Exercises for the delta and trapezius. Deltas: how, while working on them, not to acquire a powerful scruff. Unique exercises for trapezius muscles

I'm sure that experienced athletes, who understand the issue of periodization of training, biomechanics of movements and the theory of constructing specialized micro- and mesocycles, a smile appeared on their faces when they read the title of the article. Because there are no most powerful or most best exercises. There are more effective and less effective movements, but what is much more important is not the exercise itself, but how to combine it with others as part of a weekly cycle.

Less experienced people in matters of sports continue to search magic exercises, magic powders and witch pills that will allow you to quickly achieve results. Unfortunately, there are none. On the other hand, if you approach the issue wisely, you can actually improve the shape of the deltas and achieve a significant increase in their volume over a very modest period. It took me eight months. After a year and a half, the deltoids went from lagging behind to becoming the dominant muscle group.

Below I will tell you the principles that will help you build wisely training program with an emphasis on shoulder development. And, of course, I will show you the five most effective exercises for this.

Two main mistakes that hinder the development of powerful deltas

First mistake

Incorrect exercise technique. Therefore, pay special attention to their descriptions below and to the video - I selected the highest quality videos.

Because of the crooked technique, people load everything but their shoulders. Trapezius, back, arms, overload the shoulder joints. In the first three cases, the load is ineffective - the weight is too small for these muscles or the vector of movement is incorrect. And the result of the last case will be an injury that will set you back a month and a half in training.

Looks at the barbell, bear grip - all this will end badly

In addition, it is worth mentioning here about frankly dangerous exercises that can severely damage the shoulder joints. A separate article has been written about this - be sure to read:

Second mistake

There is too much load on the deltas, due to which they do not have time to recover. After all, these are small muscle groups that work in almost all pulling and pushing movements during chest and back training.

Let's remember one of the classic split options:

• Chest + back
• Arms + deltoids

During chest training, you really loaded the front deltoids. And working on the back, the rear deltas were additionally pumped. Every other day, thoroughly load the same muscles again, but 48 hours is too short for their recovery. The muscles are not yet ready for serious work, which is why strength results do not increase and, as a result, muscle volume does not increase either.

Moreover, your arms are also well loaded during chest and back training. It turns out to be a double blow to all small muscle groups.

Let's add to this whole mess not correct technique performing exercises and we will get problems with the development of deltas (and arms too) in those for whom these muscle groups are not dominant by nature.

The most effective exercises for training your shoulders

There are a great variety of all kinds of exercises for the development of deltas (the shoulder, in fact, is the part of the arm from the deltoid to the elbow, and the deltoid muscle is the same ball of three bundles that you want to develop). You can work with blocks, dumbbells, barbells, not to mention dozens of specialized exercise machines.

Below I will give the most effective movements in my personal opinion, which is not the ultimate truth. It was these movements that I used to work out the deltas to their current state (photo at the end of the article).

First, a little theory. Delta consists of three beams. Front, middle and back. The front one is responsible for pushing movements, the rear one is responsible for pulling movements. The middle delta is partially involved in both cases, plus when abducting the arms to the sides.

In fact for effective development two deltas are enough basic exercises- bench press and traction.

There are enough pressing movements in any person’s strength training - all guys love to bench press, decently loading the front deltoid. But with traction movements they hose. And if they do a barbell row to the chin, then in most cases it is done incorrectly, loading the trapezius and injuring the shoulder joint.

As a result, we see a situation where the front delta is more or less developed, and the rear delta is completely absent. Let's fix the situation.

Military press (standing barbell press)

An excellent basic exercise for developing the front deltoid, which partly involves the middle bundle too. The grip width is medium, that is, grip the bar slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. If you take it too wide, the chest will steal part of the load; if you take it too narrow, you will overload the triceps, which will fail before the delta works well.

My personal advice is that I do not recommend lowering the bar below chin level, so as not to put a breaking load on the joint. Even if your flexibility allows you to lower the barbell to your chest, you shouldn’t push your luck. The risk of injury does not at all justify additional stretching of the muscle for supposedly better growth.

note that military press It also trains the core muscles well.

