10 Best Lever Shrug Alternatives for Gym and Home Training

If you can’t do the Lever Shrug, use barbell or dumbbell shrugs, banded shrugs, handstand shrugs, or farmer carries to load the upper traps. Cue: keep arms straight, pull the shoulders straight up toward the ears emphasizing scapular elevation, and avoid neck extension. These options preserve trap activation and progressive overload.

Original Exercise: Lever Shrug

Lever Shrug
Primary Muscle
Traps
Equipment
Lever
Difficulty
Beginner
Type
Isolation
Secondary Muscles: Shoulders
How to Perform Lever Shrug
  1. Adjust the seat height and position yourself on the leverage machine with your back against the pad.
  2. Grasp the handles with an overhand grip and keep your arms straight.
  3. Keeping your back straight, lift your shoulders up towards your ears as high as possible.
  4. Hold the contraction for a moment, then slowly lower your shoulders back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Ranked Lever Shrug Alternatives

Best Match
Lever Gripless Shrug V. 2

1. Lever Gripless Shrug V. 2

95.4% Match
Traps Lever Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Adjust the seat height and position yourself on the machine with your back against the pad.
  2. Grasp the handles or bars with an overhand grip, keeping your arms straight.
  3. Keeping your back straight, lift your shoulders up towards your ears as high as possible.
  4. Hold the contraction for a moment, then slowly lower your shoulders back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Cable Shrugs

2. Cable Shrugs

89.4% Match
Traps Cable Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Grasp a cable bar attachment that is attached to a low pulley with a shoulder width or slightly wider overhand (palms facing down) grip.
  2. Stand erect close to the pulley with your arms extended in front of you holding the bar. This will be your starting position.
  3. Lift the bar by elevating the shoulders as high as possible as you exhale. Hold the contraction at the top for a second. Tip: The arms should remain extended at all times. Refrain from using the biceps to help lift the bar. Only the shoulders should be moving up and down.
  4. Lower the bar back to the original position.
  5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Band Shrug

3. Band Shrug

83.9% Match
Traps Band Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and place the band under your feet, holding the ends with your hands.
  2. Keep your arms straight and relaxed, and let the band hang in front of your thighs.
  3. Engage your traps by shrugging your shoulders upward, lifting the band as high as possible.
  4. Hold the contraction for a moment, then slowly lower your shoulders back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Leverage Shrug

4. Leverage Shrug

79.2% Match
Traps Machine Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Load the pins to an appropriate weight. Position yourself directly between the handles.
  2. Grasp the top handles with a comfortable grip, and then lower your hips as you take a breath. Look forward with your head and keep your chest up.
  3. Drive through the floor with your heels, extending your hips and knees as you rise to a standing position. Keep your arms straight throughout the movement, finishing with your shoulders back. This will be your starting position.
  4. Raise the weight by shrugging the shoulders towards your ears, moving straight up and down.
  5. Pause at the top of the motion, and then return the weight to the starting position.
Calf-Machine Shoulder Shrug

5. Calf-Machine Shoulder Shrug

78.9% Match
Traps Machine Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Position yourself on the calf machine so that the shoulder pads are above your shoulders. Your torso should be straight with the arms extended normally by your side. This will be your starting position.
  2. Raise your shoulders up towards your ears as you exhale and hold the contraction for a full second.
  3. Slowly return to the starting position as you inhale.
  4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Smith Back Shrug

6. Smith Back Shrug

75.4% Match
Traps Smith-machine Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent.
  2. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Keep your arms straight and allow the barbell to hang in front of your thighs.
  4. Lift your shoulders straight up towards your ears, squeezing your traps at the top.
  5. Hold for a moment, then lower your shoulders back down to the starting position.
Smith Shrug

7. Smith Shrug

75.2% Match
Traps Smith-machine Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent.
  2. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Keep your arms straight and your shoulders relaxed.
  4. Lift your shoulders up towards your ears, squeezing your traps at the top.
  5. Hold for a moment, then slowly lower your shoulders back down to the starting position.
Middle Back Shrug

