How to Do Lateral Raises More Safely to Build Up Your Shoulders

Lateral raises help to beef up your shoulders, but can also destroy them if you don’t do the exercise properly. Unfortunately, the simple move is also one of the most common exercises to screw up, whether you’re an experienced gym rat or a novice.

In our latest episode of Little Things, Men’s Health fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S. and fitness pro Jonathan Chadwell, show us the right way to get it done.

For optimal muscle growth and joint safety, make the little change-up of doing your lateral raise slightly in front of you and protect your shoulders to boot. So, how do you go about setting up the better way to do lateral raises? Chadwell grabs the dumbbells and Samuel breaks it down: “The one thing you’ll notice is that he’s very, very careful with his positioning. He’s got his elbows slightly in front of his shoulders as he’s raising—that’s helping to protect his shoulders,” Samuel says, noting that Chadwell is also focusing on keeping the position of his shoulder joints in something called external rotation, which gives your rotator cuffs more space to move.

The external rotation here is key. “As humans, we wind up living in internally rotated positions. [Internal rotation] is not a comfortable position for your shoulder,” says Samuel. That’s why we want to emphasize getting away from this position in our training as much as possible and adjust shoulder position to external rotation.

As you try to keep your shoulders externally rotated, that often translates into lifting with an open palm. “We’re trying to bias into situations that move us to an open palm,” adds Samuel. Frequently, people raise all the way out to their sides with their palms facing down to the ground. That doesn’t help you get into the safer position of external rotation.

There’s a simple two-step approach to fix your form and avoid pain and eventual injury: “One: Get your wrists slightly in front of your shoulders as you’re raising and, two, think about rotating your hands so that your thumbs start to move toward the ceiling as you raise [the weights],” offers Samuel. “So make the adjustment and enjoy the safer shoulder gains for the next two decades.”

As a bonus, following these guidelines for lateral raises can also incorporate your mid-back muscles into the movement. That’s always a good thing, guys. Watch the video above to see all this advice in action.

Get The Gear You Need

The only equipment you need for lateral raises is a pair of dumbbells or adjustable dumbbells. Below are a few of our go-to picks.