Banded Single-Arm Shoulder Dislocate
Working one arm at a time on shoulder dislocates lets your tighter side move through its own range instead of being masked by the stronger arm. Holding a band in one hand, you sweep the arm from in front of your body up and over to behind you, giving the chest and front of the shoulder a big opening stretch. It is a great overhead-prep drill and a way to even out side-to-side restrictions.
- Equipment
- Band
- Body part
- Shoulder
- Type
- Functional, Stretching
- Browse by muscle
- Deltoid Anterior
- Browse by movement
- Mobility Drill
- Target
- Deltoid Anterior
- Secondary
- Pectoralis Major Clavicular
- Tertiary
- Infraspinatus
How to do it
- 1
Hold one end of a band in your working hand with the other end anchored or held at your opposite hip.
- 2
Start with the working arm down and slightly in front of your body, arm straight.
- 3
Keeping the elbow long, sweep the arm up overhead and back behind you in a wide arc.
- 4
Let the band stretch as your arm reaches the back position, opening the chest and shoulder.
- 5
Reverse the arc smoothly to bring the arm back to the front.
- 6
Complete your reps, then switch arms.
Tips
- Keep the arm as straight as your range allows for a true dislocate pattern.
- Hold the band further from the anchor or use a lighter band if the shoulder feels pinched at the top.
- Move slowly and stay within a pain-free arc, especially behind the body.
Variations
Common mistakes
- The working elbow bends as the arm sweeps toward the back position, turning the movement into a shrug-and-reach instead of a true one-armed dislocate.
- Anchoring the free end too low forces the band to pull the arm across the body at an angle instead of straight up and over.
- The shoulder shrugs up toward the ear at the top of the arc, which is the shoulder cheating for range instead of the joint actually opening.
- Once the arm gets behind the body, pushing past the first pinch instead of backing off there defeats the point of training one side at a time.
Frequently asked
- How many reps of the banded single-arm shoulder dislocate should you do when you are new to the exercise?
- Work two to three sets of six to eight slow reps per arm, doing the tighter side first so you can match the looser side to it rather than the other way around. Progress by holding the band slightly closer to the anchor, not by rushing the tempo.
- What can you do instead of the banded single-arm shoulder dislocate without a band?
- Loop a towel or a doubled jump rope around a post for the anchor, or simply sweep the empty arm through the same overhead arc to rehearse the range without resistance. A very light dumbbell held loosely can add a touch of load once the pattern feels smooth and pain-free.
- What is the banded single-arm shoulder dislocate good for, and who should be cautious?
- It targets one shoulder at a time, useful when one side is noticeably tighter than the other from pressing or throwing. Avoid pushing the range if you have shoulder instability or a history of dislocation on the working side; train the tight side gently rather than chasing symmetry fast.
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