Best Shoulder Exercises

At first, it may seem like there are many exercises for shoulders, but because of the unique structure of the shoulder muscles, the options are actually more limited. The shoulders consist of three parts of the deltoid muscles, and each one works separately most of the time. This makes choosing the best exercises a bit tricky. Let’s break it down and understand it better.

Basic Understanding

The deltoid muscles are made up of three sections, or "bundles":

Anterior (front): Helps lift your arms in front of you.
Middle: Helps raise your arms to the sides.
Posterior (back): Works during back movements, like rowing and pull-ups.
When you do big, compound exercises like bench presses, overhead presses, or deadlifts, your shoulder muscles get a lot of work. Isolation exercises (where you target specific muscles) are used to further shape and strengthen the shoulder muscles you’ve already built with these bigger exercises.

Is There a "Best" Shoulder Exercise?

There’s no single "best" exercise for shoulders. First, you’d need at least three exercises to target all the parts of the deltoid. Second, everyone’s body is different—some people have different arm lengths or shoulder structures that make certain exercises feel better for them.

You’ll need to experiment with different exercises to find the ones that work best for you. The most important thing is to focus on proper form and gradually increase the weight you’re lifting, as shoulders are prone to injury if you’re not careful.

Key Shoulder Exercises

Here’s a list of popular shoulder exercises, along with tips to help you perform them better.

1. Military Press

It’s best to perform this exercise while standing, with a slight bend in your spine. Your feet can be positioned either in line with each other or staggered (one foot in front of the other). The key is to stand firm and avoid losing balance.

Many people make the mistake of pressing the barbell straight up and down, which mostly works the front delts. To engage the middle delts and work your entire shoulder more effectively, try to press the barbell in a slight arc. Start with the bar at your collarbone, then move it overhead by lifting your chin and slightly arching your back. This will distribute the effort across your whole shoulder.

2. Seated Dumbbell Press (Overhead)

To work the middle part of your shoulders, don’t just rely on the front delts. To engage the middle delts, arch your spine and avoid using the bench’s backrest—opt for a flat or horizontal bench instead.

Before pressing the dumbbells up, move your elbows slightly behind your body. This shifts the weight to your middle shoulder muscles. Throughout the movement, keep your torso in front of the dumbbells and your elbows behind your body to get the most out of the exercise.

3. Dumbbell Lateral Raises

This exercise can be tricky to master, but it’s great for targeting the middle shoulder muscles. One tip is to grip the dumbbells by their top edges and lift them as if you’re raising a pair of glasses. This will help focus the movement on your shoulders instead of the upper back.

Instead of thinking about lifting the weights, focus on raising your elbows. Avoid squeezing the dumbbells too hard, as this can send some effort to your forearms and biceps, taking away from the shoulder work.

4. Front Dumbbell Raises

You can do this exercise with either dumbbells or a barbell—it doesn’t really matter. The key trick here is to keep a small bend in your elbows. This reduces discomfort and makes holding the weights easier. It’s also a good idea to lift one arm at a time, which helps with balance and ensures the focus stays on the shoulders.

Final Thoughts

After practicing the correct techniques, you’ll quickly figure out which exercises work best for your shoulders. However, remember that the main shoulder workouts come from big, compound movements. Exercises like barbell presses, dumbbell presses, pull-ups, and rows for your chest and back also work your shoulders effectively because these big movements involve a lot of muscle effort.

Isolation exercises, like lateral raises and front raises, are just extra touches to add after doing the main lifts. So, don’t base your entire workout routine on shoulder-specific exercises—they get plenty of work from compound movements, and isolation exercises should just be a supplement.