{
  "$schema": "https://openexercise.org/schema/v0/exercise.json",
  "aliases": [
    {
      "text": "Head Tilts",
      "kind": "common"
    },
    {
      "text": "Lateral Neck Stretch",
      "kind": "common"
    },
    {
      "text": "Neck Side Stretch",
      "kind": "common"
    },
    {
      "text": "Cervical Lateral Flexion",
      "kind": "common"
    }
  ],
  "anatomy": {
    "muscles": [
      {
        "muscle": "sternocleidomastoid",
        "role": "prime-mover"
      },
      {
        "muscle": "trapezius-upper",
        "role": "prime-mover"
      },
      {
        "muscle": "levator-scapulae",
        "role": "synergist"
      },
      {
        "muscle": "splenius",
        "role": "synergist"
      }
    ],
    "joints": [
      {
        "joint": "cervical-spine",
        "actions": [
          "lateral-flexion"
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "classification": {
    "modalities": [
      "mobility",
      "flexibility"
    ],
    "movement_patterns": [
      "lateral-flexion",
      "mobility-drill",
      "stretch"
    ],
    "mechanics": "isolation",
    "force": "not-applicable",
    "kinetic_chain": "open",
    "laterality": "alternating",
    "planes": [
      "frontal"
    ],
    "contraction": [
      "dynamic"
    ],
    "level": "beginner"
  },
  "equipment": {
    "required": []
  },
  "external_ids": {
    "wger": "1018"
  },
  "id": "oec:neck-lateral-flexion",
  "instructions": {
    "setup": [
      "Sit upright on a chair or stand tall with feet hip-width apart.",
      "Relax your shoulders down away from your ears and keep your eyes facing forward with your head in a neutral position."
    ],
    "steps": [
      "Slowly lower your right ear toward your right shoulder until you feel a gentle stretch along the left side of your neck.",
      "Pause for a moment at the end of your comfortable range without forcing the movement.",
      "Smoothly return your head back to the upright, neutral position.",
      "Repeat the motion on the left side, bringing your left ear toward your left shoulder, then return to neutral."
    ],
    "breathing": "Inhale as you pass through center and exhale smoothly as you tilt your head to the side.",
    "cues": [
      "Ear to shoulder, not shoulder to ear.",
      "Keep shoulders anchored down.",
      "Move smoothly without jerking."
    ],
    "common_faults": [
      {
        "fault": "Shrugging the shoulder upward to meet the head.",
        "correction": "Actively keep both shoulders depressed and relaxed throughout the movement."
      },
      {
        "fault": "Rotating or flexing the neck forward during the tilt.",
        "correction": "Keep your gaze straight ahead and move purely in the side-to-side plane."
      }
    ],
    "safety": {
      "precautions": [
        "Move only through a pain-free range of motion; discontinue immediately if you experience sharp pain, radiating tingling, numbness, or dizziness."
      ],
      "spotter": "not-needed"
    }
  },
  "measurement": {
    "duration_counted": "per-side",
    "load": {
      "kind": "none"
    },
    "profiles": [
      {
        "required": [
          "reps"
        ],
        "optional": [
          "duration"
        ]
      },
      {
        "required": [
          "duration"
        ]
      }
    ],
    "records": {},
    "reps_counted": "per-side"
  },
  "name": "Neck Lateral Flexion",
  "previous_ids": [
    "oec:head-tilts"
  ],
  "provenance": {
    "generated": [
      "/name",
      "/summary",
      "/classification",
      "/anatomy",
      "/equipment",
      "/measurement",
      "/instructions",
      "/setup",
      "/relations"
    ],
    "license": "CC-BY-SA-4.0",
    "review": {
      "status": "machine-generated",
      "model": "gemini-3.8-flash",
      "at": "2026-10-31"
    },
    "sources": [
      {
        "title": "wger: Head tilts",
        "url": "https://wger.de/en/exercise/1018/view-base",
        "license": "CC-BY-SA-4.0"
      }
    ]
  },
  "relations": [
    {
      "type": "part-of",
      "target": "oec:neck-controlled-articular-rotation"
    },
    {
      "type": "part-of",
      "target": "oec:neck-roll"
    },
    {
      "type": "regression-of",
      "target": "oec:neck-controlled-articular-rotation"
    },
    {
      "type": "regression-of",
      "target": "oec:neck-roll"
    }
  ],
  "setup": {
    "position": "seated"
  },
  "status": "active",
  "summary": "A gentle cervical mobility exercise that mobilizes the neck and stretches the lateral cervical musculature by tilting the ear toward the shoulder."
}