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YWT's are an exercise that look very easy. However. They will work your upper back and rear shoulder muscles far more than you think for. If bodyweight only becomes easy, hold a light dumbbell in each hand. The key to getting the most from this exercise is to be squeezing the muscles when the arms are held in each position. Don't just hold the arms there.... actively hold them there and make the muscles work! Key Points
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This is one of my favourite variations on the standard lateral raise. When I've spoken previously about using mechanical tension to lift more weight or work muscles harder, this is my go to example. By starting with the elbows bent at 90 degrees, this shortens the lever arm of the exercise aka It makes it easier to lift bigger weights (because physics, yo). Once the arms are parallel to the floor, the elbows extend outwards as this extends the lever arm again. Then coming down with control, not just dropping the weights down. The shoulders are put through a lot more work on this exercise compared to a more straight arm lateral raise. Key Points
Not everyone is built to press directly overhead. Whether it's due to a joint restriction, muscle tightness or training the muscles how to properly go overhead. Whilst that is being addressed, a good alternative is the landmine shoulder press. It still allows you to work the shoulders by pressing upwards, just not directly overhead. A little used variation is the shoulder to shoulder press. I like it because the other hand plays an assistance role allowing a bit more weight than usual to be used. Lifting more weight isn't a bad thing either! Key Points
Front raises are a pretty good exercise Lateral raises are a pretty good exercise Why not combine them for an even better exercise that will give you some burning shoulders? One of the ways to build bigger muscles is to increase the time under tension i.e. make the muscles work with a weight for longer. This can easily be done with adding some isometric pauses or by extending out the reps in another way. In this case, by keeping the weights held up for longer, it makes the shoulder muscles work really hard. Some useful tips - don't go too heavy as I know there is a tendency to "throw" the weights up and don't rush the reps. Key Points
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AuthorThis is my, mostly, Personal Trainer musings and information which I hope you'll find helpful! Archives
May 2021
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