Shoulder Introduction (Important)

Shoulder Training

Broad Shoulders
Famed author Studs Terkel in describing the city of Chicago offered the view that “it is a city
with broad shoulders”. The phrase inspired admiration and respect and perhaps even a little fear in
the hearts of those who heard the “Windy City” depicted in such terms. It was however Mr. Terkel’s
highest compliment. After all, doesn’t the imagery of broad shoulders carry with it the suggestion of
strength and power and maybe a hint of intimidation that is awe-inspiring?

It might be thought of that the imagery of “the city with broad shoulders” might be carried over
into the realm of weight-training. The concept of power and might being associated with broad
shoulders is strongly manifested whenever someone with cannonball shoulders arrives on the scene
instilling fear and envy in all who come under the intimidating spell of colossal shoulder development.
In terms of creating the “ideal” physique, no physique could be considered close to complete,
without a well-developed shoulder structure.

In determining the correct approach to take with regards to building the shoulders it should be
noted from the outset that the muscles of the shoulders are located upon an extremely weak and mechanically-
disadvantaged construction and great care must be taken to apply proper movement methodology
in order to provide for safe and efficient shoulder training.

Location and Function
There is much more to building the shoulders than just attempting to pack on size. In order to
develop well-defined musculature in this relatively delicate region of the body strict attention must be paid to the location and function of the sometimes
difficult-to-understand muscle system. It should be
noted that whenever reference is made to the shoulder
muscles that reference is being made to the deltoid
muscles.

Deltoid Muscle Divided Into Three
Sections or “Heads”
The deltoid is a triaded muscle located on the
top, side and back of the shoulder joint. It may need
to be clarified that the deltoid muscle is one muscle
divided into three distinct regions or “heads” and
that there does not exist three separate muscles. The
applied reference is directly related to the location of
the specific region of the deltoid i.e.: anterior (front),
posterior (rear), and medial (middle) head. Frequently,
the specific regions of the deltoid are referred to
as anterior, posterior or medial deltoid or “delt”. This
identification policy represents a misnomer in that
the reference to a specific “deltoid” as opposed to a
specific “head” suggests that there exist three different
deltoid muscles as opposed to the existence of
three sections of a single deltoid muscle. All three
sections (heads) are closely-linked and as a result,
most shoulder exercises involve the activation of at
least two of the three heads. However, the most
strongly accentuated head will be the foremost consideration
when determining which exercises are designed
for which section of the deltoid muscles.

It can be noted that the deltoid represents just
one of a group of six muscles that cover the shoulder-
joint, which is formed by the articulation of the
scapula and the head of the humerus. The other five
muscles that cover the shoulder originate on the scapula
and, as such, are classified under the muscles for
the upper back category. These muscles are covered
in the appropriate section dealing specifically with the
muscles that comprise the region of the back.

Deltoid — Anterior (A), Meddle (B), Posterior (C)

Location
The deltoid muscle itself originates on the lateral third of the clavicle, acromion, and spinous
process of the scapula. The specific origins and insertions of the three heads are as follows.

-Anterior “Head”: Originates on the lateral (outside) portion of the clavicle.
-Middle “Head”: Arises from a location that is between the outside portion of the scapula and the
upper region of the back of the scapula.
-Posterior “Head”: Takes its place of origin on the superior (upper) section of the posterior (rear)
side of the scapula.

All three heads of the deltoid insert on the deltoid tuberosity of the humerus bone of the upper
arm at approximately the middle one-third of the lateral Portion of the shaft.

Function
The deltoid serves in the action of abduction of the arm. As well, the anterior fibers act to flex
and medially rotate the shoulder joint while the posterior fibers extend and laterally rotate the shoulder
joint.

Muscle Activation
It should be acknowledged that whenever the shoulders are being called upon to perform work
there is a strong accompanying involvement of several surrounding muscles. In the pressing movements
the upper portion of the trapezius is called upon to provide great emphasis to the lift. As well,
considerable assistance is also provided by the rhomboids (minor and major). In addition, another
group of muscles categorized under “the muscles of the shoulder girdle”, the chest muscles are also
encouraged to provide assistance to the movement. The pectoralis major and (to a lesser extent) the
pectoralis minor are frequently incorporated into the movement. In fact, keeping the chest muscles
out of the movement is one of the foremost considerations when reference is made to proper
movement methodology. A consistent reminder of the requirement to avoid having the chest muscles
become involved during the pressing movements will be offered.

Another major contributor to the shoulder training is the triceps brachii (pressing movements)
and the biceps brachii, brachialis, and brachioradia1is (raises movements). In addition, the forearm
flexors and extensors are also activated during the raises movements as well as the pressing movements.
An outline of the support muscle activation will be presented throughout the exercise portfolio
analysis upcoming in this section.

Shoulder-joint, a Multi-faceted Joint
The shoulder-joint is deemed a ball-and-socket joint and as such is capable of performing several
movement actions including flexion, extension, medial and lateral rotation as well as abduction of the
arm at the humerus all of which can be performed in a variety of planes and angles. The anterior region
produces the action of flexion (moving the humerus bone anteriorly or forward), and medial
rotation (bringing the arm across the body). The posterior region of the deltoid produces the action
of extension (moving the humerus bone posteriorly or backward). The medial region of the deltoid
produces the action of abduction (moving the humerus bone laterally away from the body).

Shoulder-joint Extremely Unstable
While the shoulder-joint can produce a variety of movements there is a severe sacrifice that is
paid with regard to quality-of-construction of the joint. In order to allow for the vast array of movement
actions, there is a great reduction in the stability of the joint with the result being that the area
of the shoulder-joint is one of the most vulnerable areas in the entire body.

Compounding the problems related to the insufficient stability of the shoulder-joint is the fact
that the main muscles of the region (the deltoids) are relatively weak as well. The deltoids are generally
thought of as having great strength and explosive power, but the reverse is really the case. The illadvised
loads that are frequently employed are handled as a result of the incorporation of the surrounding
muscle groups (as outlined above) and not as a result of the complete emphasis of the burden
of the load being taken up by the deltoids. Frequently, when excessive loading is employed, the
deltoid muscles give out with the burden of the load transferred to the supporting ligaments and tendons.
With many of the shoulder movements, the ligaments and tendons are stretched to their weakest
position, and are not in a favorable position to endure any duress. The consequence of this resultant
is that shoulder ligament and tendon injuries are commonplace in weight-resistance training circles.

Caution Required to Reduce Injury Risk
The anatomy of the shoulder-joint is of course irreversible; however, the approaches that are utilized
in shoulder training can go a long way to offset the dangers associated with shoulder training.
The first line of defense against injury is the awareness of the potential hazards related to shoulder
training. Taking the information a step further of course would be to see the trainee applying safe,
efficient training techniques during the performance of the exercises. Slow speed-of-contraction
movement applications are essential to the reduction of injury risk. In addition, sensible weight selection
would significantly reduce the high risk of injury to the area as would sound training applications
featuring a high-level of “common sense training”. A good place to start is to avoid going for the
“extra rep” or even forcing yourself to make the pre-determined number of reps in order to assume
success. Trying to force that last rep has forced many trainees onto the surgeon’s table. Shoulder
training is not like any other body part training and as such great care must be taken to avoid the high
risk of injury brought on by the weal construction of the joint, weak capability of the muscles, and
the generally stretched position of the ligaments and tendons of the area.