If you are searching for cable rope shoulder exercises and workout, then you are at the right place. Here we cover the best cable shoulder exercises and workouts, execution technique, pro-tips, to do the shoulder workout with cable for the best possible shoulder development.
You can do a lot of work for any muscle group or work your entire body in a cable station. If you’re not using cables for shoulder work, you’re leaving a lot of potential on the weight room floor.
This workout only includes cable movements. Try it for a few weeks to give your shoulder joints a break from free weights while still challenging your muscles and forcing them to grow.
Anatomy & Function of the Shoulders
In fitness, “shoulder exercises” refers to resistance exercises that target the deltoid muscle.
The shoulder is a “ball-and-socket” joint between the humerus bone of the upper arm and the scapula bone (shoulder blade).
Six main movements that occur at the shoulder are flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, internal rotation, and external rotation.
The deltoid muscle of the shoulder consists of three separate sections or heads.
- The anterior deltoid (In front)
- Lateral deltoid (at the side)
- Posterior deltoid (behind)
You need to work all three of them, along with the trapezius muscle in the upper back, to build an impressive shoulder.
- Anterior Deltoid: It is commonly called the front delt. It arises from your collar bone and inserts into your humerus (upper arm bone). Your front delt’s main function is to move your arm up, forward, and to your center.
- Lateral Deltoid: It has a few common names, such as side delts, middle delts. It arises from a little area on the shoulder blade called the acromion process and inserts into the humerus. Your lateral delt’s main function is shoulder abduction, which is bringing it up to the side.
- Posterior Deltoid: It also knows as the rear delt. It arises from the spine of the scapula (upper part of your shoulder blade) and inserts into the humerus. Your posterior delts main function is moving the arm outward and backward.
- Trapezius: It is often called the traps, this is a large triangular shaped upper back muscle. The main function of the traps is to support head movement, stabilize certain arm motions and provide stability in pushing and pulling movements.
Benefits of the Cable Shoulder Workout
The cable shoulder (deltoid) workouts offers an effective way to train the shoulders, let’s have a look at some other benefits of shoulder exercises with a cable machine.
- For people who experience discomfort in their joints during the press, cable rope shoulder exercises are a great alternative.
- Cable Shoulder workout are more evenly distributed, and you have more of a constant load on your shoulder muscles throughout the whole range of motion.
- The cable machine deltoid workout offers almost unmatched versatility because you can change up the load, angle, grip positioning and body positioning easily.
- The shoulder workout with cable gives your muscles almost uninterrupted time under tension, and a massive pump — each of which can help optimize muscle growth.
- Cable machines are a safe and efficient tool to incorporate into your normal workout program. The smooth flat resistance results in less wear and tear on the joints, especially the wrists, elbows, and shoulders.
- The cable machine deltoid workout offers a smooth, controlled motion that can be manipulated by the variables above to deliver the exact resistance you’re looking for.
- Varying the position of the body and the direction of cable, you can work out various parts of the deltoid muscles.
How to Build Shoulder With Cable Machine
Cable exercises for shoulders are a great way to build strong shoulders. Using the cable machine, you’ll be able to hit all three deltoids from different angles and through a range of motions.
The cable machine will provide smooth constant tension on your muscles, which leads to more time under tension and in turn more potential for muscle growth.
You can also change body positioning, weight load and attachments used, which can alter your grip thus targeting your muscles differently.
A cable machine can come in various shapes and sizes. You can use various attachments with the cable that can hit pretty much every muscle group one way or another.
16 Best Cable shoulder Exercises
Try this cable rope shoulder workout for a few weeks to give your shoulder joints a break from free weights while still challenging your muscles and forcing them to grow.
1. Cable Shoulder Press
If you’re looking for straightforward cable machine shoulder exercises to add to your routine, cable shoulder press is a great staple exercise to get you started.
It is a variation of the shoulder or overhead press, and it’s one of the best exercises for building size and strength.
Even though you might not see many people using the cable machine for shoulder presses, it is a fantastic exercise to mix in your shoulder workout for extra variety.
The angle of the cable overhead press can help recruit new muscle fiber that’s not engaged much with other types of shoulder presses because the force is pulling down behind you. Must add this cable exercise in your shoulder workout regime.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Anterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, triceps, traps, upper pectoralis, core.
How To Do Cable Shoulder Press
- Start off standing in between a low pulley cable machines with two cables attached to the machine.
- Bend down, grab the cables and then bring them to your shoulders as this will be your starting position.
- Keeping your back straight, head up and chest up, extend through your elbows and push the handles up towards the ceiling over your head and feel the stretch in your shoulders.
