How to reduce a girl's shoulders - exercises at home

There are two opposing points of view on this matter. Some people believe that it is possible to expand the bones of the shoulders and chest. Others claim that this is impossible. Who is right? As you know, the truth is always somewhere in the middle. Let's go in order.

First you need to understand the anatomy of the chest. At the back of the torso, our ribs connect to the spine. In front, with the help of cartilage, the ribs are attached to the sternum. So, many people believe that to expand the chest, you need to “stretch” this cartilage. Many experiments have been conducted that have proven that stretching and deep inhalations and exhalations cannot affect the cartilaginous structure of the thoracic region, because even if it were possible to stretch the cartilaginous bridges of the ribs, this would inevitably lead to a change in their functional-anatomical connection with the spine . In other words, if the angle of attachment of the ribs to the spine changes, then all motor function will be disrupted.

However, there are many good reviews about the effectiveness of sternum expansion training. How can this be if most experiments prove the ineffectiveness of such training? There are two main reasons for this:

1. The positive effects of “broader training” most often result from hypertrophy of the torso muscles, which creates the appearance of broader shoulders and chest. This is true for men over 25 years old.

2. The positive effect of bone growth in length is present, but only for people under 20-25 years of age. Moreover, before the age of 20, the chances of expanding the chest and shoulder bones are much higher.

Just like other tissues of the body, our bones change throughout a person's life. Bone growth is regulated by biologically active substances, such as, for example, growth hormone , which is secreted by the pituitary gland. The greater the load on the bones, the more active their growth and renewal processes occur. Thus, the inert substance becomes much stronger. That is, physical exercise accelerates the growth of skeletal bones.

In humans, the chest is expanded laterally, due to upright posture, while it is compressed laterally in mammals . Moreover, when you were born, your chest was in shape closer to the shape of four-legged animals (flattened on the sides), but gradually, as you grew older, it expanded, because this shape is more convenient for us. This is a very important point and explains why sternum expansion training is effective for some and not for others. It’s just that such training is effective for young people (up to 20-25 years old), while the shape of the chest is changing (adapted for upright walking) and is completely useless if you are older than this age range.

The growth of bones in thickness occurs due to the division of cells on the inner surface of the periosteum. This leads to the formation of new layers of cells and intercellular substance between them on the surface of the bone. The bone becomes THICKER! This process directly depends on strength training. It is worth noting that all strength athletes have much thicker bones than ordinary people who do not regularly perform strength exercises with heavy weights.

The growth of bones in length is due to the division of cells of the cartilage tissue that covers the ends of the bones. But, as mentioned above, this process is only possible while the shape of the chest is changing. And this happens only in childhood and adolescence. Then STOP! During childhood and adolescence, the so-called epiphyseal cartilage (“growth plate” between the body of the bone and its head) is preserved at the end of the bones, in which cells multiply (under the influence of growth hormone), depositing cartilaginous substance and eventually ossifying . The bone is growing in length! The chest is expanding!

In short, as a person grows older, the percentage of inorganic substances in the bone tissue increases and the growing bones become increasingly hard.

From 1 to 7 years, bone growth accelerates in length due to the epiphyseal cartilage located between the body of the bone and its head, and in thickness due to the thickening of the bone substance from the periosteum.

After 11 years, the bones of the skeleton again begin to grow rapidly and take on their final shape. When growth ends - and this happens around the age of 20-25 - the cartilage is completely replaced by bone tissue (growth zones close). Bone growth in thickness occurs through the application of new masses of bone substance from the periosteum.

Now do you understand why many experiments have shown the uselessness of chest-expanding training? It’s just that such a load ONLY works on young people! The older a person is, the less chance he has of expanding his BONE.

What muscles need to be developed to increase shoulder size?

Around the shoulder joint are the deltoid muscles, which consist of three bundles:

• anterior head – located on the front of the shoulder (trained by lifting weights in front of you);
• middle (central) head - located on the side of the shoulder (increases by moving the arms back and to the sides);
• posterior head - located behind the shoulder and if not developed, it greatly spoils the male figure (it is used when moving the arms back in a bend and other exercises in which the humerus is behind the body).

Beautiful wide shoulders form the middle tufts of deltas, so you can pump them up and maintain the results obtained only by regularly performing strength exercises on this area.

What determines shoulder width and how to increase it?

Initially, shoulder width is determined genetically. Testosterone has a huge influence on their development, since deltas have the highest concentration of androgen receptors in human muscles. The deltoid muscles become wider during puberty, and if the hormone was not produced in sufficient quantities during adolescence, the shoulders will be narrow.

