Lateral Dumbbell Raise: Guide to Form and Key Benefits

Shoulders that look strong from every angle don’t happen by accident. Getting the desired « V » shape requires focused training and consistency.

If your routine is heavy on pushing movements, chances are your front delts are well developed while your lateral delts are lagging behind. This results in strong shoulders that don’t yet have a naturally rounded look.

Dumbbell lateral raises solve this problem by isolating your lateral deltoids, creating the width and definition that pressing cannot provide. Follow this guide to master perfect form, avoid common mistakes, and learn different variations of the dumbbell lateral raise.

What is a dumbbell lateral raise?

The lateral dumbbell raise is an isolation exercise designed to strengthen and shape the lateral deltoids – the middle part of the shoulder muscles. While compound movements like overhead presses stress your shoulders as part of a larger movement, lateral raises do zero in on this particular area.

This focused approach makes it ideal for building shoulder width and creating a « V » shape. It’s the lateral deltoids, more than any other part of your shoulder, that give you a broad, athletic look when viewed from the front or back.

As an aside, strong lateral deltoids also play a big role in shoulder stability and injury prevention. When you strengthen the sides of your shoulders, you create better balance throughout the joint. This is especially important if you often train with pressing movements. Doing lateral raises will help fill in the gaps in your shoulder development, leading to better deadlift performance and fewer imbalances that can cause shoulder problems down the road.

What muscles are engaged during lateral raises?

While the lateral raise is an isolation exercise that primarily targets your lateral deltoids, your body never works just one muscle in complete isolation. Lateral lifts also include:

• Lateral deltoids – It’s the middle part of your shoulder that does most of the work, lifting the weight to one side and controlling the descent.

• Anterior and posterior deltoids – Your front and rear deltoids help to a lesser extent when you pull the weights away from your body.

• Trapezius muscles – Your overhead grips stabilize the shoulder blades throughout, especially at the top of each rep.

• Forearms – Gripping the dumbbells throughout the set challenges your forearm endurance, especially when fatigue sets in during higher rep ranges.

How do you do a lateral raise correctly?

Dumbbell lateral raises may look simple, but there is an art to doing it right. In fact, practicing proper form will help you build strength safely and see results faster.

Here’s how to do a dumbbell lateral raise correctly to improve your upper body balance, shoulder stability, and posture while sculpting eye-catching shoulders.

1. Start in a standing position

Stand upright with a dumbbell in each hand. Let the weights hang at your sides with your palms facing in toward your hips. Next, tuck your feet under your hips and bend your knees slightly, then brace your core. Finally, pull your shoulders up, back and down, away from your ears.

2. Increase the weights

Exhale, then raise both dumbbells out to the sides, bringing your arms away from your body until the dumbbells reach shoulder height.

3. Pause at the top

Once the dumbbells reach shoulder height, hold them there for just one push. This short pause helps you really feel the contraction of the lateral delts.

4. Lower slowly

Inhale and slowly lower the dumbbells back to their starting position at the sides. Control the descent by taking 2-3 seconds to bring the dumbbells back to your hips.

Most importantly, try to maintain a smooth, steady movement – without using momentum or rocking – and keep your shoulders relaxed to avoid neck strain.

Dumbbell Lateral Raise Tips for Beginners

If you’re new to lateral raises, these tips will help you master the movement in no time:

• Start easy – Even if you’re used to lifting, start with lighter weights and more reps for lateral raises. It might surprise you how challenging it can feel to isolate those side delts, even with light weights.

• Slow down – Slowing down can lead to better muscle activation. Try lifting for 2 seconds and lowering for 3-4 seconds to force your muscle to work harder and reduce the temptation to use momentum as a crutch.

• Practice in front of the mirror – Stand in front of a mirror so you can observe your shape. This will help you catch issues like lifting unevenly, hunching your shoulders, or letting your elbows drift forward or backward.

Mistakes to Avoid During Dumbbell Lateral Raises

Recognizing these mistakes can help you avoid injury and maximize your effort:

• Lifting too high – Once your arms are raised above parallel to the floor, your shoulder joint takes over and your lateral delts release. Stop at shoulder level, and if you can’t get there without lifting higher, use lighter dumbbells.

• Shrug – When your shoulders rise toward your ears, you are no longer performing a lateral delt exercise. Before each rep, drop your shoulders down and back, and if they’re still creeping up, lower the weight.

