Collarbone workouts not only help sharpen your clavicle but also improves your shoulder muscle strength.
A collarbone is a horizontal bone right above the first rib that comprises the front part of your shoulder. It connects the sternum, which is your breastbone, with the scapula, which is a triangular bone in the back of the shoulder.
You might define it with the name ‘clavicle’. The function of the clavicle is to allow free movement of the shoulder away from the body. It also protects the heat from external trauma. Moreover, it is the only bone in the body that lies horizontally.
The collarbone is quite prone to damage and is the most commonly fractured bone in the body. However, with certain workout routines, you can keep your collarbone safe as well as get well-defined collarbones to flex.
Thus, looking into the mirror, if you have ever wondered ‘how can I make my collarbones more defined’? Well, here are a few exercises to help you keep your clavicle safe, and build it sharper and more defined.
The Simpler, At-Home Collarbone Workouts
Workouts vary in intensity and ability to impact your health and fitness. When you embark on a journey to strengthen and sharpen your collarbones, you might want to start with these simple, at-home exercises.
1. Healthy Weight Loss
One of the major collarbone workouts is healthy weight loss. Invisible collarbones are mainly associated with neck fat, and when you lose neck fat, your clavicle is more visible.
Thus, you can engage in workout sessions that help you shed some calories in the right place. Healthy weight loss is not all about diet. It is about how consistently and at what rate you burn calories. Losing weight too fast can be injurious to your overall health, thus refrain from delving into exercises that burn calories faster. Instead, opt for workout routines that help you gradually lose weight.
Here are some easy at-home workouts and routines that you can do for healthy weight loss;
- Eat healthily
Make sure that you are taking care of your daily eating habits. Instead of going for easy, home-delivery foods, take time out to plan your meals and cook for yourself. You’d rather know what ingredients are in your food than fall prey to health issues.
- Engage in regular physical activity
Now we all know that being a couch potato is very intimidating and comforting. However, it kills your strength and makes you even lazier. Thus, make sure that you engage in regular physical activity to remain energetic throughout the day as well as in the long haul. Instead of sitting in front of the TV with junk food, go out, get some groceries, and get cooking.
- Behavior Change
Most of what we do depends on the behaviors that we have developed over time. It may be difficult, but if you build a better perspective around your health, you increase your chances of living a healthy life. A study published by the National Institute of Health suggests that overcoming barriers such as the inability to remain consistent in a workout can help foster better results.
Thus, healthy weight loss is not only beneficial for you to build a sharper clavicle, but also improve your overall health.
2. Shoulder Shrug
All you have to do here is to shrug your shoulders up and down at a nice pace. Pick up a pace that appeals the best to you, and shrug your shoulders up and down. Plan out how many times or for how long you would keep doing this. Keep your hands on your waist while you do so.
For example, you can shrug your shoulders up and down for 45 seconds and then take a rest of 15 seconds before you move on to the next workout.
3. Chest Fly
This is an easy exercise that you do even while sitting up in your bed. Make a 90-degree angle with your elbows pointing out in every rep. Move your elbows to the side and back, while you open up your chest and squeeze your shoulder blades together.
Repeat the reps for 45 seconds and rest for 15 seconds before the next collarbone workout.
4. Triangle Fly
This collarbone workout can be done very easily at home. Keep your hands on your head, open your elbows to the side and back. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and push your chest out.
Repeat the triangle fly reps for 45 seconds and rest for 15 seconds.
5. Head Tilt
Simply place your hand on the opposite side of your head and tilt your head to one side gently. If you are tilting your head to the right, place your right hand on the left side of your head, and repeat for the other side.
You will feel a stretch on the opposite side of your neck down to your collarbone. You can do this collarbone workout for 45 seconds. Repeat for one side for 22 seconds and switch. Rest for 15 seconds before the next workout.
6. Arm Circle
Put your hands on your shoulders and rotate your arms in a circle in the forward direction. Repeat for 22 seconds and switch to rotating your arms backward. Keep rotating your arms for 45 seconds, 22 seconds for each direction, backward and forward.
7. Back Stretch
Balance your body with the help of your knees and thighs on the ground. Lace your fingers together behind your back and for each repetition, pull your hands to the back while you squeeze your shoulder blades together. Open your chest up while you do so.
Keep repeating for 45 seconds.
You can form a workout circuit of the above collarbone workouts that you can do at home. Go on for 45 seconds each with 15 seconds of rest in between.
The Workouts That Will Require Equipment
While working to improve your collarbone strength and shape definition, you also need to focus on the rest of your body. Where consistency is the key, it does not mean that you should just remain focused on one point of your body.
The following workouts will not only hone your clavicle but also improve your body’s overall health and toning. However, you will require some equipment for this.
8. Arnold Press
This is an intense workout that requires arm and muscle strength. It works your shoulder muscles – the posterior, lateral, and anterior deltoids.
To do an Arnold Press, the most important part is adopting the proper form. Thus you may require expert assistance for this, oh, and dumbbells.
- First, stand with your feet under your shoulders with a soft bend in your knees.
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms bent.
- Make sure that your palms are facing you (closed palms, fists… we don’t want you to drop the dumbbell onto your feet).
- Spread your arms to each side laterally
- Push a bit further up and twist your hands so that your palms face forward (away from your face)
- Push as high as you can further up
You can start easy and make it more challenging as you improve your form.
Do a set of 10 to 12 reps or four sets, with 30 seconds of rest in between.
9. Seated Shoulder Press
Well, the first thing you need for a seated shoulder press is a…yes, you are right… A chair, followed by a pair of dumbbells.
- Sit on a chair with your back touching the chair, so that your back is straight
- Hold the dumbbells
- Lift the dumbbells up, making sure that your upper arm is aligned with your shoulder blade
- Your lower arm should make a 90-degree angle with your upper arm
- Lift both arms straight up above your head
- Bring your arms back to the starting position
You can start by doing 10 reps and 3 sets, with 30 seconds of rest in between each.
10. Lateral Raises
Lateral raises are one of the simplest collarbone workouts. All you have to do is
- Pick a dumbbell in each hand
- Inhale ( it is very important to breathe)
- Exhale and lift both hands sidewards so that your hands form a straight line with your shoulders
- Hold the position for a second
- Inhale and drop your hands.
You can go for 10 reps and 4 sets, with 30 seconds of rest. However, you can make your lateral raises more challenging as you fix your form.
The Bottom Line
These collarbone workouts are bound to improve your clavicle, as well as your overall health. Remember that remaining fixated on a single part of your body does no good to the rest of your body. Thus, make sure that you focus on your body as a whole and improve your health and fitness.
Make sure that you take care of your internal health as much as you are concerned about your external, physical health. When you take care of your body with good food and nutrition, you automatically build your physical, external health.
Moreover, make sure you take care of a few more things as you workout;
- Keeping yourself hydrated
- Eating healthy
- Keeping track of your progress
- Maintaining a workout-to-rest ratio
Happy healthy y’all.
Also, read 10 Effective Health and Fitness Tips – Business Tells