Foam Roller Rear Delt Roll
What Is the Foam Roller Rear Delt Roll?
Foam Roller Rear Delt Roll is an isolation exercise that primarily targets the shoulders, using a foam roller to press into the rear deltoid and the small rotator cuff muscles behind the shoulder one side at a time. It is a beginner-level movement that needs no strength base, only the ability to lie turned onto one side and move slowly over the roller.
You lie turned partway onto one side with the roller across your body under the back of that shoulder, your hands behind your head and your top foot planted on the floor. Small shifts of the body move the roller across the back of the shoulder, between the armpit below and the bony tip of the shoulder above. People use it to ease the stiff, heavy feeling at the back of the shoulder that builds up after pressing, rowing, pull-ups and overhead work, and it is a common part of warm-ups and cool-downs for swimmers, throwers, tennis players and lifters.
The back of the shoulder is a small area with several muscles packed together. The rear deltoid covers the back of the joint, while the infraspinatus and teres minor, two of the rotator cuff muscles, sit just inside it on the outer part of the shoulder blade. How far you turn decides which one takes the pressure: turning your chest a little toward the ceiling moves it inward onto the shoulder blade, and turning further onto your side moves it outward onto the rear deltoid and the back of the upper arm. The top foot controls how much of your weight rests on the roller.
Like other foam rolling, the looser feeling it gives lasts a short while and it builds no strength, so it works best alongside rear shoulder work such as the Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly and Cable Standing Face Pull, and next to a stretch such as the Cross-Body Shoulder Stretch. If lying on the shoulder is too much pressure, the Foam Roller Lying Upper Back Rotation reaches the back of the shoulder more gently from a position flat on your back, and the Foam Roller Front Delt Roll works the front of the same joint.
Muscles Worked
- Deltoid
- Primary
- Infraspinatus
- High
- Teres Minor
- High
- Teres Major
- Medium
- Rhomboid Major
- Minimal
- Upper Trapezius
- Minimal
Instructions
- Place a foam roller on the floor and lie down so it runs across your body, under the back of one shoulder.
- Turn partway onto that side so the back of the shoulder rests on the roller, just behind and below the bony tip of the shoulder, with your chest angled toward the ceiling.
- Place both hands behind your head to support its weight, elbows pointing up.
- Keep your bottom leg straight on the floor, bend your top knee and plant your top foot on the floor in front of your bottom leg.
- Press and ease through your top foot to shift your body a few inches at a time, moving the roller slowly across the back of the shoulder.
- Turn your chest a little toward the ceiling to move the pressure onto the shoulder blade, and a little further onto your side to bring it onto the back of the upper arm.
- Keep the roller above the armpit and off the tip of the shoulder throughout.
- When you find a tender spot, pause on it for 20 to 30 seconds and breathe while the shoulder stays relaxed.
- Continue for the set time, then roll onto your back and repeat on the other side.
Common Mistakes
Rolling into the armpit
Letting the roller drift down into the armpit presses on the nerves and blood vessels that run to the arm, so keep it on the muscle just above.
Rolling onto the tip of the shoulder
Turning too far onto your side puts the bony tip of the shoulder on the roller, so stay just behind and below it on the rear deltoid.
Lying flat on your back
With your back square on the roller the pressure lands on the shoulder blade and upper back, so turn partway onto your side to bring the back of the shoulder onto it.
Too much weight at once
Dropping your full weight onto the shoulder makes the muscles tense up, so start with your top foot taking some of the load and add pressure gradually.
Rolling too fast
Quick back-and-forth passes skim over a small area, so move slowly and pause where you find a tender spot.
Letting the head hang
Holding the head up or letting it drop strains the neck, so rest its weight in your hands without pulling on it.
Injuries
Foam Roller Rear Delt Roll is a low risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The two spots to stay away from sit on either side of the target. Below it is the armpit, where the nerves and blood vessels that supply the arm run close to the surface, so pressing the roller into it can cause tingling, numbness or a dead-arm feeling. Above it is the bony tip of the shoulder, where there is little muscle to cushion the joint. Lying on one shoulder can also pinch the front of the joint in people with irritable shoulders, and letting the head drop strains the neck.
Keep the roller on the muscle at the back of the shoulder, just behind and below the tip of the shoulder and above the armpit, and let your hands hold the weight of your head. Move slowly with a firm pressure you can breathe through, and use your top foot to take weight off the roller whenever the pressure is too much. If the front of the shoulder pinches, turn a little more onto your back until the pinch goes away.
To make it easier, take more weight through your top foot, use a softer roller, or start with the Foam Roller Lying Upper Back Rotation, where the hips stay on the floor and the pressure comes on gradually. To make it harder, turn further onto the shoulder so more of your weight rests on it, or use a firmer roller.
Stop if you feel sharp pain, or numbness, tingling or burning that runs down the arm, which points to a nerve rather than a tight muscle, and move the roller before trying again. Do not roll over a recent shoulder injury, dislocation, bruise or swelling until a clinician has cleared you. People who take blood thinners, have osteoporosis or a clotting disorder, or have had recent shoulder, chest or breast surgery or lymph node removal should check with a healthcare provider before rolling.
- Primary Focus
- Shoulders
- Equipment
- Foam roller
- Modality
- Stretching
- Difficulty
- Beginner
Alternative Exercises
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: How is this different from the Foam Roller Lying Upper Back Rotation?
In the Foam Roller Lying Upper Back Rotation you lie flat on your back and turn your trunk, so the pressure sweeps from between the shoulder blades out to the back of each shoulder. Here you stay turned onto one side the whole time, which keeps more of your weight on the back of that shoulder and lets you work it more precisely.
- Q: How long should I roll the back of my shoulder?
About 30 to 90 seconds of slow movement on each side is enough for one round, with a pause of 20 to 30 seconds on any tender spot. One or two rounds before or after training covers most needs.
- Q: Is it supposed to hurt?
Expect firm pressure and some tenderness, since the back of the shoulder is often more sensitive than people expect, but never sharp pain. Numbness or tingling down the arm means the roller is too close to the armpit, so move it or stop.
- Q: Should I use a ball instead of a foam roller?
A massage or lacrosse ball is smaller and firmer, so it can reach the rotator cuff muscles on the shoulder blade more precisely, but it also presses harder. The roller spreads the pressure over a wider area and is the easier place to start.
- Q: Will rolling fix tight shoulders?
Not on its own. The looser feeling after rolling lasts a short while, so pair it with a stretch such as the Cross-Body Shoulder Stretch and regular rear shoulder work like the Cable Standing Face Pull.