Mad Neck Review

The Mad Neck is a plate loaded neck strengthening device that gives you a thicker, more aesthetic look.

Often underutilized, neck trainers are either big machines that take up too much space or harnesses that swing.

This one uses regular weight plates and I place it on all sides of my head to strengthen my neck from all angles.

Let’s check it out!

Specs

• Compatibility: Works with Olympic sized (2″ hole) and standard sized weight plates (1″ hole)

• Material: Hard plastic

• Padding: 1/4″ thick foam, 7″ W x 3″ L

What Is The Mad Neck?

The Mad Neck is an adjustable neck trainer from the makers of the Mad Spotter Hooks.

It works with both Olympic sized weight plates and standard sized weight plates so it can be used by anyone.

Top Benefits Of The Mad Neck

Comfortable

The bottom of this neck trainer is lined with a foam pad that is 7″ long by 3″ wide so it covers a lot of head area.

It’s 1/4″ thick which doesn’t seem like much but it’s enough to make neck training comfortable.

With the neck strengthener just resting on my head, I don’t think the pad will take a lot of pounding but it could be better quality.

It feels like pool noodle material and they are aware so they’re testing other materials to make this better.

Convex Base

According to the head honcho at Mad Spotter, they added a convex shape to the base for better range of motion and versatility for some movements.

This is something I definitely have to get a feel for cause other neck trainers I’ve used are concave to match the shape of my head.

Secure

Once I add the weight plates to the loading bar, I use a nut to secure the weight and it doesn’t move anywhere so it feels very safe.

This comes with two nuts, one is for the Olympic sized plates loading bar and the other one for standard sized bar (the diameters are different).

Best Features Of The Mad Neck

Adjustable Loading Bar

At first sight, I couldn’t tell there was a second loading bar until I started peeling off the layers.

The obvious one is the one above which is for Olympic weight plates with 2″ center holes.

After throwing on a weight plate, I keep it place with the nut.

And here’s what it looks from the side.

The weight plate doesn’t go all the way down to the base of the Mad Neck which is different than other plate loaded neck trainers…

Here I took off the thick loading bar to expose the thinner one.

And just like the previous loading bar, it’s also threaded and has its own nut.

Here it is with the nut off.

I personally don’t know anyone who owns standard weight plates, but I like that they made the product universal for people who own those plates.

Here I tested it using my Olympic weight plate and as long as I get the nut tight, the plate doesn’t wobble with the thinner loading bar.

Here’s what it looks like from the side.

Using this set up, the weight plate sits lower to the base.

Neck Training Exercises

First exercise I went for is neck flexion.

I start off with my forehead on one side of the pad.

And as I flex my neck, my head rolls to the center of the pad.

Definitely not something I’m used to because it adds some instability to the exercise but it got easier the more reps I did.

Next up I tried neck extensions…

Same as the previous exercise, I started on the side of the pad.

And ended up on the other side.

With me being face down, this one was a bit more awkward to perform.

Third exercise I tried was neck rotations.

For this one the side of my head is touching one end of the pad.

And when I rotate my head, my forehead and pad meet right at the center.

For neck rotations I usually lie on my sides and turn my head towards the ceiling so this was different but felt good.

And last exercise is neck lateral flexion.

I started off on the side the pad.

And as I flexed my head, ended up on the middle of the pad.

With me only using one hand to stabilize the Mad Neck, this felt like the most unstable exercise out of all them.

Mad Neck Pros & Cons

Pros

• Adjustable: It can be used with Olympic weight plates and standard sized weight plates

• Secure: Locking nuts keeps plates from moving around

• Build: Made out of hard plastic

• Comfortable: Padding is thick enough to make the weight comfortable on my head

• Lifetime warranty: If anything happens to it, I can get a new one at no cost

Cons

• Top heavy: Because the weight sits around the middle of the loading bar, it feels top heavy so sometimes it can feel wobbly while exercising

• Padding: This is the weakest part of this product. I’d like to see better quality material used in the padding.

• Convex base: I’m not a fan of the convex base because it creates instability, I’d rather it be concave so it feels more stable

Mad Neck Alternatives

Iron Neck

The Iron Neck is the top of the line neck training device but it comes in at a hefty price.

Their Starter bundle starts at $300, the Varsity bundle is $400, and the Pro bundle is $600.

Premium product with lots of versatility but not the price most home gym owners will pay.

Because this uses resistance bands for resistance, it’s hard to be accurate when it comes to tracking the “weight” used.

The Strong Neck

The Strong Neck is as simple as it gets when it comes to plate loaded neck training devices, but it works really well.

It’s a hard plastic loading bar attached to a base that has thick foam under it.

This one is compatible with Olympic sized weight plates only.

Mad Neck Discount Code

The Mad Neck’s retail price is $39 which is not bad at all when you consider other neck training devices that are priced in the $100’s.

But I’m still gonna hook you up with a small discount to bring the price down even more…

Click the red button below to reveal a 5% discount code.

My Experience Using The Mad Neck

I feel the weight sits too high for my liking on the Mad Neck so it makes it feel top heavy.

If you look at the picture above, look how much closer to the base the plate on the Strong Neck sits.

Combine that with the convex base, it creates instability especially when I’m doing an exercise when I can only have one hand on the device.

With that being said, it may be something that takes I have to get used to and at the end of the day, a neck workout is still better than no neck workout.

Conclusion: Should You Buy The Mad Neck?

If you’re looking for an affordable and comfortable way to train your neck, the Mad Neck makes it possible.

With a convex base, it uses a different approach to load your neck through all ranges of motion and a nut keeps the weight plates secure at all times.

It’s a budget neck trainer with a lifetime warranty.