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Exercise guide

Dumbbell Shrug

How to do the Dumbbell Shrug with correct form, the muscles it works, and where it fits a training plan you actually stick to.

IsolationDumbbellBeginnerPull
Primary muscles

Traps

Secondary

Equipment

Dumbbell

Step by step

How to do the Dumbbell Shrug

  1. 1

    Stand erect with a dumbbell on each hand (palms facing your torso), arms extended on the sides.

  2. 2

    Lift the dumbbells by elevating the shoulders as high as possible while you exhale. Hold the contraction at the top for a second. Tip: The arms should remain extended at all times. Refrain from using the biceps to help lift the dumbbells. Only the shoulders should be moving up and down.

  3. 3

    Lower the dumbbells back to the original position.

  4. 4

    Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

In Ascend

Log it, see it on your body.

Every Dumbbell Shrug set you log feeds Ascend's anatomy heatmap — so your traps volume is visible at a glance — and counts toward your bodyweight-strength tier.

Related

More traps exercises

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