Lifting WITHOUT broad shoulders

berrydana7
berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
edited November 10 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi! i've been heavy lifting with an upper/lower split for over a year now and have of course, gained muscle and strength. My shoulders grew broader and bigger, which I was not too fond of so i stopped doing upper body training and shifted my focus to glute training and cardio. My shoulders did shrink, just slightly when i stopped training them every week but I would like them to be just a little bit smaller. Anyway, I am now getting back into training my upper body since while i don't want broad shoulders, I do want some nice back and arm muscles. I am worried that my shoulders will broaden again, so i will not be doing exercises that specifically target the shoulders like overhead press, shrugs, deltoid raises. My upper body days will comprise mainly of back and arm specific exercises like lat pulldowns, pull ups, rows, renegade rows, bicep curls, tricep push ups. What I'm worried about is that the back exercises like lat pulldowns, rows, pull ups are compound exercises, meaning that my shoulder muscles will be used in the movement and as a result, my shoulders might get bigger, which is what I want to avoid. Should I just not do upper body exercises or should I do higher reps? I want a toned upper body WITHOUT broad shoulders. Help would be appreciated :):)

Replies

  • PwrLftr82
    PwrLftr82 Posts: 945 Member
    Huh?
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    Are you measuring? If not it could all be in your head.
  • msamyg
    msamyg Posts: 6 Member
    If it were me, I would do as you have said, yes - there are some compound exercises here - but I think the size gain will be minimal so long as you aren't specifically focusing on shoulders or eating to gain muscle.

    Looking at your picture though - for what it is worth - your shoulders aren't that big. Good luck :)
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    Why do you not like slightly broader shoulders? Especially since you seem to like the muscular look in general. This is like wanting muscular legs but a flat butt.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    Muscles only get bulky in a calorie surplus, so the problem (if you want to call it a problem) is your diet, not your exercises.

    To answer your question, pushing exercises use the shoulders more than pulling. So limit the tricep pushups and similar stuff. Pulling exercises ("back") don't work the shoulders much.
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    Oh, dear. I really don't think you have to worry about "too big" anything. You are tiny.
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    usmcmp wrote: »
    Are you measuring? If not it could all be in your head.

    No i'm not measuring but you could be right in that it's in my head. But im sure my shoulders have grown because they look bigger in tank tops and t shirts etc.
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    msamyg wrote: »
    If it were me, I would do as you have said, yes - there are some compound exercises here - but I think the size gain will be minimal so long as you aren't specifically focusing on shoulders or eating to gain muscle.

    Looking at your picture though - for what it is worth - your shoulders aren't that big. Good luck :)

    thank you :) I will continue with my routine then :D
  • SpecialSundae
    SpecialSundae Posts: 795 Member
    Your shoulders won't be as big as you think they are. I think mine are huge and broad but no one else sees it unless I'm trying to show them off.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    berrydana7 wrote: »
    usmcmp wrote: »
    Are you measuring? If not it could all be in your head.

    No i'm not measuring but you could be right in that it's in my head. But im sure my shoulders have grown because they look bigger in tank tops and t shirts etc.

    Most of the time our muscles look bigger when the fat around them disappears. Might want to start measuring.
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »
    Why do you not like slightly broader shoulders? Especially since you seem to like the muscular look in general. This is like wanting muscular legs but a flat butt.

    I guess it's just a personal preference :)
  • VegasFit
    VegasFit Posts: 1,232 Member
    deksgrl wrote: »
    Oh, dear. I really don't think you have to worry about "too big" anything. You are tiny.

    Agree. You look fairly petite in your photos.

  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    Cherimoose wrote: »
    Muscles only get bulky in a calorie surplus, so the problem (if you want to call it a problem) is your diet, not your exercises.

    To answer your question, pushing exercises use the shoulders more than pulling. So limit the tricep pushups and similar stuff. Pulling exercises ("back") don't work the shoulders much.

    mmm understood but the thing is, i love doing tricep push ups since they place more emphasis on the triceps :D
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    deksgrl wrote: »
    Oh, dear. I really don't think you have to worry about "too big" anything. You are tiny.

    haha thank you
  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
    You crazy girl. I love my broad shoulders, they're my best feature. Love wearing tops to show them off. Though suit shopping sucks, cuz it's hard to find jackets that fit right and I usually have to buy jackets a size or two too big.
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    SpecialSundae wrote: »
    Your shoulders won't be as big as you think they are. I think mine are huge and broad but no one else sees it unless I'm trying to show them off.

    Yeah they aren't as big now as they were before since I stopped doing upper body training, increased cardio etc. but now that i'm getting back into upper body training, I am worried they might grow bigger
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    usmcmp wrote: »
    berrydana7 wrote: »
    usmcmp wrote: »
    Are you measuring? If not it could all be in your head.

    No i'm not measuring but you could be right in that it's in my head. But im sure my shoulders have grown because they look bigger in tank tops and t shirts etc.

    Most of the time our muscles look bigger when the fat around them disappears. Might want to start measuring.

    hmm alright, i think i'll still focus on back and arm specific exercises :)
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    VegasFit wrote: »
    deksgrl wrote: »
    Oh, dear. I really don't think you have to worry about "too big" anything. You are tiny.

    Agree. You look fairly petite in your photos.

    haha yeah that's due to limited upper body training though :o
  • berrydana7
    berrydana7 Posts: 78 Member
    dym123 wrote: »
    You crazy girl. I love my broad shoulders, they're my best feature. Love wearing tops to show them off. Though suit shopping sucks, cuz it's hard to find jackets that fit right and I usually have to buy jackets a size or two too big.

    haha I'm glad you like them! :)
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    berrydana7 wrote: »
    VegasFit wrote: »
    deksgrl wrote: »
    Oh, dear. I really don't think you have to worry about "too big" anything. You are tiny.

    Agree. You look fairly petite in your photos.

    haha yeah that's due to limited upper body training though :o

    I doubt it. You aren't building muscle unless you are eating in a surplus. Are you? Otherwise you are sculpting what you have, not really making it bigger.

  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
    Are you sure it wasn't maybe improved definition from maybe losing some body-fat? It could just be the way you're built. It's important to think of your muscles as a unit. One dysfunctional area will negatively influence another and cause injury and / or just poor all around movement. That doesn't mean you have to go crazy with shoulder work. A shoulder press is enough to focus on your delts and traps. Dips parallel bars are good too. If you deadlift that will definitely work your traps.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    berrydana7 wrote: »
    i love doing tricep push ups since they place more emphasis on the triceps :D

    If you want bigger triceps, just do overhead tricep raises instead. If you have cable machine, also do tricep extensions.


  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    usmcmp wrote: »
    Are you measuring? If not it could all be in your head.


    Sounds like it's in your head to me too. If not, I wouldn't do anything upper body - better to be untrained than create an imbalance IMO.
  • Daiako
    Daiako Posts: 12,545 Member
    Please tell me your secret. I'd love a little more muscle in my back shoulder area but, alas, the more I lift and eat at a deficit the overall smaller I become.
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