Exercise Profile
- Target Muscle Group
- Exercise TypeStrength
- Equipment RequiredDumbbell
- MechanicsIsolation
- Force TypePull (Bilateral)
- Experience LevelBeginner
- Secondary Muscles
Upper Back
Target Muscle Group
Shoulders
Knee to Elbow Dumbbell External Rotation Overview
The knee to elbow dumbbell external rotation exercise is a great prehab exercise to perform to promote rotator cuff health.
Rotator cuffs are one of the more common injuries, especially as lifters get older. Performing prehab exercises such as knee to elbow dumbbell external rotation can help prevent injury and increase your longevity in the gym.
Knee to Elbow Dumbbell External Rotation Instructions
- Assume a seated position on a flat bench with one leg bent and your elbow on your knee while holding a dumbbell.
- Keep the elbow directly on your knee and externally rotate at the shoulder.
- Slowly lower the dumbbell back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Knee to Elbow Dumbbell External Rotation Tips
- It may be more comfortable to support your head with your bottom arm instead of trying to hold it up using the musculature within your neck.
- The range of motion won’t be drastic, you’re just looking to feel all of the musculature in posterior shoulder turn on.
- All of the movement should come through the shoulder, don’t allow the elbow to move.
3 Comments
I don't exactly understand. What part of your shoulder is worked, the front, side or rear? And is this exercise good for hypertrophy or just for the rotator cuff?
Hey Aidan, this is more for warming up, and all three heads are going to be somewhat involved, but it is more for the rotator cuff than an individual head of the deltoid.
Ah thank you for the clarification, I thought this was an old post an no one would respond