An exercise option from Yaroslav Brin:

A good alternative from Denis Borisov (just don’t bend your hands back, the bar should lie on the base of your palm, and not on the pads, so as not to injure your hand):

And another interesting option from Adam Kozyra:

Dumbbell press sitting or standing

An alternative to the military press is to do the dumbbell press while standing. In cases where there are difficulties with the lower back and a large compression load is undesirable, you can do a dumbbell bench press while sitting with a slight inclination of the bench (80°).

Of the features, I will only note the point where it is necessary to lower the dumbbells - to ear level or so that the angle between the shoulder and forearm is 90°. Lower it lower - create a breaking load on the shoulder joint. Also remember that the dumbbells lie on the base of your palms, and not on their pads (calluses).

Exercise option from Denis Borisov:

And from Yaroslav Brin:

Barbell row to the chin (to the chest)

The second basic movement is for the development of deltas, in particular the middle and posterior bundles. The main mistake is to do this movement while grasping the bar. narrow grip, and then pull it higher, lifting your elbows almost above your head. In this case, you injure the shoulder joint and force the trapezius to work, but not the deltoids.

Most effective option The exercise is shown in the video below ( wide grip, slightly bend forward, pull to the chest, elbows do not rise above the level of the deltoids):

Swings (breeches) with dumbbells while standing

An excellent option for additional development of the middle beam of deltas, but subject to correct execution exercises. To avoid mistakes, watch the video carefully:

Kickbacks in the Butterfly machine (plus bent over swings)

Pair additional exercises It wouldn’t hurt to work on the rear delta bundles, since this group most often lags behind in development.

When doing the back abduction in the Butterfly simulator, it is important to move your shoulders forward and work within the amplitude (it is very short) so as not to use the back muscles:

As for bent-over dumbbell swings, it’s the same: we bring our shoulders forward, “smear” the trapezoid over the back, we work within the amplitude (the elbows do not rise above the level of the deltas):

How to intelligently build a microcycle for the development of deltas

If you are a beginner, then with an emphasis on deltas you don’t have to bother at all. Work in FullBody mode, and your shoulders will develop perfectly on presses and rows. It is enough to include the military press and barbell rows to the chin in the program and alternate these exercises in two basic blocks. I gave an example of such blocks in the first episodes of the BeardyBuilding podcast and in.

If you already have a couple of years of training experience, but the deltoids are still lagging behind in development, here is a basic scheme on how to cheer them up. She personally helped me a lot.

Four-day split:

• Monday: legs (3-4 exercises).
• Tuesday: pectoral (2-3 exercises) + anterior delta (1-2 exercises - military press or dumbbell press, lifting dumbbells in front of you with a hammer grip).
• Wednesday: rest.
• Thursday: back (3-4 basic exercises) + rear delta 1 exercise (any of your choice from the above).
• Friday: triceps (two exercises) + biceps (1-2 exercises, after all, when working on the back it is already loaded) + middle delta (2 exercises - barbell row to the chin, dumbbell swings to the sides).

The meaning, I think, is clear - together with the pectoral muscles, the anterior delta is well loaded and it is enough to finish it off with 1-2 exercises. The rear delta is loaded along with the back, and one exercise at the end is enough to finish it off. Plus a couple of exercises middle delta on hand day

Three day split

If you don't have the time or desire to do four strength training sessions a week, then add one basic triceps exercise to your chest day. For example, close grip bench press or French press. On your back day, add one or two biceps exercises (PSB and/or dumbbell biceps curls while sitting on an incline bench). On leg day, after training your lower body, do middle deltoid exercises (barbell rows and standing dumbbell swings).

A specialized version of the microcycle with an emphasis on the upper body

I practiced this option for four months from October last year to January of this year inclusive. The point is to visually increase the size of your upper body without the need to particularly increase muscle mass. To do this, we make the back more lumpy (emphasis on training its inner part), prominent trapezius, more powerful deltoids, plus pecs.

