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Building Big Traps

Besides the competitive Olympic lifting exercises and their assistance exercises, one of my favorite exercises to develop the traps is the one-arm barbell shrug. This exercise is great for stimulating strength and size gains in the traps, and offers several advantages over conventional shoulder shrug exercises.

Compared to the two-arm barbell shrug, the one-arm version provides a greater range of motion. Try it if you don’t believe me. You will instantly feel how much higher the trapezius moves upward when you use the single-arm version versus the two-arm version. In fact, I would say the only equivalent exercise would be shoulder shrugs using the Atlantis shrug machine, such as the one we have at the Poliquin Strength Institute.

Compared to dumbbell shrugs, there is no contact with the body during the one-arm barbell shrug, permitting a much smoother performance of the movement. With dumbbells, there is a considerable amount of friction created as the plates will rub against your body, especially when using heavy weights. This friction increases the resistance of the movement, but without the ability to actually determine how much the load has increased and consequently how well you are progressing with the exercise.

Next, with this version of the shrug, the working arm has to remain in a neutral position. This technique helps correct the excessively internally-rotated shoulder and arm posture commonly associated with individuals who have bench pressed excessively for years.

Finally, to prevent the barbell from moving medially (towards the front of the body), the one-arm barbell shrug requires the infraspinatus and teres minor to be recruited isometrically. This additional work develops superior shoulder integrity that would be valuable for athletes such as football and rugby players, athletes who experience a high degree of disruptive forces to the shoulders during their sports.

Trap Training Secrets
Although it seems like a simple movement, here are some special tips on how to get the most out of the one-arm barbell shrug.

First, to make it easier to load the barbell and pick it up to assume the starting position, set the barbell on a power rack across the pins. You can then brace yourself with your free hand against one of the power rack posts, which will allow you to keep your torso in an upright position. Regarding the use of straps, I would only recommend them if the weight is so heavy that your grip gives out – so no straps for sets of 1-3 reps.

To increase time under tension, which favors the development of greater hypertrophy, pause for a predetermined time (1 to 6 seconds, for example) at the end of the concentric range of motion. This paused variation is one that I prescribe for someone recovering from shoulder surgery, as these individuals often cannot handle high loads but still need the hypertrophy to rehabilitate quickly.

If your traps are in need of a dire challenge, please give the one-arm barbell shrug a go. I’m certain you will very happy with the quick results it provides, and adding it to your program would pay tribute to the pioneering work of the old time bodybuilders and strength athletes.