- Hold for a count at the top, then return to the starting position. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Tips
- Try to stand as close to the cable machine as possible. Standing too far away can cause the weight to pull you back, placing stress in your lower back and making the exercise more difficult to perform.
- Exhale during effort, inhale during rest.
- Keep a controlled motion and avoid jerky movements
2. Cable Front Raise
The cable front raise is another great exercise for your cable shoulder workout. It is a variation of the front raise and an exercise used to build the muscles of the front deltoid.
You can also perform the cable front raise using a rope attachment or a single stirrup, one arm at a time.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Anterior deltoid.
Secondary: Upper pectoralis, trapezius, Serratus Anterior
How To Do Cable Front Raise
- Attach a straight bar to a low cable pulley. Grab the bar using a shoulder-width or wider overhand grip.
- Stand close to the pulley with your body upright, your shoulders pulled back.
- Exhale as you pull the bar up the front of your body until the bar is at shoulder height.
- Hold for a count of two. Inhale as you lower the bar to the starting position. Repeat for the prescribed number of repetitions.
Tips
- Keep your shoulders back, chest out, and body upright.
- Pause for a moment at the top position.
- Try not to bounce at the top of the movement, allow the shoulders to flex and then lower slowly.
3. Single Arm Cable Front Raise
When doing a shoulder workout with a cable machine, there are plenty of single-arm exercises you can add to correct potential imbalances.
The front raise is one of the most common cable shoulder exercises you’ll see being done because it is effective in building the front delts.
By performing the Single arm cable front raise exercise unilaterally, you’ll be able to focus on one side at a time. You’ll also be made aware of if you have any muscle imbalances that need attention.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Anterior deltoid.
Secondary: Upper pectoralis, trapezius.
How To Do Single Arm Cable Front Raise
- Attach a single grip handle to a low pulley cable machine. Stand facing away from the machine and grip the handle with your right hand using an overhand grip (palm facing down).
- For balance, stagger your feet. The foot in front should be the one that is opposite to your working arm.
- Keeping your elbow very slightly flexed, exhale as you raise the stirrup (handle) forward and upward in a semicircular motion until your arm is above horizontal.
- Hold for a count of two. Inhale as you slowly reverse the motion and lower the stirrup to the starting position. Repeat the exercise with your opposite arm.
Tips
- This is an isolation exercise, so the focus should be on form and muscle contraction, not weight.
- Do not allow the handle to touch your body, and do not allow your body to move (or swing) throughout the movement.
- Keep your back straight and your head up. Keep your body still. Only your arm should move.
4. Cable Upright Row
The upright row is a movement that targets many of the large muscles in the upper back and shoulders, which is key for many movements (see below) in strength, power, and fitness sports.
Cable machines keep tension on the muscles throughout the entire range of motion, ultimately increasing muscle activation and hypertrophy.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Trapezius, Lateral deltoid.
Secondary: Anterior deltoid, supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres minor.
How To Do Cable Upright Row
- Attach a straight bar to a low cable pulley. Grab the bar using a shoulder-width or wider overhand grip.
- Stand close to the pulley with your body upright, your shoulders pulled back.
- Exhale as you pull the bar up the front of your body until it reaches the level of your lower or middle chest.
- Do not pull the bar up any higher. Hold for a count of two. Inhale as you lower the bar to the starting position.
Tips
- Bend slightly at the knees and stand with feet shoulder-width apart.
- Keep your shoulders back, chest out, and body upright.
5. One Arm Cable Lateral Raise
The one-arm cable lateral raise is an isolated shoulder exercise that targets the deltoids, while increasing stability in both the wrists and the core.
Cable lateral raise is a shoulder exercise that works the middle head of the deltoid muscle, which is the rounded muscle at the very top of each shoulder.
An advanced version of this exercise is to stand, so the cable is behind you when you lift. This can keep your shoulders from rounding forward and also activate the rear delts. If you have shoulder issues or are coming back from an injury, opt for keeping the cable in front of you.
You can use both arms while performing the exercise, but it’s often recommended to use just one to add more difficulty to your workout and stimulate more gains.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Lateral deltoid.
Secondary: Anterior deltoid, posterior deltoid, trapezius, supraspinatus.
How To Do One Arm Cable Lateral Raise
- Stand next to a cable pulley machine with your feet shoulder-width apart and the handle attachment adjusted to the lowest setting.
- To maintain good posture, push your chest forward, and point your shoulders back while slightly bending both knees.
- Grab the handle and stand straight up with your arm fully extended and feet facing forward. Maintaining a slight bend in your working elbow, raise your arm up to shoulder height.
