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How Often Should You Train Shoulders in a Week

    When you start going to the gym, it can feel overwhelming; you don’t know which muscle groups to train and when, and there is so much conflicting advice floating around social media that you’re often left feeling like you’re doing everything wrong. So, how often should you train shoulders in a week?

    Experts recommend you train shoulders two or three times a week to see effective growth. But also ensure efficient rest time for muscle recovery. You can work each deltoid eight to twelve sets a week, which you can split over multiple weekly training sessions. 

    How Often Should You Train Shoulders in a Week

    Having well-defined shoulders is vital as it will create an aesthetic look many people desire. Well-defined shoulders can make your waist smaller, giving your body an “X-frame” look.

    Knowing how you train your shoulders is essential to avoiding injuries and maximizing muscle growth. 

    If you are in a hurry to see the best products to help you train your shoulders, then see the products below.

     

    How Can You Split Your Training Schedule to Include Effective Shoulder Exercises

    Split Training Shoulder

    Shoulder recovery is especially vital to incorporate into your training schedule as, without adequate rest, you will not be able to grow your shoulder muscles. You further risk injury if you overtrain your shoulder muscles. 

    Creating an effective training schedule is vital to ensure you rotate your exercises throughout the week while focusing on muscle growth. Your shoulders need 48 to 72 hours of rest between each training session, and you must plan your training schedule before the week begins. 

    The easiest way is to incorporate a PPL split. 

     

    What Is a PPL Split?

    Push Up Exercise

    PPL stands for Push, Pull, Legs. This schedule means you train your “push” muscles on the first day, your “pull” muscles on the second day, and your legs on the third day.

    You can then opt to repeat the cycle and rest at the end of the cycle or rest in between two cycles. 

    The push, pull, and legs regime is one of the easiest ways to establish an effective exercise routine.

    Pull up Exercise

    This training routine ensures that you will still be training each muscle group if you only have three days to exercise per week. 

    It is further effective as the push, pull, legs routine keeps you accountable to take rest days between muscle groups., It’s vital not to overtrain your muscles to have consistent growth. To do so, you need to incorporate rest days into your routine. 

     

    Which Shoulder Muscles Are “Push” Muscles?

    Front Raise

    Your shoulder generally falls under “push” muscles as you use those muscles to push forward.

    Visualize how your muscles move to help you determine under which category they fall. Using a cable or a rope, exercises that will help you activate your push muscles are lateral raises, front raises, rear deltoid fly, and face pulls

    During “push” days, the primary shoulder muscles you exercise are your front and side deltoids. 

    See our top three recommended cable machines you can use to do these exercises.

    Preview
    Overall Best
    XMARK Functional Trainer Cable Machine with Dual 200 lb Weight Stacks, 19 Adjustments, and Accessory Package XM-7626
    Best Alternative
    Body-Solid Powerline PFT100 Functional Trainer Cable Machine, Dual 160 Lb. Weight Stacks
    Best Budget
    Valor Fitness BD-61 Cable Crossover Station with LAT Pull, Row Bar, and Multi-Grip Pull-Up Station
    Product Name
    XMARK Functional Trainer Cable Machine
    Body-Solid Powerline PFT100 Cable Machine
    Valor Fitness BD-61 Cable Crossover Station
    Weight
    Dual 200 lb Weight Stacks
    Two 160 lb. weight stacks
    Max weight of 250 Pounds
    Adjustments
    19 Settings
    20 Settings
    17 Settings
    Dimensions
    86.2 x 36.2 x 8.9 inches
    ‎42.3 x 62.6 x 83 inches
    ‎80 x 7 x 7 inches
    Accessories
    Hand straps, long strap handles, triceps rope, short bar, long bar, leg extension leg curl strap, and ankle strap.
    Chinning bar and two weight stacks.
    Not Stated
    Overall Best
    Preview
    XMARK Functional Trainer Cable Machine with Dual 200 lb Weight Stacks, 19 Adjustments, and Accessory Package XM-7626
    Product Name
    XMARK Functional Trainer Cable Machine
    Weight
    Dual 200 lb Weight Stacks
    Adjustments
    19 Settings
    Dimensions
    86.2 x 36.2 x 8.9 inches
    Accessories
    Hand straps, long strap handles, triceps rope, short bar, long bar, leg extension leg curl strap, and ankle strap.
    Interested?
    Best Alternative
    Preview
    Body-Solid Powerline PFT100 Functional Trainer Cable Machine, Dual 160 Lb. Weight Stacks
    Product Name
    Body-Solid Powerline PFT100 Cable Machine
    Weight
    Two 160 lb. weight stacks
    Adjustments
    20 Settings
    Dimensions
    ‎42.3 x 62.6 x 83 inches
    Accessories
    Chinning bar and two weight stacks.
    Interested?
    Best Budget
    Preview
    Valor Fitness BD-61 Cable Crossover Station with LAT Pull, Row Bar, and Multi-Grip Pull-Up Station
    Product Name
    Valor Fitness BD-61 Cable Crossover Station
    Weight
    Max weight of 250 Pounds
    Adjustments
    17 Settings
    Dimensions
    ‎80 x 7 x 7 inches
    Accessories
    Not Stated
    Interested?

     

    Which Shoulder Muscles Are “Pull” Muscles?

    Dumbbell Shoulder Press

    While you are already training side deltoids on “push” days, you can incorporate exercises to activate your side delts on “pull” days. During “pull” days, your rear and side delts should be the primary focus. 

    Exercises to activate your rear and side delts include military press, incline bench press, incline dumbbell press, and Arnold presses. You activate your rear delts in both pull and back exercises. 

