Shoulders and smart shoulder training for growth

“Shoulder” is a small word, but in the gym it’s a big topic. When the deltoids lag behind, your whole upper body looks flatter, even if your chest, back and arms are developing nicely.

Here is a practical look at how to plan shoulder training: what to pair it with, why long sets work and when it pays to leave your ego at the door. This isn’t the final truth, just experience gained from training.

Why do shoulders need their own attention?

Training legs, back and arms gets talked about a lot. Shoulders often get skipped or are simply tacked onto the end of chest day. On paper that seems logical: chest, shoulders and triceps all work together in many presses.

In practice, it’s a different story. If your shoulders need catching up, after a heavy chest workout you no longer have the same energy, drive or focus. That’s why I don’t consider the chest/shoulders/triceps combination a good choice for anyone whose goal is shoulder development. It suits better when your shoulders are already a strong point and you only need to maintain them.

My first preference would be shoulders/triceps or shoulders/biceps. A second option is shoulders paired with the lats. Shoulders/traps/abs is also worth considering. The simple truth: if shoulders are a priority, put them early in the workout, not at the end when your body is tired.

How do you make your shoulders grow?

The deltoids need prolonged tension to grow. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t build strength. On the contrary, stronger vertical pressing helps. But long sets shouldn’t be the exception in shoulder training.

Supersets, tri-sets and drop sets work well, especially with raises. Standing or seated raises are a good fit, because the weight doesn’t have to be heavy, yet the muscle gets a long time under load. Sets of 12-25 repetitions shouldn’t be anything unusual in shoulder training.

One example from my own training: as the last or second-to-last exercise of a shoulder workout, I’ve done the standing barbell press with 55 kg for four sets. Same weight, but the sets get longer: 55 kg: 8x, 12x, 16x, 20x, 24x. It’s brutal, but your shoulders get a very clear message.

Another option is to combine presses. For example, the seated dumbbell press 40 kg: 10x, followed immediately by the standing barbell push press 60 kg: 12–15x. From time to time you can also try seeing how many sets it takes you to complete 50, 75 or 100 repetitions with 50 kg.

Rear delts shouldn’t be left to an add-on exercise

The rear parts of the shoulders are weak in many lifters. Yet they are exactly what gives the upper body a much better shape from behind and from the side. A well-developed rear delt makes your pose look wider and better balanced.

Exercise no. 1 for me is the bent-over dumbbell raise, especially the chest-supported version. I found this exercise while studying what John Meadows´i was doing, and it has improved the shape of my shoulders a lot. I recommend sets of 25-100 repetitions. I’ve described the technique in more detail in my translation of “Mountain Dog Shoulders”.

If your rear delts are clearly lagging, you can even start the workout with them. Do the chest-supported bent-over raises first and only then the rest of your shoulder exercises. The same area is also worked by bent-over raises without chest support and by seated dumbbell raises, where your body leans slightly forward and the dumbbells drop below your thighs.

Shoulders and systematic progression

Vertical presses often get less deliberate progression than the bench press, squat or deadlift. Shoulders do get pressing work, but often by feel and in a pump-chasing style.

My own visible progress came when I started doing seated dumbbell presses to a set plan. Controlled, with a good feel for the movement, and with a repetition and set scheme. For example, you can use the rhythm 5 x 6/6 x 6/5 x 7/7 x 7/4 x 8/5 x 8 etc.

One limit is important, though: don’t use loads for shoulder pressing that leave you with a set of fewer than 6 repetitions. With dumbbells, the weight for a set of 4-5 repetitions gets so heavy that even getting the dumbbells into the starting position becomes questionable. The weight for a set of 3-4 repetitions is too great a risk for the shoulder joint. In the progression of vertical presses, I don’t recommend weights you can’t lift for more than 6 repetitions in a set.

What to watch for in shoulder training

Think, observe and analyze. It sounds simple, but with shoulders it’s especially important. Not every exercise suits everyone.

Many lifters can’t tolerate EZ-bar upright rows, pulling from the front up to the chin. With a heavy weight, the exercise can put the shoulder joint in a very uncomfortable position. The same goes for the seated behind-the-neck barbell press. With a light weight and a long set it may suit some people, but with heavy weights injuries may not be long in coming. In my experience, weights that limited me to fewer than 6 repetitions started irritating my shoulders very quickly.

The shoulder joint often recovers slowly. That’s why you shouldn’t ignore pain. If an exercise pulls, stabs or makes the movement feel unstable, choose a different angle, a different piece of equipment or a lighter weight.

I’m cautious when it comes to stretching. In my view, it’s practically impossible to stretch the shoulder muscles properly, at least not the way you can with some other muscles. At the same time, the shoulders are often already held in tense, stretched positions in everyday movement. Perhaps that’s exactly why the deltoids sometimes need a stronger-than-usual training stimulus to grow.

FAQ: shoulders and your training plan

Should you train shoulders together with chest?

If your shoulders are a strong point, a chest/shoulders/triceps split can work. If your shoulders need development, it’s better to give them a day with a dedicated focus, or combine them with triceps, biceps, lats, traps or abs.

Does shoulder training need heavy, short sets?

Very short sets are often not the best choice for shoulders. In presses, it’s better to use a weight you can lift for more than 6 reps, and add longer sets on top.

Why do the rear delts lag behind?

Because in many programs they don’t get enough direct work. If your rear delts are weak, start your workouts during some training periods with bent-over flyes.

Author: Janar Rückenberg

Source:Turg.Fitness.ee

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