There are about a half dozen of what may be called the best shoulder exercises. Powerlifters, Olympic weight lifters, and bodybuilders work on their shoulders for somewhat different reasons. Bodybuilders want to develop wide shoulders that, with a thin waist, show off a tapered appearance. The Powerlifters and Olympic weight lifters work on shoulder exercises to toughen up that part of their body so as to avoid shoulder injuries when training for and performing their major lifts.
Shoulder Exercises Involve Complex Anatomy
The shoulders are a frequently injured area along with the lower back and knees. There is no joint of the body that is so complex and can move in so many different directions. It might be a good idea before exercising your shoulders if you understand a little bit about how the shoulder joint anatomy works.
Cable Reverse Flye
Exercises that specifically target the rear head of the deltoid muscle pop up three times on this list, and with good reason — the rear delts don’t tend to get much attention. But for shoulders that will fill out your T-shirts, you’re gonna need rear delts that can keep pace with the meaty front and middle delts. Those latter two get additional work during chest and shoulder presses, while the rears really need ample attention of their own to thrive. For that, the reverse flye comes to the rescue, adding a dimension of muscle control and balance that the more popular reverse pec-deck flye cannot match.
Main Area Targeted: rear deltoids
Strengths: Like all cable-based moves, the key attribute is continual tension on the muscles being worked. Unlike dumbbells, barbells and some machines, on which the tension eases at certain points of the range of motion because of gravity and inertia — with cables, the resistance is always counter-pulling, in this case meaning your rear delts never get a break as you rep.
Bent-Over Dumbbell Lateral Raise
Some would argue that the one-arm bent-over lateral raise — allowing you to focus all your effort on one side at a time — is superior to the two-armed version. We disagree. The unilateral version increases the ability to cheat, allowing you to rotate more at the waist when repping. Doing both arms at the same time cuts down on that kind of momentum, putting more pressure on your rear delts to carry the load.
Main Area Targeted: rear deltoids
Strengths: The bent-over raise is versatile and can be performed either standing or seated at the end of a flat bench leaning over your knees. And the use of dumbbells means other muscles come into play for stabilization — which may not mean a heck of a lot for your rear delts but does help create a more functional physique overall.
Barbell Upright Rows
This shoulder exercise almost did not make the list because of the possibility of shoulder impingement when performing it. The exercise works the front deltoids. With feet about shoulder-width apart and keeping a neutral back pick a barbell off the floor or a rack. Your hand spacing should be less than shoulder width apart. Pull the barbell upwards in the direction of your chin. If you have any pain doing this it would be best to stop and trying doing the high pull exercise instead.
High Pulls
This one is great for the side and rear deltoids. This is also an upward rowing type of shoulder exercise except that your hands are wider than shoulder width. Start as you would doing an upright barbell row with arms hanging down in front of you. Bend forwards a bit with your knees and hips keeping your back arched. The bar will travel some inches downwards towards your knees. Then straighten up and pull upwards. This shoulder exercise is fairly safe to do. Many who have shoulder problems do only this one.