Single dumbbell side lateral raises

Position for the single side dumbbell lateral raise

1. Place your left arm on a suitable support. I usually use the back of an incline bench. You can use an incline bench or the dumbbell rack.

2. Standing with your legs apart, hold a dumbbell in your right hand. Adopt a comfortable position with your torso bent slightly forward at a 70 degree angle.

Execution of the single side dumbbell lateral raise

1. Raise the dumbbell out to the side, keeping the palm of your hand facing downward. Try and really concentrate on using your shoulder to lift the weight. Remember, your arm should be slightly bent and unlocked.
2. Don’t start this exercise with a thrust. You will use the momentum instead of muscle to raise the weight which you don’t want.

This exercise can also be performed standing, but seated version with your back flat against the back of a chair will help eliminate any cheating on this shoulder exercise. It may mean using less weight, but more emphasis will be placed on your shoulders. Remember that using your body’s momentum to swing the dumbbells up will not work your shoulders properly. This exercise should be used in conjunction with compound movements like the shoulder press to help you develop powerful looking shoulders. It would be very rare to find any successful bodybuilder who has not trained with lateral raises at one time or another.