Poor form or too much tension can cause neck and shoulder pain during a run.

If you are experiencing aching or cramping of the shoulder muscles during running, caused by too much tension or poor form, try shaking out your arms and droping your shoulders.

Try using a “two-two” breathing rhythm, in which you take two steps while inhaling and two while exhaling, and breathe from your abdomen rather than your chest.

Or try this: Put your hands on top of your head and pull your elbows backward until you feel a stretch. Run this way for 15 seconds, then shake your arms or circle them in a windmill motion to loosen the tension in your shoulders. Do range-of-motion exercises for the neck and shoulders: tilt your head up and down and side to side, shrug your shoulders or turn your head to look right and then left.

And keep checking your form as you run. Imagine a helium balloon attached to the front of your chest, pulling it forward and up. Your spine should be elongated, pelvis relaxed, shoulders dropped into a comfortable position and arms bent at about 90 degrees, and your body should have a slight forward lean.

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