The Best Workout For Shoulders

I would consider myself an expert when it comes to the shoulders. The shoulders have always been my favorite muscle group to work out. So I would love to share with you The Best Workout For Shoulders and some other tips. Of course, you will still need to combine these workouts with a great diet and a sufficient amount of protein.

Looking for the best protein? You can check out the review I wrote on my all-time favorite here Pro Jym Protein.

I have been complimented on my shoulders more than any other muscle group in the 20 years since I have been working out. You know the saying, “Never trust a skinny chef.”    Well, in this case, you can trust me because I have put in the work and have the results to show! Please keep reading if you are looking for the best shoulder exercises.

DIFFERENT MUSCLES IN THE SHOULDERS

The more technical name you may know or have heard before is the Deltoid. This is the main muscle in the shoulder and consists of 3 parts or also called heads. All three of these heads assist with your arms raising.

1. The anterior deltoid is in the front of your body, making sense because anterior means “front.”
   
2. The lateral deltoid is the middle part of your shoulder muscle.
   
3. The posterior deltoid is the shoulder muscle in the back and is also known as the rear deltoids.
   

 

I CONSIDER THIS THE BEST WORKOUT FOR THE SHOULDERS

I have always loved this workout, and I do it first on shoulder day.  I highly recommend you do the same because this lift is the best workout for shoulder mass. You have the most energy and strength when you start your workout. So take advantage of this if your goal is to pack on muscle mass.

I make sure this is always a part of my shoulder workout routine after seeing the extreme muscle gain it gave me.

This can either be a shoulder workout for men or a shoulder workout for women. A great upper body workout!

Ok, here is the king of shoulder workouts….

The Military Dumbell Press!!!

HOW IT’S DONE

• Find 2 dumbbells and sit on an incline bench. The back of the bench should be at a 90-degree angle.
• You can rest the dumbbells on your thighs before you start the motion. Make sure your lower back is pressed against the bench, and keep your back and shoulders as straight as possible.
• You can now raise the dumbbells to shoulder height from your thighs. Depending on how heavy you go, you may want to use your thighs to help lift the dumbbells.
• Your palms should be facing forward, but it is also ok for them to face your body if this feels more comfortable. As you can see in the video, your forearms should be perpendicular to the ground.
• Now push the dumbbells above your head until your arms have fully extended. Pause briefly and lower back to shoulder height.
• Repeat this for the number of reps you want. I personally stick to what is called the hypertrophy phase(muscle-building phase). The middle of this would be around 8 or 9 reps of the heaviest weight you can lift.

 

OTHER GREAT WORKOUTS FOR SHOULDERS

Now there are many different shoulder workouts, but I have basically stuck to 4  in the last ten years. You can do shoulder workouts with cables. Or you can do shoulder workouts with bands.

I recommend once you get the hang of things to stick with either dumbells or a barbell. The reason for this is because you can generally get up more weight. The more weight your muscles are lifting, the bigger the muscle!

I prefer dumbbells over a barbell because they allow more range of motion than a barbell, and I feel this is easier on my joints. These really are the best shoulder exercises in my opinion.

1. SIDE DUMBBELL RAISES

This shoulder workout targets the lateral deltoid muscle. (side)

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HOW IT’S DONE

• Start standing with a dumbbell in each hand with your arms straight at your sides. Your feet should be about  hip distance apart. Make sure you are looking forward and your core engaged.
• I prefer to start this lift a couple of inches out from my sides. From here, you start the lateral raise and lift the dumbbells out to each side while making sure your arms are almost straight. Once your elbows reach shoulder height, and your body looks like a “T,” you can stop and pause for a quick second.
• Breathing out as you now lower the weights back to the starting position and repeat reps as desired.

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2. FRONT DUMBBELL RAISES

This works the anterior deltoid (front)

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HOW IT’S DONE

• Grab 2 dumbbells and stand with your feet shoulder-width apart with the dumbbells at your side.
• Start to lift the dumbbells upward by lifting your arms away from your body. Lift your arms all the way up until your shoulders and elbows are in line with each other.  When they reach this position, your palms should be facing toward the floor.
• Take a quick second to pause and slowly lower the weight back to the starting position.  Repeat reps as desired.

 

3. REAR DUMBBELL RAISES

This works the posterior deltoid. (back)

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HOW IT’S DONE

• Lie face down on an incline bench while pressing your chest firmly against the bench pad.
• Rest your arms alongside your body while holding a dumbbell in each hand. Your palms should be facing each other.
• Now you can start to raise the weight while your shoulder blades are engaged. This is similar to the lateral raise lift.
• When you get to shoulder height, this is when you can stop.
• The last step is to lower the weight back down to starting position slowly.

You can do these either standing, seated, or lying face down on an incline bench like in the video above.

HOW MANY REPS AND SETS OF EACH SHOULDER WORKOUT

This all depends on your goals.  Are you looking for Strength, muscle, or endurance? I will explain the different phases below, but personally, I stick in the middle of the muscle-building phase with all my shoulder exercises.

REP RANGES:

1. STRENGTH is based on lifting the heaviest weight and in the 1-5 rep range.
2. HYPERTROPHY known as the muscle growth phase is 6-12 reps.
3. ENDURANCE is generally around 13 or more reps.

You may also be wondering how much rest is in between each set?

