Trap - Shoulder Shrug
The Shoulder Shrug works on the upper back (trap) muscles and also works the Shoulder muscles.
Place the desired amount of weight on the barbell. Hold the barbell in front of your body with an overhand grip with your arms extended downward. Squeeze your shoulders towards your ears to lift the barbell. Hold for a moment, flex the traps hard, lower slowly and repeat. Exhale as you raise the barbell.
Shoulder Shrugs can be performed with a barbell, dumbbell, or various bench press machines.
Shoulder Shrugs can also be done in front of the body or behind the body.
With Shoulder Shrugs you can go heavy so don't be afraid to add extra plates. Some variations of the shoulder shrug tell you to roll your shoulders back as you did these, but it really doesn't add anything to the effectiveness of the movement.