Dumbbell Seated Bent Arm Lateral Raise

Setup

1. 01Sit tall on a flat bench holding a dumbbell in each hand.
2. 02Bend both elbows to roughly 90 degrees with forearms pointing forward, palms facing each other.
3. 03Set the shoulder blades down and brace the trunk.
4. 04Keep the dumbbells just outside the thighs to start.

Execution

1. 01Raise both bent arms out to the sides, leading with the elbows.
2. 02Stop when the upper arms are parallel to the floor.
3. 03Hold the top position for a beat without shrugging.
4. 04Lower the elbows back to the sides under control.

Checkpoints

• -The elbow angle stays fixed near 90 degrees for the whole rep.
• -Elbows lead the movement and finish level with the shoulders.
• -Wrists stay roughly level with or just below the elbows at the top.
• -The torso stays vertical with no backward lean.

Common mistakes

• -Opening and closing the elbow angle to swing the weight up.
• -Raising the hands higher than the elbows and turning it into a partial upright row.
• -Shrugging the traps to gain the last few degrees.
• -Going so heavy the range of motion shrinks rep to rep.