Strength · Neck and shoulders

Strength work for the neck and shoulders

The shoulder trades stability for range — it is the most mobile joint you own and the least bony. What holds it together is trainable.

What this trains

This page is about the rotator cuff, the scapular stabilisers and the neck.

The lifts

  1. 01Side-lying external rotation3 × 12–15, light

    Light really does mean light — 1–4 kg. The cuff is small and heavy weight recruits the wrong muscles.

  2. 02Scapular push-up3 × 12

    Arms stay straight. All the movement is the shoulder blades spreading and coming together.

  3. 03Overhead press3 × 6–8

    Squeeze the glutes; the ribs stay down. An arched press is a lower-back exercise.

  4. 04Neck isometric2 × 10 s each direction

    Press the hand into the head with no movement at all. Resist, do not push.

What this page can't tell you: A shoulder that catches, clicks painfully or gives way needs assessment before load, not more reps.

Other regions

Posturethe upper back, the spinal erectors and the deep abdominal wallDesk workthe hip flexors, the glutes, the upper back and the neck extensorsHipsthe glutes, the abductors, the adductors and the deep external rotatorsHamstringsthe back of the thigh — biceps femoris, semitendinosus and semimembranosusBack and spinethe spinal erectors, the lats, the deep trunk and the muscles that resist rotationCore and trunkthe abdominal wall, the obliques and the deep trunk
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