Stronger and mobile shoulder should be on every athlete’s checklist. Luckily, a top fitness coach decided to share his perfect shoulder workout. Check it out.
Jeff Cavaliere was the head physical therapist of the New York Mets for 3 years and is now a YouTube sensation. He delivers clear information without noise on his ATHLEAN-X YouTube channel.
“The shoulder itself is probably the biggest muscle group that gets avoided and overlooked when it comes to stretch,” Cavaliere says on his YouTube video.
His perfect shoulder workout will apply some form of stretch to all heads of the delt, while at the same time develop strength.
How To Do The Perfect Shoulder Workout
Warm-up – Overhead band press
- 2 sets of 15 reps (3 second hold)
When using a band to do the overhand press, the resistance does not come from the ground up, but rather it pulls you to the front, which activates the muscles on the back of your body: the rear delt and the rotator cuff.
Overhand press / Handstand push-up
- 10-8-6-6 reps
You can mimic the overhand press by doing handstand push-up in case you don’t have the equipment at home.
Source: Photo Courtesy of CrossFit IncOverhand band press with dumbbells
- 15 reps
You should go back to the warm-up exercise, but this time with bigger resistance at the top by adding dumbbells. “Neuromuscular re-education,” Jeff Cavaliere says.
Delt stretch tri-set
- 2-3 sets of 7 reps each (rear, middle, front)
Cable raises for the front delt, middle delt and the rear delt.
Make sure you follow Jeff Cavaliere’s video to get the proper stretch on your delts in these movements.
Cheat Laterals Into Push Press
- 3 sets on each arm to failure
The combo of a cheat lateral raise going into a dumbbell push press does not specifically activate the middle delt by allowing the traps to help the movement. “When you’re trying to train power and explosiveness, you want the trap to help.”
Cable face pull
- 3 sets of 15 reps (
Quality above everything on face pulls.
Read More: 8 CrossFit Shoulder Workouts for You to Try
Image Sources
- Handstand Push Ups: Photo Courtesy of CrossFit Inc
- Best Rear Delt Exercises: Nigel Msipa