Boost your posture: Exercises for stronger upper back muscles
What's the story
Strong lower traps are key to improving your posture, stabilizing your shoulders, and building upper body strength.
Situated in your upper back, these muscles play a crucial role in moving and stabilizing your shoulder blades.
The five exercises listed here are specifically designed to isolate and strengthen your lower traps, providing a well-rounded approach to enhancing your upper body function.
Foundation
Prone Y raises for foundation building
Prone Y raises are an excellent exercise for lower trapezius strengthening.
Lie on your stomach with your arms overhead in a "Y" position, thumbs facing upward.
Raise your arms off the ground while squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Hold the position for two to three seconds, then lower your arms.
Perform three sets of 12 repetitions each.
Resistance
Incorporate resistance bands
Add some resistance (literally) to your lower trapezius exercises with the help of resistance bands.
For the standing band pull apart, grip a band at chest level, palms facing down. Keeping your arms straight, pull the band apart until your hands are aligned with your shoulders. Remember to engage those back muscles!
Three sets of 15 repetitions are recommended.
Posture
Wall angels for posture correction
Wall angels aren't just great for strengthening, but they're also excellent for fixing posture problems associated with weak lower traps.
Stand with your back flat against a wall, feet roughly four inches away from it.
Position your arms against the wall in a "W" shape. Then, maintaining contact with the wall, slowly slide your arms up above your head into a "Y" shape.
Do three sets of 10 reps.
Intensity
Dumbbell rows to increase intensity
To build strong lower traps, add dumbbell rows to your routine.
Stand bending at 45 degrees, with one hand on a bench for support and the other holding a dumbbell.
Pull the dumbbell up toward your hip, keeping your elbow close to your body. Squeeze your shoulder blade at the top.
Slowly lower it back down.
Complete three sets of 12 reps on each side.
Finishing touch
Face pulls: The finishing touch
Face pulls strengthen the lower trapezius and enhance shoulder mobility.
Secure a rope to a high pulley, grasp it with palms facing each other, and pull towards your face while spreading your hands apart.
Allow your elbows to flare out. Concentrate on contracting your shoulder blades together at the conclusion of the movement.
Three sets of 15 repetitions will effectively strengthen these muscles.