Supraspinatus
Supraspinatus
Pronunciation: soo-pra-spy-NAY-tus
For beginners
One of the four rotator cuff muscles. It helps begin lifting your arm to the side and holds the ball of the shoulder snugly in its socket.
Show the advanced explanation
Part of the rotator cuff, it compresses the humeral head into the glenoid to resist the upward pull of the deltoid during abduction. Its tendon is a very common site of impingement and tears.
Structure & function
- Location
- A deep muscle on top of the shoulder blade, above its spine.
- Origin
- Supraspinous fossa of the scapula.
- Insertion
- Greater tubercle of the humerus.
- Main action(s)
- Initiates abduction of the arm (the first ~15 degrees) and stabilizes the humeral head.
- Joint(s) crossed
- Glenohumeral joint
- Movement plane
- frontal
- Innervation
- Suprascapular nerve (C5–C6)
- In daily movement
- Helps start lifting the arm out to the side and keeps the shoulder centered.
- In exercise
- Stabilizer in most pressing and lifting; assists the deltoid at the start of abduction.
- Commonly confused with
- Confused with the deltoid (which is superficial) — the supraspinatus lies deep to the trapezius and deltoid.
- Common misconceptions
- The rotator cuff is about control and stability, not just producing big movements.
Exercises that use this muscle
As a secondary / stabilizer
- Dumbbell Lateral Raise (secondary)
- Dumbbell Overhead Press (stabilizer)
⚠ Safety note
Rotator cuff pain, catching, or weakness overhead warrants professional assessment; do not train through sharp shoulder pain.
Sources
“The supraspinatus is one of four rotator cuff muscles that stabilize the shoulder joint; it assists abduction of the arm.”
Anatomy and Physiology 2e — OpenStax, Rice University · Ch. 11.5 Muscles of the Pectoral Girdle and Upper Limbs
Peer-reviewed textbook · License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 · Last checked 2026-07-19
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