Explore shoulder exercises with dumbbells, cables, and machines. Learn about technique, movement angles, and practical training guidance.
Shoulder exercises train the deltoids and support pressing, pulling, and lifting patterns in strength training. Choose dumbbells, cables, machines, or bodyweight movements that match your experience and program.
This category includes shoulder presses, lateral raises, front raises, and movements that target the rear deltoids. Each variation has a different training feel: machines provide guided resistance, while dumbbells and cables require more independent control. Use a mix of movement angles and keep the load manageable.
Keep your torso steady, control the lifting and lowering phases, and avoid swinging during raises. Adjust the seat and handles on machines, and use a range of motion that remains comfortable. Stop if you feel sharp pain and seek qualified coaching when technique is uncertain.
985 exercises
Shoulders Clear filter
If you're looking for an effective way to train your shoulders, the cable front raise with a straight bar is an excellent choice. This exercise is unique because it provides constant tension on the muscles, leading to better muscle growth and strength development. Execution Set the cable machine
Lateral raises (also called side raises) are primarily performed to place more emphasis on the middle head of the deltoid (shoulder muscle). In addition to the large shoulder muscle itself, various muscles around the shoulder joint are recruited to stabilize it. Smaller stabilizing muscles such as t
The Cable Lateral Raise is an effective exercise for strengthening and defining your shoulders. This exercise provides constant resistance through the cable, creating a unique challenge compared with traditional dumbbell exercises. Execution Set the cable machine to the lowest position and attac
If you are looking for an effective way to train your shoulders, Cable Lateral Raises are an excellent choice. This exercise is unique because it provides constant tension on the muscles, leading to better muscle growth and definition. Execution Stand next to the cable machine with the pulley at
The Cable Leaning Lateral Raise is an effective exercise for strengthening and defining the shoulder muscles. This exercise offers a unique way to isolate the deltoids by using the cable machine, providing constant resistance throughout the movement. Execution Set the cable machine to its lowest
The Cable Low Fly is an effective exercise that targets the chest muscles, with a unique emphasis on the lower chest. This exercise not only helps build muscle mass but also improves the definition and strength of your chest muscles. Execution Set the cable machines to the lowest position and gr
The Cable Lying Extension Pullover is an effective exercise that targets strengthening and toning your upper body, with a particular focus on your chest, triceps, and shoulders. Performed with a cable machine, this exercise provides unique resistance that helps build muscular strength and improve ov
The Cable Lying Extension Pullover with cables is a versatile exercise that targets upper-body development, with a particular focus on the chest, back, and arm muscles. This exercise combines the benefits of a pullover with the constant tension of cables, providing a unique challenge and muscle stim
So-called fly exercises are popular exercises for isolating the chest muscles as much as possible. The main function during this exercise is pulling the upper arms forward using the pectoralis major. Because the arms maintain the same curve throughout the movement, the triceps are required much less
The Cable Lying Fly is an effective exercise that targets the chest muscles while also giving the shoulders and triceps a good workout. This exercise is unique because you perform the movement lying on a bench, which provides a stable position and allows you to focus fully on the chest muscles. Exe
Like the forward and overhead cable triceps extensions, the lying variation is an exercise for extending the arms and thereby training the triceps. In terms of the position of the upper arms (and therefore the stretch on the long head of the triceps), this exercise is more comparable to dumbbell and
The Cable Lying Triceps Extension (LOW) is an effective exercise for strengthening and shaping your triceps. This exercise offers a unique way to isolate and train your triceps with constant tension through the use of the cable machine, resulting in more effective muscle building. Execution Lie
The Cable Machine High to Low is a versatile exercise that focuses on strengthening your upper body, with particular emphasis on the chest muscles. This exercise offers a unique way to train your muscles from different angles, which can lead to improved muscle definition and strength. Execution
The Cable Machine Low to High is a versatile exercise that focuses on strengthening and toning your upper body, with special emphasis on the shoulders and upper chest muscles. This exercise offers a unique way to train your muscles from different angles, which can lead to better muscle definition an
The Cable Middle Fly is an effective exercise for training your chest muscles, with a focus on the middle chest. This exercise offers a unique way to isolate and strengthen your chest muscles, with less stress on your shoulders than traditional chest exercises. Execution Set the cable machines a
If you're looking for an effective exercise to strengthen and shape your triceps, the Cable Neutral-Grip Kickback is an excellent choice. This exercise offers a unique way to isolate and train the triceps, with less risk of injury compared with free weights. Execution Set the cable machine to th
The Cable One Arm Front Raise is an effective exercise for strengthening and defining your shoulders. This exercise targets the front deltoids with unique tension that you do not get from traditional dumbbell raises. Execution Stand with your side facing the cable machine and grip the handle wit
If you're looking for an effective exercise to strengthen your shoulders and the side of your back, the Cable One-Arm Bent-Over Lateral Raise is an excellent choice. This exercise offers a unique way to isolate and focus on specific muscle groups, leading to improved muscle definition and strength.
Front raises are primarily performed to place more emphasis on the anterior head of the deltoid (shoulder muscle). The pectoralis major assists in raising the arms. This particularly involves the fibers that run from the clavicle to the upper arm, also known as the 'upper chest'. In addition to the
The Cable Overhead Curl is an effective exercise for strengthening and toning your biceps and forearms. By using a cable machine, this exercise provides constant resistance, resulting in a more intense workout compared with traditional dumbbell curls. Execution Set the cable machine to its lowes
If you're looking for an effective way to strengthen your triceps, the Cable Overhead Extension with a rope is an excellent choice. This exercise targets the triceps in a unique way by providing constant tension throughout the movement, resulting in an intense muscle workout. Execution Set the c
The cable overhead triceps extension is a variation of, among others, the cable triceps pushdown and cable forward triceps extensions. Because the resistance comes from behind and below you, the upper arms are held overhead instead of forward or downward. This creates a greater stretch on the (long
This exercise trains the triceps by extending the arms against cable resistance. Using cables provides more even resistance throughout the range of motion than versions of this exercise with free weights. This makes the exercise easier and safer for beginners. There are multiple cable exercises that
The lat pulldown is named after the muscle primarily targeted by this exercise: the latissimus dorsi, or the large back muscle. The lat pulldown can be performed in several ways. For example, it can be performed with a narrow, wide, or neutral grip (using a V-bar). The hands can be placed on the bar