How to pump up a trapezoid in the gym. Trapezius muscle: the best exercises for training the trapezius at home and in the gym. Barbell row to the chin in a standing position

1. The upper one is adjacent to the neck and is responsible for raising the shoulders upward.
2. The middle one is between the shoulder blades and is involved in lifting the shoulder blades.
3. Lower - in the lower part of the shoulder blades, responsible for lowering the scapular bones in the lower phase of movement.

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The main functions of the trapezius: moving the shoulders in the vertical and horizontal plane, tilting the head back, and lifting the shoulder blades up.

Keeping trapezius in good shape is necessary for any athlete. This will increase your strength in basic exercises, reduce the load on the shoulder joints and ligaments, reduce the curvature of the spine in the cervical region and minimize the risk of damage and injury to the entire shoulder girdle.

• Shrugs are rightfully considered the best exercise for developing the trapezius, but many athletes do them incorrectly. You cannot use your biceps and forearms. Wrist straps help to cope with this very well. The elbows should be almost completely straight throughout the entire approach, then the load will be placed specifically on the trapezius.
• Don't use too much weight. When training the trapezius muscles, it is much more important to work in full amplitude and feel the maximum muscle contraction at the top point, holding it for 1-2 seconds.
• Do not tuck your chin to your chest when doing shrugs. This increases compression of the cervical spine and can lead to injury.
• Trapezius loves pumping. To properly “pump” these muscles with blood, use supersets, combining shrugs of any variation with pulling movements that also include the shoulders in the work, for example, with a close-grip chin pull. Another option for increasing intensity is to perform dropsets at the end of each set: reduce the working weight and do another set or two with a lighter weight without resting.
• Trapezius is a relatively small muscle group; it is enough to train it once a week. It is optimal to combine it with back or shoulder training. To make the entire shoulder girdle look massive, do not forget to pay enough attention to your deltoids and neck muscles. If you notice that the trapezius has begun to overtake the shoulders in development, which visually makes the figure less wide in the shoulder girdle, just stop doing individual exercises for this muscle group.
• Trapezius training should be short but intense. As a rule, one or two exercises are enough to work this muscle group. Alternate different movements in each workout and perform them in different orders, then you will make progress faster.
• Watch your posture. Often, stooping in the cervical and thoracic spine prevents the trapezius from being fully trained. The athlete simply cannot perform the required movement in full amplitude and feel the muscle contraction.
• Exercise moderately. Overtraining of the trapezius muscles will lead to poor blood circulation in the neck muscles and the entire cervical spine. This is fraught with increased intracranial pressure, headaches and dizziness.
• Performing shrugs does not involve rotating the shoulder joints at the top point. For some reason, many novice athletes are guilty of this. When used with heavy weights, this rotation becomes one of the most damaging movements for your rotator cuff. The correct trajectory of movement involves raising and lowering the weight in one plane; there should be no extraneous movements.

The best exercises for working the trapezius

Now let's look at exercises that will help you achieve maximum results when working your trapezius muscles.

Shrugs with a barbell

- This is the main exercise for the mass of trapezius. Here, mainly their upper part works, since when lifting the barbell is located in front of you. The movement should be amplitude, as if at the top point you are trying to reach your ears with your shoulders. You can work with quite a lot of weight in this movement, so you can better feel the stretch in the muscles at the bottom. If necessary, use wrist straps and an athletic belt.

Use a medium, shoulder-width grip to avoid engaging your shoulders. When lifting, keep the barbell as close to your body as possible and minimize cheating - this method will lead to nothing but increasing the risk of injury from the movement. An alternative option is shrugs in Smith.

- This is an exercise for the upper trapezius. Here it is recommended to use less weight, but do more repetitions, this way you will more easily achieve intense pumping (blood supply to the muscles).

Since in this exercise the hands are turned parallel to each other, the forearms are actively involved in the work. Therefore, concentrate on keeping your arms straight and not bending your elbows. Then you will lift the dumbbells using the force of your trapezius, not your arms. You can also use straps.

To turn dumbbell shrugs into an exercise for your middle and lower trapezius, sit on a bench and lean forward slightly:

This will change the load vector, and you will compress your shoulder blades more strongly at the top. Due to this, most of the load will go to the middle and lower parts of the trapezius muscles.