But even this drawback can be hidden, because not all bodybuilders are lucky with genetics: professional athletes know well how to widen narrow shoulders and back and make their figure more masculine. In order not to complain at the age of 30 about your “naturally inherited” figure, you need not to miss an important point - from an early age, start doing exercises to develop your body. Nutrition experts recommend carefully monitoring your diet during puberty and eating more foods that naturally increase testosterone production:

• pearl barley and buckwheat porridge;
• shrimp and tuna;
• bananas and red grapes;
• eggs;
• nuts;
• broccoli;
• garlic;
• fresh herbs;
• foods with low amounts of cholesterol.

You can expand the skeleton of the upper shoulder girdle up to 20 years by performing just two exercises twice a week: dips on the uneven bars with a slight forward bend and pullovers while lying down with dumbbells or a barbell. Such a small load will just improve your posture and help increase the width of your shoulders. A guy can change his shoulder width after 20 years only by pumping up his middle deltoid muscles.

The deltoids are trained both with special isolated exercises and with regular push-ups, various presses, etc. But most of the “indirect” exercises develop the anterior head and, if you do not specifically pay attention to the remaining beams, then muscle imbalance cannot be avoided.

Unaesthetic appearance is only part of the problem. When imbalances accumulate, the risk of injury increases, pain and burning in the shoulder area appears, and range of motion decreases. To fully develop the deltoids, you need to design a workout in accordance with your training and body type.

Factors influencing drooping shoulders

Today, experts suggest that this defect is based on several processes:

• The presence of a hereditary predisposition.
• The presence of congenital changes in the nervous, muscular and skeletal systems.

These reasons are not fully understood. But the main one is considered to be general weakness along with underdevelopment of the ligamentous and muscular apparatus, which is most dangerous during the period of intensive growth between the ages of six and eight years. In combination with provoking factors (we are talking about poor posture, slight natural asymmetry of the pelvis and legs), all this leads to the occurrence of curvature of the spine.

Shoulder drooping due to scoliosis can be freely inherited, and it can also be acquired during difficult childbirth, as a result of improper swaddling, and subsequently due to bruises and spinal injuries, with prolonged uncomfortable forced postures and unwanted overloads. Now let's move on to considering the diagnosis of this defect.

What to do if one shoulder is higher than the other?

How to tailor shoulder training to your body type?

Lean ectomorphs with a fast metabolism need to concentrate more on basic exercises. One workout should last no more than 45 minutes, and for each muscle group it is better to do many approaches with a small number of repetitions. It is advisable to take additional swimming lessons.

The luckiest ones are mesomorphs with developed muscles, broad chests and shoulders. They can safely perform isolation exercises and train on a three-day split program. Their strength increases faster than other athletes, and high-quality lean muscle mass is built up without chemicals.

Endomorphs easily gain excess weight, so they should pay more attention to their diet. You can train on a three-day split program in just over an hour. Shoulder training should be based on heavy compound exercises. It is advisable to keep rest between approaches to a minimum.

Which dresses and jumpsuits to choose?

We will include overalls and dresses in a separate category, since they combine all of the above requirements for top and bottom.

• When choosing a jumpsuit, pay more attention to the bottom. The same requirements apply as for the selection of trousers - they must be long with wide legs. The top can be anything, either closed with a round neckline or open.

• Dresses can also be different - long, short, tight, “airy”. The most suitable option is a full skirt and open up. You should emphasize your waist with a belt. Various colors, textures, styles are suitable.

Here are some options:

Should girls rock their shoulders?

By increasing the size of your shoulders, you can turn an “A” figure into an “X” figure: the waist will seem narrower and the hips will not be so wide. This is how many stars who show off their bodies in photos achieved ideal proportions. For ladies with an “H” figure, wide shoulders allow them to create a V-shaped back and visually narrow their waist. It is not advisable for only girls with a T-shaped figure to get carried away with shoulder training. Exercises to maintain good posture are more suitable for them.

Hairdressers, dentists and representatives of other professions who have to hold their arms suspended in front of them especially need to strengthen the back of the shoulder and stretch the front delta. This will protect you from injuries and relieve stress. It is also worth noting that if a girl diligently pumps up her lower body and arms, but ignores training for the muscles of the shoulder girdle, then the widest part of her silhouette becomes the biceps of her arms, which looks ugly.

You won’t be able to pump up your deltoids too much, because the hormone testosterone promotes their growth. In women, it is produced approximately 20–30 times less (depending on age) than in men. In addition, when training your shoulders, you need to monitor changes in your figure, and not blindly follow training schemes from the Internet that the pros use in preparation for bodybuilding championships. If you notice an undesirable increase in volume, you need to adjust your training or temporarily abandon this type of load. If you do this in time, the extra centimeters will quickly “merge.”

