Want the perfect workout program?
Take QuizFact checked by Sam Coleman, Co-Founder
FACT CHECKEDDespite what the name sounds like, horizontal abduction has nothing to do with laying down to do crunches or other abdominal work. You almost certainly use it every day, whether you realize it or not. If you open an upper cabinet, flare your elbows out to pull open a stubborn bag of chips, or for the more athletic types, wind up for a big return hit in tennis. Still not getting it? Don’t worry, we’ll go more into depth on what muscles are used, the benefits of developing your horizontal abduction muscles, our favorite exercises to hit horizontal abduction, and how to incorporate those exercises.
Here’s a little less complicated way to think of it. Put your arms out in front of you like you’re doing a Frankenstein’s monster impression, now bring your arms out like you’re doing a “T” pose. That’s horizontal abduction.
The primary movers in horizontal abduction are the posterior aka rear delts. This often overlooked and underworked muscle works in tandem with the middle and lower trapezius, rhomboids, infraspinatus, teres minor, middle deltoid, supraspinatus, and upper trapezius to bring your arms from the front of your body away from your midline. Let’s take a look at a breakdown of what each muscle does during horizontal abduction.
As you can see, it takes a lot of muscle coordination to perform movements like opening a car door or reaching for something behind you.
Incorporating horizontal abduction into your routine offers several key benefits:
Strengthening the posterior deltoids and rotator cuff muscles helps stabilize the shoulder joint, reducing the risk of injuries such as rotator cuff tears. If you talk to anyone who has had a rotator cuff injury, they’ll tell you how debilitating it can be. Being able to perform overhead lifts is a luxury you don’t realize you have until you can’t do it anymore.
Since the majority of us spend our day at a computer screen, or looking down at a phone, it’s easy for our posture to suffer. Horizontal abduction exercises can help bring your shoulders back, avoiding the dreaded rounded look. Besides the visual improvement, better posture means reduced upper back and neck strain.
Complete muscular development is incredibly important for training all parts of the shoulder. When you’re doing an overhead press, yes the front delts are taking the brunt of the work, but your rear delts are also putting in work to help stabilize the weight. From a visual point of view, underdeveloped rear delts can give the illusion of hunched forward shoulders, especially if the front and side delts are well trained. From the back, a pair of well developed rear delts can give your shoulders a wide 3D look to them.
Here are some of the best exercises to target this movement:
Muscles Targeted: Posterior deltoids, rhomboids, trapezius.
Muscles Targeted: Posterior deltoids, rhomboids, trapezius, rotator cuff muscles.
Muscles Targeted: Posterior deltoids, infraspinatus, teres minor, rhomboids.
Muscles Targeted: Posterior deltoids, rhomboids, trapezius.
We’ve already talked about why you should be doing horizontal abduction exercises, now here’s how to work them into your regimen:
Perhaps the most important step, making sure your shoulders are warmed up is going to help prevent injuries and prime your muscles for a great workout. Use lightweight for band pull aparts, cable external and internal rotation, and any other movement you use to get your shoulders loosened up. If you are still clueless on how to get your shoulders warmed up, you can watch this video for some guidance.
We know there are countless ways to structure a workout regimen, but not matter what style of workout split you use: bodybuilding, PPL, Full Body, the advice is going to stay the same.
Include 2 to 3 sets of your chosen exercise at the end of your workout, post compound lifts. For the most part, these are small stabilizer muscles, and will be fatigued (especially after pulling movements), so they won’t need a ton of direct work to be properly trained.
Make sure you leave at 48 hours in between sessions of training them to allow for sufficient recovery.
For a direct quote from NIH, shoulder abduction is, “the movement of the humerus in a horizontal or transverse plane away from the chest.”¹ In case you didn’t know, the humerus is the bone between your shoulder and elbow. Stick your arm out in front of you, now move it outward, and that’s horizontal abduction.
If you guessed that it’s the opposite of abduction, you’d be right. It’s the motion of bringing your humerus in a horizontal plane toward the chest. That could include motions like hitting a forehand tennis shot, chest flyes, or throwing a ball.
To summerize:
Horizontal abduction is the unsung hero of a balanced upper body. It supports shoulder health, athletic performance, and daily functional activities. Now that you know what muscles are involved and how to incorporate these movements into workouts, you can help avoid injury and develop an under appreciated part of your body.
Whether you’re an athlete looking to increase performance, or just someone that wants to correct posture and prevent shoulder pain, horizontal abduction exercises should be a mainstay in your workout regimen.
References:
Miniato, Mohammed A., et al. “Anatomy, Shoulder and Upper Limb, Shoulder.” PubMed, StatPearls Publishing, 2023, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536933/#:~:text=Horizontal%20abduction%20(transverse%20extension)%3A
At SET FOR SET, we strive to equip you with the tools and knowledge needed for your fitness journey. Our team of experts, including certified trainers, dietitians, and athletes, brings over a decade of industry expertise. Our goal is to be your primary resource for all fitness inquiries, guiding you toward a stronger and healthier life. Sign up to stay up-to-date!
Sign up to get the latest on sales, new releases and more…
© 2024
SET FOR SET.
Powered by Shopify
Tyler DiGiovanni
Author