Dumbbell Lateral Raises

1. Stand with a dumbbell in each hand, arms fully extended down by your sides, and palms facing your body.
2. Engage your core muscles to stabilize your torso.
3. Keeping your arms straight, lift the dumbbells out to the sides until they are at shoulder height. Your body should resemble a "T" shape.
4. Avoid using momentum or swinging to lift the weights. Focus on controlled movements.
5. Hold the position at the top for a brief moment, focusing on squeezing your shoulder muscles.
6. Lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position with controlled movements.

1. Start with light weights, especially if you're new to the exercise. You can gradually increase the weight as you become stronger.
2. Maintain a neutral spine and avoid arching your back. Engage your core to provide stability.
3. Keep a slight bend in your elbows throughout the movement to reduce stress on the joints.
4. Perform the exercise at a controlled pace, focusing on the quality of the movement rather than speed.
5. Keep your shoulder blades down and back to prevent shrugging your shoulders.
6. Avoid lifting weights that are too heavy, as this can compromise your form and lead to injury.

Easier

• If lifting the dumbbells to shoulder height is challenging, start with a smaller range of motion and gradually increase it as your strength improves.
• Alternate lifting one arm at a time to reduce the load on each shoulder and maintain better control.

Neutral

• Perform lateral raises while seated to provide extra stability and isolate the shoulder muscles.
• Instead of dumbbells, use resistance bands for a different type of resistance and to reduce the stress on the joints.