REST:

1. STRENGTH is 3-5 minutes recommended.
2. HYPERTROPHY is 1-2 minutes of rest, according to the National Academy Of Sports Medicine (1).  I prefer the full 2, so I have had enough recovery to lift the heavy weight again.
3. ENDURANCE is 45 seconds to 2 minutes.

SHOULDER EXERCISES YOU SHOULD NOT BE DOING

The shoulder is a ball-and-socket joint that allows for a large range of motion. The shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone). The shoulder joint is held together by muscles, tendons, and ligaments. A rotator cuff is a group of four muscles that attach to the shoulder blade and help lift the arm.

The shoulder is a complicated joint and is easily injured. One of the reasons for this is that the shoulder joint is not as stable as other joints in the body, such as the knee or hip. This means that it is easier to stretch or tear the ligaments and muscles that support the shoulder.

One of the most common shoulder injuries is a rotator cuff tear. A rotator cuff is a group of muscles and tendons that attach the shoulder blade to the upper arm bone. These muscles and tendons help lift the arm and stabilize the shoulder joint. A  tear can be a very painful injury and can take a long time to heal.

There are several shoulder exercises that you should not do if you want to avoid injuring your shoulder. One of these exercises is lateral raises with palm down or thumb down. When you do this exercise, you raise your arm out to the side until it is parallel to the ground. However, when you do this exercise with your palm down or thumb down, you put too much stress on the rotator cuff muscles and tendons. This can lead to a rotator cuff tear.

I actually had to stop workout out for a few months because I was doing this lateral raise wrong. Many years ago, I found a popular fitness girl on youtube, and she was doing this exercise all wrong. At the time, I didn’t know and just followed her instructions.  She recommended pretending you are pouring Tea once your arms are raised.  SO WRONG!

Another shoulder exercise that you should avoid is behind-the-head shoulder presses. This exercise involves lifting weights over your head by bending your elbows and bringing your hands behind your head. This exercise puts too much stress on the rotator muscles and tendons and can lead to a tear.

Finally, triceps bench dips are another exercise that you should avoid if you want to protect your shoulders. This shoulder exercise involves sitting on a bench with your hands gripping the edge on either side of your body. You then dip your body downwards so that your upper arms are parallel to the ground before pushing yourself back up to the start position. This exercise works the triceps muscles in your arms, but it also puts a lot of stress on your shoulders. This can lead to a rotator cuff tear or another shoulder injury.

THE BEST ROTATOR CUFF EXERCISES

The rotator cuff muscles and tendons can be injured from overuse or from a sudden, traumatic event. The most common symptoms of an injury are a dull ache in the shoulder that worsens at night, pain when reaching overhead, and weakness in the shoulder.

If you’re experiencing pain in your rotator, it’s important to start doing some exercises to help strengthen and stretch the muscles. Here are five  exercises that are great for beginners:

1) Seated external rotation: Sit with your arm out to your side and bend at 90 degrees with your palm up. Use your other hand to gently rotate your arm back and forth.

2) Standing external rotation: Stand with your arm out to your side and bend at 90 degrees with your palm up. Use your other hand to gently rotate your arm back and forth.

3) Shoulder shrugs: Stand with your feet hip-width apart and lift your shoulders up towards your ears, then release them down. Repeat 10-12 times.

4) Wall push-ups: Place your palms against a wall at shoulder height and slowly push yourself away from the wall until your arms are fully extended. Then slowly return to the starting position. Do 10-12 reps.

5) Seated row: Sit in a chair with feet flat on the floor and legs slightly apart. Hold a weight (dumbbell or can of soup) in one hand, and lean forward slightly so that you feel the tension in the back of your upper arm. Pull the weight towards you until it reaches your ribcage, then release it back to the starting position. Do 10-12 reps with each arm.

FINAL WORD

You can either do your shoulder workout at home or shoulder workout in gym type atmosphere. Either way, you should be working them twice a week, and I recommend 2 or 3 days rest in between. The best shoulder exercises are much more than just making it to the gym. Other pieces to the puzzle include good sleep and a great diet!

Please pay extra attention to the lateral raise I was talking about above to avoid injury. My shoulder muscles are still giving me a little trouble to this day because of this.

Try doing the King of shoulder workouts I recommend 1st once you get to the gym. This should definitely be a part of your shoulder workout routine.  Here is my secret or not-so-secret shoulder recipe I will leave you with that I do and in the same order I do them.

1. Dumbbell military press 4 sets of 8 or 9 reps. 2 minutes of rest in between.
2. Side dumbbell raises  3 sets of 8 or 9 reps. 2 minutes of rest in between.
3. Front dumbbell raises 3 sets of 8 or 9 reps.  2 minutes of rest in between.
4. Rear dumbbell raises 3 sets of 8 or 9 reps.  2 minutes of rest in between.

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Here are some other great best workout articles I wrote for other muscles you may be interested in reading.

1. If you want a bigger back, then check out my best workout for lats.
2. Looking to increase your chest size, then I recommend reading my how to build a huge chest 
3. Are you having trouble with increasing your arm size? Then you need to read my best workout for triceps
4. How about the best overall workouts to gain muscle?  You will find the top 3 workouts to gain muscle here. 

“In training, you listen to your body. In competition, you tell your body to shut up.”

– Rich Froning Jr., CrossFit Games champion