Shoulders

If you're looking for stronger shoulders, put these exercises, tips and techniques to use in your workout.

What Is The Best Shoulder Exercise?

August 25, 2014 By 3 Comments

shoulder-workout---get-big--shoulder-workout-for-size---mens-fitnessHaving strong, bulging shoulders isn’t just sexy; it’s functional. With shoulder injuries impacting up to 69 percent of the population, taking advantage of a balanced and well-rounded shoulder workout can help reduce the risk of injury.

So which shoulder exercises are the best? The American Council on Exercise teamed up with researchers from the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse to find out. The findings were published in a recent study.

For the study, researchers compiled a list of ten common shoulder exercises. Next, a set of healthy, male volunteers were recruited. Each volunteer participated in one practice workout and then two test workouts. To determine muscle activation, special electrodes were placed on the three different muscle heads of the shoulder (front, middle and back).

After crunching the data, researchers found that different exercises were best for each of the different muscle heads.

To work your anterior deltoids (the front shoulder muscle that you see in the mirror), the dumbbell shoulder press is the absolute best. No other exercise came close. A distant second was the dumbbell front raise followed by battling ropes (which you commonly see in crossfit classes).

When it comes to the medial deltoids (the middle shoulder muscle), the 45-degree incline row and bent-arm lateral raise were the best performing exercises.

Last but not least, the seated rear lateral raise and the 45-degree incline row were best for the posterior deltoids (back shoulder muscles).

Keep in mind, while most people focus on the anterior deltoids (because those are most visible when they look in the mirror), it’s important to have equally balanced shoulder muscles for proper function, to minimize imbalances and to reduce the risk of injury.

If you’re unfamiliar with any of the above exercises, scroll down below for some demonstrations!

Incorporate these exercises into your shoulder workout for optimal results.

Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Best for front shoulders)

ShoulderPress

45-Degree Incline Row (Best for middle shoulders/back shoulders)

InclineRow

Seated Rear Lateral Raise (Best for back shoulders)

DeltoidRaise

Filed Under: Exercises, Research, Shoulders Tagged With: ,

How To Get a Thick Neck.

February 21, 2014 By 3 Comments

man-muscular-neckSure, a strong, thick neck can look great. But it’s also a great way to help guard against injury and enhance performance.

First, it’s worth noting that proper form and supervision is an absolute must. If your necks becomes overstressed and strained, the training can be counterproductive or even dangerous. It’s important to work with a professional and to consult your physician.

If a bigger, thicker and stronger neck is one of your fitness goals, then I recommend shrugs. Though it’s a classic, time-tested exercise, many people cheat their way through it. Here’s how you perform a proper shrug:

  1. Select a pair of dumbbells that will allow you to do around 8 shrugs. If you can do 15 shrugs, it’s too light to build muscle.
  2. Grasp a dumbbell in each hand. Stand in an athletic stance with a slight bend in your knees. Your back should be straight and your abs should be engaged. Keep your shoulders back.
  3. Shrug upwards and backwards as though you were trying to simultaneously touch both shoulders to your ears. When you get to the top of the movement, try to pull your shoulders backwards an extra inch.
  4. Slowly return to the starting position in a controlled manner. Don’t bounce or let momentum help you into the next repetition.
  5. Repeat.
  6. Lastly, make sure you increase the amount of resistance you use over time. If you start with 40 pound dumbbells, go up to 45 and then 50. You need to progressively overload your muscles to increase their size and strength.

Shrugs are great at training your trapezius muscle. It’s the large muscles that spans your neck, shoulders and top of your back. As it gets bigger and more developed, the girth of your neck will increase.

In addition, an exercise called neck curls can be beneficial. To perform neck curls, lie down on a bench. Face upwards, let your neck and head overhang the edge of the bench. Hold a weight plate against your forehead, and curl your neck upward. It’s like performing a crunch with your neck. Go slowly, be gentle and don’t overdo it. It’s not worth risking an injury.

Enjoy!

 

Filed Under: Back, Exercises, Shoulders

5 Most Important Exercises.

September 21, 2012 By 6 Comments

There are no shortage of exercises to add variety to you workout - and switching things up can prevent a stale workout and plateaued results. By incorporating kettlebells, changing the base of stability, taking a new class or trying new exercises, it’s easy to keep you workout fresh and challenging.

Having said that, there are five tried and true exercises that every workout regime should include. These exercises have passed the test of time and have been used by bodybuilders, powerlifters and workout enthusiasts for generations.

