In this article we will talk about the technique of performing shrugs with a barbell - an exercise that beginners often do not focus on. But in vain. And then we will figure out why.
Shrugs are a low-amplitude pulling of the athlete's shoulders up towards the ears (shrug). We use shrugs to pump up the trapezoid, especially its top.
The exercise is performed with a barbell, dumbbells and other weights. The exercise is not recommended for beginners: do basic exercises, and you can add shrugs if, after prolonged training, your shoulders are too straight.
The name of the exercise “shrug” comes from “to shrug”, which in English means “shrug your shoulders”.
The main benefits of regularly performing shrugs:
- Improving posture, getting rid of stoop, visually enlarging the athlete’s shoulders.
- Result regular classes will be noticeable in everyday life: heavy bags will be much easier to carry.
- The upper back becomes more prominent and voluminous.
Working muscles: main and additional
Shrugs with a barbell allow you to work the upper muscle group, namely the “trapezius” area - paired muscles located just below the neck, in the upper back. The trapezius muscles help maintain a person's straight posture; they also prevent the shoulders from sagging under the pressure of weight, which helps lift and carry various weights. At correct execution The rhomboid muscles will also work. 
If you have any problems with the spine and neck, injuries shoulder girdle It is not recommended to perform such exercises without first consulting a doctor. The specialist will either prohibit you from performing shrugs, or will recommend performing this type of exercise only with small weights.
Too heavy a weight when performing this type of exercise is not recommended, as it not only reduces the effectiveness of shrugs, but can also injure the spine.
Shrugs with a barbell: variations and technique
General important points performing the exercise:
- don't do wide grip: shoulder width or slightly wider. Your arms are slightly bent at the elbows, but try not to load your biceps;
- you need to keep a “springy” stance; standing on straight legs is not recommended: bend your knees slightly;
- shoulders rise as high as possible - full amplitude. You can tilt your head forward a little. At the top point, briefly fix the bar;
- “jerky” movements should be avoided; you should raise your shoulders smoothly, controlling the work of your muscles;
- When working with heavy projectiles, it is recommended to use wrist straps to make your grip stronger.
Execution technique from Alexey Schroeder:
Execution technique from Yuri Spasokukotsky
The triceps muscles recover the fastest after exercise. But the back can be restored much more slowly. Be sure to take this into account when building your training program.
There are several options for performing the exercise:
- shrugs with a barbell in front of you.
- With a barbell behind your back.
- In the Smith machine.
This is the most popular type. Feet are shoulder-width apart. The barbell can be held either straight or reverse grip. Raise the barbell to your knees. We bend at the lower back and straighten our chest. The eyes look forward, we keep the chin level, without lifting or lowering it. We move our shoulders back, our back is fixed, we do not tilt our body forward. 
As you inhale, raise your shoulders up. At the top point you need to linger for 2-3 seconds, feel the tension in the trapezius muscles, then smoothly lower your shoulders and return to starting position. You cannot bend your arms while performing shrugs, otherwise the entire load will go to them.
Performing shrugs while holding a barbell behind your back will help work the middle part of the trapezius muscles. The technique for performing the exercise is the same as when the barbell is held in front. The only thing is that the barbell should not be lifted from the floor, but removed from a high rack, so as not to injure the lower back. 
The technique is not the most convenient, but if you do it regularly, you can achieve growth in the thickness of the trapezius muscles.
Shrugs in the Smith machine
You can also do shrugs with a barbell while standing in a Smith machine. You can work in two positions of the weight: in front and behind your back. The specifics of shrugs with a barbell in a power rack are almost the same as in the usual version of the exercise, with the exception of some factors. Work exclusively target muscles, it is much easier to perform the movements correctly. The exercise machine will not allow unnecessary swaying, as when working with a loose weight. 
To avoid injuring your spine when performing shrugs with a barbell behind your back, you can wear a special belt that will support your lower back.
How often and how much to do
It is enough to do it once a week. 4-5 working sets of 8-10 repetitions (not counting warm-up ones). Maximum amplitude approaches. The last set can be done in a drop: reduce the weight of the barbell by 50% and do a few more approaches.
We remind you that we do not recommend beginners to do the exercise, not because of complexity, but because of priority basic exercises. Shrugs are still worth doing if you have a certain muscle mass. Hypertrophied trapezius visually narrows your shoulders.
