Loop Band Overhead Pull Apart
The Loop Band Overhead Pull Apart is a corrective shoulder exercise designed to strengthen the upper back and rear deltoids while improving overhead mobility. By pulling a resistance band apart from an overhead position, it helps counteract poor posture and enhances scapular stability.
This exercise is excellent for shoulder health, and AI coaching maximizes its benefits by monitoring your recovery status from heavy pushing days to prevent overuse. If you report shoulder impingement or pain, the system can instantly suggest pain-free alternatives like standard band pull-aparts or wall slides. Additionally, by tracking RPE and volume, the app ensures you are using this movement for quality activation rather than fatiguing the rotator cuff excessively before heavier lifts.
Form Cues
- Keep your rib cage tucked down and core engaged throughout.
- Maintain a slight bend in your elbows, locking them in place.
- Squeeze your shoulder blades down and together as you pull.
- Control the band slowly on the way back up.
- Think about pulling your hands wide apart, not just down.
- Don't arch your lower back to help pull the band.
- Don't shrug your shoulders up toward your ears.
- Don't let the band snap your arms back to the starting position.
- Don't bend your elbows excessively to fake range of motion.
Common Mistakes
- Flaring the rib cage
- Shrugging the upper traps
- Using a band that is too heavy
- Rushing the eccentric phase
- Bending elbows to compensate
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily targets the posterior deltoids and the scapular retractors, specifically the rhomboids and lower trapezius. It is highly effective for engaging the rotator cuff and upper back muscles that are often neglected, helping to stabilize the shoulder joint during overhead movements.
Primary
Secondary
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