Something that happens quite often when you start working out is learning that you have to train certain muscles that you never thought needed training. For me, it was shoulders! As silly as it sounds, a lot of people don’t even know that shoulders have muscles that can grow!
Luckily, shoulder training is one of the most satisfying, as it is a little bit easier to train them and you can see results a bit quicker than with other muscles. Defined shoulders are a great reward that will leave you motivated to keep up with the training.
Fineyourgym.ae can help you find the best gym near me for training your shoulders.
Benefits of shoulder workout
If you needed more reasons to kick off the shoulder training, here are some more:
- – Shoulder definition gives the body a “frame” that looks great on both men and women.
- – Shoulder training helps improve posture.
- – It strengthens the muscles surrounding the shoulder joint, actually protecting it from injuries.
- – Having strong shoulders will also help you perform other exercises better, like arms or back training, also helping to avoid injuries.
As with any other group of muscles, you want shoulder training to cover movements that strengthen each one of those muscles for balanced results. That’s why you need a comprehensive shoulder workout that targets several muscles.
Before kicking things off, here are the main shoulder muscles:
- » Trapezius
- » Deltoids
- » Pectoralis major
- » Rhomboid major
- » Serratus anterior
- » Rotator cuff
Best Shoulder Exercises
Here you will find a compilation of the best shoulder exercises that target several muscles at a time.
You can do them by series, doing a certain amount of repetitions, resting, and then repeating the series 2 or 3 times before jumping to the next one, or as a circuit; by doing each exercise for 30s, resting 10s before doing the next one, and the repeating from the first one 2 or 3 times.
To avoid injuries, avoid training shoulders two days in a row, since they need at least one day for muscle recovery.
Also, remember to be gentle on yourself, don’t push your limits too hard, especially if this is your first time training shoulders.
Push ups
In one of the most fundamental shoulder exercises, you will start by getting down on all fours, maintaining your legs extended, and slowly lower your upper body without touching the ground, try to hold that position for a few seconds and get back to the original position. Repeat.
For push-up variations you can try doing them using a bench to elevate your body, crossing one leg over the other while lowering your body, or keeping your hands further apart to work your pecs.
Standing dumbbell fly
Using dumbbells, start by standing straight with your hands on each side of your body. Slowly, use your upper body to swing the dumbbells up a few inches until your arms form an upside-down “V” shape. Hold that position for a few seconds and go back to the initial one.
Bent over reverse fly
Start by bending your hips back so you end up looking at the floor. With a dumbbell on each hand, raise your arms at a 90-degree angle until they’re parallel to the ground. Maintain your back straight to avoid injuries.
Military Press
For more advanced training, try this exercise by standing with your feet together, and the barrel tucked underneath your chin. Hold the barrel with your hands near your shoulders while having the palms facing upwards and lift the barrel above your head. This will impact your shoulders, back and core.
Inclined bench press
You will need some kind of weight (dumbbells or a barbell) and a bench. Start with the bench at a 45-degree angle, lay on your back and slowly lift the weight using both hands, make sure to extend your arms completely. Slowly, bring the weight down and repeat.
Band lateral raise
As the name suggests, you will need two bands for this one. Start by standing with your back straight and stepping on the free end of each band, grab the band from the opposite foot with both hands so the bands form an “X”. Raise your arms at a 90 degrees angle until your arms are parallel to the floor. Go back to the initial position and repeat.
Face pull
Using a cable station, you will have to attach a rope handle to the top pulley. Stand a few inches away from the station so the cable has tension. Hold one end of the rope in each hand and place them so the rope faces your forehead. Slowly, pull the cable towards you until your hands reach the side of your ears. Go back to the initial position and repeat.
Overhead press
You can do this one after the inclined bench press. Start by sitting on the bench with your back straight and your feet at a shoulder width. Using the same weight as before, lift it over your head and hold it for a few seconds before returning to the first position.
Band bent over lateral raise
Starting with the same initial position as the previous one, with the bands crossed, bend your hips back until your torso is almost parallel to the floor, raise your arms until they’re parallel to the floor.
Single-arm cable row
You can use a band attached to a column or a cable station for this one. Start by holding the band/handle with one hand and set yourself a bit further apart until it has tension. Retract your shoulder blades, draw back your elbow while rotating your palm towards your body. After you’re doing one hand, repeat the same exercise with the other.
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