Bigger shoulders have probably been on your workout wish list since you picked up your first dumbbell in high school. Not only do broad shoulders help you look strong, but a stronger pair of delts can help correct poor posture (and accompanying aches and pains) and improve the stability and mobility of your joints.
To improve your performance we recommend lateral raises: that simple exercise that makes you hold a pair of dumbbells and raise your arms to the sides. The lateral raise targets your lateral or medial delts to create that rounded, sculpted look.
When you do isolation exercises like the side raise , creating and maintaining tension is paramount. If you don't feel the muscle working while doing lateral raises, it probably isn't. One problem could be that your technique is incorrect and another could be that you are using too much weight. Either way, one of the five variations we show you below may be the lateral elevation adjustment you need to take advantage of the benefits of this move.
5 variations of side elevation
Wall press side raise
Simultaneously pressing one hand to the wall while performing a lateral raise with the other arm creates more tension on both shoulders through a process called irradiation. By being against a wall, you are less likely to cheat with your weight, as doing so would feel very uncomfortable.
You will continue to feel tension against the left side, which comes from the need to stabilize while moving the weight, that is normal. When trying this, remember to hold your posture and don't forget to breathe.
Side raise in three ways
Muscle fibers don't just run vertically. They exist at all different angles, so it makes sense to change angles when you lift. You may have seen other people do something similar to this in the gym by slightly rotating their hips while doing lateral raises. Another way to do this is by changing the direction you lift the dumbbells. If you've never tried the lateral raises as shown in the video above, be sure to direct the movement with your elbows, not your hands.
The three-way lateral raise changes the direction of the concentric and eccentric contraction of each repetition. Start out light, as it doesn't take much to feel them.
Landmine Side Raise
The bow movement of this variation targets your side and rear delts, but the cross-body movement also works your abdomen. Start off gently with this movement, and make sure to do it calmly at first. These are tougher than they appear. And again, lead with your elbows.
Side raise with high knees
Getting on your knees prevents you from cheating with the weight with momentum, which increases the tension time of the shoulder muscle. Your core will also work out as it will help you stay upright.
The reduced stability here also gives you instant feedback. Any problem will result in a loss of balance that you will have to correct before continuing, as it will be uncomfortable (not in a good way) if you don't.
Inclined side raise
Performing lateral raises while bent over increases the distance your arm needs to travel to lift the weight, and a longer range of motion means more tension to build muscles. The inclined side raise places more overhead on top of the rep than the normal standing version. These should be done in a slow and controlled manner, since what you want is more time under tension.
How to optimize your lateral elevation?
To reiterate: you must create tension in your muscles to cause growth. Lift the wrong way or carry the weight, and chances are you're taking the strain off. We teach you some technical tips and ways to add tension without increasing the load you are lifting:
- Adding more weight or reps.
- Pausing in the upper position.
- Change the position of your body, for example, kneel.
- Manipulate the tempo: for example, three seconds up, three seconds down.
- Unilateral performance of the series.
- Adding instability (thus forcing your muscles to help you stabilize).
The most common mistake with lateral raises is going too heavy at the expense of tension. This results in the use of momentum from the upper trapezius area, resulting in a loss of good posture (dropping the head forward to lift the weight). This will decrease or eliminate all the stress on the lateral delts, it is not what you want.
