The bent over lateral raise is a very important bodybuilding exercise since it works the rear deltoid head, which is a part of the shoulder that a lot of people tend to ignore when they exercise their shoulders.
Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: 30-40 seconds depending on amount of repetitions performed and setup time.
Here's How:
- Place a couple of dumbbells looking forward in front of a flat bench.
- Sit on the end of the bench with your legs together and the dumbbells behind your heels.
- Bend at the waist while keeping the back straight in order to pick up the dumbbells. The palms of your hands should be facing each other as you pick them. This will be your starting position.
- Keeping your torso forward and stationary, with the arms slightly bent at the elbows, lift the dumbbells straight to the side until both arms are parallel to the floor. Exhale as you lift the weights. Make sure that you avoid swinging the torso or bringing the arms back as opposed to the side.
- After a one second contraction at the top, slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Tips:
- Another way to perform this exercise is doing it standing by bending over to almost 90 degrees (torso parallel to the floor) while bending at the knees a bit.
- While this exercise can also be performed standing, those with lower back problems are better off performing this seated variety.
What You Need:
- Dumbbells
- Flat bench
