Building Mass: Shoulder Cap & Rear Delt

Gayle

Cathlete
Hi Cathe,

I've been using your tapes for the last two-three years with very nice results. For weight training, I've been rotating through Pure Strength, Slow & Heavy, CTX, and Power Hour.

In terms of muscle development, the only areas that seem to be a sticking point for me are the rear delts and shoulder cap/top of the shoulder. The front portion of my shoulders have developed nicely, however.

Are there any different exercises or techniques that you might recommend for targeting these muscles specifically? Thanks in advance.
 
RE: Building Mass: Shoulder Cap & Rear Delt

Gayle,

Bumping! I'd like to see what Cathe (& others) have to say about this! :)
 
I've found the rear shoulder exercises in the Intensity series (Muscle Endurance and PUB) to be excellent for this. In fact, since the front shoulders are well worked during the chest work in PUB, I omit them and just do the side and rear shoulder work.

For rear shoulders, you can add some exercises on to the end of your shoulder work: from a seated position (I like to sit on my stability ball) lean forward. Lift the arms out into a "t" formation, or even a "y"formation to hit the rear shoulders (if you have the arms too far back, the back muscles, which are stronger, will tend to take over).

For shoulder caps, I like the regular old overhead presses. I use dumbbells and keep my hands angled slightly inward to avoid impingement. You could really blast the shoulders by doing a set of these followed by a set of lateral raises, which will target the mid delts (the ones that sit "on top").
 
building mass while protecting joint

Just thought I would add some tidbits. Many of us like me want to add mass to the shoulder area, but we know that the shoulder has a lot of moving parts and relationships to other muscles and joints that make it easy to strain and injure.

Protection

Varying our exercises helps to even out the work and avoid overworking a single area. I would alternate (week by week) overheads with dumbbell upright rows. Keep them lower than parallel, in other words, don't go up too high. While doing all shoulder exercises, my advice (I don't see it agreed with very often but I am firm in this, at least for myself) is avoid clicking the joints in every way possible. During the very effective side lateral raise, if you feel clicking, tighten your shoulder in such a way as to minimize it. If it's still there, lower the weight. Strive to do the exercises with no clicking.

Edited to add: your mileage may vary: overheads OR upright rows may not agree with you. Take your own unique construction into account.

Mass building

This may be a fine point, but usually slower negatives (lift on one count, lower on three) tend to build mass. That is, the eccentric portion of the contraction. Slowing the concentric, as in the Slow and Heavy series, accentuates strength more than mass. Of course, the negatives in S&H are not very fast, so that series will add strength and mass, but in general, slower negatives build mass.

HTH

-Connie
 
RE: building mass while protecting joint

Slowing the concentric,
>as in the Slow and Heavy series, accentuates strength more
>than mass. Of course, the negatives in S&H are not very fast,
>so that series will add strength and mass, but in general,
>slower negatives build mass.
>
>-Connie
Good points, Connie.
For safety, I'd add that keeping scapular contraction, as Cathe giudes in both Slow and Heavy and PH, helps keep the shoulder tracking right.

About S&H: I often vary the counts, sometimes doing 4 up, 4 down, sometimes 5 up, 3 down, etc. You could easily adapt this workout and do a 3 up, 5 down or even a 2 up, 6 down count for shoulders.
 
RE: building mass while protecting joint

Thanks much for your advice Connie and Kathryn. I have been doing the rear delt raises (like a "Y" as in PS CST) and doubling up on the number of sets, and have noticed that I'm feeling them a little more the next day. I'll also have to try the slow negatives.
 

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