Shrugs in the simulator

For this exercise you will need a lower block and a wide handle. Keeping your back straight, pull your shoulders up and slightly back. The biomechanics of the movement are different from the movements in classic barbell shrugs. By moving your shoulders back, you place more stress on your mid-trapezius and posterior deltoid muscles. This will make your upper back look more massive and lumpy from behind. In addition, the design of the block simulator predetermines a stronger stretch of the muscles at the lowest point, which only increases the efficiency of this exercise.

Shrugs with a barbell behind your back

This is a great exercise for the middle and lower trapezius. It is not entirely suitable for beginners, as it requires a developed muscular frame and good stretching of the shoulder joints.

For convenience, it is recommended to perform this exercise in a Smith machine. At the bottom point, slightly relax all the muscles of the shoulder girdle to lower the barbell as low as possible. But do not forget to keep your lumbar spine perfectly straight. The closer to your back you move the barbell when lifting, the harder your trapezius will work. A more distant position will place more stress on the rear deltoids.

Close-grip barbell row to the chin

is a basic exercise that works both the trapezius and the shoulders. In this exercise, it is important to take it quite narrowly and keep your elbow above the level of the hand, then you will be able to work in full amplitude and load the entire trapezius muscle area. The wider you go, the more load is placed on the middle deltoids.

Alternative exercises: Smith row to the chin with a close grip, row of two dumbbells to the chin with a close grip, kettlebell row to the chin.

Deadlift

A review of exercises would be incomplete without mentioning

Also, the trapezoid bears part of the load when performing any horizontal rows for the thickness of the back: or, lower block and others, as well as when using a narrow grip in vertical rows (pull-ups, upper block rows, etc.). Indirectly, the load falls on the trapezius during many exercises for the deltoid muscles, for example, swings with dumbbells while standing, sitting or bending over, with a wide grip, arm abductions in the rear deltoid exercise machine, and others.

Trapezius muscle training program

There is no fundamental difference between trapezius training during periods of gaining muscle mass and cutting. All exercises (except the deadlift) are relatively isolated and can be used at any stage of training.

Training the trapezoid in the gym is a fairly simple task. Find a couple of exercises that work best for you, and steadily improve your performance using various methods of progression. Use the following diagram as a guide:

To effectively train your trapezius at home, a minimal set of equipment is enough: a barbell or dumbbells. An approximate version of a home trapezius workout looks like this:

Many athletes also train their traps on the horizontal bars and parallel bars, performing simulated hanging shrugs. These movements are more static in nature, the amplitude is strictly limited, and it will not be easy to feel the isolated work of the trapezius in them. However, you can try to replace strength training with them if you do not have the opportunity to train with weights.

Hello friends! Vitaly Okhrimenko is on the line again today, I haven’t written about bodybuilding for a long time, it’s time to return to this beloved and revered topic for many of us.

For many beginners, and for experienced athletes too, the question becomes how to swing a trapeze so that it grows without spending a lot of effort and time on it, and besides, it is important to know how to swing the trapezoid safely. Today I will try to cover this issue as accurately and completely as possible.

What is a trapezoid

Please don't judge me harshly, but this the blog was created primarily for bodybuilding beginners, and therefore I can’t help but start with the basics of muscle building. So, according to Wikipedia

Many beginners usually make one of two classic mistakes. Alone rocking absolutely without doing any trapeze exercises, other- on the contrary, too pay a lot of attention to the trapezius muscles to the detriment of other, more significant muscles. Today I will try to make it clear how to properly swing the trapezius, so that it is neither too much nor too little. I even came up with a formula for this (the formula will be below).

Yes, the trapeze is spectacular, it’s beautiful. But this does not mean that you need to pump up the trapezius muscles at every workout with all available exercises.

Where is the trapezius muscle located?

The trapezius muscle is located in the upper back, between the delts and the lower part of the neck. It turns out like this - everything that is between the shoulders at the back is the upper part of the trapezius, and everything that is between the shoulder blades is the middle and lower parts of the trapezius. The trapezoid starts from the back of the head and ends between the shoulder blades. In general, if you look at the trapezius muscle from behind, it looks more like a rhombus than a trapezoid.

