Lying Around The World
Lying Around The World Exercise Description
Lying Around the World is a prone, bodyweight shoulder and upper‑back movement performed with a smooth, circular arm path. It primarily targets the mid and lower trapezius, rhomboids, posterior deltoids, and the rotator‑cuff external rotators while the trunk holds a neutral spine. Keeping the ribs down and shoulders away from the ears emphasizes scapular retraction and depression as the shoulders move from overhead flexion, through abduction, into extension. The hands hover just off the floor to build end‑range control without loading the neck or lower back. Performed in a comfortable, pain‑free range, it reinforces coordinated scapulohumeral rhythm and precise shoulder control using only body weight.
- Muscle Groups: Back, Delts, Rotator Cuff, Shoulders, Traps
- Target Muscles: Deltoid - Posterior, Infraspinatus, Teres Minor, Trapezius - Lower Fibers, Trapezius - Middle Fibers
- Assisting Muscles: Rhomboid Major, Rhomboid Minor
- Stabilizing Muscles: Iliocostalis, Longissimus, Multifidus, Rectus Abdominis, Transversus Abdominis
- Body Area: Upper Body
- Body Parts: Back, Mid Back, Shoulders
- Body Surface: Back
- Body Symmetry: Bilateral
- Equipment: Bodyweight
- Exercise Patterns: Other
- Exercise Type: Strength
- Functional Grouping: Rotator Cuff Stabilizers, Scapular Depressors, Scapular Retractors, Shoulder Extensors, Shoulder External Rotators
- Joint Involvement: Multi-joint
- Muscle Location: Lower Traps, Mid Traps, Rear Rotator Cuff, Rear Shoulder
- Movement Direction: Other
- Muscle Position: Posterior
- Gender: Male
How To Do The Lying Around The World Exercise
‘- Lie prone on a mat with forehead down, chin gently tucked, legs long, and core lightly braced to keep a neutral spine.
– Reach arms overhead in a wide “Y,” elbows straight but not locked, thumbs pointing up; hover hands just off the floor.
– Set shoulders: draw shoulder blades down and together; avoid shrugging toward the ears.
– Sweep arms outward to a “T,” then continue toward the hips into an “I,” keeping hands hovering.
– As hands pass your sides, rotate palms so thumbs turn toward the floor and palms face outward/back.
– Reach hands toward hips while maintaining scapular depression/retraction; keep neck long and gaze down.
– Reverse the path back to the overhead “Y,” rotating to thumbs‑up as you return.
– Keep ribs down; avoid lifting the chest or arching the lower back.
– Move slowly and smoothly through a comfortable, pain‑free range.
– If you feel shoulder pinching, reduce the range and focus on maintaining scapular control.
Lying Around The World Tips
‘- Gently tuck your chin and keep your forehead on the mat to maintain a neutral neck.
– Lightly brace your core and keep ribs down so the spine stays neutral without lifting the chest.
– Start with arms in a wide “Y,” elbows straight but not locked, and thumbs pointing up.
– Hover your hands just off the floor and keep them hovering through the entire Y‑T‑I arm path.
– Draw your shoulder blades down and together at the start and avoid shrugging toward your ears.
– Sweep your arms smoothly from overhead “Y,” out to “T,” then down toward your hips into an “I.”
– As your hands pass your sides, rotate so thumbs turn toward the floor and palms face outward/back.
– Keep your neck long with your gaze down while you reach your hands toward your hips.
– Reverse the same path back to the overhead “Y,” rotating back to thumbs‑up as you return.
– Move slowly and smoothly through a comfortable, pain‑free range, reducing range if you feel shoulder pinching.
Lying Around The World Beginner Introduction
Lying Around the World is a face‑down, bodyweight drill for the shoulders and upper back, built around a wide, circular sweep of the arms. The movement places special emphasis on the traps, the muscles between the shoulder blades, the rear shoulders, and the back side of the shoulder cuff. Throughout the exercise, the torso stays long and steady with a calm ribcage, while the neck remains relaxed and the shoulders glide down away from the jaw. This lets the shoulder blades slide inward and downward as the arms travel from overhead, out to the sides, and then toward the hips.
The hands float slightly above the mat throughout the circle, which challenges control and stability at the far edges of shoulder motion without adding extra load to the neck or lower back. The slow, continuous path encourages smooth teamwork between the upper‑arm bone and the shoulder blade, reinforcing fine-tuned positioning and tension around the joint using only body weight.