Excellent specialization is obtained if necessary muscle group trains a couple of times a week. In my case I made four strength training per week, within the framework of which I separately worked on the thickness (tuberosity) and width of the back, hammered the deltoids a couple of times and the pecs a couple of times. The exercises below are just an example, you can use any of your choice. Two or three warm-up approaches, two working sets.

Monday (pectorals + trapezius + deltoids):

• Two chest pressing exercises for 10-12 reps (for example, bench press, 30° dumbbell press, or hummer press).
• Shrugs with dumbbells or barbell (15-20 reps) + T-row with emphasis on the chest or lever row (10-12 reps).
• Military press or standing dumbbell press.
• Row in the cable handle block to the chest.

Tuesday (Legs + Abs):

• 3-4 leg exercises to pump up all muscles (barbell squats, leg extensions, deadlifts, platform presses, lunges - 8-12 reps) + (20-25 reps).
• Twisting and reverse crunches on the press (20-25 repetitions 3-4 sets).
• Neck (so as not to be skinny in the background broad shoulders) - raising the head with a pancake on the forehead and/or on the back of the head.

Thursday (back width + deltoids):

• Three to four favorite exercises for back width (pull-ups, hammer rows or barbells/dumbbells, rows vertical block to the chest, pullover, etc. - 10-12 repetitions).
• Pull the barbell to the chin and swing dumbbells to the sides (10-12 repetitions, swings can be done for 12-15 repetitions).

Friday (arms + chest for tone):

• One rigorous basic chest exercise for three working sets of 12-15 reps. In my case it was chest push-ups from parallel bars with weight on the belt.
• A pair of basic biceps exercises (for example, PSB, seated dumbbell curls) + a pair basic movements triceps (close-grip press, French press, cable extension, etc.) 10-12 repetitions.

Briefly about the main thing

The keynote of the article is not just to give some basic scheme for work, but to teach the principles of effective development of certain muscle groups.

In particular, success depends both on the correct technique of performing exercises and on the reasonable construction of a microcycle so as not to overload one or another muscle group. Use assistant muscle training (synergists) if you want to save time without overloading the body. Or wisely cycle training on muscles that are in no way related to each other if you want to work them as efficiently as possible within one workout. Moreover, in this case, it is advisable to take one large muscle group and one small one. Let's say pectoral and biceps, back and triceps, etc.

Developing a beautiful, athletic body is not as easy as it seems. You need to think here. At least if you want to progress, and not stagnate for years.

Every man dreams of a trapeze like Tom Hardy. To pump up the trapezius muscle, you need to choose effective complex training and exercises, and also understand where it is located and what the structure of this muscle group is.

The trapezius is the area of ​​the back where the broad muscles connect to the neck and deltoids. They are divided into three functional parts: top, middle and bottom. You can study the structure of the muscle in more detail by reading the photo.

To achieve an ideal result, it is necessary to work on all three areas. You can exercise in the gym or at home, the main thing is systematicity, correct technique and an individual approach to developing a training program.

In order for trapezoid exercises to bring the expected results, it is important to understand how to train correctly, as well as follow simple recommendations and tips:

• Before the training, be sure to, warm up, roll your joints. To do this, hang on the horizontal bar. First, in a relaxed state, then do partial pull-ups.
• When performing an effort, all muscles must be tensed as much as possible., feel their work and concentrate on it.
• If you want to work on the mass, when performing movements, your shoulders should be raised as high as possible. This will also allow you to effectively pump the upper sections of the trapezius.
• To support the body in a straight position, reduce stress on the spine and improve function muscle tissue, perform repetitions while holding your breath.
• It is easier to keep your torso in the correct position if When performing the movement, look straight ahead.
• After finishing the training, you should warm up again. This will relieve hypertension and give strength for the recovery process.

Any exercise aimed at pumping the trapezius muscle should be performed at least two sets of 5 times.

The load should be increased gradually, it is necessary to give the body the opportunity to adapt and the muscle tissue to recover from micro-tears. Training at home or in the gym should always be done in a good mood.