WE SELECT THE CORRECT ACCESSORIES

Many unfairly believe that jewelry and accessories do not play a special role in the overall image, and certainly do not help hide figure flaws. However, well-chosen “little things” can significantly affect a girl’s appearance and place emphasis where she wishes. For example, for a woman with broad shoulders, a good choice would be long chains or beads that visually lengthen the look, as well as bright large bracelets that will help highlight the arms and waistline.

When choosing a bag, you need to give preference to voluminous options with a long handle to visually enlarge the bottom, or small clutches. It is not advisable to carry backpacks and bags with a short handle on the shoulder; this will create additional volume in the upper body.

A belt is the optimal accessory for almost any outfit. With dresses and skirts you can wear a wide belt that highlights the waist, but for trousers it is better to choose a thin strap with an original buckle.

As for shoes, for girls with an inverted triangle figure, the optimal choice would be shoes or ankle boots with heels, which will allow you to stand taller, elongate your look and get rid of the feeling of disproportion. They can be worn under dresses or skirts, or combined with trousers and even jeans.

How can a man build broad shoulders?

There is no one exercise that will allow you to pump up all the bundles at the same time. In one workout you need to work out each head, so professionals combine basic (multi-joint) exercises with isolating (single-joint) exercises. The result depends greatly on:

• number of repetitions;
• number of workouts per week on shoulders;
• working weight;
• rest period.

Effective selection can only be made through experience. To do this, you need to periodically change your training plan, measure the width of your shoulders (measured horizontally at the outer most prominent points on the shoulders), record the results and find a connection between individual workouts and maximum progress.

You need to start your workout with a warm-up and don’t try to surprise anyone with heavy weights. If there was a long break in your classes, then at first you need to do basic exercises for the whole body, cardio, and circuit training. For beginners, two basic exercises on the shoulders will be enough, and experienced athletes need to add 1-3 more isolating exercises to them. You should not be afraid of your muscles getting used to the same exercises, because this will not happen if you use different weights.

Basic or isolating?

Effective basic exercises for shaping shoulders, which can be performed standing and sitting, with dumbbells and barbells, at home and in the gym:

1. Vertical barbell press from the chest over your head (military press).
2. Bench press.
3. Dumbbell shoulder press.
4. Straight-grip barbell row to the chin.
5. Arnold press.

These exercises perfectly train the anterior and middle bundles, strengthen ligaments and develop strength. As a rule, they start training with a “base” and then do “isolation”, but professionals can afford to do exactly the opposite.

Isolation exercises for the middle deltoid to increase shoulder width:

1. Raising dumbbells to the sides while standing (from the hips).
2. Raise with one hand to the side on the lower block.

If the rear delta is lagging behind in development, which is quite common, perform the following isolated exercises:

1. Bent-over dumbbell raises to the sides.
2. Dumbbell rows lying on your stomach on an incline bench.
3. Retracting the arms back in the “peck-deck” simulator (reverse “butterfly” is a modification of bent over swings).

For the anterior deltoid, which rarely needs isolation exercises, you can do:

1. Lifting dumbbells in front of you.
2. Pull the lower block forward.

To increase shoulder width, a simple superset is suitable (2 exercises in 4 circles with a break after each circle for 30 seconds):

• 15–20 pull-ups of a barbell with a curved bar to the chin with the widest possible grip.
• 15–20 standing dumbbell lateral raises.

There are many other shoulder exercises (such as pulleys), but they are considered less effective or duplicative. Basic exercises also include pull-ups on the horizontal bar, but the load on the shoulders when performing them is “smeared” and is not enough for good hypertrophy (growth) of the deltas.

The easiest way to solve the problem of narrow shoulders is to perform exercises with free weights (dumbbells, barbells). They can be done in the gym and at home. The main thing is not to disturb your technique and breathing. If you don’t have a personal instructor, videos from experienced trainers will help you master the correct technique.

Typically, the number of repetitions varies from average to maximum. At the same time, do 3-5 sets and rest between them for one minute. The shoulder muscles recover in four days, so it is advisable to train them no more than twice a week. It is advisable to eat 6-8 times a day in small portions, which will improve recovery.

Burning subcutaneous fat on the back with massage

For people with elevated temperatures and chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, massage is contraindicated. Massage should not be done on menstrual periods, during pregnancy and within 2 months after childbirth, cesarean section or abortion.

The main task of any massage is to provide additional blood flow to the desired area of ​​the body, which will lead to an increase in the concentration of hormones that break down fat.

Pinch massage is the best way to self-massage at home. It will activate processes that ensure the breakdown of fat deposits and improve the appearance and elasticity of the skin.

First you need to prepare the problem area by applying cream or treating it with special oil. Warm up the prepared surface with light strokes. This effect will prevent bruises from forming after intense pinching.

Grab the fat layer with your palm so that 4 fingers are on one side and your thumb is on the other. Moving clockwise, it is tedious to squeeze and push through the fatty tissue, increasing the impact and increasing the radius of the trajectory with each revolution. Make 3 passes.

