6 Best Resistance Band Rear Delt Exercises

Building strong, sculpted, and healthy shoulders requires working out all three deltoids (anterior, lateral, and rear delts) efficiently.

We often train the front and lateral parts of the shoulders, but forget the rear delts.

The rear delts are one of the crucial upper body muscles. They originate from the scapula and insert into the humerus, and they are responsible for pulling your shoulder blades together during exercises like rowing and reverse flyes.¹ Sakoma Y, Sano H, Shinozaki N, Itoigawa Y, Yamamoto N, Ozaki T, Itoi E. Anatomical and functional segments of the deltoid muscle. J Anat. 2011 Feb;218(2):185-90. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7580.2010.01325.x. Epub 2010 Nov 30. PMID: 21118198; PMCID: PMC3042752.

Strong rear delts provide stability to your shoulder and minimize the risk of tears and impingement.

You can bolster your posterior delts in various ways, but strengthening them with resistance bands is the best way for people who train at home.

In this article, I’ll share the six best rear delt exercises you can do with resistance bands. These exercises are easy to perform, suitable for all fitness enthusiasts, and help improve strength and mobility in your shoulders.

Best Resistance Band Rear Delt Exercises

1. Rear Delt Fly
2. Pull Apart
3. Face Pull
4. Rear Delt Raise
5. Crossbody Shoulder Raise
6. Rear Delt Kickback

These exercises target the rear delt from different angles and help develop this little but important muscle.

You can incorporate some or all of these exercises in your resistance band workout routine.

1. Resistance Band Rear Delt Fly

The resistance band reverse fly (also known as rear delt raise) is as good as dumbbell reverse flyes when it comes to activating the posterior deltoids.

The banded reverse fly provides constant tension and greater muscle activation than the dumbbell reverse flyes because of elasticity and a more unstable resistance modality.² Bergquist R, Iversen VM, Mork PJ, Fimland MS. Muscle Activity in Upper-Body Single-Joint Resistance Exercises with Elastic Resistance Bands vs. Free Weights. J Hum Kinet. 2018 Mar 23;61:5-13. doi: 10.1515/hukin-2017-0137. PMID: 29599855; PMCID: PMC5873332.

The rear delt raise also came out on top in activating the posterior delts in a study supported by the American Council of Exercise (ACE), making this exercise a super important one for overall shoulder growth.³ Dynamite Delts: ACE Research Identifies Top Shoulder Exercises by Samantha Sweeney, M.S., John P. Porcari, Ph.D., Clayton Camic, Ph.D., Attila Kovacs, Ph.D., and Carl Foster, Ph.D.

Steps to perform the banded rear delt raise:

1. Standing upright with your feet together, grab a resistance band and wrap it around your feet, and lean your torso forward until your chest is parallel to the floor.
2. Keep your arms straight below your shoulders with your palms facing each other. This is your starting position.
3. Raise your arms out to your sides until they are parallel to the floor.
4. Pause for a moment and lower your arms to the start.

You can also perform a single-arm rear delt fly with resistance bands to focus on one side of your muscle individually and help correct strength and muscle imbalance.

2. Resistance Band Pull Apart

Pull-apart exercise is a great way to strengthen the posterior deltoid muscles. You can also call it a standing reverse fly. It is suitable for people with back issues as it doesn’t involve bending forward.

It highly activated posterior deltoid muscles compared to the variations and helps achieve a rounded shoulder and improve posture.⁴ Kim TW, An DI, Lee HY, Jeong HY, Kim DH, Sung YH. Effects of elastic band exercise on subjects with rounded shoulder posture and forward head posture. J Phys Ther Sci. 2016;28(6):1733-1737. doi:10.1589/jpts.28.1733, ⁵Franke Rde A, Botton CE, Rodrigues R, Pinto RS, Lima CS. Analysis of anterior, middle, and posterior deltoid activation during single and multijoint exercises. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2015 Jul-Aug;55(7-8):714-21. Epub 2014 Jun 20. PMID: 24947920

The pull-apart has two variations. One involves gripping the band with an overhand grip (palms down), and the other involves grasping the band with a neutral grip (palms facing each other). Both are good and help strengthen the posterior delts efficiently.⁶ Fukunaga T, Fedge C, Tyler T, et al. Band Pull-Apart Exercise: Effects of Movement Direction and Hand Position on Shoulder Muscle Activity. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2022;17(3):400-408. Published 2022 Apr 2. doi:10.26603/001c.33026, ⁷Schoenfeld B, Sonmez RG, Kolber MJ, Contreras B, Harris R, Ozen S. Effect of hand position on EMG activity of the posterior shoulder musculature during a horizontal abduction exercise. J Strength Cond Res. 2013 Oct;27(10):2644-9. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e318281e1e9. PMID: 23302754

Steps to perform band pull-apart:

1. Begin in an upright standing position, grab a resistance band with your hands hip-width apart and palms down.
2. Raise your arms straight and keep them parallel to the floor in front of your chest. That’s the start.
3. Pull the band apart until your arms are completely out.
4. Pause for a moment and bring your arms to the start.