Shrugs and their variations

Shrugs are basic exercises used to pump up the trapezius, deltoids and neck. They are widespread among bodybuilders and are used in fitness.

The best athletes and athletes include this type of training in their mandatory training program.

The advantage of shrugs is the huge number of different ways to perform them. The most effective and popular variations are:

• On the uneven bars. The technique of performing the exercise is simple. It is necessary to raise the body and hang on the uneven bars outstretched arms Oh. Without bending your elbow joints, you need to lift your body up as much as possible. Hold this position for 10 seconds, then relax and rest for 10 seconds.

• With a barbell. For men, this option seems to be the most effective. It is necessary to become in initial position– legs and grip shoulder-width apart, lower back slightly arched, sternum straightened, barbell in straight arms. Raise your shoulders up, while straining your trapezius. At the highest point, hold the position for a couple of seconds and lower your shoulders. Shrugs with a barbell can be performed while holding the equipment behind your back. Another option is training in a Smith machine.

• With dumbbells. The minimum weight of each dumbbell must be more than 10 kg. Starting position – stand straight, dumbbells in your hands, legs apart at shoulder level. Without bending your elbows, raise your shoulders straight vertically. The effort must be made with the trapezius muscle. The advantage of this technique is the large amplitude, so it will be possible to work the upper trapezius faster.

• In the simulator. To perform this, you need to stand in the middle of the machine, with your legs apart. Using an overhand grip, take the handle of the exercise machine, inhale, tense your abs and raise your shoulders up. As you exhale, your shoulders slowly lower.

• Shrugs with a kettlebell. Exercises with kettlebells work great for the lower and middle parts of the trapezius, as they also allow you to work the muscles of the shoulder, neck and triceps. Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. We hold a weight with both hands. Inhale, and as you exhale, raise your shoulders as high as possible.

Chin pull

When thinking about how to start powerful traps, you need to understand that shrugs alone will not be enough. The upper shoulder girdle program should be varied. It is important to alternate different movements and exercises.

The second effective action for the lower, upper and middle trapezius muscles is the chin row. This exercise is aimed at pumping up the shoulders, the trapezius is involved indirectly, secondary. It has three versions.

For training you will need one of three devices:

• Barbell. Close-grip rows using a bar are an effective solution that will have a positive effect on the body. The smaller the distance between the palms, the more the trapezius will be strained and worked. Starting position – stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart. We take the barbell with outstretched arms from above. The back is straight, the lower back is slightly arched. The bar touches the hips. We lift the bar straight up, sliding along the body from the hips to the chin. Having reached the maximum, fix the position and smoothly lower your arms down. Elbows should look to the sides throughout all actions. At the top point they should be above shoulder level.

• Dumbbells. We stand straight, legs apart. We take a dumbbell in each hand overhand grip. Raise the equipment to chin level. Elbows spread to the sides, back straight. As you inhale, lower your arms down.

• Training apparatus. IN block simulator where the crossover is performed, you need to stand straight, take the handle with an overhand grip and pull it towards your neck. You need to perform the exercise as many times as possible.

Remember that the top shoulder girdle is a connected structure. In addition to targeted exercises for the trapezius, you can pump it up by performing other actions aimed at developing the muscles of the arms, chest, and deltas.

Train regularly and calmly, without stress or overwork. It is best to visit the gym 2-3 times a week. To train at home, you will need special equipment (dumbbells, bar, weights).

You can look beautiful and pump up your trapezius muscle if you approach the process responsibly and carefully. It is important not only to work hard, but also to adjust your diet, sleep and rest time, and develop a set of exercises that suit you specifically. If necessary, consult with a trainer.

Don't forget about safety precautions. A correctly performed exercise is the key to a good result.

Watch Denis Semenikhin’s video with exercises for the trapezius and forearms:

In this article we will find out which trapezius muscle training is more effective for muscle growth: with the shoulders or with the back.

The topic of this article is relevant and constantly discussed by professional athletes and coaches. They touch her in any gym.

