Build Strong Shoulders!

Mike Mahler demos the KB Bent Press.

For some reason, many American men obsess over their pecs while treating their shoulders as secondary. If anything, it should be the other way around! Your shoulders not only need to be strong as part of functional fitness, they need to be strong to prevent injury. And I've known countless people--men and women--who have managed to seriously injure their shoulders at some point in their lives. This is especially true for martial artists and bench press-obsessed weight lifters.

Step away from the pec deck and work your shoulders! One of the best tools for this purpose is the kettlebell. The distribution of weight is different than that of a dumbbell, and allows more fluidity of motion than a barbell. This helps the shoulders to grow stronger.

Eric Moss over at Dragon Door has a great article on developing powerful shoulders with two key exercises: the Bent Press and the See-Saw Press. Here's a quick clip of Steve Maxwell doing the Bent Press.

Like many kettlebell moves, the are deceptively challenging. Check our Eric's article and start building real shoulder strength!