- Hold for a second, and then slowly lower the weight back to the starting position.
Tips
- Keep your torso still, your back straight, and your elbow slightly bent.
- Don’t just swing your arms. Keep controlled motion throughout the exercise.
- Always use weights that you can handle comfortably.
6. Cable Lateral Raise
This is one of the best two-arm cable shoulder exercises that you can do during your deltoid workout.
The cable lateral raise is one of the best exercises that targets the side delts, It is a great isolation exercise that can humble you. With this exercise, you should start at a light weight to ensure you proper perform.
There are multiple variations of the lateral raise, but they all have the same common goal, to build the lateral delts.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Lateral deltoid.
Secondary: Anterior deltoid, posterior deltoid, trapezius,
How To Do Cable Lateral Raise
- Attach a single-grip handles to the lowest point of the cable pulley system.
- The handle from the right pulley should be in your left hand, and the handle from the left pulley should be in your right hand. The cables should be crossed and pulled tightly.
- With elbows slightly bent, raise your arms to shoulder level, leading with the elbow.
- Slowly lower your arms back down until you feel a stretch in your delts and repeat.
Tips
- The form is a very important part of this exercise.
- Don’t just swing your arms. Keep motion-controlled throughout the exercise.
- Always use weights that you can handle comfortably.
7. Cable Machine Y Raise
If you’re looking for a way to get more creative with your cable shoulder workout, why not try cable Y-raise?
It is a fantastic exercise for the whole shoulder (deltoid) that activates all fibers of the deltoid: anterior, lateral, and posterior, but it mainly targets at lateral shoulder.
This exercise combines horizontal shoulder abduction with external shoulder rotation. Strengthening the external shoulder rotators and the internal shoulder rotators.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Lateral deltoid.
Secondary: Anterior deltoid, posterior deltoid, trapezius, supraspinatus.
How To Do Cable Machine Y Raise
- Stand facing between two low cable pulleys, with each hand holding the handle of the cable of the opposite pulley.
- To maintain good posture, push your chest forward, and point your shoulders back while slightly bending both knees.
- Stand straight up with your arm fully extended and feet facing forward. Maintaining a slight bend in the elbows, raise your arms upwards and outwards, forming the letter ‘Y’ with your whole body.
- Hold for a second, and then slowly lower the weight back to the starting position.
Tips
- Maintain a fixed slightly bent elbow position throughout exercise.
- Keep your torso still, your back straight, and your elbow slightly bent.
- Don’t just swing your arms. Keep controlled motion throughout the exercise
8. Bent over Cable Lateral Raise
A bent over cable raise is an excellent exercise to train and isolate the rear deltoid muscle. It provides constant stress on the muscle. Unlike dumbbell raises where the resistance varies during the lift, the cable pulley affords a uniform resistance throughout the motion.
There are, however, many different bent-over cable lateral raise variations that you can try out that may require different types of bent-over cable lateral raise equipment.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Posterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, trapezius, rhomboids, Infraspinatus, teres minor, teres major.
How To Do Bent over Cable Lateral Raise
- Grab the handles attached to two low pulleys (left-side handle in right hand, right-side handle in left hand), stand in the middle, then bend forward at the waist with back straight and parallel to the floor.
- Raise your hands upward in an arc to shoulder level, such that the cables cross over.
- Lower the handles back down to the start position, your right hand directly in front of the left ankle and your left hand in front of the right ankle.
Tips
- Pull slowly so that you are in control of the weight at all times.
- Remember to exhale while you exert.
9. One-Arm Bent Over Cable Raise
You can do this exercise using one arm at a time, allowing you to alter the range of motion by adjusting the start or finish position.
This unilateral version makes it possible to raise your hand higher and get a longer stretch at the bottom, thereby generating more work for the posterior deltoid. Stabilize your torso by resting your free hand on the thigh.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Posterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, trapezius, rhomboids, Infraspinatus, teres minor, teres major.
How To Do One-Arm Bent Over Cable Raise
- Lean forward at the hips, place your right hand on your thigh and hold a dumbbell in your left hand with your arm extended straight down.
- Raise the weight straight out to the side until your arm is parallel with the floor.
- Pause for a moment at the top of the motion before slowly lowering the weight back down to the starting position.
- Repeat with the right arm.
Tips
- Pull slowly so that you are in control of the weight at all times.
- Remember to exhale while you exert.
10. Reverse Cable Crossover
Your arms should move directly back (and downward slightly) almost parallel to the floor to target the posterior deltoid. If the hands are raised through a higher arc to a point above shoulder level, the trapezius and lateral deltoid make a bigger contribution to the movement. Crossing your hands over one another (uncrossing the cables) at the start position increases the range of motion.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Rear deltoid
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, trapezius, rhomboids, teres minor, teres major.
