How to Build \u2018Perfect\u2019 Shoulders Using Just a Pair of Dumbbells

In a new video from Athlean-X, top trainer Jeff Cavaliere C.S.C.S. offers up some advice on the different ways that you can incorporate dumbbell exercises into your shoulder-sculpting routine to achieve optimal results.

Cavaliere starts by recommending a series of rotational warmup exercises, including the dumbbell halo, dumbbell sword raise, and the cauldron. “Warming up your shoulders is a requirement for making the gains that you’re seeking here,” he says. “The dumbbell makes it really easy to do.”

Train Your Delts

An oft-overlooked area in shoulder training which he stresses should not be avoided are the front delts; Cavaliere advises using exercises like dumbbell pressouts and front raises to apply tension and emphasize hypertrophy.

He also suggests switching up your go-to moves in order to create greater range of motion and introduce more of a stretch reflex into your workouts. For example, by changing the orientation of your body and the leaning side lateral raise, you can apply a greater stretch to the mid delt in each rep. He recommends the incline dumbbell raise for similar reasons. “Instead of doing them standing up, just sit at a slight incline, and your shoulders will naturally fall back behind your body, placing a slight stretch on the front delt, creating greater contraction.”

Know When to Change Your Weights

“There’s bigger capacity to grow if you extend those heavy exercise options in your arsenal,” says Cavaliere. Adding weight to these moves requires you to be slower and more controlled on each lowering motion, creating greater eccentric contraction and sparking that growth.

However, it’s also important to use lighter weights at the appropriate time: “When training a muscle, make sure that you are actually using that muscle and not just relying on momentum to help you complete a movement… Grab those light dumbbells and go really slow. Eliminate all momentum. Initiate every inch of that contraction.”

Dumbbells are also a great alternative to barbells when doing dropsets, explains Cavaliere, as you can save precious time by simply switching between weights rather than replacing plates on a bar.

Put One Dumbbell Down

When doing overhead presses, training your shoulders one side at a time has the potential to lead to greater progress. “You’ll actually build up the strength unilaterally, then bring them back together, and that bilateral press, you’ll have more pressing strength overall,” he says.

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