Question: I have a question about upright rows. I’m thinking of adding them to my routine, but which is better…doing them with a barbell or dumbbells?
Ralph F. / Tallahassee, FL
Answer: Upright rows are certainly a great exercise for stimulating the upper traps and medial delts, but they are fairly “risky” in that a high percentage of people end up with shoulder problems (i.e. impingement, inflammation) as a result.
Doing upright rows with dumbbells, however, is quite a bit safer because the movement is not as fixed and allows for a more free or natural ROM.
My recommendation is to do what I do – occasionally do dumbbell (DB) upright rows if (and only if) they do not hurt your shoulders at all, but for longevity purposes do not do barbell upright rows at all. The cost to benefit ratio of barbell upright rows is simply too high.
Here’s to safe and effective training!
Dr Clay
Would high face pulls with a rope from a seated row machine have the same negative shoulder effects?