There are two basic types of exercises for shoulder muscles: 1) shoulder presses, and 2) raises. Presses include exercises such as military press, seated dumbbell press, standing shoulder press, arnold presses and so on. Pressing movements involve the triceps, and is a compound movement where multiple muscles are involved. You are able to lift heavier with presses.
Raises include exercises such as front raises, lateral raises, bent over dumbbell laterals and so on. Raises involve lifting your extended arm upward in a wide arc, which works to isolate your shoulder muscles. Doing raises, the triceps are not involved, and the shoulders are performing isolated movements; however you will not be able to lift as much.
Below are some of the best shoulder press exercises you can use to develop a full, thick shoulders.
Arnold Press (Arnold Shoulder Dumbbell Press)
The arnold press develops the front and side deltoid muscles. This exercises uses dumbbells for a very wide range of motion.
You can do the arnold press sitting or standing
Grab a hold of a dumbbell in each hand and raise it to shoulder level with your palms facing your body
Press the weight upwards, and rotate your hands at the same time - turn your thumbs inward, so that at the top of the rep, your palms are facing away from your body
Lower the weight, and reverse the movement and twisting motion so that your palms are facing your body again back at the starting position
Military Press Exercise
The military shoulder press exercise can be done standing or seated on a bench with back support. The military press is a power exercise that works the front and side deltoid muscles. It's a compound exercises that requires multiple muscles to perform. You can either do standing military press or seated military press. Seated military press position will force a more strict movement compared to standing.
From a seated or standing position, grasp a barbell with and overhand grip and hold it at shoulder level
Your hands should be a bit wider than shoulder width such that your forearms are perpendicular to the floor
Press the bar up in a controlled motion until your arms are locked out
Lower the weight back down to starting position
Standing Military Press
Seated Dumbbell Press (Dumbbell Shoulder Press)
Seated dumbbell press targets the front and side deltoids. It's similar to the military press, but done using dumbbells instead. Another element is introduced when performing the dumbbell press - balance. Unlike the military press, your shoulders and arms must individually balance the dumbbell weights, making this a more difficult exercise, and you will probably need to use less weight compared to the military press.
Sitting on a bench, take a dumbbell in each hand
Hold the dumbbells at shoulder height with palms facing forward
Press the dumbbells straight up in a controlled motion
Lower back down to starting position
Clean and Press Exercise
The clean and press is a compound exercise that works the front and side deltoids, and at the same time, builds body density, power, and strength. This power exercise involves pretty much the entire body. The clean and press starts off with leg movement to get the weight moving, then the rest of your body such as the back, trapezius, shoulders, and arms comes into play.
With a barbell placed on the ground before you, squat down and take hold of the bar with an overhand grip, and hands about shoulder width apart.
Pushing with the legs, lift the bar straight up to shoulder height
Tuck in the elbows and under to support the weight
Press the weight upwards
Lower the weight back down to shoulder height, then reverse the cleaning motion by bending your knees and bringing the weight back down to the floor
Clean and Press
>> Click here for Total Gym - As Seen on TV with Chuck Norris & Christie Brinkley. 10% OFF with Promo Code: 11001
