Do you want to reduce your gym time, but still make awesome shoulder gains?
One of the most common issues that college students like yourself have is finding the time to get a good workout in.
Now, with some decent programming, you should be able to hit it and quit it in under an hour at each session.
But…you can shave off another 10-15 minutes with the help of a superset or two.
And if you’re trying to build some nice boulder shoulders, this shoulder superset workout list might be just what the doctor ordered.
What the Hell are Supersets?
Supersets are a string of 2 or more sets of different exercises performed one after the other with virtually no rest in between.
So you do a set of one exercise, you take only as much time as needed to get the weight ready for the next exercise, and then you do the next exercise.
Supersets can have as few as 2 exercises and as many as 4 depending on your goals.
And this raises a question…
Why Should You Do Supersets?
Since you’re essentially just eliminating rest times and smashing two or more exercises together in quick succession, what are the benefits of doing them?
Well, the main benefit is you get so save time in the gym so you can spend it on something more important like studying, sleeping, or swiping Tinder.
Decreasing those rest times allows you to put more stress on the muscles (or sometimes multiple muscle groups) in a shorter amount of time.
This gives you the ability to introduce some more exercise variety into your routine and work towards a more balanced physique.
(Supersetting is typically a “bodybuilder” thing.)
Now, many reputable muscle-building programs like Power Body – The Ultimate Muscle Maker will have shorter workouts already to make sure you get in and out of the gym fast, but supersetting can be that extra tool you keep in your back pocket.
The General Rules of Supersets
Now, with supersets there are a few guidelines (or rules) that should be acknowledged when going through them.
Let’s talk about them…
Do Them on Accessory/Isolation Lifts For Best Results
Since supersets are programmed to perform 2 or more exercises sequentially with no rest, it’s best to only do this with accessory/isolation lifts.
Accessory/isolation lifts that only work a limited number of muscles at a time do not require significant rest times to recovery from one set to another.
For example, if you do a set of bicep curls, you don’t need to wait 3-5 minutes to get ready for another set of curls.
(Your body will be ready in as little as 30 seconds).
Alternatively, you shouldn’t be trying to superset barbell squats with bench press or anything like that.
Those compound movements NEED 3-5 minutes of rest time for optimal recovery between sets.
Trying to cut those rest times short would actually be very dangerous and you can expect fewer muscle gains (tragic).
Combine No More than 3 Exercises Together
Once you catch on to the idea of supersetting exercises together, you might get excited at the idea of stringing an entire hour long workout together and cutting it down to 20 minutes!
Don’t do that.
Again, this comes down to recovery and balancing what your body can handle to still properly stimulate your muscles.
Putting 2 exercises together appears to the be “sweet spot” for a superset.
3 exercises is the limit.
I’ve seen supersets with 4 exercises and I don’t agree with that.
Keep Rest Times Between Exercises and Cycles Short
Try to limit the rest times between each superset cycle to 60-120 seconds.
If you’ve been performing those exercises with more rest time, your body will need a workout or two to transition for this adjustment.
…but all in all you should be ready to hit your next round after only a minute of rest.
If that’s not the case, you need to reconsider the exercises you picked for your superset.
Work in the 8-12 Rep Range
This is a pretty general rule, but 8-12 reps is the hypertrophy range of weightlifting (size).
If you were to perform reps in the 1-6 range, you would need to produce more effort and require more rest…
…so that would be a terrible suggestion for a shoulder superset workout.
Working in the 8-12 rep range gives you more flexibility in terms of rest and recovery, plus you’re not in any danger to perform the movements with absolute perfect form.
(Even though that should be your goal at all times…bitch.)
How to Warm-Up Your Shoulders
I’ll be honest… I don’t always warm up my shoulders and it’s simply because my shoulders have always been quite healthy.
Now, I really should though and you should too.
Rotator cuffs are one of the most common areas of the body to damage because guys put too much stress or perform wacky movements that put the shoulder into awkward positions.
And really, it only takes a couple minutes at most to do a few movements and see that your shoulders are ready to handle some weight.
Here’s what I suggest…
Perform Some Rotational Movements with Light Weight
You’re actually going to want to rotate your shoulder with some light weight (2.5-5 lbs at the most) in various motions.
Here are some examples:
- Stand with your arms in a hammer curl starting position and rotate at the shoulder smooth and controlled.
- Stand with your arms in the shoulder press starting position and rotate the shoulder down and up slow and controlled.
(You can get some ideas from this video, but you don’t have to do the full mobility routine.)
Can You Put Two Exercises Together from Different Muscle Groups?
Sure you can!
As long as you follow the rules I stated earlier, you can put bicep curls with side delt raises, Bulgarian split squats with front raises, or some other combination you think up.
You’ll find in this shoulder superset workout list that not only are there some standard ones, but there’s also a leg and shoulder superset workout and a back and shoulder superset too.
Target those lagging muscle groups, find a couple exercises that you can string together, and then get to it.
(Note: I created a Shredded Student Checklist if you’re ready to start getting lean and shredded while you go to school.)
10 Shoulder Superset Workout List
Even though these are supersets, your goal is still to perform each exercise with good form and at a reasonable tempo.
Don’t cheat through these exercises and use momentum to swing the weights around.
Tighten your abs, focus your mind, and allow your body to actually feel the contractions as you go through each movement.
Just because there’s no rest between them doesn’t mean that you get sloppy.
Let’s get to it…
1. Front Raises + Arnold Press
For the first shoulder superset workout we have a combination of front raises and Arnold presses as recommended by Men’s Health.
These are pretty standard movements that are really going to hit the front and sides of the delts and give a nice round look.
They suggest doing 3-4 supersets with 12 reps on the front raises and 8 reps on the Arnold presses.
- Front raises – 12 reps
- Arnold press – 8 reps
2. Behind the Neck Smith Machine Shoulder Press + Seated Front Raises + Standing Side Raises
Now I’ll tell you what… in most cases I think the smith machine is a piece of garbage.
It’s marketed as this “safer” alternative to the power rack which is bullshit.
The only thing the smith machine does is puts the bar on a track and thus removes the need to use a lot of accessory muscles to perform lifts.
(That means fewer gains.)
However…
For guys that want to perform a “behind the neck” version of the shoulder press (typically a dangerous exercise) this is the ONLY way I would encourage someone to do so.
That’s my rant and I’m sticking to it.
Alpha M then sequences the behind the neck shoulder press with seated front raises and standing side lateral raises.
Do 4 supersets with 10-12 reps for each exercise.
- Behind the next smith machine shoulder press – 10-12 reps
- Seated front raises – 10-12 reps
- Standing side raises – 10-12 reps
3. Dumbbell “L” Raise + Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Now I’m a pretty big fan of Athlean X and his training principles because he has a reputation for training some incredible athletes and celebrities in all styles of fitness.
…and that’s why this unique boulder shoulder workout combining a dumbbell “l” raise along with a dumbbell shoulder press is here.
What I really like about the dumbbell “l” raise is you’re actually working your side and front delts in a single exercise.
The tradeoff is your side delts can typically handle a heavier load than the front delts and so you might actually be slowing down the growth in those muscle fibers.
Do 3-4 supersets using 10-12 reps per exercise.
- Dumbbell “l” raise – 10-12 reps
- Dumbbell shoulder press – 10-12 reps
4. Face Pulls + Barbell Shrugs
I wanted to include this great shoulder superset workout that I found over on Fitness and Power that involves face pulls and barbell shrugs.
What I like about this one is it’s working two parts of the shoulder area that typically get neglected which are the rear delts and the traps.
Personally, my traps suck, but I’m OK with that.
However, if you really want to have a balanced appearance in your shoulders, you can include a little trap work like the shrugs to make a nice transition from the delts to your neck.
Perform 4 supersets of 8-12 reps.
- Face pulls – 8-12 reps
- Barbell shrugs – 8-12 reps
5. Cable Front Raises + Weight Plate “Bus Drivers”
In this video by Adam Ratkovic, you get a number of great exercises, but the one I’m focusing in on one shoulder superset workout that uses cable front raises and weight plate “bus drivers”.
Now, the “bus drivers” (funny name) are going to give you more time under tension so don’t be surprised if they really burn after the 2nd superset.
Just make sure you don’t use too heavy of a weight so you don’t actually stress the shoulder joint instead of working the muscles.
I’m not sure if he mentions how many rounds he does, but you can do 2-3 rounds of this superset with 8-10 reps per exercise.
- Cable front raises – 8-10 reps
- Steering wheel things – 8-10 reps
Tip: Since cables allow for a slightly smoother eccentric movement, go ahead and do this a little slower and more controlled to make sure you actually feel it.
(Note: This is a 6-month muscle-building course I recommend to anyone who’s looking for the right first step to becoming big. Targeted workouts, full meal plan, video tutorials, and tons of gains.)
6. Side Lateral Raises + Front Dumbbell Raises
This superset comes from the article, A Warrior’s Shoulders Program, written by Animal and what you have is a more conventional combination.
For this one, you’ll simply put the side lateral raises with the front raises and hit the most prominent parts of the delts for a more 3D look.
I’ve done this before and you’ll really get your shoulders burning quickly.
Do 3 supersets of 10-12 reps on each exercise.
- Side lateral raises – 10-12 reps
- Front db raises – 10-12 reps
7. Arnold Press + Upright Bench Dumbbell Flyes
Aspiring bodybuilder, Alan Armstrong puts together a nice shoulder superset workout using the Arnold press and upright bench dumbbell flyes.
If you keep the weight low, I’d do the dumbbell flyes otherwise I’d actually substitute the dumbbell flies for side lateral raises with elbows bent.
Do 3 supersets with 10 reps on each exercise.
- Arnold press – 10
- Upright bench dumbbell flyes – 10
8. Dumbbell Shrugs + Bulgarian Split Squats
If you’re looking for a leg and shoulder superset workout you can put dumbbell shrugs and bulgarian split squats together.
The bulgarian split squats are a nice accessory to barbell squats if you’re looking to build up your quads and hamstrings a little more.
Do 2-4 supersets with 8-12 reps on the shrugs and 6-12 reps on the bulgarian split squats.
- Dumbbell shrugs – 8 – 12 reps
- Bulgarian split squats – 6 – 12 reps
Note: You can handle more weight on shrugs so if you decide to use the same weight on both exercises, don’t be surprised if you can only get 6 reps on each leg of the bulgarian split squats.
9. T-Bar Rows – Side Lateral Raises
This back and shoulder superset is brought to you by Tim Murphy Training Systems and it involves t-bar rows and side lateral raises.
The t-bar row is going to give you that nice horizontal row movement to really work the upper back (could be substituted with cable or pendlay rows) and the side lateral raises are going to work almost the same muscles plus the side delts.
So this is a pretty good pairing. Go ahead and do 3-4 rounds with 8-12 reps on each exercise.
- T-Bar Rows – 8-12 reps
- Lateral Raises – 8-12 reps
Note: Don’t perform the exercises like the woman does in the video. This puts unnecessary stress on the elbow joint and limits the overall weight you can do.
10. Standing Alternating Dumbbell Bicep Curls + Side Lateral Raises
This last superset is another example of how you can pair two different muscle groups together and still see time-savings and growth benefits.
For this one, we’re doing standing alternating bicep curls (one arm at a time) and side lateral raises.
(Including biceps makes it one of the best shoulder supersets you can make it… *wink*)
You could probably use the same amount of weight for both exercises, but depending on your genetics, either your biceps or delts will be able to up the load at a faster rate.
- Alternating DB bicep curls – 8 – 10 reps
- Side lateral raises – 8 – 10 reps
Do 2-4 supersets and perform each exercise for 8-10 reps back-to-back.
Note: Do the side lateral raises in the curled position for even more bicep activation
Which Shoulder Superset Workout Do You Like?
What do you think about this shoulder superset workout list and which one do you think YOU’LL try first?
Leave a comment below and tell me how you plan to work supersets into your workouts.
Train smart and hard, bro!