Lever Extended-Arm Lateral Raise

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 main shoulder muscle itself, various muscles around the shoulder joint are recruited to stabilize it. These include smaller stabilizing muscles such as the four rotator cuff muscles, as well as the larger trapezius, which elevates the shoulder joint.

In the arms, the biceps and triceps serve a stabilizing role by keeping the position of the forearm relative to the upper arm constant. The muscles in the forearms then stabilize the wrist joint to control the dumbbells or bar.

In this variant, lateral raises are performed using a machine that imitates the movement with dumbbells.

Lever extended-arm lateral raise execution

1
Stand in the middle between both handles.
2
Move the arms outward and upward. Keep the rest of the body as still as possible.
3
Finish at the height just before you feel your shoulders become pinched. Keep the elbows slightly below shoulder height.
4
Hold the weight here for 1–2 counts.
5
Lower the arms again under control over 2–3 counts until you feel there is no more resistance (do not bring them all the way back against the body).
6
Repeat.

Lever extended-arm lateral raise

Muscles involved:

Shoulder joint:

Deltoid (all heads)

Rotator cuff (subscapularis, supraspinatus, infraspinatus, and teres minor)

Trapezius

Levator scapulae

Chest:

Pectoralis major (especially the upper portion)

Arms

Triceps

Biceps

Forearm muscles

Abdomen:

Rectus abdominis (straight abdominal muscle)

External oblique (external oblique abdominal muscle)

Internal oblique (internal oblique abdominal muscle)

Transversus abdominis (transverse abdominal muscle, 'corset muscle')

Lower back and spine:

Erector spinae

Lumbar multifidus

Quadratus lumborum

Lever extended-arm lateral raise technique

"For the side of the shoulder"

The deltoid-shaped shoulder muscle pulls on the upper arms from three directions. Lateral raises are usually performed by people who want to train 'the middle' of the shoulder with this exercise. However, (scarce) EMG measurements show that, also during lateral raises (with dumbbells), the anterior head does most of the work (while the posterior head works almost as hard as the middle head). The difference between the contribution of the different heads is, however, much smaller than, for example, during the shoulder press.

Machine vs free weights

Performing the exercise on this machine provides a fixed movement path. This can prevent major errors, but it can also prevent optimal execution.

For example, the straight handle prevents the shoulder from rotating too far inward or outward (which would shift the emphasis toward the posterior and anterior heads, respectively). However, the machine also makes it difficult or impossible to maintain the desired slight bend in the arms. As a result, a great deal of stress can be placed on the elbow joint.

As an alternative, it may therefore be better to choose the lateral raise machine on which the elbows press against the machine. You can then concentrate fully on raising the upper arms.