Initially, in bodybuilding, it was customary to take only its upper part for the trapezius, and the middle and lower parts were referred to as the rhomboid muscle. As a matter of fact, this is so, with one small clarification: as I already said, the trapezius muscle anatomically goes from the neck to the place between the shoulder blades. And the rhomboid muscles only complement it. But I advise all of us not to worry too much about this. The main thing is to understand that the external aesthetics, in fact, as well as the practical value of pumped up deltoids and back will be incomplete without a pumped up trapezoid.

Functions of the trapezius muscle

Home practical trapezius muscle function is holding weights with straight arms. When you go with full bags of goodies from a supermarket or market, be sure that your trapezes are working at this time. However, this is not the only function of such a considerable muscle. Raising the shoulder blades relative to the spinal column, as well as bringing the shoulder blades to the spine, are also trapezoids. In other words, when you shrug your shoulders to let your interlocutor know that you don’t know the answer to his question, your trapezius is back in action.

How many times a week to swing the trapeze

So, we kind of found out that it is necessary to pump up the trapezoid, but we haven’t decided how often it needs to be done so that it looks harmonious on massive athletic shoulders. It's simple: we pump up the trapezius muscles between the deltoids and the back muscles.
I even invented a formula here:

NCT = (NPV + NPV)/2

CHT– frequency of trapezius training;

CTD– frequency of delta training;

ChTS– frequency of back training.

That is, if we train our back 2 times a week, and our deltoids 1, then the average value is 1.5. This means you can pump it once, or twice. We round where we want. Ideally, we alternate: in the first week we pump the trapeze 1 time, and in the second 2 times, in the third again 1 time. Well, since most people training in the gym diligently pump all their muscles once a week, then the trapezius muscles should also be trained once a week.

I think this is clear.

How many exercises to do on the trapezius in one workout?

Since the trapezius muscles can rightly be called an addition to the back muscles and deltoid muscles, this means that they also need to be trained in an average manner. I thought about it and came up with another simple formula:

SKUT = (SKUD + SKUS)/4

SKUT– average number of exercises for trapezius;

ACS– average number of exercises for deltas;

SKUS– average number of back exercises.
A fair question: why then divide by 4 and not by 2?

The answer is no less obvious: well, the deltoid muscles are twice as large as the trapezius muscles, and the latissimus dorsi muscles are much larger in volume than the trapezius muscles.

I don’t know whether I need to tell you more or not. OK, I'll explain with an example, it won’t go away from me.

An example of how to swing a trapezoid correctly

As an example, I’ll give you the training program of my friend Sani Sabegatulin. You can view it by going to .

There we see that the deltoids, just like the back muscles, are worked out in the program 2 out of 3 days a week. Means:

It turns out that in 1 training week Sanya needs to pump the trapezoid 2 times. Okay, let's move on:

KUT = (3+2)/4=1.25 ≈1

It turns out that in 1 training week (although it would be more correct to say 1 training cycle) you need to pump up the trapezius muscle in two workouts with one exercise. As a matter of fact, this is what we see in the program described for Sanya. I hope it's clear.

How to swing a trapezoid correctly

So, we seem to have decided on the number of exercises and the frequency of training for the trapezius muscles, now it’s time to figure out what exercises we will actually use to pump up the trapezius.

Trapezius exercises

Full a list of trapezoid exercises will be published in the next article, today I will bring list of basic exercises for trapezoid, with which you can swing the trapeze effectively both at home and in the gym.

I will divide the amenities into two subtypes. Barbell exercises for trapezius and dumbbell exercises for trapezius.

How to swing a trapezoid with a barbell

Of course, the barbell was and is the most effective apparatus for pumping up the trapezius muscles. Today I will describe two of the very best exercises with a trapezoid barbell, and next time I will try to expand this list as much as possible.

Back shrugs for trapezius

Perhaps this exercise can be called best exercise for trapezius. The position of the hands at the back does not allow us to round the back and squeeze the shoulders in front, which increases the safety and effectiveness of the exercise.
Initial position: shoulders straight, back straight, chest in a wheel, the barbell is taken with a straight grip behind the back at approximately shoulder level.

