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Lateral shoulder raises are an effective exercise and a staple in everyone’s upper body routines. This exercise targets the very top and center of your deltoids, a.k.a. the shoulder muscles, strengthening and sculpting them.
If you’re looking for broader shoulders, lateral raises should be on your list. This exercise works not just the shoulders but parts of the upper back and traps as well.
How to do lateral shoulder raises
Before we jump into technicalities, let’s take a look at exactly how lateral shoulder raises are performed.
You will need a pair of dumbbells for this exercise. It is recommended to start with a light weight as lifting heavy in this exercise can be quite challenging.
Here's how to do lateral shoulder raises correctly:
- Stand straight with your arms by your sides and a dumbbell in either hand. You may lean forward a little by bending slightly at your hips and knees and a slight bend in your elbows as well. Keep your shoulders tall, and chest pointed outwards.
- Raise your arms up, maintain the straightness in them, and bring the dumbbells up to shoulder level.
- Bring your arms back down to the starting position slowly.
Take a look at this video to better understand how to do the exercise:
Why internally rotating your shoulders while performing side lateral raises is a bad idea
The tension created on your shoulders when you raise your arms is what strengthens it.
Now, imagine performing this exercise with your hands rotated outward (thumbs up) or inward (thumbs down). It shouldn’t make much of a difference, right?
Rotating your arms outward actually proves beneficial when performing lateral shoulder raises. It adds more tension to the deltoids and helps sculpt them further. It also makes it easier to lift weights up to shoulder level.
On the other hand, rotating them inward isn’t the best idea.
Contrary to popular belief that states that rotating your shoulders inwards will target the top of your deltoids, it may cause your muscles to strain or even injure them severely.
This is largely due to the shoulders entering a slouched position as your arms turn inward. This can pull on the wrong fibers of your muscles, leading to an injury that will take a long time to recover from.
Moreover, it will also cause the bones at the top of your arm to rub against the socket of your shoulder joint. This will lead to deterioration of your bones and cause chronic pain and uneasiness during everyday movements.
While the lateral shoulder raise is an essential exercise to add strength and mass to the upper body, it is important to watch your form and do it correctly. Otherwise, you won’t be reaping the benefits of it.
Having said that, there are other exercises that are just as effective at developing the shoulders. Incorporating them into your upper body routine along with chest and tricep exercises can prove to be most beneficial. So practice regularly and stay safe!