  1. Bench press. The godfather of strength training, any gym worth your time will have a handful of bench presses. Some are flat, some are inclined and some are declined - but all are a great way to build strong and powerful chest muscles. In fact, the bench press is one of the three lifts in the sport of powerlifting. Though this exercise primarily works your pectoralis major muscle (i.e., your pecs), supporting muscles like the anterior deltoids, serratus anterior, coracobrachialis, scapulae fixers, trapezii, and the triceps are also trained.
  2. Barbell bicep curl. Of all the bicep exercises that I’ve tried, none compare in their effectiveness to the barbell bicep curl. By adding a barbell, you’re able to increase the amount of resistance that your muscles work against - and the results speak for themselves. Though you’ll primarily work your biceps brachii muscles, your brachialis (lower biceps) and brachioradialis (forearm) are also trained.
  3. Squats. Want a bigger and stronger butt? No exercise compares to the squat in its effectiveness. Also performed in powerlifting, squats primarily work your gluteus maximus, quadriceps and hamstrings. Your erector spinae, transverse abdominus, gluteus medius, gluteus minimus, adductors, soleus and gastrocnemius will also get some love. Proper form is essential for a safe and effective squat, so it’s important to do your homework or consult with a trainer before you jump into your gym’s squat rack or power cage.
  4. Shoulder press. Sometimes called the overhead press, there are innumerable variations of this popular exercise. In terms of building size or strength, there are no shoulder exercises that can touch the effectiveness of a good barbell or dumbbell shoulder press. Specially, this exercise is great for your deltoids - but it also engages your triceps brachii and trapezius muscles.
  5. Deadlift. Also one of the three powerlifting exercises, the deadlift is a compound exercise that engages a large number of muscles including your latissimus dorsi, trapezius, erector spinae, gluteals, hamstrings, quadriceps and hip flexors. In other words, your leg, butt and back muscles will all be screaming after a good set of deadlifts. Even your forearms, to a lesser degree, and obliques will be engaged. Though the deadlift is extremely effective, it’s not for everyone. For individuals with back injuries or certain joint issues, other exercises may be a better fit.

Of course, you don’t want to do each of these exercises in every workout. It’s best to break your gym sessions out so that each workout targets different muscle groups. Incorporate the bench press on a chest day, the barbell bicep curl on arm days and so on.

In my opinion, these are the top five exercises to include in any workout regime - but I’d love to hear what you think. Which five exercises top your list? Let me know in the comments below.

Filed Under: Arms, Back, Biceps, Butt, Chest, Exercises, Forearms, Legs, Shoulders, Triceps Tagged With: , ,

3 Exercies to Correct Uneven Shoulders.

February 16, 2012 By 24 Comments

Dear Davey,

I was looking in the mirror the other day and realized that my right trapezius is larger than my left and it is noticeable. My friend recommended that I do shrugs whilst having a heavier weight on my left until it balances. Is this right - or is there a better way of evening my muscles out?

From,
Kieren

Hey Kieren,

First things first, the trapezius muscles (often called “traps” for short) are the large superficial muscles that extend up the back of your spine, out toward your shoulders and down your spine (see image). They help move the scapulae and support the arm.

Having uneven muscles is very common - and it’s fairly easy to correct. Whether it’s uneven biceps, glutes or traps, the strategy is very similar. Ditch the machines (unless they are iso-lateral) and barbells in favor of dumbbell workouts. Barbells can be a great part of any workout, and they’re particularly useful when working with very heavy levels of resistance. But with barbells, you’re able to favor one side over the other - and thus experience an uneven workout.

As an example, look at the barbell bench press. If my left pectoral muscle is weaker and less developed, I’m able to shift more of the weight onto my right side when performing presses. If I were doing chest presses with a dumbbell, on the other hand, I wouldn’t be able to shift the weight - and both pectoral muscles would be getting an equal workout.

With machines, it’s also easy to favor one side over the other - unless the machine is iso-lateral. With iso-lateral machines, each side moves independently of the other - and so, these can be used to correct muscular imbalances.

Doing dumbbell shoulder shrugs is a great way to build up your traps. Since you’re looking to build size, use the heaviest weight that still allows for 8 - 10 successful repetitions. You should experience failure on your last repetition. Do up to 4 sets as time allows.

Also consider dumbbell upright rows and reverse dumbbell flies.

Love,
Davey

Filed Under: Ask Davey, Exercises, Shoulders Tagged With: , , , ,

3 Shoulder Exercises Without Weights.

January 11, 2012 By 4 Comments

Working out with a friend makes things more fun - especially if he’s the impossibly sexy Chris Nogeic. While working on an upcoming project, Chris wanted to share three of his favorite shoulder exercises that you can try at home. Check out the video.

While these exercises are demonstrated with a partner, there are plenty of ways to improvise if you’re flying solo. For example: If you’d like to try the handstand push-ups, but don’t have a partner, try performing the exercise against a wall. Or, alternatively, keep your feet on the floor and pike your body by folding at the waist and keeping your upper body in the handstand position. This will also make it a bit easier.

Want to see more of Chris? I know I do. Let me know in the comments below!

Filed Under: Exercises, Shoulders, YouTube Tagged With: ,
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