Post Archive by Month

(Primary muscles: lower traps) Lie prone on a floor mat with your arms extended in front of your head at 10:00 and 2:00. Bend your arms at approximately 10 degree angles and point your thumbs upward toward the ceiling and raise your hands approximately 2-3 inches off the ground. You should feel the muscles of your mid back working and … Read More

(Primary muscles: medial deltoids) Sit upright with your elbows bent at 10 degrees and hold two fairly light dumbbells to that they are resting at your sides. Raise the DB’s outward to the sides and upward until they are slightly above shoulder level. Hold this peak contracted position before slowly lowering your arms back to the starting position. Note: You … Read More

(Primary muscles: anterior-medial deltoids and triceps) Grasp one dumbbell in each hand and sit down on a bench that provides back support. Bring your hands beside your shoulders with your palms facing forward. Sit erect and press the weights directly upward and then in toward each other near the top of the movement, so they touch directly over your head … Read More

(Primary muscles: posterior deltoids) Grasp two dumbbells and lie facedown on a 30-45 degree incline bench. The dumbbells should be hanging straight down from your shoulders with your palms facing each other. Use your rear deltoid strength to raise the dumbbells out to the sides until they are slightly above the level of your shoulder joint. Hold this peak contracted … Read More

(Primary muscles: posterior deltoids) Lie face down on a high flat bench with your head over the end of the bench. Hold a light barbell at arms length, not allowing it to touch the floor. With your hands approximately 6-12 inches apart, your arms straight, and your elbows locked, raise the bar in a semicircular motion until your arms are … Read More

(Primary muscles: anterior deltoids) Standing straight, grasp two fairly light dumbbells with your arms straight so that they are resting against your upper thighs. Keeping your torso as motionless as possible, raise one of the dumbbells forward and upward until it reaches shoulder height. As you begin to lower the dumbbell, raise the dumbbell in the other hand and repeat. … Read More

(Primary muscles: rotator cuff) Standing with good posture, hold your rubber band so your hands are a little narrower than shoulder width apart and your elbows are beside your waist at approximately a 90-degree angle. Keeping your elbows stationary, slowly rotate your hands outward as far as you can. Slowly return to the starting position and repeat. This should be … Read More

(Primary muscles: posterior deltoids) Attach loop handles to the ends of two cables running through the floor pulleys about 8-10 feet apart. Cross your arms and reach across your body to grasp the right handle with your left hand and the left handle with your right hand. Set your feet shoulder width apart and bend forward at the waist until … Read More

(Primary muscles: trapezius and anterior and medial heads of the deltoid) Take a narrow over-grip (with approximately 4-6 inches between your index fingers) on the barbell handle. Stand straight with your feet shoulder width apart and the barbell resting against your upper thighs. Keeping the barbell close to your body and without shrugging your shoulders, slowly pull the barbell upward … Read More

(Primary muscles: upper traps) Take a shoulder-width over-grip on a barbell. Stand upright with your arms straight and the barbell resting across the upper thighs. Use your trapezius strength to shrug your shoulders upward and backward as far as possible. Hold and then lower back to the starting point. Note: This can also be performed with dumbbells. Shaun Karp is … Read More