Leaning Cable Lateral Raise

A side-delt stretch at the bottom you've never felt from any other lateral variation.

Complexity · Lowhypertrophyintermediate+Cable machine

Side delts

PrimarySecondary

What it hits

Parts of the target muscle.

Side delts
Hit
Lifts arm out to the side.

The movement

Get it right, not roughly right.

Optimal form

2:56· Colossus Fitness

How to PROPERLY Cable Lateral Raise (TRY THIS!)

Arms down

Parallel

Grip a post or rack with one hand, lean fully away from the cable. The working arm starts across the front of the body. Raise out to the side, leading with the elbow.

Common mistakes

Not leaning enough - defeats the whole purpose.
Heaving the dumbbell up - the lean removes the swing option, don't reinvent it.

Where you should feel it

A side-delt stretch at the bottom you've never felt from any other lateral variation.

Injury risk · 1/10

Variations

Same movement, moved emphasis.

Ranked by how directly each variation still trains side delts. 80%+ means the target barely changes. Below 60%, the emphasis has meaningfully shifted — useful for variety, but less precise for the specific part. The label calls it at a glance.

Single-arm lean dumbbell lateral
Same lean, dumbbell.
90% on target
On target
Less constant tension.

Compare with another exercise

Cool-down

Worked it. Walk it back down.

A couple of minutes here pays back in soreness avoided tomorrow. Browse the full library.

Cross-body Shoulder Stretch
Pull one arm across the body with the opposite hand at the elbow. Shoulder stays down - don't let it shrug. 30s per side.
Rear deltsSide delts

Side delts