    You can split your side deltoid exercises by incorporating four to six sets on your push days and four to six on your pull days. 

    Check out our top three recommended adjustable dumbells to help with these exercises.

    Preview
    Best Quality
    Bowflex SelectTech 552 Adjustable Dumbbells (pair)
    Best Plates
    Lifepro Adjustable Dumbbell - 5-in-1, 25lb dumbell Adjustable Free Weights Plates and Rack - Hand Weights for Women and Men - Adjustable Weights, 5lb, 10lb, 15lb, 20lb, 25lb (25 Pounds - Pair)
    Best Connector Options
    Yes4All Adjustable Dumbbells - 50 lb Dumbbell Weights (Pair)
    Product Name
    Bowflex SelectTech Dumbbell
    Lifepro Adjustable Dumbbell
    Yes4All Adjustable Dumbbells
    Set Of Two Dumbbells
    Adjustable
    Wider Weight Range
    Up to 52.5 pounds
    Up to 25 pounds
    Up to 50 pounds
    Best Quality
    Preview
    Bowflex SelectTech 552 Adjustable Dumbbells (pair)
    Product Name
    Bowflex SelectTech Dumbbell
    Set Of Two Dumbbells
    Adjustable
    Wider Weight Range
    Up to 52.5 pounds
    Interested?
    Best Plates
    Preview
    Lifepro Adjustable Dumbbell - 5-in-1, 25lb dumbell Adjustable Free Weights Plates and Rack - Hand Weights for Women and Men - Adjustable Weights, 5lb, 10lb, 15lb, 20lb, 25lb (25 Pounds - Pair)
    Product Name
    Lifepro Adjustable Dumbbell
    Set Of Two Dumbbells
    Adjustable
    Wider Weight Range
    Up to 25 pounds
    Interested?
    Best Connector Options
    Preview
    Yes4All Adjustable Dumbbells - 50 lb Dumbbell Weights (Pair)
    Product Name
    Yes4All Adjustable Dumbbells
    Set Of Two Dumbbells
    Adjustable
    Wider Weight Range
    Up to 50 pounds
    Interested?

     

    Tips to Remember When Training Shoulders 

    Shoulder Training

    It can be exceptionally tempting to train with heavier weights to grow your shoulders as quickly as possible.

    However, training too heavy too fast leads to injuries and can stunt your growth in the long term. 

    It is best to start with a weight with which you can only achieve eight to ten reps. If you can comfortably do twelve reps with a weight, you should increase your weight. Build your strength slowly, but remember to push yourself to your maximum. 

    Find a schedule that works for your lifestyle, and stick to it.

    Shoulder Exercise

    Building a routine is the best way to increase your muscle strength and the best way to remain consistent in your training. You mustn’t overtrain your shoulders, as this will be detrimental, and you will not see the growth you are working towards. See tips in this post on The Ultimate Shoulder Workout Routine.

    Nothing is more frustrating than working incredibly hard to be disappointed with a lack of results.

    However, resting enough will ensure your muscles can grow properly. 

     

    Why Is It Important to Train Your Shoulders?

    Lateral Raise

    Training your shoulder muscles is vital to ensure you live a capable life. You use your shoulders every day, and having increased strength can help you complete basic tasks easier and quicker with less strain.

    Here are some of the benefits of strong shoulders:

    1. Training your shoulders will further help you as you age, as stronger muscles will enable you to be more active and present with your family. It is the best way to prevent shoulder injuries and diseases
    2. Strong shoulders will improve your posture, significantly benefiting your spine in the long term. Fitter and stronger people are healthier and suffer from fewer ailments and pains as they age. 
    3. Broader and stronger shoulders further benefit your training regime as you use your shoulder muscles in multiple other exercises – such as weighted squats. In addition, it will further help you increase the weights you are using for back and chest exercises. 
    4. Incorporating shoulders into your weekly exercise routine will ensure a well-rounded and equally developed body. However, it would be best to do adequate research before trying a new exercise to ensure you use the correct technique. 
    5. Beyond health, having well-developed shoulders will create an aesthetically pleasing look. Wider shoulders create the visual appearance that your waist is smaller and will complete the triangular upper body appearance that many people desire. 
    6. Having broader shoulders is a mark of athleticism. 
    7. Overall, broader and stronger shoulders will create an “X-frame” if you effectively train your legs. 
    8. If you have previously suffered from shoulder injuries, training them will prevent injuries from reoccurring and help you regain strength. Stronger shoulder muscles create more stability overall throughout your back and upper body. 
    9. Your shoulder muscles have a great range of movement, which impacts all other exercises – such as your back, biceps, triceps, and even when training legs (if you are holding dumbbells while doing a squat, for example). 
    10. No matter how much muscle mass you are starting with or how old you are, training your shoulders is something everyone should be doing. 

     

    Conclusion

    Shoulder Workout

    Ultimately training your shoulders is an important muscle group, and there are multiple ways to incorporate it into your training schedule.

    Using the “Push, Pull, Legs” breakdown is the most popular training schedule to help build a good routine for accelerated muscle growth. 

    How often should you train shoulders in a week?

    You shouldn’t train your shoulder more than eight to twelve sets per deltoid in a week, and it is best to split this training across different days.

    Having adequate rest days will help your muscles recover as well. Shoulders are arguably one of the best muscles to develop as it rounds off your body aesthetically and ensure that your upper body is stable. 

    Last update on 2023-11-22 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

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    James Wright

    James (36) has been working out since he was 15 years old. He has a home gym where he pumps iron, does bodyweight workouts and boxing. He likes sharing his experiences with others who want to build a better physique.

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