When it comes to training the trapezius muscles, some prefer to train them along with the shoulders, while others prefer to train them with the back. Which method is more effective? There is no objective answer yet, but it is still worth understanding the problem.

What are trapezius muscles?

The trapezius muscles are superficial muscles upper back. They are attached to the spine, start from the occipital bone, reach the lower vertebrae and go to the side, to the shoulder blades. The main function of the trapezius is to support the arms and allow movement of the shoulder blades.

The trapezius muscles get their name due to their shape, which strongly resembles a trapezoid.

When are the trapezius muscles used?

Taking a closer look at the trapezoids, they can be divided into three subsections: upper, middle and lower. Top part trapezius, running from the neck to the side, to the collarbone, raises the shoulders.

The middle part, or transverse, of the trapezius is involved in bringing the shoulder blades together. We bet you have never thought about the fact that you are training your trapezius while retracting your shoulder blades while lying on a bench? The middle part of the trapezius is located in the middle of the back and extends laterally, from the base of the neck to the edge of the shoulder blade.

As for the bottom of the trapezius, it is located between the 4th and 12th processes of the spine, between the shoulder blades and under them, to the end of the spine. It becomes visible if you lower your shoulder blades down while keeping your arms straight.

Most believe that only the upper trapezius, which is located at the top of the back, needs to be developed. But trainers and doctors will say that the trapezius muscles must be fully and evenly developed, otherwise an imbalance may develop that negatively affects your posture, which can later cause problems with the shoulder girdle.

Exercises to train your trapezius

Several exercises are aimed specifically at developing the trapezius region. The most popular of them is performed very simply: raising and lowering the shoulders, or shoulder shrugs.

Standing, arms extended along the body, weights in your hands, raise your shoulders up. Tighten your muscles and slowly lower your shoulders until you feel a stretch in your trapezius. Pretty simple, right? The most popular types of shrugs:

• standing shrugs with a barbell in front of you,
• standing shrugs with a barbell behind your back,
• shrugs with dumbbells,
• shrugs in Smith's car.

Unique exercises for trapezius muscles

These exercises are not related to with shoulders or back, but will add variety to your workouts, as they are aimed at developing the trapezius. These are the farmer's walk, face rows, horizontal pull-ups.

Farmer's Walk: Get some weights that are sensitive to your shoulders. The legs are slightly bent, the shoulder blades are brought together. Walk in short steps. As you step, you will feel a stretch in your trapezius. By the way, if you want to work your traps while doing cardio, this exercise is great.

Face Pull with Rope: Place the tip with the rope on the horizontal cable trainer. Stand directly in front of the machine, grab the edges of the rope with your hands. Move away from the machine, holding the rope at arm's length. Pull the rope toward your chin, keeping your elbows as high as possible. Squeeze your trapezius and rear delts before releasing the rope. This exercise will also give your rear deltoids a great workout.

Horizontal pull-ups: Install a body bar or bar at waist level. Take a wide grip and position yourself under the bodybar as if you were holding a horizontal bar. Keep your legs straight and rest on your heels. Pull yourself up as high as possible until your chest touches the bodybar, squeezing your shoulder blades together. Lower to the starting position and repeat. Thistrains latissimus muscles backs, diamond and rear deltoids.

Trapezius workout with back

The argument for training the trapezius together with the back muscles is the fact that the trapezius muscles themselves are large back muscles involved in supporting the spine.

Traps are involved in basic back exercises such as deadlift barbells on a hex bar, rack rows, bent over barbell rows.

Since the traps work during these basic exercises, it makes sense to train them together with the back.

Back workout sample

Exercises	Approaches	Repetitions
1. Deadlift
2. Traction bent over bars		10–12
3. Tractiondumbbells with one hand to the belt in support		10–12
4. Block pulldown with a narrow grip		10–12
5. Tractionlower block with straight arms		10–12
6. Shrugs with a barbell

Trapezius training with shoulders

There are two arguments for training trapezius with shoulders. Professional weightlifters and trainers will tell you that the trapezius is so connected to the shoulder blades and involved in supporting their movement that they need to be trained together with the deltoids.

