I read a Frederic Delavier’s book « Strength Training Anatomy » and I learned good stuff.
A hand on your head, you pull slowly to tilt your head to the side. This exercise stretches the sternocleidomastoid, all (anterior, middle and posterior) scalenes muscles, the upper part of the trapezius, splenius capitis , splenius cervicis , semispinalis and small spine muscles like longus colli, rectus capitis posterior minor, rectus capitis lateralis and rectus capitis posterior major muscle.
Attention
Pull your head slowly with caution. Stretching should be done gradually.
Note
While you pull your head, lower your shoulders to feel the stretch of your trapezius.
Concerning the neck
Quadrupeds and anthropoids (such as the gorilla) have very powerful neck muscles to prevent the head from tipping forward.
For the human being, it’s different. When the human being is fully biped depleted thus a vertical position with the head at the top of the spine , the muscles neck have become less powerful because the muscle’s neck have solely as a function of balancing the head.
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When the human being became biped, the morphology changed. The face‘s size decreased, the brain’s size increased and the occipital hole moved to the center of the skull. As the head is at the top of the spine, the neck’s muscles have the function of stabilizing the head
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Gorilla which is partially a quadruped has a larger face, a smaller brain and the occipital hole is towards the back. To prevent that head tits forward, the neck’s muscles are very powerful and developed.
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-Steph