Shoulder exercises
The shoulders are the three heads of the deltoid: the front head raises the arm forward, the side head raises it out to the side, and the rear head pulls it back. The front head already works hard in every press, so the side and rear heads usually need extra attention — they are what make shoulders look wide and round. Below are all the shoulder exercises, sorted by head, with technique and a load map.
How to train it
Build on an overhead press — Overhead press or Seated dumbbell press. Hit the side delts with Dumbbell lateral raise and Cable lateral raise, and the rear delts with Bent-over reverse fly, Reverse pec deck and Face pull. Use moderate weights on raises and lift with the elbows, without swinging your torso. For most people 8–16 sets a week for the side and rear delts is enough: the front delts get their share from chest presses.
Exercises by muscle
All shoulders exercises 10 exercises
Weekly sets for this group in ready-made programs
A set counts once for the group even when several of its muscles work, and as half a set where the group only assists. The training log counts the same way.
Other muscle groups
See how much work each of your muscles gets
GymAssist paints a 40-muscle map from your sets, shows lagging muscles and forecasts recovery.
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