Wall Slides
Ribs down, forearms stay on the wall. Wall slides restore overhead range before you load it, sliding the arms up a wall while the wrists and elbows keep contact. Let the ribs flare to gain height and the range you gained is not real. It is a control drill, so keep it slow and short and use it before pressing rather than instead of it.
Setup
- Back against a wall, feet a few inches out, forearms and hands on the wall.
- Ribs down, lower back flat against the wall.
How To Do It
- Slide the arms up the wall, keeping contact with the wrists and elbows.
- Go only as high as you can hold the ribs down.
- Slide back down, pulling the elbows toward the back pockets.
Breathing
Exhale on the way up.
Common Mistakes
- Letting the ribs flare to gain range, when that range is fake.
- Losing wall contact with the wrists.
Programming It
Two to three sets of 8-12, slowly, with the ribs down.
Why This Exercise Works
The wall gives instant feedback about a cheat you cannot feel: arching the lower back to gain shoulder range. If the ribs lift off, the range was borrowed. It looks like nothing and it exposes more shoulder restriction than any test you can do standing free.
Where You Should Feel It
The upper back and shoulders working to keep contact with the wall. It should feel like effort in the mid-back, not a stretch in the shoulders. Lower back leaving the wall means you have gone higher than your range allows.
Where It Fits in a Program
Restores overhead range before you load it. A five-minute fix for pressing. Use it before training, between sets, or on its own day. It need not be earned.
Progressing and Regressing It
To progress the wall slides: slide higher only while the lower back stays flat on the wall. To regress it: reduce the range to where the wall contact holds.
Who It's For
Anyone with rounded shoulders from pressing or desk work. It is a mobility and control drill, so slow and short beats fast and high.
Equipment and Substitutions
As written here it uses a wall. This needs no kit at all, which makes it the one that survives travel, busy gyms and bad weeks.
Related Exercises
- Band Lateral Raise · Shoulders
- Kettlebell Halo · Shoulders, Upper Back
- Battle Ropes · Shoulders, Core, Conditioning
- Overhead Carry · Shoulders, Core, Upper Back
- Pike Push-Up · Shoulders, Triceps
- Heavy Dumbbell Shrug · Traps
- Dumbbell Shrug · Traps
- Machine Shoulder Press · Shoulders, Triceps
Common Questions
What muscles does the wall slides work?
The wall slides primarily trains the shoulders, upper back.
How many sets and reps should I do?
Two to three sets of 8-12, slowly, with the ribs down.
What are the most common wall slides mistakes?
Most often: letting the ribs flare to gain range, when that range is fake; losing wall contact with the wrists.
Do I need a wall to do this?
This version uses a wall, and it trains the shoulders, upper back. No equipment needed. When bodyweight stops being a challenge, change the leverage rather than reaching for a dumbbell.
Is this safe if I have an existing injury?
The wall slides loads the knee, hip and lower back together, which means a problem in any one of them can surface here. If a rep reproduces the pain you already have, stop the set and get it looked at. Not medical advice.