Traps taking over for delt exercises?

[alec935]

Hey guys,
I've noticed that I can feel my traps quite a bit during rear flys and shoulder press. Shoulder press probably needs the stabilization, but should I really feeling them on a rear delt isolation exercise?

[SuffolkPunch]

Traps raise the scapulae - they can't raise the upper arm however - so although they feel like they are doing a lot, they don't actually take over.

It is definitely hard to separate the two and you probably don't need to - traps need working too. Just work hard on laterals and overhead presses and reverse flys.

One tip that might help is to use an angled cable for laterals - using a DB is not very efficient (force is straight down). Try to lead with the pinky on the way up.

[jk202]

For rear delts,you're just moving the scapula too much. Focus on driving your elbows out towards the walls rather than thinking about pulling back

[air2fakie]

For rear delts,you're just moving the scapula too much. Focus on driving your elbows out towards the walls rather than thinking about pulling back

^This. If you want to engage your traps less and focus on rear delts, think about pulling the weights outwards, rather than back. If you're doing bent over rear delt flyes it's like you're trying to wipe the floor outwards, or if you're doing reverse pec deck or standing reverse cable flyes it's like wiping a wall outwards in front of you. This is easier to do if you lower the weight a little and do higher reps.