Shoulder Exercises for Men and Women
Shoulders Shoulders Shoulders, One of the most important muscle groups to give you that X shape physique that everyone is looking for. Broad shoulders are a staple for men and now even women. The wider your shoulders are/appear the slimmer your waist will be/appear.
Building big shoulders are not only good for physique, strong shoulders also help with all other lifts as well as injury prevention.
ANATOMY OF THE SHOULDER :
3 PRIMARY MUSCLES RESPONSIBLE FOR SHOULDER MOBILITY
The deltoid:
Made up of three heads, The anterior, The lateral and the posterior. There are many amazing full shoulder workouts that target each group of deltoid muscles. Delts are responsible for medial rotation and flexion.
Trapezius:
Responsible for elevating the shoulders.
Pectoralis Major:
AKA the chest muscle. This is responsible for adduction and medial rotation. It is important that you work all three of these muscles in a full shoulder workout to get the most benefits.
BEST SHOULDER WORKOUTS
1. Seated Shoulder press
An exercise to start a good shoulder workout would be a seated shoulder press.
To perform a seated shoulder press you would first grab a pair of dumbbells you can confidently lift over your head. Starting with a weight that is too heavy could lead to injury.
Hold the dumbbells by your shoulders with your palms facing forward. Your elbows should be bent at a 90-degree angle. Without leaning back, extend your arms and slowly back down. Press through your shoulders. Check out this shoulder press video below:
2. Lateral raise
A lateral raise is the second shoulder workout. A lateral raise will target the lateral deltoid muscle. Again choose a manageable weight. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and your hands down at your thighs palms facing in. From that position you will lift your arms up to the side with a slight bend in your elbow. From there lower your arms back down and repeat.
3. Front Shoulder Raise
The third best shoulder exercise is the front shoulder raise. The front shoulder raise targets your anterior deltoid as well as your trapezius. First get into starting position with your feet shoulder width apart and your arms down in front of your thighs palms facing in. Raise your arms straight forward and slowly bring them back down and repeat
4. Reverse fly
The fourth best shoulder and arm workout is the reverse fly. This exercise targets your posterior deltoid. First you will get into your starting position. Feet shoulder width apart holding dumbbells at your sides with your palms facing in. From here hinge your hips to put yourself in a bent over position allowing the weights to hang straight down palms still facing in. remember to keep your core tight and have a slight bend in your knee for stability. From this position you will raise both arms out to the side keeping a slight bend in your elbow. Squeezing at the top. Lower the weight back down to the starting position and repeat.
5. Arnold press
The fifth exercise is the Arnold press. This shoulder exercise targets your medial deltoid as well as your trapezius and triceps.This shoulder and arm workout can be performed seated or standing. Start with your feet shoulder apart if you are standing. Grab a weight you can press above your head and start with the dumbbells at your shoulders similar to the shoulder press. Once in place rotate your palms in so the dumbbells will be in front of your face. Extend your arms up while rotating the dumbbells outward than slowly bring them back to starting position rotating them back in and repeat
6. Face pulls
The sixth shoulder workout is going to be a face pull ,which is a shoulder cable workout. This exercise targets your posterior deltoid. To do a face pull you will need access to cables. To Start grab a rope and set it about 2 inches above your head. Get into your starting position and grab the handles with your palms facing together. Step back allowing your arms to fully extend, brace your core and lean back slightly. From there, pull the handles in toward your forehead. You want to make sure your shoulders are rotated down and not in a shrugging position. Let your elbows flare out to the side trying to get a 90 degree angle. Slowly reverse the movement extending your arms and repeat.
7. Dumbbell High pull
The last best shoulder workout is a dumbbell high pull. This exercise targets all parts of the deltoid. Begin in your starting position with your arms down near your thighs, palms facing inward. Similar to the starting position of the Shoulder Front Raise. Bring your hands up to your shoulders trying to get your elbows to a 90 degree angle. Bring arms back to starting position and repeat.
Benefits of strong shoulders
There are many many benefits to performing these shoulder and arm workouts as well strengthening your shoulders. Not only will it improve your physique it will also improve daily tasks and activities. Strengthening your shoulders will help with your posture as well as create more stability all around.The shoulder is one of the most delicate joints so you want to take care of it. Shoulder workouts will make all arm movements easier for you, such as throwing a baseball or even putting your carry on luggage above you when you travel via airplane. Training your shoulders is not only aesthetically pleasing, It also improves your mobility overall.
Try out these shoulder workouts and let us know what you think! Contact us on instagram or Facebook at @nonstopfitness_