how to do lateral raise

Do you know how to do lateral raise?

I know that you work on your legs, chest, or your abdomen for abs but without the proper development of your shoulder, everything will go to waste so it’s necessary to give time to every part of your body.

Lateral raise or also known as side raise is one of the most important shoulder-strengthening exercises. It mainly focuses on the deltoid muscle ( medial head ).

This exercise will help you to get a stronger and broader shoulder.

We will also talk about some variations of lateral raise

Name	Description of action	Body area	Muscle involved
Lateral shoulder raise	Shoulder abduction	shoulders	Medial deltoid
Front shoulder raise	Shoulder flexion	shoulders	Anterior deltoid
Bent-over shoulder raise	Shoulder transverse (horizontal) abduction	shoulders	Posterior deltoid

Lateral shoulder raise

Equipment needed – dumbbells

Targets – deltoid muscle ( mainly anterior and lateral head )

Set by step instructions

Starting position

• Grasp the dumbbell of equal weight with a closed grip.
• Follow the preparatory body position and lifting rules to lift the dumbbell off the ground.
• Stand straight and place your feet hip-width apart with the knees slightly flexed, torso erect, and shoulder-held back with your eyes focused straight ahead.
• Move your dumbbells in front of your thigh with the palms facing each other.
• Flex your elbow slightly.
• All repetitions will start from this position.

Upward movement

• Begin your exercise by straight raising your arms to the side.
• No movement shoulder occur at your elbow
• Movement should only occur at your shoulder.
• Keep your wrist stiff and elbows locked in a slightly flexed position.
• Don’t shrug your shoulder or hyperextend your spine, rise up on your toes, extend the knees to help raise the dumbbell/
• Continue side raising your arm until it becomes parallel to the ground or approximately to the level of your shoulder.

Downward movement

• Start lowering your arm in a controlled manner.
• Do not let the dumbbell give a jerk to arms
• Keep your wrist stiff and your elbow slightly flexed.
• Continue to lower your hands until it comes back to their starting position.
• Do not let the dumbbells bump on the thigh to get a bounce-back for the next repetition.

Common mistakes

• Picking up heavyweights
• Using the exercise momentum to swing the dumbbell
• Shrugging your shoulders or using trapezius muscle to complete the exercise
• Bumping the dumbbell on the lateral thigh while lowering the dumbbell to get a bounce-back for the next repetition.
• Extending your elbow
• Poor posture – dropping the head forward

Other variations

Front shoulder raise

Starting position

• Grasp the dumbbell of equal weights with a closed grip.
• Pick up the dumbbell by following preparatory body position and lifting rules.
• Place your feet shoulder-width apart, knees flexed, shoulder-held back, and looking straight ahead.
• Move your dumbbell to the front of your thigh with the palms facing the thigh.
• Slightly flex your elbow 
• All repetition will start from this position.

Upward movement

•  Begin the exercise by start raising the dumbbell in front of your body.
• No movement should occur at your elbow, movement should only occur at your shoulder.
• Do the exercise with the alternate raising of the arm
• the non-exercising arm should remain stationary.
• Keep your wrist stiff and your elbow slightly flexed.
• Maintain your stationary body position; don’t hyperextend your spine, shrug your shoulder, extend your knees or rise up on your toes to help raise the dumbbell.
• Continue raising your dumbbell until your arm becomes parallel to the ground.

Downward movement

• Start lowering your dumbbell in a controlled manner
• Keep your wrist stiff and elbow flexed.
• Continue to lower the arm until it reaches its starting position.
• Don’t give a jerk to the arm while lowering your dumbbell.
• The non-exercising arm should remain stationary until the other arm reaches its initial position.

Bent-over shoulder raise

Starting position

• Grasp the dumbbell of equal weight with a closed grip.
• Follow the preparatory body position and lifting rules
• Stand with the feet placed hip-width apart and the knees slightly flexed.
• Flex your torso forward to slightly above parallel to the floor and maintain the same knee flexed position.
• Pull your shoulder back and push your chest out, and slightly extend your neck so that your whole back looks flat or slightly concave back position.
• Allow the dumbbells to hang with the full elbow extension and the arms parallel to each other.
• Slightly flex the elbow and elbow pointing out to the sides.
• All the repetition will start from this position.

Upward movement

• Begin your exercise by raising the dumbbell up and out to the sides.
• No movement should occur at the elbow, movement should only occur at the shoulder.
• Keep the wrist stiff and your elbow locked in a slightly flexed position.
• Maintain the flat back, stationary torso, and flexed knee position.
• Continue to raise the dumbbell until the upper arm becomes approximately parallel to the ground.

Downward movement

• Lower the dumbbell slowly and in a controlled manner.
• Keep your wrist stiff and elbow flexed.
• Maintain your stationary body position.
• Continue to lower the dumbbell until they return to their hanging starting position.

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