5 best home workouts for strong shoulders

Shoulder exercise is an essential part of any regular workout routine. Not only does a strong shoulder give you an appealing esthetic and the strength to undertake everyday tasks, but it also reduces the risk of injuries and back pain. Shoulder exercise also helps improve your core muscles and posture.

Basically, your shoulder has two muscle groups: extrinsic muscles and intrinsic muscles. The extrinsic starts from your torso and attaches to the bones of your shoulders. Intrinsic, on the other hand, starts from the scapula and goes to the humerus.

So, for the good of your overall health as well as training all the mentioned shoulder muscles, proper shoulder exercise is a must. But if you don’t want to hit the gym, that’s okay. There are various home workouts that can help you achieve a well-built and strong shoulder.

Arm Circles, Pike Pushup, and 3 more shoulder exercises to do at home

1. Arm Circles

Arm Circles help increase the motion and mobility of your shoulders, and are some of the most common beginner-level shoulder exercises.

How to do Arm Circles:

• Stand straight with your feet hip-width apart and your hands on either side making a “T” shape.
• Use both your arms and draw circles in the air simultaneously in the same direction.
• Speed up a little and make the circle bigger, drawing one large circle at the same time on both sides.
• Repeat in the opposite direction.

Here’s a video demonstrating Arm Circles:

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2. Pike Pushup

The Pike Pushup is a great shoulder exercise that targets your core and leg joints.

How to do Pike Pushups:

• Place both hands on a flat surface just like you do in a normal pushup. Your hands and legs should be shoulder-width apart.
• Your hips should be straight up in the air. Your body should form a triangular shape with the ground.
• Slowly bend at the elbows and slightly lower your head to the floor towards your hands.
• Hold this position and push yourself up to the starting position.

Here's a video demonstrating the Pike Pushup:

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3. Planks

A plank not only works at your core, but is also the most productive shoulder exercise you can do at home.

How to do planks:

• Place both your hands and legs on the floor just like in the pushup position.
• Your shoulders stacked right over your wrists.
• Hold the position for at least 40 seconds in the beginning and later, up to a minute.
• Keep your core tight and balance yourself.

Here’s a video demonstrating planks:

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4. Lateral raises

For this exercise, you will need two fridge bottles. It’s up to you if you want to keep it heavy or light.

How to do lateral raises:

• Stand straight with shoulder feet-width apart.
• Take one bottle in each hand. Make sure your palm faces you.
• Now laterally raise each arm to your side and take it up to your shoulder level.
• Slightly bent your knees and elbows for a better posture.
• Slowly lower the bottles back to the starting position and repeat.

Here's a video demonstrating lateral raises:

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5. Shoulder dip

The shoulder dip is a very significant shoulder exercise that works on your core and lower waist. For this exercise, you will need a sturdy chair.

How to do shoulder dips:

• Sit straight on the edge of your chair.
• Hold the edge tightly with your hands keeping it shoulder-width apart.
• Slowly move off the chair and take the support from your arms.
• Control your motion and lower yourself as much as you can by keeping your elbows towards your body.
• Hold the position as you go down and feel the pressure on your core and shoulder.
• Push yourself up to the starting position and repeat.

Here's a video demonstrating shoulder dips:

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You can do these easy and effective shoulder exercises at home without using any equipment or weight. All you need is an exercise mat, enough space, and positivity to achieve your goal. Though shoulders are the most mobile parts of our bodies, they are also the most prone to injury. As such, shoulder training is as important as abs or any other muscle training.

Always remember that strong shoulders are a must to carry out day-to-day functions and therefore, proper shoulder workouts should be undertaken regularly. Furthermore, just remember to practice every shoulder exercise the right way and don’t overstrain your muscles. Along with this, you must also take the proper time to rest and steadily speed up your workouts, and needless to say, watch what you eat!

The right posture is very important (Imaga via Unsplash/Ginny Rose Stewart)

So, what are you waiting for? Just grab an exercise mat and start with your shoulder training now!