You might have been bashed for believing that it’s possible for you to grow wider shoulders without lifting weights, but the truth is that the naysayers were wrong, again.
A lot goes into growing wider shoulders, and this article is dedicated to helping you attain your goals and grow bigger guns without having to lift weights at all.
For example, did you know that growing wider shoulders has more to do with your triceps than biceps? That the biceps are really small muscles that do not contribute to the appearance of your arms at all?
If you want to increase the size of your shoulders or the circumference of your upper arms, your focus should be on the triceps. Paying attention to your shoulders and the triceps makes the difference between a jumper, suit, or a long-sleeved shirt looking perfect on you and any of these clothes appearing borrowed.
To bring out your shoulders and to make your upper body look good, you need to focus on every bit of your shoulders. Naturally, weights would seem like the perfect solution for widening your shoulders, but weights are not the only answer.
The tips and tricks below will help you gain wider shoulders, no weights asked.
Bear in mind that the shoulders are considered the sexiest part of a man’s body, especially if you are talking about a large upper body with toned shoulders, back, and arms.
Things you need to know before you work on growing your shoulders
Growing a pair of sexy behemoth shoulders is more than knowing how to work your triceps.
You must be aware of the deltoid’s function and structure. The deltoid is comprised of 3 heads:
- The anterior/ front deltoid – these muscle push things away
- The lateral/ medial/ side deltoid – these muscles will push lift thing to the side
- The posterior/ rear deltoid – these rear muscles pull things in
For symmetrical shoulder growth, you need to start your training by focusing on the bigger compound movements, before laying focus on the three deltoid heads. To focus the deltoid heads, you need to work on all the three heads, but in light isolated movements. This is according to an expert and co-author of the Size and Strength Blueprint, Noah Bryant.
With either 2 or 3 compound shoulder movements along with 3 or even 4 isolated movements on the shoulder, you will be able to get that bulked and hone-capped, and broad shoulders.
Since you won’t be using any weights, it means that you will be able to grow bigger shoulders anywhere, and the workouts will be faster, and your progress faster.
Just before we look at some of the ways and exercises that will help you gain wider shoulders, you need to keep in mind that you cannot change the bone structure of your shoulders because the width of your shoulders is determined by genetics.
But you can make your shoulders muscular, wider, and stronger using some exercises and workout regimens.
The secret to wider shoulders
The best-kept secret when it comes to growing wider shoulders has to be back exercises. You need the best back exercises for huge and wider deltoids.
For this reason, the wide-grip chin-ups are among the best forms of exercise for the expansion of your shoulder’s girdle girth, which creates as much space between your shoulder ends, as needed.
What this means is that in as much as working the medial deltoids is a huge deal in terms of making the shoulders grow outwards, you also need to keep in mind that the medial deltoid is connected to the back’s underlying structure.
So, for the results you yearn, you need your medial deltoids to travel outwards, away from your body, fast, for the attached structure to also expand the same way the muscles attached to it expand.
Best exercises for wider shoulders with no weights
Feet-Elevated Pike Pushup
This is one of the most effective exercises to help you grow wider shoulders at home and without any weights.
How to do feet-elevated pike pushups
- Get into the pushup position
- Rest your feet on a box or a bench
- Bend your hips upwards, keeping your butt raised towards the ceiling so that you keep your torso vertical.
- Lower the body to the floor all the way down until your head is between your hands then press back up.
Do 4 sets with 12 reps, and 60-90 minute rest time between the sets.
The Wide-Grip Inverted Row
- With a barbell set at the hip height in the rack, or a pipe or anything else, if you are not in the gym, hang beneath the barbell then squeeze the shoulder blades together. Now, pull up your body towards the bar.
For this exercise, you need to do 5 sets of 10 reps each, with no rest in between the sets.
The Dip
It might be simple, but it’s one of the most effective exercises for wider shoulders.
- For the dip, you need to suspend your body over parallel bars, then lower the body until your upper arms are exactly parallel with the floor.
- Like the inverted row, do 5 sets, each with 10 repetitions and no rest in between sets.