Performance: while exhaling, raise our shoulders up as much as possible, trying to reach our ears with them. As you exhale, lower your shoulders and repeat the exercise the intended number of times.

Front barbell shrugs for trapezius

The disadvantage of this exercise is that the position of the barbell is in front allows to you (me, him) slight stoop, What increases the risk of spinal injury.

Initial position: shoulders straightened, back straight, chest in a wheel. The barbell rests in straight hands in front of you, always with an overhand grip shoulder-width apart with all 5 fingers wrapped around the barbell (titanium grip).

Performance: while exhaling, we raise our shoulders up as much as possible using the strength of the trapezius muscles, all in the same aspiration to reach our deltoids to our ears. At the top point, exhale and slowly, under control, lower your shoulders to the starting position.

How to swing a trapezoid with dumbbells or kettlebells

A barbell is a barbell, but you can pump up the trapezius muscles with dumbbells or kettlebells without losing efficiency (or even gaining).

Shrugs with dumbbells or kettlebells

This exercise is something between the previous two options.
Starting position: shoulders straight, back straight, chest in a wheel, arms at your sides. In each hand there is a weight or dumbbell.

Performing the exercise: while exhaling, we raise our shoulders using the strength of the trapezius muscles, without giving up hope of reaching both ears with both shoulders 😉. At the top point, we freeze for a second, after which we smoothly and under control lower the weights to the starting position.

Important points when training the trapezius

When performing shrugs, you must remember two points and always pay attention to them.

1. Shrugs are always performed using only the trapezius muscles. Arms are ALWAYS straight in the elbow joint with a small, tiny, permissible bend. Essentially, your hands should be something like two hooks on which the load is suspended, but they do not play any other role in performing the exercise;
2. Safety first. Shrugs enough traumatic exercise for the cervical and thoracic spine. To swing a trapeze without a hitch you need to:

1. Do the exercise only with a straight back and shrugged shoulders. You should not slouch or lower your shoulders too low in order to increase the range of motion. Firstly, this is dangerous, and secondly, the trapezius works maximum in the upper part of the amplitude of movement. But this does not mean that you need to stretch as high as possible to the detriment of an even posture. You need to stretch your shoulders towards your ears, I don’t go back on my words, but it is advisable to do this to the limit to which you can swing the trapeze without contradicting the correct technique and, as a result, your own health;
2. The straps help, not hinder. Straps and other similar devices can and even should be used to hold the projectile, but this should be done for convenience, and not in order to overcome greater weight. Straps help not to be distracted by grip during trapezoid training, but they can also do a bad job if with their help you decide to set new world records. As I already said, shrugs are a rather traumatic exercise, but without the use of straps and other projectile holders, you will not be able to pull out dangerous, critical weight. The forearms always give up before the trapezius and back muscles, therefore the chance of injury without straps is less. But again, the straps can help you a lot in performing the exercise. The main thing is not to take more weight with them. than you can take without them.

By the way, I once tried to defeat an invincible weight with the help of straps. Instead of the usual 70–80 kg of working weight for performing shrugs, I loaded 140 kg on the barbell, attached straps and a belt, and started pumping the trapeze. On the second approach, something shot between my shoulder blades so much that after that I didn’t work out at all for 3 weeks, and I didn’t lift the trapezoid at all for two months. So I advise you not to neglect safety, then amateur bodybuilding will always benefit you.

What muscles should you use to pump the trapezius?

I think from all of the above you already understand perfectly well that trapezius is best trained with deltoids and back muscles. Personally, I always practice, and therefore recommend, pumping the trapezius after pumping the back and/or shoulders. It turns out that you will already load your trapezius with exercises on the deltoids and/or lats, and then you will finish off with shrugs. The result is double efficiency!

How to download trapeze video

Good luck and see you again.

With respect to you and our business, Vitaly Okhrimenko !

It is impossible to build a beautiful athletic body without a developed back, but even when “pumping up” it, one or two types of training are not enough. One of the important parts of the muscle texture of the shoulder girdle and back is the so-called “trapezoid”, the appearance of which completes the composition of an athletic physique.

It received this name among bodybuilders and athletes for its external similarity with the geometric figure of the same name.

