Here at Everyone Active, we take our mission to get everybody doing at least 30 minutes of exercise, five times a week very seriously. That’s why we’ve put together this fantastic home shoulder workout. It’ll help keep you active even when you can’t get to the gym. This means you’ve got no excuse to skip shoulder day!
This home shoulder workout doesn’t need any weights, either, just a set of resistance bands and you’ll still be able to increase strength and muscle mass in your shoulders by using this workout
As always, before you start any workout, it’s really important you warm up. Not only will this help get your joints moving and therefore help you get more out of the workout, but it’ll also help you avoid hurting yourself in the course of your workout.
Home Shoulder Workout
Working the shoulders is really important. They connect your arms to your trunk and so are vital for remaining stable during exercises like press-ups, bicep curls and a whole range of others.
Vertical Press-up
Although the press-up is mostly known for working the chest, triceps and core, it’s also really good for the shoulders – especially in this guise. To begin with, you need an elevated surface on which you can place your feet. Anything will do, a sofa, coffee table, armchair, anything. As long as it’s strong and stable. The higher you get your feet, the harder the exercise is.
Then, get into a press up position with your hands on the floor and your feet elevated. Next, walk your hands back, pushing your hips up into the air until your back is vertical. Then, supporting yourself on your toes, release your elbows and drop down towards the floor in a controlled manner. Once you’re as low as you can get, push yourself back up again. This is one rep.
Aim for three sets of between eight and 12 reps – as close to 12 as you can. Once you’ve got to the end of the set, hold yourself in the starting position for 30 seconds. Remember, the higher you get your feet, the tougher this exercise is. If you feel you’ve mastered it, you can even try doing it while in a handstand with your feet resting against the wall.
Lateral Raise into Shoulder Press
This exercise in the home shoulder workout will need you to get the resistance bands out. You might need to experiment a little bit to find out which one is the right resistance for you.
Beginning with the lateral raise, hold the band with your left hand by your belly button. Then, with your right arm, hold the other end of the band and raise it out to your side so your arm is at shoulder level. Make sure your arm is slightly bent. Try and do around 12 repetitions of this before moving on to the shoulder press.
For the shoulder press, hold the band in your left hand in front of you between your chest and your belly button. The lower it is, the tougher the workout will be. Find where you’re comfortable (but not too comfortable) and take the other end of the band in your right hand. You then want to push your right arm into the air, taking your fist from shoulder level and extending your arm until it’s straight – as if you’re putting your hand up in class. Complete 12 reps of this exercise and then swap sides, with a minute’s rest in-between. Make sure you do an even number of sets of each exercise for both your right and left shoulders.
Shoulder Shapers with an External Rotation
Once again, with these, you should aim to do three sets of 8-12 reps as part of your home shoulder workout. Beginning with the shoulder shapers, you hold both your fists in front of your chin, just holding the tension in the band. Then, move your right arm 90 degrees out to your side, keeping your left in front of your face and your elbows bent. Then return to the starting position.
Moving on to the external rotation. Instead of having your hands in front of your chin, you should open your elbow joints to 90 degrees so your hands are out in front of your stomach. Then, keeping your elbow tucked into your side, rotate your right arm outwards. Once again, do 8-12 reps of this exercise.
Once you’ve completed both exercises, have a quick break – a minute or so and switch to the other side. Make sure you do an even number of sets on each side to avoid an imbalance.
So there you have it! A fantastic home shoulder workout to keep those shoulder muscles pumped and boredom at the door.