In addition, the visible part of the trapezius is located next to the shoulders. Nothing is more inspiring than a pair of wide, rounded shoulders and sculpted trapezoids resting on top of them.

Popular exercises for the shoulder girdle that load the trapezius muscles:barbell row to the chin wide grip, hanging cleans, snatches and any other movements that require raising your arms above your shoulders. This sample workout shows how you can train your shoulders with a focus on your traps.

Shoulder Workout Sample

Exercises	Approaches	Repetitions
1. Push the barbell		6, 4, 2
2. Lifting the barbell in front of you while standing		8–10
3. Rise dumbbells through the sides while sitting
4. Rise dumbbells through the sides incline bench
5. Traction wide grip barbell to chin
6. Shrugs with dumbbells

And now your opinion

We would like to hear your opinion on the following 5 questions.

1. What do you think about back and shoulder trap training?
2. Which way of training do you prefer?
3. Why?
4. What are your favorite trapezoid exercises?
5. Is there anything you want to add?

We will welcome your comments, including those containing constructive criticism, and for our part we will try to keep the conversation going by responding to them.

You can't progress by making mistakes. Here are some of the most common shoulder training mistakes, along with tips on how to avoid them!

Google "shoulder training mistakes" and the search engine will return a collection of articles with titles like "Don't Use Poor Form," "Always Work Full Range of Arm," and "Never Overweight."

What can I say! Similar precautions apply to any exercise you perform, regardless of body part. I, too, could remind you for the hundredth time that you need to stick to the basic technique, but if you don’t fully understand what mistakes we are talking about, you will continue to step on the same rake. Until someone points them out to you.

And here we appear on the stage. Instead of telling you about the importance of “proper form,” we'll show you the most common deltoids and upper traps training mistakes. Do any of these eight points sound familiar to you? Then we will tell you what adjustments need to be made. This way, it will be easier for you to recognize your own mistakes and you will be able to correct the situation in time.

1. Dropped elbows when raising arms to the sides

Once you start bending and extending your elbows, your triceps come into the equation. This makes the movement less isolating and less efficient. In exercises like reverse dilution of the arms in a standing crossover, many lifters mistakenly extend their elbows fully to 180 degrees in the final phase of the movement, and then bend them again to almost 90 degrees, returning to the starting position. If you extend your elbows in shoulder exercises, congratulations; you get a great movement for the triceps. Too bad today is shoulder training day!

To make sure you don't make this mistake, watch your technique in the mirror or ask a partner to evaluate it with a critical eye. Practice and perfect your technique with light weights; lock your elbows with a slight bend and keep them in that position throughout the entire range of motion. If you still find it difficult to return the weight to the starting position, do a pek deck exercise (butterfly machine), which forces you to keep your elbows in correct position throughout the entire repetition.

4. Shortening the lever arm when raising your arms in front of you in a crossover

When does 20 kg weight not feel like 20 kg? When you lengthen (or shorten) what is commonly called the lever arm. A discussion about this physics phenomenon can lead us far from the topic of biomechanics, so suffice it to say that in single-joint shoulder movements, such as raising your arms in front of you, reducing the distance between the implement and the torso makes the exercise easier. Conversely, the further you extend your arm, the more difficult it becomes.

Let me remind you that single-joint exercises are performed with the elbow joints stationary, so that the arm should not bend or extend during movement. The only question is how strong the bending will be elbow joint- insignificant or very noticeable. It is easier to perform the exercise with a strong elbow bend than with a fully straightened arm.

Moreover, when lifting in front of you with a strong with bent arms There is a great temptation to start pushing your elbows out to the sides. When the elbows, instead of moving forward, begin to move to the sides, the middle deltoids are involved in the movement, which means that you lose the isolation of the front bundles. In fact, the movement begins to look more like a chin pull. Maintain a slight angle at the elbow joints throughout the approach to maximally engage the front delts.