How To Do Reverse Cable Crossover
- Stand in the center of a cable crossover apparatus.
- Start with hands crossed in front of you at shoulder height with the left high cable in your right hand and the right in your left hand.
- Using your rear delts, pull your elbows out and back as far as possible, then slowly return to the starting position.
Tips
- The posterior deltoid is best targeted with your torso upright, not leaning too far forward or back.
- Keep a controlled motion and avoid jerky movements.
11. Lying Reverse Fly (Supine Cable Reverse Fly)
The lying reverse fly is the perfect exercise to hit the rear delts.
Completing this exercise in a supine position on your back allows you to purely focus on contracting your rear delts to pull the cables down to the sides.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Posterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, trapezius, rhomboids, Infraspinatus, teres minor, teres major.
How To Do Lying Reverse Fly
- Position a flat bench between two high pulleys.
- Lie supine (on your back) holding the pulleys’ handles. The handle from the right pulley should be in your left hand, and the handle from the left pulley should be in your right hand. The cables should be crossed and pulled tightly.
- Keeping your arms perpendicular to your torso and your elbows slightly bent, exhale as you pull your arms open and out to the sides.
- Hold for a count of two. Inhale as you slowly return to starting position. Repeat for desired reps.
Tips
- When you lie down, make sure that your shoulders are lined up with the pulleys. This will ensure optimal mechanical leverage.
- Keep the movement slow and deliberate.
Video Illustration of 10 Most Effective Cable Shoulder Exercises
12. Cable Twisting Overhead Press
Another good single-arm cable shoulder exercise is the Cable Twisting Overhead Press.
The twisting cable overhead press is a very effective shoulder press variation which works the anterior (front) deltoids. Now, it’s a pretty simple exercise to perform and anyone can do it effectively, which makes it ideal for size and strength gains.
It is brilliant for developing unilateral upper-body strength, as well as improving your balance and the strength and stability of your core.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Anterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, triceps, traps, upper pectoralis, Serratus Anterior, Gluteus Maximus, Core.
How To Do Cable Twisting Overhead Press
- Attach a stirrup (handle) to a low or waist-high pulley. Grasp the stirrup with one hand.
- Spread your legs and squat a little, keeping your torso upright. Position the stirrup to the side of your body, with your elbow flexed and tucked in to your side.
- Exhale as you straighten your legs, twist your body, and press the stirrup diagonally upward and away from the pulley.
- Hold for a count of two. Inhale as you reverse the motion and return your body and the stirrup to the starting position.
- Complete the desired number of reps with your right arm. Repeat the exercise with your opposite arm.
Tips
- You can place your free hand on your hip. You can squat as deep as you want to.
- Furthermore, you can only perform this exercise with one arm at a time.
13. Face Pull
Face pull is a cable machine exercise that primarily targets the rear deltoid and to a lesser degree also targets the biceps, triceps, and traps. Use a cable pulley machine to pull the weight straight toward your forehead.
This exercise prevents muscular imbalance and builds overall shoulder strength.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Posterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, trapezius, rhomboids, infraspinatus, teres minor, teres major.
How To Do Face Pull
- Grab the ends of the rope attachment using a neutral grip (palms facing each other) and slightly lean back.
- Pull the rope toward your face as you spread the ends of the rope, so they end up on the sides of your ears just above your shoulders in the finish position.
- Hold this position for a second as you squeeze your shoulder blades together, contracting rear delts and middle traps as hard as possible.
- Then slowly return the rope to the start position and repeat for reps.
Tips
- Stand straight with feet in a comfortable balanced stance.
- Be sure to exhale when pulling weight toward your face.
- Think about trying to pinch your shoulder blades as tight as possible when pulling weight toward your face.
- Your upper arms should be straight out to your sides with elbows bent.
14. Cable Shrug
The cable shrug is a variation of the shoulder shrug and one of the best trap exercises that is utilized to build the trapezius muscle of the upper back.
It’s one of the best cable exercise for isolating the traps and offers versatility to further improve development.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Trapezius, Lateral deltoid.
Secondary: Anterior deltoid, Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres minor.
How To Do Cable Shrug
- Grab a cable bar attachment that is attached to a low pulley. Your hands should be shoulder-width apart or slightly wider if you wish. Your hands should be facing down.
- Stand close to the pulley and extend your arms in front of you while holding the bar.
- Raise your shoulders, lift the bar as high as you possibly can. Exhale while performing this movement. Hold the contraction at the top for a second.
