Growing muscle size with Hypertrophy requires heavy external load with a decent volume of reps till near failure, this relies on having good mechanics, particularly stability.
Stability in a horizontal press mostly comes from the scapula holding a retracted position, a position a lot struggle to achieve.
So try this add-on using the mini band around the wrists as a cue to help create upper back tension while in a pressing motion.
Update from Ulrik – MRC Presenter and Owner of Rehab Trainer
Iso-Integration for Shoulders
We have advocated for more than a decade the use of Bands during a multitude of Upper Body exercises, for the purpose of experimenting with activation of inhibited muscles and reducing pain.
“Iso-“ stands for isolation of deactivated / inhibited musculature
“-Integration” assumes you are doing a functional / integrated movement like horizontal press.
But, I’ve never seen this one that Tim devised!
It seeks to activate the Scapula Retractors via the band forcing you to hold external rotation torque. You shouldn’t need a great amount of Miniband tension, just enough to help you slide your Scapula back and down into Retraction and Depression.
A small point I would make here: make sure your Scapula does retract and stay depressed at the bottom of the pressing movement! A very “lurched” scapula may not – it may jump (“lurch”) forward as the elbow drops, due to the external rotator group creating anterior shear in the socket.
Check out Tim’s video above (with one of his own ideas on how to improve shoulder function via the Thera / Miniband – so clever!)
Subscribe To Our Newsletter
For for Newsletter