Structure

The muscle itself can be divided into several parts:

• superior, levator scapulae and shoulder girdle
• middle, moving the scapulae towards the spine
• lower, lowering the shoulder girdle and scapular part

Each of them can be developed and pumped up, for which training with your own and free weights was developed.

You can strengthen this part in several ways, including, there are exercises for the trapezius muscles that can be performed at home.

Before classes start

Let us note a few important points that you should know before training:

• It makes no sense to load this muscle group more than once a week.
• You should not do more than 1-2 exercises during one workout.
• Depending on your genetics, you will have to put in a different amount of effort. For some, it grows harmoniously with the whole body when performing basic training; for others, it has difficulty responding to an isolated high-quality load.
• The trapezoid loves pumping. That is, a large number of repetitions with a short rest period.

Basis. "First Shrugs"

The simplest and most affordable option for home would be exercises for the trapezius muscles with dumbbells.

The most popular and easiest option for beginners to master is the so-called “shrugs”. The implementation is extremely simple, you just need to understand the basic principle:

Stand up straight, take a projectile in each hand. We hold our hands “at the seams”, feet shoulder-width apart and begin to pull the dumbbells upward with a trapezoid so that the shoulders rise as high as possible, at the top point we hold the dumbbells for 1 second.

We take weight from 8-10 kg or more, depending on the level of preparedness. You need to perform 3 sets of 28-30 repetitions.

Thus, you will “pump up” the upper part of the muscles and partially the middle.

This is important: forearms, shoulders, biceps - nothing except the trapezius should not strain and take part in the training.

What not to do:

• Try not to press your chin to your chest - this can cause neck injury in the long run.
• If you are a beginner, do not take a lot of weight, you need to start with a small load, focusing on the correct technique.
• Do not tilt your body; it is important to stay straight, without leaning to the sides.
• Don't hold your breath for too long. Do the exercise while exhaling.

There is a similar version of the exercise for the trapezius muscle of the back, but for more advanced athletes working with heavy weights.

Instead of dumbbells, a barbell with weight plates is used. The principle of the lesson is the same. Take the bar with a reverse grip, stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart. You can hold the barbell even behind your back, it doesn’t matter.

The number of repetitions and approaches is the same, only the working weight and psychological attitude towards training change.

What should the opposite sex do? The principle of performing exercises on the trapezius back muscles for women is no different from men. Only the degree of preparation (due to physiology) and starting weights differ.

Lifting dumbbells from a bench

Lie face down on a bench with your feet on the floor. Take one projectile in each hand. Next, raise your arms with dumbbells until your shoulder blades close together. The weight is taken depending on the level of training. Do 3 sets of 14-20 repetitions.

Another effective exercise for the lower trapezius muscles is the lying reverse dumbbell fly. In this case, you need to use strictly light or medium weights.

You need to take dumbbells in each hand. Lie on the bench on your stomach, placing your feet on the floor, as in the previous lesson.

We begin to spread our arms until our arms become parallel to the floor. We linger at the top point for 1-2 seconds.

Workout: parallel bars and horizontal bar

What to do if you don’t have dumbbells, but have a sports area installed in your yard? Is it possible to pump up the trapezoid “without iron”?

The answer is positive: there are exercises for the trapezius muscles on the horizontal bar. There are several of them, some are common, affecting different parts of the body, and some are isolated.

There are several options, they differ only in the level of required training:

Classic pull-ups

Classic pull-ups, performed with a wide or medium grip, affect this muscle and provide starting volumes.

Depending on the weight used, the muscles gain additional growth. The number of repetitions and approaches depends on the form and experience of the athlete.

Head pull-ups

Pull-ups by the head - with this stance, the back muscles work more than the biceps. The big disadvantage of this form of training is the high likelihood of injury.

Australian pull-ups

They help if classic pull-ups are not available in a high rep form. Affects the trapezoid.

They are performed as follows: having found a horizontal bar with a height of about 140-160 cm, take a wide or medium grip as if doing pull-ups, place your feet on the floor, extending your body at an acute angle, after which begin to pull your body towards the horizontal bar.

These exercises for the trapezius muscle of the neck are general; the trapezius is included in them comprehensively, along with the latissimus dorsi muscles.

One of the few isolated methods of loading without apparatus is reverse shrugs.

