Keeping your shoulders healthy is a high priority for anybody interested in strength, muscle or athletics.
If your shoulders are messed up, it's going to compromise almost every upper body movement you do but even lower body exercises like squats and deadlifts.
That's where this simple exercise is useful for strengthening the rotator cuff and upper back muscles that stabilize the shoulder joint.
It can be used for rehab, for strength building or as a warm-up before performing upper body movements.
How to do Barbell Pull-Aparts for Shoulder Health
First, set a bar up either in the power rack or using the Smith machine, set to about forehead level when you're sitting on the floor in front of it.
Doing these seated is, I find at least, better than standing simply because it uses less resistance and gives you better control over the movement so you can feel it where you want to feel it rather than causing the bigger muscles of the upper back to take over to move your body.
Slide yourself a little forward under the bar so that your upper midsection is directly under the bar.
Take a grip that's about where your bench press grip would be. Let the arms go straight.
Now DO NOT row up.
Instead, try and pull the bar apart (hence the name). As you pull the bar apart, this will cause your upper body to come up towards the bar.
At the top of the movement, your elbows should be bent 90 degrees and your shoulders should be set 90 degrees as well.
Pull your forehead into the bar and continue TRYING to pull forward. This gives you good isometric activation at the top of the movement.
By sitting down (versus standing), you change the pivot point from your feet to your butt, which changes the length of the lever arm. This length is more appropriate for the exercise movement pattern, in addition to reducing the resistance and making it easier to control.
KEY POINT...this is NOT a row....it's a rotation.
As I mentioned above, this exercise is not a rowing movement. By trying to pull the bar apart, this creates external rotation in the shoulder joints, which works the Rotator Cuff muscles (and upper back).
Be VERY sure to watch the video for this one so you can see exactly how it's performed...it's critical.
Perform this one as a warm-up before upper body training, or at the end of the workout, if your goal is strengthening.
I recommend 8-12+ reps per set, doing one or two sets (you won't need much rest since it's a light movement).
The important thing is FEEL, not load.
If you feel any pain along the way (because of shoulder injuries), you can use your core to take up the tension so that you can bypass where the pain is in the range of motion, allowing you to still effectively strengthen the rotator cuff.
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