Wide Grip Pull-Ups
- Hanging from your chin-up bar, place your hands wider than your shoulder width with the palms facing the forward direction.
- Now squeeze your shoulder blades together and then pull yourself up until your chin is right over the chin-up bar.
- Do as many sets of this exercise as possible, keeping the reps to a minimum of 5 pullups.
Crab walk
- Sitting on the floor, plant your hands right under your shoulders
- Next, place your feet flat and then bend your knees,
- Extend the hips so that they are elevated at least one inch off the floor – the crab position
- Walk forward on both your feet and hands, while moving the right leg and the left arm at the same time, and vice versa.
- Keep your chest up and the hips low.
Pushups
Pushups and pullups are two of the most effective exercises for building bigger shoulders, and the best part is that they are quite easy and inexpensive. You can do them anywhere, as long as you keep your body protected.
The main advantage of the pushup, even the basic pushup is that it targets the shoulders, making it easier for you to build lean muscle mass in less time.
Decline pushups and the explosive pushups are also just as effective because they will work those muscles quite effectively.
How to do the basic pushup
- Start in that high-plank position, with hands under the shoulders and the rest of your body in a straight line from the head to the toes
- Contract the abs to prevent the hips from sagging and the arms from arching
- Bend the elbows to lower your chest towards the ground, and keep the hips on one level. In this position, your elbows should be at a 45-degree angle and away from the rest of the body.
- Once you’ve gone as low as you can, you’ll need to push yourself back to a plank.
Decline pushup
For this exercise, follow these steps:
- Start in the plank position with hands placed slightly wider than the shoulders, keeping the hands some distance apart on the mat/ floor
- Keep your feet elevated from the floor at about 12 or 20 inches off
- Contract your abs, keeping your back from being arched and the hips from sagging
- Do the classic/ basic pushup (above). Then bend the elbows while lowering your chest, and keep the hips level.
- Once you are as low down as you can get, push yourself back to the starting position, then repeat.
Diet
Finding and spending time working on the right exercise is important in ensuring the growth of your shoulders without weights, but the workouts will not work on their own.
Your diet plays a crucial role in the muscle-building process, and protein is fundamental to this growth.
You need to increase your consumption of proteins and amino acids to increase your shoulders’ width. The recommended protein intake per day for wider shoulders is 2g/ kg of your body each day.
To reach your daily recommended protein intake, you might have to depend on more than protein in your meals.
You could top up your protein levels by looking for alternative sources of healthy proteins like protein bars and protein powders. I would recomment the Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey Protein Powder. It is made from high quality whey protein as the main ingredient. it contains amino acids that help with the muscle recovery process after workout.
The best protein powders for you should be the ones with ingredients like creatine, taurine, and caffeine, especially if you want that ego-boosting muscle pump. Check out Bulk Supplement’s Creatine Monohydrate for a high quality powder that will help you increase your muscle weight and mass, boost anaerobic strength as well as support your cognitive functions. Besides the supplements and protein powders, strive to eat balanced meals each day, hydrate, and get as much rest as you can.
Tension
At the end of the day, the key to wider shoulders is tension. Your shoulder muscles are designed to resist tension applied against it, whether from isometric tension pushing the muscles against a wall, a heavy object, or even rubber bands.
For you to work those muscles, stimulate their growth, and enhance their strength, you need to create tension.
Pushups work really well, and the reverse-grip pushups work even better because it’s laser-focused on the stimulation of the frontal deltoids, resulting in the development of that meaty hill tied to your upper pecs.
The other exercises that would create the tension needed include handstand pushups, resistance bands lateral, front raises, and the bent-over lateral raises.
Exercise Bands for the perfect home resistant training to build more muscles. The Fit Simplify Resistance Loops are made from 100% natural latex material and come with 5 different resistance lengths. They are also include a booklet with illustrated exercises.
You could try isometrics too – think doorway presses: exert yourself to the maximum but don’t hold your breath.
Conclusion
To grow and strengthen your shoulders without weight, you need the right diet and the right exercises.
So, in much as weights may seem like the standard operating procedure for growing bigger shoulders, you now know that there’s more to wider shoulders than weights. The exercises above should help you get started in the right direction.