Four-time Mr. Olympia Jay Cutler built one of the thickest physiques in bodybuilding history—and when it comes to building bigger traps, he’s not about to reinvent the wheel.
In a new video, Cutler shared his favorite exercise for upper-back thickness: dumbbell shrugs.
Whether it’s with a barbell, dumbbells, or even behind-the-back variations, shrugs have always had a place in his training. But, he prefers dumbbell shrugs above them all.
“It’s a little more individual, almost isolateral,” he says about using dumbbells over other options.
Unlike a barbell, dumbbells allow your arms to move naturally, reducing strain on the wrists and elbows.
“I’ve seen people do one side at a time. That was sometimes my technique, but most of the time it was just straight arm, dumbbells in front of the body, straight up and down,” he said.
“Remember not to roll the shoulders because it’s bad on your shoulder joints,” Cutler adds.
Rolling your shoulders during shrugs shifts tension away from the traps and toward your joints, which is not only ineffective, but also risky.
Instead, he emphasizes driving the shoulders straight up, keeping the arms long and the motion clean. Think vertical, not circular.
“What you really want to build is those rhomboids, the traps, so you get that thickness from the front. Focus on doing enough reps that you’re going to get that nice burn,” he cues for the exercise.
Cutler aims for somewhere between 10 and 12 reps, opting for heavy weights.
“Work your way up in the weight even if you’re pyramiding up,” he says.
Related: Jay Cutler Swears By This Dumbbell Exercise for Building Bigger Shoulders