Rub the entire treated area with a terry towel. At the end of the process, stroke and pat this area.

When performing a massage, sharp painful sensations are not allowed. Mild tingling and redness of the skin is acceptable during the procedure.

Daily 10 – 15 min. exposure within a month will allow you to get a noticeable result.

Constant training, a variety of physical exercises, diet, massage will allow you to remove folds on your back in a short time at home. The main thing is desire and daily implementation of the planned program of action, and no difficulties can prevent you from achieving your goal.

How to accelerate the growth of medium deltas and overcome the period of “stagnation”?

One of the main criteria for growth is an increase in weight. At the beginning of the training journey, any load is stressful. But after years of training, there inevitably comes a time when adding weight doesn't help you progress. Then the following methods are used to achieve muscle failure:

• forced repetitions - a partner helps lift heavy weights on the last reps when it is not possible to do it yourself with the chosen weight and clean technique;
• partial repetitions – the range of motion is ½ or ¼ of normal;
• cheating - to increase the number of repetitions, muscles are additionally used that should not be activated with the correct technique (for example, swinging the body when lifting a barbell);
• negative repetitions - slow eccentric phase (for example, lowering a maximum weight bar) and fast concentric;
• drop set – reducing the weight with each approach until failure (the weight is dropped by the partner so that there is no rest between sets).

The deltas are approximately 40% fast-growing white fibers and 60% red. You can make them maximally and harmoniously developed by training different fibers at different periods (2-3 months white, and then 2-3 months red):

How to train shoulders for girls?

To make women's shoulders beautiful, it is necessary to give them shape, add relief, and at the same time not swing the trapezoid. There is no point in chasing weight - it is better to give preference to small dumbbells and a large number of repetitions. Girls with thin and medium bones can do 4-5 approaches (for beginners - 3) for each of the three main exercises with a break of 45-60 seconds between approaches:

• dumbbell shoulder press;
• raising the dumbbells strictly to the sides from the hips;
• reverse flyes in the butterfly simulator (Peck-Deck).

You need to start with a minimum weight and train with maximum effort until a burning sensation appears in the desired muscles. They increase the working weight gradually and without fanaticism: experienced athletes can train with 2–3 kg dumbbells, and stronger girls use 4–5 kg.

Trainers extremely rarely recommend that women do isolating exercises for the anterior deltoid and those in which the trapezius is even slightly pumped. But some girls find it difficult to “turn off” the trapezoid in any deltoids exercises. This is not a reason to completely refuse to work on the shoulder girdle, but first you need to get rid of slouching, because it is this that prevents you from relaxing the muscles in the neck and back. Pullovers and static flyes (three times a week) will help you straighten your shoulders wide and solve problems with posture.

How to avoid drooping shoulders in a child?

Preventative measures against shoulder drooping in children and adolescents are extensive. For example, incorrect positioning with crawling in infancy can have a negative impact on the development of spinal deformities in the baby years later. Let us further cover the most important aspects of preventing the defect in question in children and adolescents:

• You should never try to outpace the physical development of a baby. The baby must begin to roll over or crawl when his body is strong enough for such purposes. This is especially true for independent walking. Orthopedic doctors believe that the longer a baby crawls and thereby distributes his weight and load across four limbs, the stronger and straighter his shoulders and spine will be in the future.
• When parents walk with their baby by the hand, they need to take into account that it is only adults who do not need any effort to hold the child’s hand. But from the height of a child’s height, a small organism has to work hard. The fact is that the baby, in fact, remains for a certain time in a position with his arm extended upward (accordingly, his shoulder rises, and the hips, in turn, do not work evenly). In this regard, this circumstance must be taken into account and change hands more often so that the baby does not subsequently have one shoulder drop down. You need to lead the child first by the right hand, and after five minutes by the left, and so on.

A child's bed should not be very soft. Ideally, you should consult a specialist and buy a good orthopedic mattress for your baby. The same applies to the pillow.

How to get rid of asymmetry in the shoulders?

You can level out asymmetry in the shoulders in 3–4 weeks. First of all, pay attention to the following tips:

• Do a little more repetitions (4-5) on lagging muscles.
• Start training with lagging beams.
• Find the angle at which weak muscles receive the greatest load (body position plays a big role in shoulder training).

The amplitude of movements can affect the result: the larger the lever, the harder the red fibers work. A short amplitude allows you to keep the muscle under maximum tension and increase its volume. Progress also depends on speed: the higher the pace, the more white fibers are involved. A slow pace improves definition and minimizes muscle growth.

You should always choose exercises, number of repetitions, rhythm, etc. based on your goals. Don’t be afraid to increase the load and be a sculptor of your body - be creative in creating your training program!