How many reps of shoulder CARs should a beginner do?

Three to five slow circles each direction, per arm, once a day or before pressing work, is enough to call it done. Push closer to a true end range as weeks pass; speed and extra reps are not the goal.

How do I make shoulder CARs easier or harder?

Easier: shrink the circle and stay well inside any pinch or shrug you feel. Harder: slow the tempo further, pause at the hardest quarter of the circle, or move on to the bent-arm or banded version once bodyweight circles feel fully controlled.

What are shoulder CARs good for, and when should you skip them?

They map and maintain usable shoulder range, making them a strong warm-up before overhead or pressing work and a general joint-health habit on their own. They are a poor choice as treatment for acute shoulder pain or a recent injury, since actively circling through a hurt joint is different from guided rehab.

Beginner

Shoulder CARs

CARs are the gold-standard morning or pre-lift drill for owning your shoulder range. You draw the biggest, slowest circle the joint allows while everything else stays locked, which both maps and expands usable mobility. Great before any pressing or overhead session, and a joint-health staple on its own.

Equipment: Body Weight
Body part: Shoulder
Type: Functional, Stretching
Browse by muscle: Deltoid Anterior, Deltoid Middle, Deltoid Posterior

How to do it

1
Stand tall, brace the abs, and pin the working arm at your side with the palm facing your thigh.
2
Reach that arm straight forward and up overhead, leading with the thumb and keeping the ribs down.
3
At the top, rotate the palm to face outward and continue the arm behind you as far as it will travel.
4
Sweep the arm down the back line and return to the start, drawing one continuous slow circle.
5
Move at a crawl, resisting any shrug or trunk lean, then reverse the direction.
6
Complete equal slow reps each way before switching arms.

Tips

Keep the opposite shoulder and the hips perfectly still so all the motion comes from the joint.
If the shoulder shrugs up near the top, shrink the circle until you can keep the trap quiet.
Breathe steadily instead of holding your breath through the sticky ranges.

Variations

Common mistakes

The ribs flare and the low back arches as the arm reaches overhead, borrowing range from the spine instead of the shoulder joint.
Speeding through the circle to fit in more reps defeats the point of a CAR, which is to move as slowly as the joint honestly allows.
The trunk leans or rotates toward the arm during the behind-the-body phase, letting the torso fake range the shoulder has not actually earned.
Stopping the circle the moment it feels awkward, instead of working right up to true end range, leaves the tightest part of the joint untrained.

Frequently asked

How many reps of shoulder CARs should a beginner do?: Three to five slow circles each direction, per arm, once a day or before pressing work, is enough to call it done. Push closer to a true end range as weeks pass; speed and extra reps are not the goal.
How do I make shoulder CARs easier or harder?: Easier: shrink the circle and stay well inside any pinch or shrug you feel. Harder: slow the tempo further, pause at the hardest quarter of the circle, or move on to the bent-arm or banded version once bodyweight circles feel fully controlled.
What are shoulder CARs good for, and when should you skip them?: They map and maintain usable shoulder range, making them a strong warm-up before overhead or pressing work and a general joint-health habit on their own. They are a poor choice as treatment for acute shoulder pain or a recent injury, since actively circling through a hurt joint is different from guided rehab.

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