Strong Shoulders: Exercises and Tips for Shoulder Training

I always finish my workout with a brisk thirty to forty-five minute walk on the treadmill, Stair Climber, or with a Spin Class. Needless to say that can be rather boring, so I spend my time watching people train. I observe fitness fanatics working hard to achieve the body of their dreams, some training hard and smart while others seem to be attempting to tear a limb from their anatomy.

As I witness these ill-informed club members, I cringe and oftentimes step off the treadmill and offer my assistance so they don’t leave the gym in an ambulance. It seems as if the most abused body part is the shoulders.

Lateral raises are arguably one of the most poorly executed exercises performed in gyms around America. The old “pouring from a pitcher” routine causes the ball of the humorous to come out of the socket therefore causing an impingement in the joint.

Try this; raise your arm as if you were doing a lateral raise to the point that your arm is parallel to the floor. Now rotate your palm downward from the thumb. Feel the strain it puts on the joint? Now imagine that with a load.

Behind the neck presses is another one. Do that same thing: raise your arms as if you were doing an overhead press; now simply push your hands back a few inches. Feel that? No wonder you many of us walk around with stiff necks after a shoulder workout. Every time I have gotten a pinched nerve in my neck, it was after a shoulder workout.

Think about it for a moment, the shoulder joint has the most range of motion of any part of the body; therefore the ability to injure that area increases. I only mention all of this to remind you to train smart and think about what you are doing. Lifting heavy is important for maximum gains, but if it comes at the expense of frequent injuries and unnecessary aches and pains I would back off and reassess my form.

As you know, I attempt to bring you exercises and exercise protocol that is “out of the box” as we call it. The same goes for this shoulder article, some of what you will read might be a bit different than what you are used to seeing, if that’s the case then I’ve done my job effectively.

Lateral Raise

Now that I’ve completely berated the lateral raise movement we will begin with that exact exercise. Remember when performing this exercise always keep the hand in the same plane as the arm, try to avoid internally rotating the hands.

The variation I am going to make on this exercise will come in the amount of repetitions you will perform. Try doing one set for one hundred repetitions, yes I said one hundred! Obviously, you will use a fraction of the weight you would have normally selected for this exercise; at least 1/3^rd. The goal will be to complete one hundred without stopping, but if you do, the magic number is seventy. If you didn’t do at least seventy reps then you really should lower the weight. Upon competition of this one you will feel as if someone separated the muscle from the bone; the pain will go deep into the fiber.

Squat Push Press

This is much more than just a shoulder exercise due to the fact you will be doing a squat while you are in the eccentric phase of the shoulder press. This is one of those “desert island” exercises that you would choose if you could only do one thing while stranded with Gilligan and friends.

With your feet shoulder width apart, squat down and pick up the barbell and raise it to the starting position of a pressing movement. With slightly bent knee press the bar overhead. (You should be in a standing position) As you lower the weight to the start position slowly squat simultaneously at the same rate of speed so you finish concurrently. Your elbows should end up inside of your knees. Now press and stand nice and slow completing both movements at the same time. Be sure to move slowly both concentrically and eccentrically.

Swiss Ball One Arm Dumbbell Press

If you don’t own a Swiss Ball yet, I highly suggest that you invest in one because in every routines, I will invariably throw in an exercise that requires you use one. This particular one will also call for a lot of balance on your part, otherwise you could end face down on the gym floor and the laughing stock of the all the other gym members.

Choose a Swiss Ball that accommodates your height, in the seated position your thighs should be parallel with the floor. Now choose a dumbbell that is ½ of what you normally would use for a standard shoulder pressing movement. Whatever arm you start with put the opposite foot on the floor for support while raising the other off the floor. Sit up as straight as possible and concentrate on pulling your belly button into your spine. Doing this will activate your abdominal wall and help support your torso throughout the movement. Now repeat the movement on the other side.

TIP: A variation of this movement can be accomplished by raising the opposite for the second set.

NOTE: If I didn’t mention this in a past article I’ll do it now. Never bend over, while seated, and put the dumbbell back on the floor or lift one. Doing this puts extreme pressure on the lumbar area of your back that could result in a lower back injury.

Swiss Ball with Medicine Ball Throws

Use the same Swiss Ball and get your hands on a fairly heavy medicine ball. Sit up on the ball and always pull your belly button in to activate the ab muscles, this is important for safety and also strengthening of the core musculature.

While seated upright hold the medicine ball, palm up, and throw it up over your head and catch with the other hand. Be sure to go slowly at first and absorb the shock by automatically going into the eccentric phase of the movement. The idea will be to move the ball back on forth without stopping while maintaining perfect posture on the ball. As you become more comfortable with this movement, increase the height of your toss and the rate of speed at which you perform the exercise.

Arnold Presses

I’m not sure if he authorized the use of his name for this exercise or not, but somehow it caught on. I did these one-day on the set of Kiana’s Flex Appeal, in between shots, and I was sore for three days! Let me tell you, it’s hard to fake not being sore on television.

You choose if you want to do these on the Swiss Ball or not. I like to do them standing myself just to add a new dimension. Choose a fairly heavy dumbbell and go to the traditional press position. If you are standing be sure to keep a slight bend in the knee and have a good base of support by taking a shoulder width stance.

Press the dumbbells overhead with your hands in the pronated position, when you reach the top of the movement smoothly turn your palms to supinated (palms facing body) and lower slowly and repeat.

TIP: Be sure to think of lowering from the elbow, not the hands. Doing this will place emphasis in the anterior head of the deltoid.

SUGGESTION: Heavy bench pressers might want to avoid emphasizing the training of the anterior head of the deltoid and focus more on the rear delts. The reason is that many “heavy benchers” tend to overdevelop this area and get a forward shoulder posture syndrome.

There you have it: some off the wall exercises, or should I say off the ball, that you should incorporate into your workout to add some variety and hopefully a bit of a challenge.

Now do me a favor, if you’re on the treadmill bored to death and see someone abusing their body by doing an exercise completely wrong, kindly approach them and offer assistance. You’ll find that most often you will be welcomed in your suggestions and you may have possibly saved someone from serious injury. If you feel uncomfortable doing it yourself seek out a trainer and make him or her aware of the situation.

I hope you are enjoying these articles and remember your comments, suggestions, and “out of the box” exercises are always welcome.