best shoulder building weight exercises that are not common knowledge?

Hello Paul,
Not knowing the type of client/s you train..something different would be hand stands. Some of my clients do hands stands holding them for 30 seconds, 1 minute and up, eventually adding a push up or two. (common knowledge, yes…commonly used, very little).

Sincerely,
Michael

Preach it Michael! Even feet elevated pushups have a dramatic effect on shoulder size and strength. Make the reps slow and controlled, not for # of reps. 30 secs = 6 pushups, then 3, then 1. Gym ring muscle ups are another great one.

I have a Power Tower (which is a Total Gym on steriods) and can use an attachment at the lower end to do upside down shoulder presses (which is a version of a hand stand).

One comment, though: I know that massive, powerful deltoids are a guy thing. Don’t forget the little stabilizers inside that need to be in good working order to make the big ones look good.

Hi Paul. I like to use two ‘different’ exercises for this: one is what I call an ‘Upper Body Step-Up” where I attach a resistance band around the client’s wrists, and have them “step-up” with one hand onto an elevation (this is difficult to explain, so if interested, send me an email and I can send you a photo of what this looks like); another that I like to use is the bench row with external rotation.

I wrote an article for PTontheNet about shoulder exercises which you can access on their site if interested.

LaRue, CSCS
www.lecfitness.com
[email protected]

Pull ups with TRX
Handstands!