7 Exercises To Strengthen Your Shoulders

Throughout history, broad, strong and toned shoulders have been a symbol of strength, power and authority. In this article we will talk about 7 exercises to strengthen your shoulders.

In terms of appearance and body shape, the shoulders are an important part because they are the base of the muscles in your arms and chest, and maintain the balance between the two.

If you forget to train this important part of the body, your surrounding muscle groups (arms and chest) may be disproportionately large while your shoulders remain small.

Exercises to strengthen your shoulders

The good news is that there are special exercises that you can try to get shoulder muscles on par with the rest of your body, and achieve the coveted strong and toned look. Below are seven exercises you can do to strengthen your shoulders.

1. Outward rotation

To start, you need to buy a rubber training band, to perform a variety of exercises.

• Hook the strap around a pole or piece of furniture where it is the same height as the elbows.
• Stand next to it and reach over the body with your opposite hand, to grab the ribbon, and keep it taut in front of you.
• Bend your elbow to 90 degrees, while keeping your arm close to your side, as if you have a pencil in your armpit.
• Turn slightly away from the strap, using a short movement.
• Make three sets of 15 repetitions on each side.

2. Shoulder pressure with closure

For this exercise , it is recommended that you use dumbbells so that it is easy to increase the intensity.

• Perform the traditional shoulder lift, and when your arm is outstretched and level with your nose, bend your elbow so that the dumbbell is in front of your eyes.
• Open your arm and lower it to your side.
• Try starting with a pair of light dumbbells.
• Make three sets of 15 repetitions on each side.

3. Steel shoulders

• Sit in a chair and hook the exercise band under your foot.
• While holding the band at your knees, stretch your arms over your head and then lower them to the height of your shoulders.
• Repeat this slow, gradual motion 10 times.

4. Neck lift

The advantage of this exercise is that the weight is always near your torso, which helps maintain a good posture and prevent you from putting too much pressure on your back.

• Standing upright, hold a dumbbell in each hand and tilt your head up as you stretch your arms out in front of you.
• Raise your arms to the neck, by bending your elbows and bringing your hands in sideways.
• Slowly lower and perform three sets of 15 repetitions each.

5. Loose abdomen

• Lie face down and stretch your right arm.
• Take a dumbbell and raise and lower this arm repeatedly, and bend your elbow a little for momentum.
• Try to make three sets of 15 repetitions per arm.

6. Shoulder pull with barbell

This exercise requires greater resistance – try using a barbell with a few kg on (not too much).

• Stand upright with your feet shoulder-width apart, and grasp the barbell with an overhand grip with your palms facing your thighs.
• Your hands should be slightly further apart than your shoulders.
• Lift the barbell and let it rest on your shoulders, behind your neck.
• Pull your shoulders together, to raise them as much as possible, and hold the weight for a few seconds.

7. Front lift with dumbbell

• Take a pair of dumbbells with the same weight, one in each hand.
• Stand straight with the dumbbells in front of the thighs, and arms outstretched.
• Holding your torso still, lift the left dumbbell forward with a slight bend at the elbow and the palm facing down.
• Raise your arm so that it is higher than parallel to the floor, and exhale while taking a short break at the top of the movement.
• Lower the dumbbell in a sliding motion, to return to the starting position, and raise your right arm to do the same exercise.

• Do 10 repetitions with each arm.