Shoulder Builder: 8-Week Boulder Shoulders

Overview

Most lifters have overdeveloped front delts from all the pressing they do and underdeveloped side and rear delts from all the lateral raises they skip. This program fixes that imbalance with dedicated work for all three heads of the deltoid.

You train shoulders 3 times per week: one heavy pressing day, one high-volume lateral raise day, and one integrated with upper body work.

Schedule

• •Monday: Heavy Shoulder Press + Chest
• •Tuesday: Legs
• •Wednesday: Rest
• •Thursday: Upper Body + Shoulder Volume
• •Friday: Rest
• •Saturday: Shoulder Isolation Day
• •Sunday: Rest

Monday: Heavy Shoulder Press + Chest

• •Seated Barbell Overhead Press: 4x5 (2min rest)
• •Dumbbell Bench Press: 3x10 (90s rest)
• •Arnold Press: 3x10 (60s rest)
• •Face Pulls: 3x15 (45s rest)

Tuesday: Legs

• •Barbell Back Squat: 4x8 (2min rest)
• •Romanian Deadlift: 3x10 (90s rest)
• •Leg Press: 3x12 (90s rest)
• •Walking Lunges: 2x10 per leg (60s rest)
• •Standing Calf Raise: 3x15 (45s rest)

Thursday: Upper Body + Shoulder Volume

• •Barbell Row: 4x8 (90s rest)
• •Incline Dumbbell Press: 3x10 (60s rest)
• •Pull-Ups: 3x8 (90s rest)
• •Lateral Raise: 4x15 (45s rest)
• •Reverse Flyes: 3x15 (45s rest)
• •Barbell Curl: 2x10 (45s rest)
• •Tricep Pushdown: 2x12 (45s rest)

Saturday: Shoulder Isolation Day

• •Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 4x10 (75s rest)
• •Lateral Raise: 5x15 (30s rest)
• •Cable Lateral Raise: 3x12 per arm (30s rest)
• •Reverse Pec Deck: 4x15 (30s rest)
• •Front Raise: 3x12 (30s rest)
• •Upright Row (wide grip): 3x12 (45s rest)
• •Band Pull-Aparts: 3x20 (20s rest)

Why So Many Lateral Raises

Side delts respond to high frequency and high volume more than almost any other muscle. They are small, recover quickly, and need a lot of direct work to grow. 12+ sets per week of lateral raises is not excessive for someone trying to build wider shoulders.

Progression

• •Heavy pressing: add 2.5kg when all sets and reps are completed
• •Lateral raises and isolation work: use double progression (hit top of rep range on all sets, then increase weight)
• •If your shoulder joints feel beat up, swap barbell pressing for dumbbell pressing for a week