Cable Side Lateral Raise

Hold the cable handle and stand sideways, facing away from the pulley. Keep a slight bend in your elbow and your wrist straight. The cable loads the side delt from the start, so set your position with your abs and glutes without leaning your torso.

Raise the handle out to your side, thinking of your elbow rising outward and slightly ahead of your hand. Keep the feeling of the side delt opening your arm outward to reduce trap involvement.

Pause briefly around shoulder height, then slowly lower the handle. Lower only as far as the cable keeps tension to make the most of the setup.

A major advantage of cable laterals is constant side-delt tension from start to finish. Repeat while keeping the feeling of your shoulder widening to the side and returning.

Leaning your body to create momentum or bending your wrist shifts work to your forearm and momentum instead of the side delt. Raising too high brings in the traps, so stop at a shoulder-friendly height.

Exhale as you lift and inhale as you lower. Calm, continuous breathing helps you keep your speed against the cable pull.

Cable laterals can create strong tension even with a light weight. Choose a load that lets you hold 1 second at the top and control the way down for 2 seconds.