Shoulder workout

Today I will talk about a good shoulder and traps workout that I like to do. One important note here that can be said along with lifting in general, is that it is always important to warm up. Shoulder injuries are one common injury that can happen and are not fun. I recently had one and I stopped lifting for 5 weeks to rest it because I did not want to hurt it any more and do serious damage. So once you have warmed up here are some exercises you can do:
First I start with a hang-clean and press. I like to start with this because it is the lift that will take the most energy out of you and if I tried to do this at the end of my workout, I doubt I would have enough energy to finish the sets in good form. For this lift start with the bar starting around knee level instead of on the floor (hanging with your hands in an over grip on the bar). Then you raise the bar up to your shoulders and then press it up above your head. If you need more instruction here is a video link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEkvekUYO5Q (the first lift is just a hang-clean and the second one adds the press).
Hang-clean and press:
Do 1 warm up set with just the bar to get the movement and warm up the muscles.
Do 2 sets with 8 reps
Do 2 sets with 6 reps

The second lift is a dumbbell overhead press sitting down. Having a spotter here is a good idea because you will most likely be a little tired from the previous lift. Again do 2 sets with 8 reps and 2 sets with 6 reps. Keep in mind how much weight you use each week and try to keep increasing little by little so your muscles do not get used to the weight and you stop seeing gains.

Ending the workout can be done many ways. You can do front lateral raises and side lateral with dumbbells. You can also use machines to do the front and side lateral raises. One thing to focus on when performing these two lifts is control the movements and not just swinging your arms up. Make sure you control the weight all the way up and all the way down to get the most out of the exercise.

To finish the workout for the day end with shoulder shrugs to workout your traps. Try and do 4 sets with all of them at 8 reps.