When practicing on the uneven bars, you need to rise almost to the top point, just like when doing a chest swing exercise.

Relaxation. If you need to relax your muscles

There are situations when overwork, congestion and even spasms occur in the body.

To avoid unnecessary use of muscle relaxants or other serious medications, you can use special exercises to relax the trapezius muscle and neck.

Let's look at the main options:

Sit on a chair with your back straight. Tilt your head down. Place both hands on the back of your head and begin, straining your neck, lifting your head up, and resist with your hands. Maintain tension for 5-7 seconds. After this, completely relax the trapezius and neck muscles. Wait 20-25 seconds. Repeat the steps three times.

The second effective exercise for relieving spasm from the trapezius muscle is performed as follows: place your hands on the table, head on the back of your hands. Pull your chin towards your neck with full force. Hands offer resistance. We hold the tension for 5-7 seconds, after 20-25 seconds of rest we repeat. Do it three to four times.

Another way is to sit or stand and place your hand on your cheek and temple. We try to turn our head, resisting with our hand. Maintain a static position for at least 5 seconds, maximum 7-8. Let's relax. Repeat on each side 12-14 times, number of approaches - 3-5.

Many novice athletes tend to pay more attention to muscles such as the latissimus dorsi, deltoids, pectoral muscles, and biceps, while forgetting or not paying attention to the trapezius, since these muscles are involved in many exercises and are often used in everyday life.

But you shouldn't underestimate the visual effect trapezoids provide. They create that very characteristic bodybuilding silhouette that cannot be hidden even under clothes. Also trained trapezius improves posture.

A little anatomy

The trapezius muscles, or simply trapezius, can be seen in the very upper part of the back. They border on the muscles of the shoulders, neck, and latissimus dorsi. Their shape is similar to a diamond.

If the trapezius is well developed, they ensure normal functioning of the neck and shoulder girdle, and prevent injuries to the cervical vertebrae and collarbones under high loads.

The trapezius is divided into three areas, each of which needs to be worked on separately. This is the upper area, middle and lower.

How does a trapezoid work?

The upper one raises the scapula and participates in lifting the entire shoulder girdle. It works especially well with shrugs. You can use different techniques for this exercise.

The middle one is involved in bringing the shoulder blades to the spine. It is worked through exercises such as bent-over rows, wide-grip pull-ups, and exercises on cable machines.

The lower one takes part in lowering the shoulder girdle and scapula. It can be worked out with the help of presses.

There are several trapezius exercises with dumbbells. These are shrugs, pull-ups, bent-over rows and others. Not all of them are equally effective. The most useful of them are shrugs, which are aimed specifically at working the trapezius. In other exercises, this group of muscles is additionally included.

This popular exercise, the shoulder shrug, is designed to work the trapezius. Its upper part is trained as much as possible with a slight grip on the middle. In terms of difficulty level it is classified as simple. In addition to the trapezius, the rhomboid muscles are also involved. How to pump up the trapezium with dumbbells using shrugs?

The advantages of pumping trapezius with dumbbells using shrugs over a similar exercise with a barbell are that the dumbbells are not in front (behind), but on the sides, so they are more convenient to hold, the range of movements is greater, you can vary the technique to better work out the target muscles. For example, with dumbbells you can not only lift your shoulders up, but also pull them back and rotate them.

It can be performed in several variations, but the main principle is the maximum lift of the shoulders up.

Before you start doing trapeze shrugs with dumbbells, you need to warm up.

Then place your feet shoulder-width apart, pick up dumbbells and hold them in your arms along your torso. Do not bend your elbows and do not strain your biceps brachii muscles.

Stand with your back straight, chest protruding forward, shoulders slightly back. Tuck your stomach in and look forward.

Raise your shoulders as high as possible. In the upper phase of the movement, with maximum contraction of the trapezius, make a short pause - 1-2 seconds.

Slowly move your shoulders down, trying to lower them as low as possible so that the muscles stretch better.

The weight must be selected in such a way that you can perform 10-15 repetitions in three sets without compromising your technique.

This was a classic dumbbell shrug.

You can use two more types of exercise in your training.

The first is to lift your shoulders not straight up, but first forward, then up.

