A trained back, arms and shoulders bring benefits not only to aesthetics but also to health. Strengthening the muscles of the upper back, from the latissimus dorsi to the trapezius, up to the deltoid, in fact, allows you to open the shoulders and close the shoulder blades. An important and hard-earned goal, it is appropriate to say, which brings great results postural advantages preventing back and shoulder pain. As well as limiting the damage in the event of injuries and wrong movements.
But what are the best exercises to open and widen the shoulders? We asked an experienced personal trainer how Cristian Rottura, director of the Personal Trainer Fit For You studiowho told us how to do them in the gym with weights and machines and improve posture. From the Lat machine (from broadest backlatissimus dorsi) to Pulley, through barbells and fitness benches, here is a detailed and illustrated card.
Strengthen your arms, shoulders and back
«Modern daily life, with the use of computers for study, work and leisure leads to assuming postures that in the long run can result in shoulder or back pain. These pains, if neglected, can become chronic and lead to joint problems or the development of hernias due to the incorrect posture that is assumed. It is therefore of fundamental importance to perform certain exercises aimed at preventing the onset of these postural defects and, consequently, at preventing back and shoulder pain ».
Exercises to broaden shoulders at the gym
«This is a relatively complex exercise, which certainly requires an adequate technique and therefore the supervision of an expert eye for beginners. It is done using as single tool two dumbbells: with the legs placed hip-width apart and semi-flexed and the trunk still (taking care to maintain the normal curves of the spine) grasp the dumbbells in front of the body with neutral grip and elbows backwards. They slowly rise without changing the height of the elbows, up to shoulder height “opening the arms”. This exercise is by difficult executionmust therefore be carried out under the eye of expert personnel and with theuse of appropriate weights. The muscles involved are the upper deltoid and to a small extent the trapezius.
“Again, the handlebar is the key tool in addition to a gym flat bench. You must lean on a horizontal bench with one hand and the knee of the same side, while the other hand grips the dumbbell in a neutral position. The stretched out or semi-flexed leg rests on the ground behind the body, so that the trunk remains in a horizontal position. From this position, the dumbbell is then pulled to the waist by moving the arm close to the body, keeping the forearm perpendicular to the ground. From here, slowly return to the starting position.
«The exercise par excellence regarding theback training it’s definitely the outrigger rower. Borrowed from weightlifting, but with considerably reduced loads (usually an unloaded barbell or with small loads are used in postural training), the exercise turns out to be very effective for “opening” the shoulders. Standing with the trunk erect and inclined forward and the knees semi-flexed, the barbell is gripped with a pronated grip (palms towards the body) at a slightly wider distance than the shoulders. Then the barbell is lifted, keeping the elbows open, until it reaches the abdominal area».
Shoulder exercises in the gym with machines
«Present in all gyms, the Lat machine lends itself very well to improving posture, precisely because the use of this machine and the movement that is generated is precisely that of opening the shoulders and closing the shoulder blades, strengthening the upper back. Seated on the Lat machine, with your legs under the stops and your back straight, you grab the bar with a pronated grip (palms facing forward) wider than the shoulders. The bar is pulled towards the upper chest, arching the back slightly backwards, allowing the elbows to descend in a vertical line. Then slowly return to the starting position. Among the variations, one of the most useful is the Lat machine with a close and supinated grip. In practice, unlike the previous exercise, only the grip changes, this time with the palms towards the body and shoulder-width apart».
«Another machine present in almost all gyms is the Pulley. Like the Lat machine, albeit in a slightly different way, it is very useful in improvement of posture and strengthening of the back muscle. Seated in front of the cable, with semi-flexed legs leaning firmly forward, grasp the triangle in a neutral position with arms almost completely extended. Maintaining the normal curves of the spine and without leaning backwards, the cable is pulled, bringing the triangle to the abdominal area, widening the chest and closing the shoulder blades. Then slowly return to the starting position.
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«In addition to being useful for improving posture, the Pulley at TRX is a great exercise interesting given its adaptability to any level of physical activity. It easily adapts to every need since it uses body weight (and its inclination) and gravity as components of the load. The exercise is performed starting from an upright position with the handles in a neutral grip at chest height. You slowly let yourself “fall” backwards, accompanying the movement slowly with your arms outstretched. With outstretched arms and body tilted back, then return to the starting position by passing the elbows close to the sides. During the execution of this exercise, especially when you get to the leaning back position with straight arms, it is very important to maintain the abdominal contraction to ensure that the torso is perfectly erect throughout the movement».