An effective Dumbbells Workout Shoulders is key for anyone hoping to develop bigger, stronger arms. This dumbbells workout shoulders targets all three heads of the deltoids to help build bigger and stronger arms in either the gym or at home.
Start off by performing a full dynamic warm-up that includes arm rotations, arm swings, basic shoulder and back movements and arm circles. Next, grab some comfortable dumbbells to start lifting weights.
Front Raise
The front raise is one of the most widely practiced shoulder isolation exercises and often found within upper body workouts. It targets anterior deltoids – which form the front part of shoulders – as well as pectorals. But to truly develop your shoulders you should incorporate other exercises like overhead presses that target middle/rear sections as well as lateral raises in addition to this one.
Stand with dumbbells held lightly against your thighs with your thumbs wrapped around their handles in a pronated (thumbs around handles) grip, or perform this movement while sitting on a bench or chair. Focus on keeping your back straight and bracing abs, and avoid rounding or excessive swaying of the spine; weight should remain light to avoid overworking muscles.
As part of your upward phase, inhale as you slowly lift both dumbbells in front of you with elbows slightly bent at the top of the movement and only allow arms to extend beyond 60-70 degree angles – this may help prevent shoulder joint compression and pain during lifting. At the peak of this movement pause for one second before exhaling and slowly lower both dumbbells back to your thighs with smooth and controlled movements while exhaling.
Once your arms are in their starting position at your thighs, re-inhale and repeat for the desired number of repetitions. Perform one set or multiple sets with interval rest periods between sets allowing your arms to recover between reps; if unable to perform all recommended reps with good form then try switching out for lighter weights.
The front raise exercise with dumbbells can be an effective way to work the anterior deltoids, but cables provide another great way to strengthen upper chest and tricep muscles. A cable allows for constant tension throughout its movement, which is far superior to dumbbells which allow momentum build-up as you lower weights while decreasing muscle contraction in its eccentric phase (lowering).
Side Raise
The lateral raise is a shoulder isolation exercise designed to strengthen and widen deltoid muscles on one side of your deltoid, also known as an inverted triangle muscle, located along its side. Deltoid muscles consist of three distinct points of origin which merge before inserting onto your upper arm bone (humerus). By performing exercises such as the lateral raise, isolation exercises such as this one will help build width between your shoulders thereby making your body appear more imposing or angular.
Stand with feet about hip distance apart and hold two dumbbells in both hands. Bend forward slightly until both weights touch each other in front of your thighs with palms facing each other and elbows slightly bent; this movement requires tightening your core and bracing your spine in order to avoid hip movement which might create momentum which jars your shoulder joint. Leaning slightly forward increases emphasis on your rear delts while simultaneously decreasing tension on rotator cuffs – both are important factors in avoiding injuries or overworking these muscle groups.
Start by lifting both weights out to your sides in an even line until they are about 90 degrees parallel with your shoulders and your elbows are slightly bent, before slowly lowering them back down towards your torso in control and repeat for your desired number of reps.
In order to intensify this exercise, try performing it one arm at a time – this will put more pressure on the arm that’s being neglected, increasing shoulder stressors overall.
As they reach the top of their movement, introducing a twist to your dumbbells will activate additional muscle fibers within your side delts and intensify the burn, giving your shoulders that “pumpy” look.
Recent research found that performing lateral raises with a twist was significantly more effective at stimulating middle and lateral deltoids activation than bench pressing or dumbbell flye. Furthermore, these exercises outranked other commonly practiced shoulder strengthening exercises like triceps extension or biceps curl for building shoulder strength.
Add variety to this movement by performing it while seated. Doing so makes the movement more difficult while engaging your core to ensure stability throughout. Furthermore, this seated version allows you to move heavier loads, increasing strength gains in shoulders.
Lateral Raise
The lateral raise is an effective and traditional shoulder exercise designed to target both sets of deltoids at once, but can be challenging to perform correctly if done without caution. A common mistake is lifting arms too high, which puts additional strain on shoulder joints and can result in injury; other common mistakes include using momentum alone to raise weights or throwing them up and down with less than full control over movements.
To avoid making these mistakes, a key first step to avoid injury would be ensuring your elbows don’t flare out too much while raising dumbbells. Furthermore, make sure your arm does not pass past 90 degree angles at the top of each movement.
If you are having difficulty performing lateral raises correctly, reducing the weight might help. It may be better to go slightly lighter and do more reps with good form rather than use heavier weight and risk injury or overuse.
When performing lateral raises, it’s essential to use a neutral grip on the dumbbells and keep palms facing each other and thumbs facing up instead of pinky down – two modifications which can significantly lower risk of shoulder impingement.
As another important consideration, you should try pausing at the top of every repetition – even for just a moment or two – so as to increase the length of time each muscle group receives attention and improve results. This may take up as little as one second per repetition!
One final tip when performing lateral raises is to avoid using too much momentum when lifting weights; doing this could put your shoulders and lower back at risk. Lifting with your shoulders could put excessive strain on both rotator cuffs and shoulder joints; you could also overdevelop traps by using momentum as this may interfere with what this move was supposed to achieve.
Increased sets and reps could quickly wear out muscles, making them sore or tight and increasing your risk of injury. To ensure safe lifting sessions, limit yourself to no more than four sets and reps per set or rep when doing lateral raises.
Shoulder Press
No matter if you use barbells or dumbbells for performing shoulder presses, the movement pattern remains consistent. Shoulder presses are great exercises for shoulders as well as targeting your triceps for improved balance across your upper body and improved functionality during everyday activities.
The overhead press also trains your rotator cuff and shoulder blade, helping prevent tears in either when lifting heavy objects or performing other common daily tasks.
As previously discussed, dumbbells allow you to more precisely control the load you use for training, making it easier and safer to target specific muscle groups more effectively and safely. Furthermore, their use makes it simpler to address imbalances caused by biomechanical limitations in your shoulder girdle or back that might exist due to your natural biomechanic limitations.
As you perform the shoulder press with dumbbells, you will engage many small stabilizer muscles that would otherwise go unusued when using barbells or selectorized machines to perform this move. Doing this can help avoid unintended movement patterns such as dropping weight to one side of your body or moving in an irregular path through its motion.
Another advantage of using dumbbells for overhead presses is their lower load requirement compared with barbells; you’re still getting all of the same muscle-building benefits. This enables you to gradually increase the weight as your strength improves and serves as a good entryway into lifting. They are also great options if you are new to lifting.
To perform the shoulder press with dumbbells, begin by sitting on a bench with your back against it and holding one dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing each other and elbows slightly bent. Push upward until the weights form a T shape before slowly lowering them; try not touching them together during their descent so as to maintain constant tension on your muscles and avoid locking elbows at the top as this will shift focus onto triceps rather than shoulders.