• Swinging the weights – It’s easy to generate momentum with your hips or back to lift the weights. However, if you need momentum to lift the weight, it is too heavy.

• Excessive bending of the elbows – The angle of your elbows should remain constant. If your elbows bend more as you lift, you’re unconsciously trying to make the exercise easier.

• Leaning too far back or forward – Keep your back straight. If you’re twisting, bending, or shifting your weight from foot to foot instead of looking ahead, you’ve lost control of the movement.

To correct most of these mistakes, you’ll need to do one of two things: Choose lighter weights or slow down. Lifting heavier weights with poor form can defeat the purpose of the exercise at best and lead to injury at worst.

How Effective Are Dumbbell Lateral Raises?

If your goal is to develop wider, more defined shoulders, lateral raises are one of your best tools.

This is because the lateral raise targets the muscles that create shoulder width. While compound presses engage your lateral delts, they don’t isolate the muscles the way lateral raises do. This isolation is what allows specific muscles to develop in that area.

In fact, studies using electromyography have shown that lateral raises lead to high levels of lateral deltoid engagement. So when you’re looking to build a specific muscle, exercises that isolate and maximize activation in that muscle tend to produce the best results.

Lateral raises also affect your overall shoulder health. Strengthening your lateral deltoids helps balance the heavy front development most people get from benching and overhead pressing. If your shoulders are more balanced, this means improved posture and a lower risk of injury.

Finally, this exercise is incredibly affordable. You don’t need any fancy equipment or years of training; all you need is a pair of dumbbells and yourself. Anyone can learn a proper lateral raise and start seeing the benefits within weeks of practice.

Dumbbell Lateral Raise vs. Other Shoulder Exercises

Although lateral raises are essential for building defined shoulders, they work best as one part of a complete shoulder program. Compare these exercises to the dumbbell lateral raise to see where they fit into your routine.

Dumbbell lateral raise versus overhead press

Overhead presses are compound movements that work your deltoids, triceps, and even your core. Lateral raises, meanwhile, isolate your lateral delts and have been shown to be more effective at targeting lateral delt development.

You need both overhead presses and lateral raises for a complete shoulder development plan, as each exercise targets different muscles.

Lateral Dumbbell Raise vs. Upright Row

Upright rows work your lateral delts, but they also heavily engage your traps and require internal shoulder rotation, which some people find uncomfortable. Lateral raises keep your shoulder in a more natural position while placing a more isolated focus on the lateral delts.

Upright rows feel great for some people, but if they bother your shoulders, side raises offer similar benefits with less stress on the joints.

Lateral Dumbbell Raise vs. Arnold Press

Arnold presses combine an overhead press with a rotation, hitting all three heads of your deltoids in one movement. They are effective but complicated. On the other hand, lateral raises are simpler and easier to learn, but only target the lateral head.

Use Arnold presses when you want to work everything at once, and lateral raises when you want to focus on the lateral delts.

What are the other variations of the lateral raise?

Once you get comfortable with the side raise, you can try these variations to spice up your workout and add a new challenge to your routine:

• Seated Lateral Dumbbell Raise – Sitting eliminates any opportunity to use momentum from the legs or hips, resulting in tighter form and more intense muscle activation. Basically, this variation forces your shoulders to do all the work.

• Lateral cable lifts – Cables provide constant tension throughout the movement, unlike dumbbells where the tension drops off at the bottom. This continuous resistance leads to greater muscle stimulation and growth.

• One arm lateral raise – Train one side at a time to fully focus on your form. This variation also helps you identify and correct strength imbalances between your left and right shoulders.

Build stronger shoulders at Chuze Fitness

You don’t need to load the bar with plates or master complex weightlifting exercises to build impressive shoulders. Although the lateral raise may seem simple, this focused exercise targets exactly what is missing from many shoulder programs.

Need to see the technique in action before you try it? This video demonstration walks you through each step.

At Chuze Fitness, we don’t just give you equipment and wish you luck. Our trainers are invested in your success and our spaces are designed to feel welcoming and accessible. All you have to do is show up ready to work, and we’ll provide everything you need to make that happen.

sources:

StatPearls. Anatomy, shoulder and upper limb, deltoid muscle.

International Journal of Environmental and Public Health Research. Electromyographic analysis of lateral raise and frontal raise variations in competitive bodybuilders.