Floor T Raise

How to do it

1. Lie face down with your legs extended and comfortably apart.
2. Rest your forehead on a thin folded towel so that your neck remains neutral.
3. Extend both arms directly out to the sides to form a T shape.
4. Keep your elbows straight but not forcefully locked, with your thumbs pointing upward.
5. Lightly brace your abdomen and keep your lower ribs, pelvis and legs supported.
6. Reach outward through your fingertips and gently draw your shoulder blades toward the spine.
7. Lift both arms a small distance from the floor without lifting your chest or head.
8. Pause briefly at the top while keeping the shoulders away from the ears.
9. Lower the arms slowly and allow the shoulder blades to return to their resting position.

Form cues

• Think, “reach wide, then lift.”
• Lead the movement with the shoulder blades rather than the hands.
• Keep the forehead supported and the back of the neck long.
• Lift only a few centimetres; additional height is unnecessary if the shoulders begin to shrug.
• Keep the elbows straight and thumbs facing upward throughout the movement.
• Do not arch the lower back, lift the chest or kick the legs upward.
• Begin without weights. Add resistance only after all repetitions remain controlled.
• Stop for shoulder pinching, neck pain, numbness, tingling or pain travelling down the arm.

Dosage

2 × 10 reps

Muscles worked

Strengthens: middle trapezius, rhomboids, posterior deltoid, rotator cuff

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