The second is bent over shrugs. The body is tilted forward, the back is straight, the legs are slightly bent at the knees. Perform shoulder raises from this position.

Two-arm dumbbell row

This is another dumbbell trapezoid exercise. During execution, many muscles are involved in the work. The main group for which it is intended is the latissimus dorsi, but with a certain technique the middle part of the trapezius will also be involved: if you bring your shoulder blades together as much as possible.

Technique:

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold dumbbells in your hands. Bend the body until a right angle is formed at the hip joint. That is, the more horizontal the body is located, the better.
2. The back should be straight, and it is imperative to maintain a natural curve in the lower back. If you feel discomfort, you need to straighten up a little to make it comfortable.
3. The dumbbells are held in outstretched arms. As you exhale, pull the dumbbells up by bringing your shoulder blades together.
4. At the highest point of the movement, squeeze your shoulder blades together as much as possible and hold for one to two seconds.
5. As you inhale, lower the dumbbells and return to the starting position.

Consider this dumbbell trapezius exercise. It is designed to work the front deltoid, but the work also includes the trapezius, namely their lower part. Difficulty: medium.

To perform a pull-up, you need to stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding dumbbells in front of you, palms facing your hips.

Bend your elbows and pull the dumbbells up along your body in a straight path, using the deltoid and trapezius muscles. The movement occurs vertically and as close to the body as possible. The elbows rise to the sides and are always located above the hands, the forearms hang down slightly.

Bring the dumbbells to your chin, trying to raise your elbows as high as possible. When lifting dumbbells to the shoulders, the main load goes to the deltoids; after passing this line, it moves to the trapezius muscles.

After reaching the highest point, the dumbbells should be held for one or two seconds and gradually lowered.

The main advantage of rowing with dumbbells, compared to a barbell, is that they put less stress on the joints.

Bent over dumbbell swings

This dumbbell trapezius exercise can be used to target the lower portion of this muscle group. It is aimed primarily at developing the rear deltas, but the work also includes trapezoidal, as well as diamond-shaped, middle deltas and others. Difficulty level is high.

1. Feet shoulder-width apart, body tilted to a parallel half-position, knees slightly bent.
2. The back should be straight. Rounding the back is not allowed, as this can lead to injuries in the lumbar region.
3. Dumbbells are in freely lowered hands. Bend your elbows slightly and turn to the sides.
4. Exhale and swing the dumbbells out to the sides. Hands are raised to shoulder level, elbows pointing toward the ceiling. You cannot help by rocking your back or jerking. In the upper phase of the movement you need to swing at a faster pace.
5. Inhale, smoothly lower your hands into and. n. In the lower phase the movement is slower.

While working on weight, do 8-10 repetitions in four approaches.

Seated dumbbell flyes

This is a variation of the standing bent over swing. And the target muscles here are the rear deltoids, but the trapezius is also included in the work.

Technique:

1. Sit on the edge of the bench. Lie with your stomach on your thighs, lightly weighted dumbbells hanging freely in your hands. Bend your elbows slightly and spread them apart.
2. Exhale and perform dumbbell raises through the sides without lifting the body. The position of the body cannot be changed.
3. Inhale and slowly return to the starting position. Lowering the dumbbells is slower than swinging up.

The lower trapezius is also engaged when lifting dumbbells overhead. Such presses are usually performed to train the shoulders.

Conclusion

So, we can conclude that exercises with dumbbells for the trapezius exist, and the main one is shrugs. They work the upper sections of this muscle group. Bent-over rows are intended for the middle region, swings and dumbbell raises on the trapezium are for the lower region. And you definitely shouldn’t discount them.

Now you know how to swing the trapeze with dumbbells.

The trapezius muscle is a flat, vast muscle that occupies almost the entire back of the neck, upper back, and part of the middle back.

The muscle has a triangular shape, the base of this triangle faces the spine, and the apex faces the large process of the scapula (acromion). Together, both muscles look like a trapezius.

Trapezoidal muscle consists of three portions, let's find out how to pump up a large trapezius with the best exercises for this in the gym or at home.

Top portion. Its muscle fibers pass through the upper shoulder girdle and are attached in the upper chest to the collarbone. These fibers, when contracted, raise the shoulders and produce a “shrug”; they are responsible for tilting the neck and head towards the shoulder.