When including shrugs in your workout, be sure to thoroughly understand how to do them correctly. Below is a list of rules that you should pay attention to:
- There is no need to hold your breath while doing the exercise. Raise the projectile as you inhale, lower it as you exhale. Correct breathing– this is the key to effective training.
- Keep your body upright and do not lean backward or forward. It is especially important to maintain a straight spine.
- Try not to bend your elbows so as not to transfer the load to your biceps.
- Avoid rotating your shoulders when doing shrugs to avoid damaging your joints.
- Lift the weight smoothly, with controlled movements.
- Keep your head straight and look forward. Do not turn your neck to the sides, do not lower your chin.
And most important rule, which fans of heavy weights should pay attention to: you need to perform shrugs with the weight that will provide correct technique performing the exercise and at the same time maximizing the range of motion. There is no point in lifting a heavy weight if you can barely lift it. This is ineffective and can cause injury.
If you take a responsible approach to studying the theory of performing shrugs, you can successfully perform such exercises during your training. Shrugs with a barbell will help develop the trapezius muscles, get rid of stooping and increase other indicators in various types strength exercises.
In addition to the trapezius, other muscles are involved in this exercise. First of all, the load is transferred to the rhomboid muscles, as well as to the muscles that lift the scapula upward when the athlete lifts his shoulders.
Despite the fact that these muscles are much smaller in size, they cope well with any load.
Correct technique
One of the most common variations of shrugs is to perform them while standing with a barbell. This exercise is recommended for athletes of any level of fitness who can choose the right working weight for themselves. To perform this type of shrug, you must:
- Stand in front of the barbell and place your feet shoulder-width apart. If the barbell is lying on the floor, you need to grab it in the same way as before performing a regular deadlift. She is held with fully extended arms overhand grip. In this case, your palms should be at a distance slightly wider than your shoulders. Immediately after taking the projectile, you need to straighten up, straightening your shoulders and chest.
A slight arch in the lower back is allowed. For the athlete's convenience, the chin is kept parallel to the floor, which allows you to direct your gaze forward. This is the starting position.
- After inhaling, the athlete holds his breath and pulls his shoulders up. At the top of the shrug, it is recommended to stop for a few seconds. At this moment, you can feel the tension in the trapezius muscles.
- Lowering the bar to its original position is performed while exhaling. It is important to lower it slowly so as not to tear the muscles.
- The required number of repetitions is performed.
Safety
Using a barbell to train your traps makes this exercise more challenging for beginners. To protect themselves from any possible injury, beginners should work with an empty bar. With its help, you can qualitatively work out the exercise technique. But if you are an experienced athlete, the training effect will be greater if you use a heavier barbell.
While performing shrugs no need to tilt your body forward. This is especially true for athletes working with heavy weights. The fact is that a projectile that is too heavy can drag the body along with it, stretching the lower back. To protect your back from such injuries, it is important to tighten your lower back and muscles well. abdominals, performing a stabilizing function.
Common mistakes
Rounding the back. This mistake is often made by inexperienced athletes. They take a barbell that is too heavy for themselves, but do not take into account that the trapezoid may not withstand such a load. Under the influence of heavy weight, the upper spine begins to round. This can lead to curvature of posture in the future, so you need to strictly monitor the position of your back.
Making circular movements while lifting weights. Because of this mistake, many athletes were injured shoulder joints. At the moment of lifting, they must move strictly upward, because any unnecessary movement can have a detrimental effect on their condition.
Tilt of the chin down. When performing shrugs, it is very important to maintain proper balance. If the barbell is too heavy, it can pull the athlete's body down. But if he directs his gaze forward and lifts his chin, the exercise will become easier.
Equipment
To perform shrugs you will need a straight bar and discs. With their help, the bar used in the exercise is formed. Additionally, you can use sports gloves, making it easier to hold the weight in your hands.
In addition, it is important to pay attention to your shoes. It should be comfortable enough for the athlete to feel confident on the floor. Special weightlifting weights with hard soles are ideal for this exercise.
- This exercise can be performed either with a weight in front of you or with it behind your back. In the first case, the load goes to the front of the trapezius, and in the second, to the back.
- If the barbell is too heavy, then you need to use straps. They will help you focus your attention not on holding the weight, but on the trapezius.
- A slight tilt of the body is allowed. But it is important to remember - the greater the inclination, the more the lower trapezius and middle back are involved in the work.
- Work in this exercise should take place through the full amplitude. At the bottom point of the exercise, the muscles relax as much as possible, and at the top they tense.