8. Middle Back Shrug

68.9% Match
Trapezius Dumbbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie facedown on an incline bench while holding a dumbbell in each hand. Your arms should be fully extended hanging down and pointing towards the floor. The palms of your hands should be facing each other. This will be your starting position.
  2. As you exhale, squeeze your shoulder blades together and hold the contraction for a full second. Tip: This movement is just like the reverse action of a hug, or trying to perform rear laterals as if you had no arms.
  3. As you inhale go back to the starting position.
  4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Smith Upright Row

9. Smith Upright Row

68.1% Match
Delts Smith-machine Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, facing the smith machine.
  2. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Keep your back straight and your core engaged.
  4. Pull the barbell up towards your chin, leading with your elbows.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
Smith Machine Behind The Back Shrug

10. Smith Machine Behind The Back Shrug

63.7% Match
Traps Machine Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. With the bar at thigh level, load an appropriate weight.
  2. Stand with the bar behind you, taking a shoulder-width, pronated grip on the bar and unhook the weight. You should be standing up straight with your head and chest up and your arms extended. This will be your starting position.
  3. Initiate the movement by shrugging your shoulders straight up. Do not flex the arms or wrist during the movement.
  4. After a brief pause return the weight to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions before engaging the hooks to rack the weight.

Why You Might Need a Lever Shrug Alternative

You may substitute the Lever Shrug for lack of a lever machine, shoulder pain, unilateral training needs, or to vary loading patterns. For example, dumbbell shrugs allow a neutral grip to reduce impingement, cue: hold weights at your sides and elevate the scapula without rotating the shoulders. Handstand shrugs let you load upper traps with bodyweight by shrugging at the top of a wall-supported handstand, emphasizing cervico-thoracic stabilization. Bands provide constant tension and a different tension curve, which shifts trap activation through the range. Choosing an alternative can protect joints while maintaining targeted scapular-elevation mechanics.

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Prioritize equipment availability, pain history, and the specific trap fibers you want to target. If you need heavy bilateral loading, pick barbell shrugs, stand feet hip-width, brace your core, and drive scapulae straight up for maximal upper-trap recruitment. For unilateral control and reduced spine loading, use single-arm dumbbell shrugs with a neutral grip and a controlled eccentric to engage mid-traps. Use farmer carries to combine trap isometric work with scapular stabilization; cue: hold loaded dumbbells at your sides and keep scapulae slightly retracted. For shoulder irritations, select banded shrugs or lighter, higher-rep sets to manage joint stress while preserving trap biomechanics.

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles does Lever Shrug work?

The Lever Shrug primarily targets the upper trapezius, with secondary activation of the levator scapulae and, to a lesser extent, the middle traps and rhomboids. Biomechanically it produces scapular elevation, cue: drive the shoulder girdle straight up without excessive neck extension to isolate upper-trap fibers.

What is the best bodyweight alternative to Lever Shrug?

Handstand shrugs are the best pure bodyweight alternative for upper-trap loading: kick to a wall-supported handstand, keep arms locked, and perform small shoulder-elevation reps to stress the upper traps. As a regression, practice pike shrugs or scapular pull-ups (hang with straight arms and depress/retract the scapulae) to build requisite scapular control.

Can I build muscle without doing Lever Shrug?

Yes, you can build trap mass using barbell or dumbbell shrugs, rack/rack pulls, farmer carries, and targeted band work while applying progressive overload. Focus on consistent loading, full scapular-elevation reps with a controlled eccentric, and varying grips and tempos to maximize trap activation and hypertrophy.

More Exercise Alternatives

Find Alternatives for Any Exercise

Use the exercise substitution finder to compare ranked alternatives for your available equipment and training preference.

Try the Exercise Substitution Finder →