The Alpha Shoulder Workout

Everybody wants textbook, coat hanger shoulders, but unfortunately not everybody is willing to work for them. Or in most cases, they may just not understand fully how to fully develop all parts of the deltoid and traps in equal proportions.

Fortunately, Mr Alpha was put here by the Greek Gods to provide the blueprint for everybody to understand how to achieve total muscle symmetry, bulk, and definition in the shoulder muscles.

Rotator Cuffs/Labrum

Shoulder circles:
2 sets small/2 sets larger

Warm-up: Use five pound weights or kettle bells to do shoulder circles (start small and go wider as you get warmed up. 



Trapezius

Shrugs:
3 sets of 5-8 reps

The first official exercise involves the traps. Banging out some shrugs to get the blood flowing to the collarbone area, will allow for easier range of motion for the subsequent exercises. Three or four sets of five to eight reps should do.



Medial Deltoids

Side/Front Raises:
3 sets of 5-8 reps

Side and front lateral raises are a good place to go next. Follow the same five set routine( 5-8 reps each) with enough weight to the point where you feel like you did something. Many people tend to err on the lighter side.




Make sure you hit both movements equally, but not to the point where you exhaust yourself for the most important shoulder workout in terms of mass cultivation, and an obvious favorite of Mac from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”.

Anterior Deltoids

Shoulder presses:
3 sets of 5-8 reps

Military presses, also known as shoulder presses, work all three of the deltoid heads simultaneously, and thus are most important in terms of gaining size. Follow the same pattern in terms of sets of five. The other workouts are more for range of motion and flexibility but they all play a part in total shoulder domination, so hit every section hard.

Posterior Deltoids

Standing cable rear delt flye:
3 sets of 5-8 reps

A good finisher is three sets of rear delts. You can use the cable racks at your gym, or if you’re more advanced you can try the free weights. Keep in mind those will pose a challenge at first for beginners especially if you’re not used to pinching your shoulder blades together.



The shoulder muscles play a major role in most sports, regular movements throughout the day regardless of occupation, and are one of the first things people first notice about your stature. And, if you have to hold some heavy things upright for a while, you won’t be at a disadvantage.