- Shrugs are ideal to perform at the end of a back workout.
- There is no need to bend your elbow joints once again, as the biceps will begin to engage in work.
Shrugs are small-amplitude movements consisting of shrugging the shoulders.
Over time, shrugs must be included in the main training program for effective back development. Beginners perform this exercise optional.
Recently, bodybuilding has preferred to use heavy weights. However, you cannot do shrugs with heavy weight. This can injure your spine.
In addition, when using a barbell or heavy dumbbells, the load does not go to the trapezius muscles, but is evenly distributed between all the muscles of the shoulder girdle.
Using shrugs in training allows you to pump up the upper trapezius area. Other muscles are stressed by different arm positions when performing exercises with dumbbells or a barbell. In addition to the trapezius muscles, the rhomboid muscles are included in the work.
Standing shrugs
Are considered the most popular view shrugs. The execution technique is described below.
Take weights in your hands. Start raising your shoulders as high as possible without bending your arms. Then, also smoothly, lower your shoulders and return to the starting position. Do the exercise again. A barbell or dumbbells with curved neck. They don't put pressure on the groin or legs like a regular bar. If you are performing an exercise with a straight hyphae, then change your hand grip as you perform it.
You can also perform shrugs on a vertical machine, which is designed for training calf muscles. You don't need dumbbells or a barbell for this. Go to the machine, take the starting position, as when doing calf exercises. Focus on lifting your shoulders. Remember that there will be a significant weight bearing down on your shoulders.
Tighten your torso muscles, bend your back slightly. Distribute the load evenly over the body, do not shift from foot to foot. When performing the exercise, strong pressure on the shoulders can cause discomfort. This will primarily affect those who have joint problems. To do this, place something soft between your shoulders and the machine.
Stand straight with your feet close to each other. Take dumbbells and hold them with your arms down.
Roll your shoulders, keep your back straight, and bend your knees slightly.
Start doing the exercise. Raise your shoulders as high as possible. When lifting, you can lower your chin. In this case, more load will be placed on the trapezius muscles.
When your shoulders are at the top, pause for three seconds and return to the starting position. Repetitions can be done 12-15 or more.
Note: when performing the exercise, keep your torso straight, without bending forward, and do not use your biceps.
The main thing in this exercise is to choose the right dumbbell weight. Very heavy dumbbells will not allow you to contract your muscles as much as possible. This means that muscle mass will grow ineffectively. If you feel that the muscle contraction is not enough, use lighter weights.
Don't roll your shoulders at the top. Many people think that this way they can build up their shoulders faster. This is actually not true. Rotating your shoulders only increases the load on the trapezius muscles and prevents them from contracting fully.
Approach the bar. Take your starting position: feet shoulder-width apart. Raise the barbell up to your knees as if you were doing a deadlift. You can hold the barbell with a straight or reverse grip, the distance between your hands is slightly wider than your shoulders. Straighten your chest, bend at the lower back. The eyes should look straight ahead, do not lift the chin, keep it straight.
Start doing the exercise. To do this, take a breath, hold your breath for a couple of seconds and begin to raise your shoulders up. At the top point, hold for two to three seconds, feel the trapezius muscles tense, then smoothly return to the starting position. Do 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps.
While performing this exercise, keep your torso motionless: keep your back straight, do not tilt your body forward, pull your shoulders back. Don't circular movements, as this can cause damage to the joints. And if you take into account the weight of the bar, even more so. The main thing you should do is to raise your shoulders as straight as possible to as high a height as possible.
Thus, you will force the trapezius muscles to contract as much as possible, and this provokes rapid growth muscle mass. Do not bend your arms, otherwise part of the load will fall on them. Take your time to lift as much weight as possible.
A barbell that is too heavy will not allow you to lift your shoulders as high as possible. This reduces the effectiveness of the exercise.
In addition, a large weight, when lowered, will contribute to the rounding of the back. So you can start to slouch. In order not to do the exercise a hundred times, but to get results very quickly, you just need to do it correctly. Remember about your chin: it should not be lowered.
Shrugs in the Smith machine
You can pump up the trapezius muscles in the Smith machine. Perform it in two positions of the bar: front and back. The technique of performing the exercise is very similar to performing shrugs with a regular barbell. But there are some nuances:
1. The work will absolutely not use all the auxiliary muscles, which will allow you to better concentrate on your trapezius. This will allow you to perform movements more correctly, which will lead to an increase in basic weights.