5. The weight on the overhead press is too heavy.

There are many variations of the overhead press, the premier compound shoulder exercise, and they are all slightly different. You can do the exercise sitting or standing, with dumbbells, in a machine or with a barbell, and you can lift the barbell in front of you or from behind your head.

Especially when working with heavy weights, be careful when doing this. The fact is that at the lowest point, when the projectile is behind the head, the shoulder muscles find themselves in the weakest anatomical position. Heavy weight significantly increases the risk of sprains, says Guillermo Escalante, assistant professor of kinesiology at San Bernardino University in California, Ph.D., a certified strength and conditioning specialist. physical training. For very heavy benches, he recommends lifting the barbell off the chest. When working with medium weights, Escalante gives the green light to using the overhead press.

6. Shoulder Rotation When Performing Shrug

They are performed by raising the shoulders, and ideally - strictly in a vertical plane. Shoulder elevation has nothing to do with shoulder rotation, but many bodybuilders make this mistake.

Upper sections trapezius muscles It is better to train with shrugs performed in a vertical plane, because the muscles contract optimally in only one direction - upward. Performing shrugs in any other plane reduces the effectiveness of the exercise and increases the risk of injury.

7. Tilt of the head in heavy shrugs

You probably haven’t paid enough attention to this, but believe me, it would be worth doing. How do I know? Because 13 years ago I suffered a neck injury caused by inattention to the position of my head while performing a shrug.

When you do shrugs with heavy weights, there is a natural urge to lean your head forward. (Just try the exercise in front of a mirror and watch yourself). Everyone does it. And that's exactly what I did 13 years ago when I didn't pay enough attention to what I considered a minor technical violation. Violation of the natural position of the spine became a turning point and led to the formation of hernias in several discs cervical region. In my case, the result was atrophy pectoral muscles and triceps; as if someone had stuck a pin through the tire and let out all the air. I felt so bad that while I was pressing a 45 kg dumbbell from my chest with my left hand, I could barely squeeze a 10 kg apparatus with my right hand. After the operation it took me about 2 years to recover strength indicators on the affected side, and today they make up about 95% of the left half.

"Your head should be pointing straight ahead," says Escalante, himself a bodybuilder. - If you keep your gaze on the floor, the cervical spine moves from a neutral position to a flexion position. When the cervical spine is flexed and you are using heavy weight- a typical situation for training the upper trapezius - additional tangential (tangential) stress acts on the discs of the cervical spine, and this can lead to the formation of a hernia. All this is fraught with serious problems, from tingling and numbness of the hand to weakness and atrophy of the muscles of the affected limb.”

The situation is easy to correct, but you must remember this and consciously control the position of your head in each repetition. Always look straight ahead and use the mirror as a reminder. Resist all temptations to tilt your head down!

8. Using Dumbbells in Rotator Cuff Exercises

Working invisible muscles may seem like a waste of time, but rotator cuff training is like buying an insurance policy on the bench press—or any other movement in which the deltoids play a prominent role. The four relatively small muscles of the rotator cuff (minus teres muscle, infraspinatus, supraspinatus and subscapularis), mainly stabilize the shoulder joint, working in conjunction with the deltoid muscles.

The situation gets out of control when the balance of forces between these muscle groups is disrupted. Most often, this is because you're vigorously and constantly training your deltoids but not your rotators, and as a result, your risk of rotator cuff injury increases.

Convincing you to train your rotator cuff is one thing; teaching you how to do the exercises correctly is quite another. Quite often I see in gyms guys who are in vertical position torso rotate the dumbbells, pressing your elbows to your sides and keeping your forearm parallel to the floor. In my opinion, such rotations at the elbow joint are a waste of time, because the resistance vector should be perpendicular to the torso. With dumbbells in a standing position, the vector is not even close to perpendicular to the body! That is why only a block located at waist level is suitable for performing the exercise in a standing position. You can also do internal and external shoulder rotations with a dumbbell, but then you need to lie on your side or back.

Injury prevention training may not impress others, but shoulder internal and external rotation exercises are very important for strengthening the rotator cuff and maintaining healthy shoulder joints in the long term. And you definitely want to do them right!