid but instead of buying a pad for the barbell I use an old foam roller from my previous weights bench leg curler. It can be hard to fit over the bar (Won't fit over an o bar just a standard 7ft york) but its thick and goes perfectly in the centre of your back with no pain, hope this helps you.

[chazzy1864]

Stop putting the bar on your neck. It is to rest on your traps or on your rear delts (depending on what form you use).


If you're wise, you won't wrap padding around the bar as that shifts the center of gravity of the weight away from you.