Average portion. Its fibers are responsible for almost all movements of the shoulder blades.

Bottom portion. The fibers of this portion pull the shoulder blade bones down.

Workout Features

The division of the muscle into bundles of different functions created the need to work it in three completely opposite directions. Therefore, the complex for forming a trapezoid is composed as follows: at least three exercises: one for each serving. It is recommended to add weight during training.

Best exercises

Barbell row to the chin in a standing position

When doing this exercise work the muscles of the trapezius, forearms, shoulders and upper back.

I.P. - Feet shoulder-width apart, barbell with arms fully extended and arms lowered. A narrow grip is used, with your palms facing you, since a narrow grip loads the trapezius muscles much better.

As you inhale, pull the barbell to your chin. In this case, at the top point, the elbows should be higher than the wrists. Slowly, as you exhale, lower the barbell to its original position without jerking.

You should not lift the apparatus above your chin - this does not relieve the load on the trapezius muscles and interferes with the normal mechanics of our body.

Lifting the barbell is more effective in comparison with such exercise machines as Smith machine and block trainer.

Free weights stimulate the work of stabilizer muscles throughout the entire movement, and this useful for the normal functioning of all muscle fibers.

When performing this exercise, try to keep the apparatus as close to your body as possible. Muscle fibers should be fully stretched and contracted at the top and bottom points.

How to perform this exercise with a narrow grip is shown in the video:

Shrugs with a barbell in lowered hands

This exercise also works the trapezius, forearms, shoulders, and upper back. Before starting the exercise, you should set the stand to a comfortable height.

I.P. - feet stand shoulder width apart. Remove the bar from the racks with your arms fully extended. The back is straightened, you should ensure that the spine is in a straight position at all times.

As you inhale, raise your shoulders as high as possible, while your arms are also fully straightened. As you exhale, slowly lower the barbell to its original position, fully stretching your trapezius.

Important Maintain range of motion and fully contract and stretch muscles with every repetition. This exercise is very simple, but at the same time, the most effective for the development of trapezius muscles.

When performing movements, do not rotate your shoulders, as this can lead to injury. No extraneous movements are needed: the weight should rise strictly up and fall strictly down.

Shrugs with dumbbells with arms down

This exercise works the trapezius, forearms, shoulders, and upper back. I.P. - feet shoulder-width apart, and arms with dumbbells are lowered freely along the body, the abdominal muscles are tense, the back is straight, the lumbar region is maximally tense. The spine is straight.

As you inhale, your shoulders rise as high as possible, almost touching the earlobes. As you exhale, the arms with the apparatus slowly return to their original position., the trapezius is fully stretched.

You should carefully take the apparatus from the floor and return it to its place at the end of the exercise, sitting down and using only the strength of your leg muscles.

The muscles should be fully stretched and contracted with each repetition. Should maintain maximum amplitude and avoid incomplete repetitions.

How to properly perform push-ups on your chest to make it lumpy enough? For instructions, go here:

Shrugs with a barbell behind your back

This exercise helps to develop correct posture and form a muscle corset., necessary not only in sports, but also in everyday life as the main factor in the prevention of diseases and injuries of the spine. When doing it works the upper trapezius, shoulders and forearms, as well as the upper back.

I.P. - stand up straight, put your feet shoulder-width apart and bend your knees slightly. Your partner should carefully give you the barbell from behind. It should be taken with an overhand grip, with the palms facing back, the distance between them slightly wider than the shoulders.

Straighten your back and pull your shoulders back, while you need to slightly lift your chest and pull in your stomach. Follow then, so that the spine maintains its natural curves.

The arms are fully straightened behind the back. Barbell at the level of the lower buttocks. Look straight ahead. As you inhale, raise your shoulders as far as possible. The arms are straight throughout the entire movement. Only the shoulders work, and the back, legs and chest are motionless.

At the top point of the trapezius, you should tense as much as possible, maintaining this body position for several seconds to achieve the best effect. As you exhale, gently lower your shoulders.

To strengthen the trapezius muscles, select a weight commensurate with your capabilities, remember to change it to a heavier one as you develop muscle strength and endurance.