Ours for you with a brush! Today we are waiting for a classic note on safety precautions for performing such an exercise as shrugs with dumbbells. We will cover all the practical aspects and subtleties, learn about the advantages and main mistakes and, of course, get acquainted with... well, I won’t throw out all the tricks in order to maintain some intrigue.
So, everyone stuck to the blue monitor screens (or whatever you have), we begin.
Shrugs with dumbbells. What, why and why?
It just so happens that every visitor gym have your favorite exercises and zones (muscle groups) elaboration. Most often for guys it’s the pecs and biceps, for girls it’s the abs and buttocks. It is the most advantageous parts of the body that we pay the closest attention to, neglecting others that are not very indicative. In general, people are selective people and download only what they consider necessary and what catches the eye most. Therefore, the next exercise is shrugs with dumbbells, which is not favored by most “home-grown” sculptors, and if they do it, it is done lazily, reluctantly, and through a stump :). Why is this happening? Apparently, due to the low awareness of the population about its usefulness and necessity. Well, we will correct the current situation through this note. So let's roll up our sleeves and get to the story.
Shrugs – isolated exercise, aimed at developing the upper trapezius. Trapezoid is geometric figure with two sides a muscle in the upper back that is used to support and lift and rotate the shoulder blades. The most visible part of the trapezius muscle is the upper region, which extends from the neck and creates a “hump” over the shoulders. The muscles are named so because... their pair forms a shape similar to a trapezoid. When the shoulders move upward, the rotator cuff and the extensors (rectifiers) of the spine act as stabilizer muscles, i.e. they support and control the movement of deltas. In general, in order to feel the trapezoids at the everyday level, you need to pull your shoulders towards your ears, because this is the movement that is the basis of the shrug.
The muscle mass visually “engaged” by shrugs looks like this:
Often the trapezius area is the most poorly developed muscular unit of the upper back. It is worth saying that shrugs are great exercise for office workers and those people who sit too much and spend time at the PC. It perfectly relieves stress and tension from this tight muscle area.
Note:
For better assimilation of the material, all further narration will be divided into subchapters.
Advantages
Each movement has its advantages. The benefits of the dumbbell shrug exercise include:
- extreme isolation of the trapezius and an increase in the volume of only this area of the back;
- varied position of the projectile - the weight can be placed behind/in front of the hips;
- improved posture - shrugs strengthen the stability of the shoulder blades, allowing you to keep your shoulders high and your back straight;
- improvement of gait – straight back changes gait in better side, the person does not look down and, literally, carries himself;
- well-developed shoulders, coupled with trapezoids, add massiveness to the athlete’s physique and significantly distinguish him from others, especially in open T-shirts.
Now let's move on to the technical part of the note, or rather to...
Execution technique
We can say that there is little room for error in this exercise, because... the movement is completely natural and does not cause any difficulties in reproduction. So, the execution process includes the following steps.
Step #1.
Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. Take (grab with your palms facing you) dumbbells in each hand and stand tall. Lower your shoulders, let them “sag” as low as possible. This is your starting position.
Step #2.
Inhale, and as you exhale, begin to lift your shoulders up, trying to bring them towards your ears. At the end point of the amplitude, hold for 2 accounts. The arms remain straight throughout the movement. The movement is carried out only by moving the shoulders up and down. There is no rotation of the deltas back and forth.
Step #3.
Lower the dumbbells back down and return to full rep. Repeat the specified number of times.
In the picture version, all this disgrace looks like this:
As for the moving version, it represents the following picture...
The shrug exercise has many different variations, in particular here are examples of some of them:
Despite the ease of the exercise, it has its own secrets and technical tricks that will help you complete it successfully. 100% perfect. In particular, remember:
- don't use your hands (biceps and forearms) by bending them, they are intended only to support weight;
- don't pull your shoulders back (rotation element) at the top point;
- try to raise your shoulders as high as possible, touch them to your ears :);
- perform a peak contraction in the upper amplitude;
- Maintain a strictly vertical body position throughout the entire movement;
- at the beginning of the movement, statically tighten your core muscles to better stabilize your back;
- “don’t throw” your shoulders while at the top point;
- lift the dumbbells up explosively, lower them slowly and under control;
- Lifting bands will help hold heavy weights.
This is such a “small” exercise, but there are so many subtleties and nuances, failure to comply with any of them can lead to...
