Let’s face it most people do not have the slightest clue on how to work the shoulder muscles. This is due to the fact that unlike the arm training, shoulder training is a bit complicated. When working the shoulders the most common injury that body builders sustain occurs on the rotator cuffs. Basically this occurs due to vast volume of pressing i.e. bench press, incline press, overhead press to name but a few, and very little volume of work for the opposing muscles on the upper back.

To prevent such type of injury you begin first and foremost by trying to balance the training of your upper body. Thus for each set of pressing you undertake you should couple this with a set of rowing so as to balance the muscles of the shoulder girdle.

This methodology will provide dual benefits in that apart from preventing injuries it will also save you from developing a rounded upper back. It is very important to develop proper posture as this will enhance your performance due to the fact that you’re joints are stabilized and in the right alignment. Aside from improving your performance proper posture will add on to your aesthetic value.

Equalizing pressing with rows is a terrific start, although if you have been exercising in a not so balanced manner for some time then you should consider doing more work for the rotator cuffs. You should note however that this should be done side by side with a balanced training program. Most people make a common mistake of doing a set of heavy bench presses and coupling it with a few set of rotator cuff exercises using 5 pounds so as to prevent injury. This is absolutely wrong and does not make any sense whatsoever.

You should always keep in mind that your first line of defense against injury is a proper and balanced program design. If you are unable to come up with a properly designed training program, seek advice from a friend who is well seasoned or an expert in this field. Remember it is always better to ask and look foolish than to keep quiet and remain foolish. The benefit of a proper program design is that you will achieve high muscle gain while reducing the rate of injuries.

Below is an example a of simple rotator cuff exercises you can apply:

- Prone 90/90 RotationsStart Grab a light dumbbell or plate in each while lying down on a bench. Raise the plates gently off the floor by bending your elbows to 90 degrees and maintaining your upper arm at 90 degrees. This will be your starting position Next step is to keep your elbow in the same position and rotate it at the shoulder until the plates are out to the side of your head. Then go back to the starting position and repeat.

The direct rotator cuff movement is a wonderful addition to an existing sound muscle gaining program. This is just one of the basic rotator cuff exercises although there are many others which exist.

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