- Slowly lower the bar to its starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of reps.
Tips
- Prevent from rolling your shoulders, as this is incorrect form and can result in injury.
15. Cable High Row
Half kneeling high cable row rope is a tremendous exercise that effectively works many muscles, including the shoulder, back, wing and trapezius muscles.
Using this exercise give people with shoulder issues an exercise to get the benefits of rows. In addition, rope face pull is one of the most effective corrective exercises that help compensate for poor posture and shoulder dysfunction.
Muscles Worked
Primary: Posterior deltoid.
Secondary: Lateral deltoid, trapezius, rhomboids, Biceps, teres minor, teres major.
How To Do Cable High Row
- Set the cable up at a high point with the rope attachments
- Grab the rope with both hands using an overhand grip, then take a step back and get onto knees facing the cable machine
- Starting with your arms stretched out and away, pull back through your elbows until your hands are just in front of your shoulders
- Slowly return to starting position. Repeat for desired reps.
Tips
- Don’t lean backwards to pull the weight towards you.
- Focus on the mind-muscle connection to pull down by using your back muscles.
16. Straight Arm Lat Pull Down
Finally, if you’re looking for one more effective shoulder exercise that you can do with cable, try the straight arm lat pull down.
It is one of the best exercises to strengthen your lats and rear shoulder with cable machine.
Muscles Worked
Primary: latissimus dorsi.
Secondary: Rear deltoid, lower trapezius, rhomboids, biceps, and Abs.
How To Do Straight Arm Lat Pull Down
- Take an overhand grip that is wider than shoulder-width on a lat bar attached to the pulley on the lat pulldown bar.
- Position yourself with your feet flat on the floor, chest up, and low-back arch exaggerated.
- Pull your shoulder blades together as you squeeze your lats to initiate the movement, pulling the bar down in a smooth motion to your midsection.
- Hold the contraction for a moment, then slowly return the bar all the way back to the starting position.
Tips
- Don’t allow the head to jut forward as you pull.
- Keep your elbows slightly flexed and your body still
Cable Machine Shoulder Workout Plan
The cable machine is best used for hypertrophy rather than strength and power, so you won’t be trying to lift as heavy as possible, but rather hone in on specific exercises with mid to high rep range. If you need a refresher regarding rep ranges and desired outcome, you can follow these guidelines:
- 0-5 Reps—Power/Strength
- 6-8 Reps—Strength/Hypertrophy
- 8-15 Reps—Hypertrophy
- 15+ Reps—Endurance
You should attempt to have a good mix of these reps ranges in your workout programming.
Cable Shoulder Workout plan #1
- Cable Shoulder Press: 4 sets of 8-10 reps.
- Front Cable raise: 4 sets of 12-15 reps.
- Cable Upright Row: 3 sets of 8-12 reps.
Shoulder Cable Workout plan #2
- Cable Twisting Overhead Press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
- Single Arm Cable Front Raise: 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
- Cable Lateral Raise: 3 sets of 8-12 reps.
- Cable Machine Y Raise: 3 sets of 10-15 reps.
Shoulder Cable Workout plan #3:
- Cable Shoulder Press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
- One Arm Cable Lateral Raise: 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
- Bent over Cable Lateral Raise: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.
- Cable Shrug: 3 sets of 8-12 reps.
FAQ
Are cable exercises good for the shoulders?
Yes, cable rope shoulder exercises are a great way to build strong, powerful shoulders. Using the cable machine, you’ll be able to hit all three deltoids from different angles and through a range of motions.
You can also change body positioning, weight load and attachments used, which can alter your grip thus targeting your muscles differently.
Why does Cable shoulder Workouts Are Effective For Building Mass?
Cable rope shoulder workouts are effective for building muscle mass for the following reasons:
- Cable exercises provide the consistent tension throughout the range of motion
- Cable machines are a safe and efficient tool to incorporate into your normal workout program
- The freedom of movement can be offered by cables.
- Cables can be set in the direction that hits the muscle fibres of deltoids (front deltoid, side deltoid and rear deltoid muscles).
- Cable setup can increase the range of motion for common shoulder exercises.
Conclusion
Cable shoulder Workout is highly recommended for anyone interested in building a wider shoulder and who wants to gain strength. Shoulder exercises on a cable machine can hit your shoulders from all angles, which will stimulate new muscle fibers to be activated for potential growth.
If you incorporate these cable shoulder exercises in your workout regimen and do it consistently, the results will speak by themselves. It not only allows for targeted muscle development, but also provides an overall 3D look to the shoulder.
Thanks for reading, enjoy working your cable shoulder workout!