Injuries while performing
Despite the ease and simplicity of the exercise, you can easily get injured in it. In particular:
- overload your back. An incorrect slouching position, instead of targeting the load on the upper trapezius, will shift the load to the middle of the back, which will lead to excessive overload.
- damage the rotator cuff. One of the most common mistakes when performing shrugs is moving (rotating) the shoulders instead of simply lifting them up and down in the same vertical plane. It turns out that the dumbbells move due to the momentum of the swing of the shoulders, and not due to the loading of the trapezius. All this leads to overstrain of the rotator cuff.
- overload your neck. Incorrect position heads (tilted back/forward) especially when heavy weight, pinches the neck muscles and creates an excessive, unintended load for it.
- muscle rupture. Shrugs are an isolated exercise on the trapezius. It turns out that the entire weight of the projectile falls exclusively on them. This is a huge stress for such a small person. muscle group.
Well, that’s probably all I would like to report on, let’s summarize all this chatter.
Afterword
Today we got acquainted with such an exercise as shrugs with dumbbells. I’m sure that just from one reading your trapezes have become much larger, but can you imagine what will happen to them if you try all this live? So let’s all go into the hall and put theory into practice, good luck!
That’s all, until we meet again, I was glad to write for you!
PS. Friends, do you use shrugs in your training program?
P.P.S. Did the project help? Then leave a link to it as your status social network- plus 100 points to karma, guaranteed).
With respect and gratitude, Dmitry Protasov.
Shrugs are the only isolation exercise for working the trapezius muscles. As athletic performance increases, athletes need to train their trapezius, but beginners can neglect this exercise. Shrugs mainly load the upper trapezius, as well as the rhomboids and levator scapulae muscles; this movement can be performed with dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, it is recommended to train in a standing position.
The most popular trapezius exercise in the bodybuilding world. This exercise is convenient because it can be done to train any muscle group, but it is best to train the trapezius muscles along with the deltoids. If the weights are too heavy, it is recommended to use straps to securely hold the barbell.
Technique for performing shrugs with a barbell while standing
- Keep your torso in stable position, distribute the load evenly, do not move from one leg to the other.
- Strictly follow the execution technique, do not rotate your shoulders during training, this can lead to injury.
- Do not use maximum weights, your main priority should be amplitude, too heavy a projectile will prevent you from lifting it high.
- When performing shrugs, keep your arms straight, bending in elbow joint will not allow you to work efficiently, your task is maximum peak reduction.
- Do not tilt your head down, this will lead to rounding of your back, which is very dangerous.
Shrugs with a barbell lying down– an exercise for the trapezius, which, in addition to the upper part, also works the middle section of the trapezius muscles. In this exercise, the main thing is to focus on the movement of the shoulders. For large scales use straps.
Shrugs lying down - technique
- Go to the bench, take the desired position, wrap the straps around the barbell and grab it.
- Keep your arms straight, the movement is performed exclusively through the shoulders, inhale as you rise, exhale as you lower the bar. When training, you should not bend your arms.
- Choose a weight that allows you to lift the barbell as high as possible, this is necessary for better reduction target muscle group, which will ultimately make it grow.
Another popular option for pumping up the trapezius is performing shrugs with a barbell behind your back. During movement, they are also activated rear delts, this exercise also has another name -.
The technique of performing shrugs with a barbell behind your back is very simple - approach the barbell with your back and take it in your hands, if the weight is very heavy, then use straps, lift the bar quickly and lower it slowly and under control, work only with the trapezius, keep a small fixed bend in the elbow joint and do not use your arms during movement. You can see what it looks like in real life from the video at the end of the article.
Shrug training program
Here is an example of a training program that is very popular in bodybuilding. Traps are often trained together with deltoids and back. So, comprehensive training for the back, deltoid and trapezius muscles:
- Pull-ups on the horizontal bar with a wide grip;
- Bent-over barbell row;
- Pulling a block to the belt in the simulator;
- Seated dumbbell press;
- Wide grip barbell row to the chin;
- Shrugs with dumbbells.
It is recommended to perform 8-12 repetitions in 3-4 sets. Before each exercise you need to do at least 1 warm-up approach. Such complex training will cause the release of many anabolic hormones in your body, which will cause your muscles to grow.
Features of the technique of performing shrugs with a barbell while standing - video
Shrugs with a barbell lying down - video
Shrugs with a barbell behind your back - video
