The serratus anterior is a muscle that plays a vital role in stabilizing the shoulder. Strengthening this muscle can help prevent shoulder injuries, improve posture, and enhance athletic performance. Here are some of the best exercises to target the serratus anterior and improve shoulder blade upward rotation.
Best Serratus Anterior Exercises
We will cover
Serratus Wall Slides
Abduction in the scapular plane
Reverse Bear Crawls
Half Kneeling Landmine press
#1 Serratus Wall slides
The foam roller forces you to push into the wall, creating tension where you need it. As you lift the arms up think of the elbows DRAGGING away from you. You can use a towel or furniture slider if you want to focus on just one arm. You should feel tension in the arm pits.
2-3 sets of 15-20 reps
#2 Shoulder Abduction
Perform this in the scapular plane, not out to the side, to increase scapula upward rotation. The elbows are the key here as well, so think about keeping them AWAY from you to keep tension in the serratus area.
Also use a seductive gaze into the distance, just like the girl in the video.
2-3 sets of 10-15 reps
#3 Reverse Bear Crawl
Hands on the ground is a different way to train, but an easy and full proof way to
load the shoulders
force scap upward rotation
When you crawl backwards, pretend you’re in a tight hallway so you aren’t overusing your lower body and actually PUSHING through the arms.
2 sets of 10-20 yards. This will smoke your lungs more than your shoulders.
#4 Landmine Press
This works similar to the reverse crawl. The half kneeling position will keep tension in the trunk, so you can totally isolate the REACH with the arm. One of my favorite shoulder exercises.
2-3 sets of 6-12 reps.
What is the Serratus Anterior?
The serratus anterior is a muscle that originates on the upper eight or nine ribs and inserts on the inside border of the scapula. Its primary job is to keep the shoulder blade attached to the ribcage, which is necessary for overhead movements of the arm. It is also protracts (forward movement) the scapula.
Summary
Any good rehab program’s goal is to improve the serratus’ ability to upwardly rotate the shoulder, and individual mobility restrictions often limit this. This is a great program that can be done
Here’s a recap of the program:
A1 Serratus wall slide 2 sets of 1:00
B1 Shoulder abduction 2 sets 1:00 ea side
C1 Reverse bear crawl 2-3 sets of 10-20m
D1 1/2 kneeling landmine press 3- 4 sets of 6-8 reps
You can do this as it’s own session 2-3x/week, progressing the weights each week.
The best way to use it is combine it with our Shoulder Rehab 1.0.
Make this Session C (Shoulder Rehab 1.0 has an A & B), then you have probably the best day shoulder strength protocol ever created. Grab 1.0 below: