If you’re doing a lot of presses and lateral raises on your shoulders, it’s likely that one muscle group is falling behind the rest unknowingly: the back delts. A lot of prospective lifters develop the front and side of their shoulder girdle, and forget the back side of the shoulder girdle is another area that must be dedicated to and developed.
The posterior (rear) delt is about one-third of the shoulder muscle mass and is the predominant role to extend the arm backwards and move it outwards horizontally, as well as to assist the rotator cuff in external rotation and to stabilize the shoulder during pulling and pushing activities in daily life.
Poor shoulder mechanics and increased reliance on compensating muscles have been associated with weak rear delts, and building up those muscles can help to mitigate the rounded-forward posture that can be found after sitting at a desk for extended periods. Here are 7 rear delt exercises that you can incorporate into your fitness routine when you are at the gym or at home — a combination of dumbbell, cable, machine and bodyweight exercises.
What Are the Rear Delts and Why They’re Worth Training
The rear delts are almost 100% a “pull” muscle, so this translates to rowing and horizontal pulling exercises rather than pressing exercises. That’s one of the reasons it is easy to forget to do them: most popular shoulder moves focus on the front and lateral delts (overhead press, lateral raise).
Elbows falling off, pushing the ball, and avoiding the back of the net have real implications. The aesthetic difference between well-trained front shoulders and a flat back is not the only disadvantage of poorly developed rear delts, as they also account for a less stable shoulder joint: They are responsible for keeping the arm in place during lateral raises, prevent unwanted arm rotation during bench press and support the shoulder during pull-ups and rows. One of the more effective correctives for the “hunched” look that can result from sitting in front of a computer is targeted back delt training. Strong, powerful delts on the back help to stabilize the upper arm and prevent the shoulder blades from slumping forwards while the rhomboids and traps take care of them.
Face Pulls: The Best Rear Delt Exercise for Shoulders
Face pulls are one of the most effective exercises to train the rear deltoids, due to the fact that the cable or band is pulled towards the face, which is a movement plane where very few exercises exist.
How to do it:
- Attach a rope to a cable machine set just above head height.
- Grip both ends with palms facing down (or use a supinated, palms-up grip for even more external rotation at the end range).
- Step back until your arms are extended, feet shoulder-width apart, core braced.
- Pull the rope toward your forehead, letting your elbows flare out and up, aiming the handles toward your ears.
- Pause, squeeze your shoulder blades, then slowly return to the start.
A half kneel or half kneel with a staggered stance relieves the lower back pressure while at the same time training the back delts properly.
Rear Delt Exercises With Dumbbells: Reverse Fly and Single-Arm Row
| Dumbbell Reverse Fly | Single-Arm Dumbbell Row | |
| Type | Isolation | Compound (unilateral) |
| Equipment | Light-to-medium dumbbells | One moderate-to-heavy dumbbell, bench |
| Muscles worked | Rear delts, rhomboids, mid-traps | Rear delts, lats, biceps, core |
| Reps/sets | 10–12 reps, 2–3 sets | 10–12 reps per side, 2–3 sets |
Dumbbell reverse fly-how to do it:
- Hold a pair of dumbbells with palms facing each other, feet shoulder-width apart.
- Hinge at the hips with a slight knee bend until your torso is close to parallel with the floor, elbows soft.
- Raise your arms out and slightly back until they’re roughly parallel to the floor.
- Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top, then lower with control.
- Keep the load light — the rear delts are a small muscle, and going too heavy lets the traps take over.
Single-arm dumbbell row-how to do it:
- Place one knee and hand on a bench, back flat, spine neutral.
- Hold the dumbbell in the opposite hand, arm hanging straight down.
- Pull your elbow up and back until your upper arm is roughly level with your torso.
- Squeeze your shoulder blade at the top, then lower with control.
- Keep your trunk stable rather than rotating into the pull — the unilateral setup helps correct left-right imbalances.
Bent-Over Barbell Row for Rear Delt Strength
It’s a compound exercise, engaging multiple muscles simultaneously (lats, traps and rhomboids, and help from the rear delts), with core stability and grip strength that transfer to other exercises.
How to do it:
- Set up as if starting a deadlift: feet shoulder-width apart, mid-foot under the bar, back flat, chest up.
- Stand fully upright holding the bar.
- Hinge forward at the hips, pushing your hips back and bending your knees slightly, until your torso is at roughly a 45-to-60-degree angle and the bar is near your knees.
- Row the bar up toward your lower chest or upper abdomen, driving your elbows slightly outward and back to better engage the posterior deltoid.
- Lower with control and repeat.
When your upper traps start to dominate the row instead of your mid-back and rear delts, ensure that your torso doesn’t become too vertical (a row too high will become more of a shrug); but be sure that your torso is not too far forward, as that can also cause this problem.
Rear Delt Machine: An Isolated Rear Delt Exercise at the Gym
There are a number of gyms that have a dedicated reverse pec-deck (or “rear delt machine”) and the machine version of the rear delt fly is a good option, as research has shown that the machine version is more effective at increasing the activation of the rear delt muscle than the free-weight version [N/A].
How to do it:
- Sit facing the pad, as though sitting backward in a chair, and adjust the seat so the handles sit at shoulder height [N/A].
- Take the handles with a neutral grip (thumbs pointing backward), arms outstretched but with elbows soft [N/A].
- Pull the handles back until your upper arms are roughly in line with your shoulders, focusing on pushing your hands out to the side walls rather than squeezing your shoulder blades together [N/A].
- Pause, then slowly return to the start, stopping just short of the weight stack to keep tension on the muscle before repeating [N/A].
This is an isolation move so lighter loads for more reps (approx. 10-15) may be best — maintain contact with the pad with the chest, not arch the back to create momentum [N/A].
Rear Delt Exercises at Home: Band Pull-Apart and Side-Lying External Rotation
Trying to train the back delts with a full gym setup is not necessary — these two exercises can be done with a resistance band or with just a single light dumbbell.
Band pull-apart:
Grip a resistance band with both hands, arms straight, in front of you at shoulder level. With the band between your hands, pull arms out in the direction of the band, rather than leaning elbows in too much. Wait 2 seconds or so and then get back to the starting position under control.
Side-lying external rotation:
This exercise will target the rotator cuff muscles (infraspinatus, teres minor) and also actively involve the back delt as an assistant stabilizer muscle. While lying on your side with a light dumbbell, upper arm to your body with elbow at 90 degrees. Rotate forearm up as if door hinge (upper arm is fixed to the side), and hold for 1 second, then lower arm down under control for 10–12 reps. Do not twist your body; the torso should not move, it should only rotate at the shoulders.
How to Program These Rear Delt Exercises for Best Results
The best way to effectively train the posterior deltoid is to use a combination of compound exercises that develop pulling strength (wide-grip row) and isolation exercises that focus on the back of the delt for growth (reverse fly or face pull). Training the rear delts at least twice a week is recommended in resistance-training research to produce visible results and changing exercises from one workout to the next can help prevent “the plateau effect” on any single or two exercises.
You don’t have to fit all of the seven exercises into one workout. One good strategy is to select 2-3 exercises, such as face pulls and a dumbbell reverse fly on one day, and wide-grip row and band pull-apart on another, and rotate that into your regular pull or shoulder routine. Just with any new exercise, you’re going to begin at a lighter weight and a wide path of motion, as the rear delts are a small muscle group that will fat out easily if the load is too heavy, and can cause the dominant muscles of the mid-back to take over.
Conclusion
The rear delts may be small, but skipping them leaves your shoulders unbalanced and your posture worse off. Whether you’re working with dumbbells at home, hitting the cable station, or using a gym machine, the seven exercises above give you enough variety to build stronger, more stable, better-looking shoulders-just stay consistent and keep the form tight.
Training rear delts at least twice a week is a commonly recommended frequency in resistance-training research for building noticeable size and strength over time.
Yes- band pull-aparts and side-lying external rotations need only a resistance band or one light dumbbell, making them practical, effective options without gym equipment.
There’s no one “best” move- face pulls, reverse flys, and rows each hit the rear delts differently, so combining compound and isolation exercises works best.
Rear delts are a small muscle group that fatigues quickly and often gets overtaken by the traps, so lighter loads with strict form work better than heavy weight.
Yes-strong rear delts help pull the shoulder blades back and down, directly counteracting the rounded-forward posture caused by long hours of sitting or desk work.
