July 16, 2025, 6:19 pm | Read time: 9 minutes

Workout I Keep Returning To

First things first: I’d much rather train legs, glutes, and abs. I enjoy back and chest less; arms would be neglected if I only trained based on my mood. But knowing that only a fully trained body is ideally balanced and optimally functional keeps me motivated. Plus, I find well-toned arms simply attractive. That’s why I can’t avoid exercises for arms and shoulders. Fortunately, there are various training methods and exercises targeting these body parts, adding variety to the workout.

It also helped me to create a basic shoulder workout from some dumbbell classics that I can always rely on. The exercises are easy to implement, require no equipment other than dumbbells, can be done at home or in the gym, and quickly yield results when performed correctly. The following six shoulder exercises help me stay on track even during less motivated phases of shoulder training. You can always fit 20 minutes to complete them into your day. So, let’s get started!

Choosing the Weights

The weight of the dumbbells used in arm and shoulder training naturally depends on your current fitness level. Your daily condition also plays a role. You may not be able to lift heavy weights every day. As a rule of thumb, remember: Choose weights heavy enough to make the exercise challenging, so you might struggle with the last repetitions. But: Form always takes precedence over weight. This means the weight should not compromise the correct execution of the exercise. If it does, it’s a sign to switch to lighter dumbbells.

Since I’ve been strength training for many years, I usually start with heavier weights but keep lighter dumbbells nearby to switch during a set (a set where you reduce the weight is called a “Drop Set”). Typically, I start shoulder exercises with 5-kilogram dumbbells and have a set of 3-kilogram and 1-kilogram dumbbells ready.

Shoulder Press

The shoulder press can be done sitting or standing. I prefer the standing version because it requires me to tense my abs and glutes for proper execution, thus training these body parts a bit as well.

For the shoulder press, I take a 5-kilogram dumbbell in each hand and lift my arms sideways, slightly higher than chest level but just below shoulder level. My inner arms face forward. From this position, I slowly and controlledly press both arms upward until they are almost fully extended. Once at the top, I consciously tense my chest and shoulder muscles before lowering my arms again. Then, I lift my arms back up without pausing at the bottom.

Standing Lateral Raise

This exercise can also be performed sitting or standing. For the reasons mentioned above, I usually do it standing.

I take the dumbbells (usually the 3-kilogram ones) in both hands, with my arms stretched down in front of my body. Then, I move my arms sideways in a controlled manner up to almost shoulder height. To avoid straining the shoulders incorrectly, my arms are slightly in front of my torso when lifting sideways (like a slight V-shape). I also keep my arms slightly bent at the elbows to create more tension in the arm muscles. Once at the top, just below shoulder height, I hold my arms briefly before lowering them again.

It’s important here (and in all exercises) that both the upward and downward movements are slow and controlled. The downward movement (eccentric) is equally important for effectively engaging and training the muscles.

As a variation, you can perform the exercise one-sided, meaning one arm at a time instead of both. The advantage is that you can better focus on each side, which is beneficial for optimal exercise execution. However, if you have less time, training your shoulders with both arms is also effective.

Also interesting: Lateral Raise with Dumbbells for Broader Shoulders

Front Raise

Why only lift to the side? Lifting weights frontally (Front Raise) also trains the shoulders. Again, the exercise can be done sitting or standing. In the standing version, I stand with my feet about hip-width apart, tense my entire body, and alternately lift each arm straight in front of my body from bottom to top with the dumbbell. I stop at chest height before slowly and controlledly lowering the arm and switching sides.

If you prefer, you can perform the exercise with both arms simultaneously. However, I prefer the one-arm version because otherwise, I feel like I’m not moving and training both arms equally controlled.

Bent-Over Lateral Raise

The bent-over lateral raise is a variation of the previously described lateral raise exercise. For this, I stand with slightly bent knees to protect my knee joints, take a dumbbell in each hand, tilt my upper body forward from the hips, and perform the lateral raise from this position. The palms face the ceiling when lifting the arms sideways. When lowering the arms, I bring the hands with the dumbbells together under my torso. This exercise trains the back as well as the shoulders.

Alternatively, you can perform the exercise sitting. To do this, sit on the edge of a training bench or chair and lean your upper body forward. From this position, perform the lateral raise.

Bench Press

The bench press is a classic strength exercise that I like because it trains the chest muscles in addition to the shoulders. If you find a free training bench at the gym or have one at home, lie on it with your legs positioned on the floor on either side.

Since I like to do this exercise at home but don’t have a bench, I perform it on the floor, lying on a fitness mat–and instead of a barbell, I use dumbbells. The dumbbells make the bench press a bit more challenging for me because I have to consciously control both sides to move and load them evenly.

Here, I use my heavy dumbbells (five kilograms, sometimes even ten kilograms on good days), holding one in each hand. Then, I open my arms sideways at a 90-degree angle, with my hands pointing from the floor toward the ceiling. From this position, I press the weights evenly upward and then lower my arms in a controlled manner.

Again, form is crucial: The pressing of the dumbbells should come from the chest and shoulders, not from the arms. When the arms are at the top, I consciously tense the chest muscles, and when lowering, when the arms are back down, I tense the back muscles.

Arnold Press

Among the more demanding shoulder exercises–at least from my perspective–is the Arnold Press. It is reportedly one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s favorite strength exercises and was named after him.

When I’m at the gym, I use a kettlebell for this exercise because it is easier on the joints. At home, it can also be done with a classic dumbbell; if in doubt, I simply use a lighter weight to avoid straining my wrists too much or incorrectly.

Again, the exercise can be done sitting or standing. I stand hip-width apart, tense my entire body to avoid using momentum from the upper body or legs during the exercise, as that would make it ineffective for the shoulders. Then, I take a dumbbell (kettlebell) in one hand and hold it with a bent arm in front of my chest. The hand is almost at chin height, with the palm facing away from the face. From this position, I press the arm upward over my head with a 180-degree rotation, so the arm extends and the palm faces backward. Then, I move the arm back to the starting position with another rotation. I usually complete my repetitions on one side before switching sides and doing the same number of repetitions there.

Option 1: Pure Shoulder Training

Speaking of repetitions: When I do pure shoulder training, focusing only on the described exercises, I prefer to do three sets of twelve repetitions each. I work with enough weight so that I might only manage ten repetitions in the last set or even have to reduce the weight to complete this number of cleanly executed repetitions.

If I have very little time or want to turn strength training into strength-endurance training, I perform the exercises as a superset workout. This means I do them quickly one after the other, not counting repetitions but setting a time per exercise and doing as many repetitions as I can within that time.

You can work in pairs, for example. Pair two exercises, do the first for 45 seconds, followed by a 20-second break, then the second exercise for 45 seconds, followed by a 60-second break before repeating the superset. Then comes the next pairing, or the next superset.

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Option 2: Integrate into a Broader Upper Body Workout

Another training option is not to perform the shoulder exercises alone but to integrate them into a longer upper body workout that also includes exercises focusing on other muscle groups (back, chest, abs, biceps, triceps). The advantage: If you incorporate exercises between individual shoulder exercises that don’t strain the shoulders as much, the shoulder muscles don’t tire as quickly. You can therefore work with more weight for the individual shoulder exercises.

I definitely notice how quickly my shoulder muscles tire when I target only this body region during training. Sometimes I want exactly that, sometimes I enjoy combining shoulder exercises with other types of exercises. But hey: Variety is key–both for motivation and effective muscle stimulation.