3. Resistance Band Face Pull

The resistance band Face Pull is another decent exercise to hit the rear delt muscles. It involves pulling the band toward your face until your upper back and rear shoulders are engaged.

You can do the Face Pull in two ways. The one requires an attachment so you can hook the band above your face level, and the other needs no anchor (only a band and a place to sit).

Both are effective and stimulate the rear delt regions effectively. Choose the one depending on which is more convenient and effective.

How to perform a banded Face Pull without an anchor:

1. Sit on the bench with your legs extended and heels on the floor, feet hip to shoulder width apart.
2. Wrap the band around your feet, grab it with an overhand grip, and keep your arms straight. This is your starting point.
3. Pull the band toward your face until you feel the full contraction in your posterior delt and traps.
4. Pause for a moment and return your arms to the start.

For the standing face pull: Attach the band to the door at or above face level and pull the band with elbows out.

4. Resistance Band Rear Delt Row

Resistance band row (particularly overhand grip with palms facing the body) is another good exercise for strengthening and developing posterior delts, rhomboids, and trapezius muscles. It involves bending forward and rowing the band with elbows out.

It doesn’t need any additional equipment other than the bands. Here are the steps to do it:

1. Stand straight with your feet flat on the floor and hip-width apart.
2. Wrap the band around your feet and grab the handles with an overhand grip.
3. Slightly bend forward with your back straight and core tight.
4. Keep your arms straight with your palms facing your body. That’s the start.
5. Pull the band toward your sides with your elbows flared out until you feel the contraction in your rear delts.
6. Pause at the top for a moment, then return to the start and complete the desired number of reps.

5. Crossbody Shoulder Raise

The cross-body shoulder raise is another way to reinforce posterior delts. It involves pulling the band all the way from bottom to top until your rear delts are engaged.

It is a unilateral exercise, allowing you to train your delt individually so you can work more on your inferior side and correct muscle imbalance.

Step-by-step instructions for Cross-body shoulder raise:

1. Stand upright with your feet shoulder-width apart and wrap the band around your left foot, and grab the other end in your right hand with an overhand grip.
2. Keep your arm straight in front of your thigh. That’s the start.
3. Pull the band all the way until your arm is straight toward the ceiling, forming a partial Y shape.
4. Pause for a moment and return to the start.
5. Perform more sets or reps on the weaker side if needed.

6. Rear Deltoid Kickback

The rear delt kickback is another exercise you can try for hitting the posterior region of the shoulders. It is good and also helps strengthen your triceps, but not as effective as other rear delt workouts I’ve shared above.

How to do it:

1. Attach the band to the door at a lower point and grab the handles in each hand with your palms inward.
2. Slightly bend at your hips and maintain a neutral spine position.
3. With a soft bend in your elbows, pull the band behind your body until you feel the rear delt complete contraction.
4. Pause for a moment and return to the start.

Try not to bend your elbows when you pull the band, as it can put more stress on your triceps than your delts.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

References

• 1
  Sakoma Y, Sano H, Shinozaki N, Itoigawa Y, Yamamoto N, Ozaki T, Itoi E. Anatomical and functional segments of the deltoid muscle. J Anat. 2011 Feb;218(2):185-90. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7580.2010.01325.x. Epub 2010 Nov 30. PMID: 21118198; PMCID: PMC3042752.
• 2
  Bergquist R, Iversen VM, Mork PJ, Fimland MS. Muscle Activity in Upper-Body Single-Joint Resistance Exercises with Elastic Resistance Bands vs. Free Weights. J Hum Kinet. 2018 Mar 23;61:5-13. doi: 10.1515/hukin-2017-0137. PMID: 29599855; PMCID: PMC5873332.
• 3
  Dynamite Delts: ACE Research Identifies Top Shoulder Exercises by Samantha Sweeney, M.S., John P. Porcari, Ph.D., Clayton Camic, Ph.D., Attila Kovacs, Ph.D., and Carl Foster, Ph.D.
• 4
  Kim TW, An DI, Lee HY, Jeong HY, Kim DH, Sung YH. Effects of elastic band exercise on subjects with rounded shoulder posture and forward head posture. J Phys Ther Sci. 2016;28(6):1733-1737. doi:10.1589/jpts.28.1733
• 5
  Franke Rde A, Botton CE, Rodrigues R, Pinto RS, Lima CS. Analysis of anterior, middle, and posterior deltoid activation during single and multijoint exercises. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2015 Jul-Aug;55(7-8):714-21. Epub 2014 Jun 20. PMID: 24947920
• 6
  Fukunaga T, Fedge C, Tyler T, et al. Band Pull-Apart Exercise: Effects of Movement Direction and Hand Position on Shoulder Muscle Activity. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2022;17(3):400-408. Published 2022 Apr 2. doi:10.26603/001c.33026
• 7
  Schoenfeld B, Sonmez RG, Kolber MJ, Contreras B, Harris R, Ozen S. Effect of hand position on EMG activity of the posterior shoulder musculature during a horizontal abduction exercise. J Strength Cond Res. 2013 Oct;27(10):2644-9. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e318281e1e9. PMID: 23302754