It’s the first Monday of 2015. Welcome back to real life. Also welcome to a new series here on Just J.Faye! I call it “The Fit 5”.

In this series I will post 5 different exercises that can (and should) be incorporated into your strength training routine. The series will usually focus on one specific muscle group (back, triceps, quads), but I will also do some broader areas as well (full-body, upper body, plyometrics). To accompany the 5 exercises I will post 5 facts about the muscle group, because knowledge is power and it never hurts to learn more about your body.

So fun, right?! YES. So let’s get started with the first edition: SHOULDERS.

I won’t lie to you, before I started learning more about the body I pretty much ignored any shoulder exercises. To me upper body strength training was basically bicep curls and triceps extensions. But, hellooooo, there are so many more muscles up there to work!

Eesh. I know now though. Better late than never, right?!

So how much do you know about your shoulders? Do you know what the shoulder joint is actually called? Or how many bones it is composed of? I’m sure you’re aware that helps move your arms up and down, but what about the other movements?

I know. A lot of those words are a bit intense. Like, coracobrawhaaaat?! I broke out the ole kinesiology book for those fun (can we call them fun??) facts.

FYI, the coracobrachialis is basically the muscle that runs from the scapula (upper back triangle looking plate) to the humerous (upper arm bone). It helps the shoulder joint to adduct (when your arm moves in towards your chest).

We are learning things here, people!

Now onto “The Fit 5” shoulder exercises.

All of these exercises are adaptable to whatever strength training stage you are in!

• Working on stabilization? Perform the lateral and front raises while standing on one leg and the shoulder press while sitting on a stability ball.
• Lifting heavier weights? Performs less reps and sit on a bench.
• Looking to increase endurance? Choose lighter weights and do more reps.

I strongly recommend sprinkling these into your strength training routine. Here are some suggestions:

• Choose 1 or 2 of the moves and superset them with squats and lunges. Fun fact: when you do a circuit like this that alternates between upper and lower body exercises you are performing a “peripheral heart action system”. The more you know.
• Perform all 5 exercises in a circuit format for an all shoulder workout. Just make sure to give yourself a solid 30-60 seconds of rest between each exercise, so that you don’t wear your muscles out right away. After running through the circuit once do some elliptical intervals or plyometric exercises (like squat jumps or burpees) then repeat the circuit again. Add in a third time if you’d like!

I am definitely going to be spending a little more time on my shoulders this year! Plus, I really want to be able to do a headstand and I feel like shoulders play a huge role in that feat.

We will keep learning more in future Fit 5 posts! If you have any questions about these exercises or anything I mentioned, feel free to ask them in a comment below!

What did you think? Will you try out these exercises?