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Build balanced shoulders & improve posture

Best Rear Delt workouts

The rear delts, or posterior deltoids, are often undertrained compared to the front and side delts: but they’re essential for a strong, balanced upper body. Located at the back of your shoulders, rear delts support posture, improve pulling mechanics, and help prevent shoulder injuries. These workouts target them directly with exercises like reverse flyes, face pulls, and rear delt rows to improve both aesthetics and performance.

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Workout

Workout 1 Rear Shoulders

This rear delt workout focuses on the back of your shoulders with specific exercises that help improve your posture and balance all the forward pushing from daily life. For most exercises, you'll do 10 repetitions with focused, controlled movements, allowing you to truly feel the back of your shoulders working. These often neglected muscles are crucial for healthy shoulders and good posture, especially if you sit at a desk or do a lot of chest training.

The benefits of rear delt workouts

Improve Shoulder Health & Pulling Power

Training your rear deltoids helps correct muscle imbalances caused by overtraining the chest or front deltoids. This leads to improved posture and reduces the risk of shoulder impingement. Strong rear deltoids also support your performance in pulling exercises such as rows and pull-ups and contribute to a more complete, rounded appearance of the shoulders. For anyone working at a desk or pushing heavy loads, the strength of the rear deltoids is essential for long-term joint health.

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Workout 2 Rear Shoulders

This rear delt workout focuses on building stronger, more defined posterior shoulder muscles through a mix of isolation exercises and pulling movements that target the back of your shoulders. For most exercises, you'll perform 8-10 repetitions, which builds both strength and muscle mass in these important but often underdeveloped muscles. The workout trains your rear delts from various angles to ensure complete development and better shoulder balance.

FAQ: Best Rear Delt Workouts

Do I need machines to train my rear delts?

Not at all. While machines like the reverse pec deck are useful, you can train rear delts with dumbbells, resistance bands, or cables. Bodyweight options like reverse arm circles or prone T-raises can also be effective when done with control.

Can rear delt exercises improve posture?

Yes. Strengthening the rear delts helps retract and stabilize the scapulae (shoulder blades), countering the effects of forward-rounded shoulders. This can improve posture, especially for those who sit for long hours or frequently work on computers.

Why are my rear delts lagging compared to my front delts?

Most pushing exercises like bench press and overhead press work the front delts heavily, while rear delts are often neglected. Without direct isolation, they can fall behind, leading to imbalances that affect posture and joint health. Adding dedicated rear delt work can correct this over time.

How often should I train my rear delts?

Rear delts can be trained 1–2 times per week directly. They’re also activated during pulling and rowing movements, but targeted work ensures balanced shoulder development. Since they’re a smaller muscle group, 3–4 sets per session is typically enough.

What exercises target the rear delts most effectively?

Top exercises include bent-over reverse flyes, face pulls, cable rear delt flyes, reverse pec deck, and rear delt rows. These moves emphasize horizontal abduction and external rotation, which are the primary functions of the rear delts.

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Discover more training variations for the rear deltoids

Related rear delt workouts

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Best Shoulder workouts

Shoulder workouts target the deltoid muscles: front (anterior), side (lateral), and rear (posterior) which play a key role in pressing, lifting, and stabilizing your upper body. In these workouts, you'll train all three heads for balanced development, improved strength, and injury prevention. Compound movements like the overhead press and push press build raw strength, while isolation exercises such as lateral raises and rear delt flyes help shape and define the shoulders. Whether you're chasing performance, symmetry, or aesthetics, dedicated shoulder workouts are essential to complete upper body training.

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Best Pull Day workouts

Pull day workouts focus on the major muscle groups involved in pulling movements: the back, biceps, and rear shoulders. Training these muscles together helps improve posture, build balanced strength, and develop a well-defined upper body. Compound exercises like rows, pull-ups, and deadlifts create the foundation of your pull day routine by engaging multiple muscles at once. These movements are complemented by isolation exercises such as bicep curls and face pulls to target specific areas and improve muscle detail. Whether you want to increase strength, enhance muscle definition, or support better performance, pull day workouts offer an efficient way to reach your goals.

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Best Back workouts

Back workouts target the major muscles responsible for posture, pulling strength, and total-body power: including the lats, traps, rhomboids, and erector spinae. In this training plan, you’ll combine heavy compound lifts with precise isolation work to build thickness, width, and strength. Foundational movements like deadlifts, pull-ups, and barbell rows help develop overall mass and power, while exercises like face pulls and lat pulldowns refine shape and control. Whether your goal is to lift heavier, improve athletic performance, or enhance your physique, focused back workouts are key to long-term progress.

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Best Side Delt workouts

The side delts, or lateral deltoids, are responsible for the width and rounded shape of your shoulders. Well-developed side delts enhance upper body aesthetics and play a functional role in shoulder abduction and stabilization. These workouts focus on isolating the lateral delts using exercises like lateral raises, upright rows, and overhead presses. Whether you're training for appearance or performance, strong side delts contribute to balanced, injury-resistant shoulders.

Train smarter with weekly schedules

Routines for Rear Delt Gains

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Athlete Builder (5x/week) routine

This program is built for individuals who want to become faster, more explosive, and stronger: regardless of their sport. The Athlete Builder routine combines mobility, strength, conditioning, and power-based movements across five focused days. Whether you're an athlete, a coach, or someone who simply trains like one, this plan delivers high-performance results through structured, repeatable progress. Expect improvements in force production, joint control, and total-body resilience.

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Bodybuilding Split (5x/week)

This 5-day bodybuilding split is designed for lifters who want to build size, definition, and symmetry through dedicated muscle group specialization. Each day focuses on specific muscle groups with enough volume and intensity to maximize hypertrophy while allowing adequate recovery between sessions. Perfect for intermediate to advanced lifters who want to sculpt their physique with precision.

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Barbell Only Split (4x/week)

This 4-day split is all about moving the biggest loads with the classics. No machines, no isolation fluff, just the foundational compound movements that have built athletes for decades. Whether you're training at home with a simple setup or prefer the simplicity of barbell-only sessions, this program delivers complete body development using nothing but the most effective compound lifts. With four focused sessions across the week, you'll hit every major movement pattern while allowing proper recovery between training days.

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PPL + Abs Add-On (6x/week) routine

This high-frequency training schedule for those craving real muscle size and core strength. This approach combines the classic push/pull/legs split with dedicated abdominal work to maximize both muscle growth and functional core strength. Six training days per week allow optimal volume distribution across all muscle groups while providing the attention to detail that serious lifters demand. Every session builds on the previous one, creating cumulative muscle development and robust core function.