Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Dumbbell Shoulder Press is built for your first months of training and works well after overhead pressing.
How to do Dumbbell Shoulder Press
- While holding a dumbbell in each hand, sit on a military press bench or utility bench that has back support. Place the dumbbells upright on top of your thighs.
- Now raise the dumbbells to shoulder height one at a time using your thighs to help propel them up into position.
- Make sure to rotate your wrists so that the palms of your hands are facing forward. This is your starting position.
- Now, exhale and push the dumbbells upward until they touch at the top.
- Then, after a brief pause at the top contracted position, slowly lower the weights back down to the starting position while inhaling.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Dumbbell Shoulder Press Sets and Reps by Goal
Strength
3 sets of 5-6 reps with 2-3 minutes of rest. Add reps on the smaller bell before you size up.
Hypertrophy
3 sets of 10-12 reps with 90 seconds of rest. Size up only when both sides finish equally strong.
Endurance
2-3 sets of 15-18 reps with 45-60 seconds of rest. Start each set with the weaker arm and match it.
The other half of the week
First plan free
Training is half the prescription
A session tells your delts to adapt. The week you eat decides whether they can. FitFocus writes that week against your own calorie and macro numbers, in about a minute, for free.
- Included: Seven days solved against your calorie and macro targets
- Included: Diet type and allergies applied before the plan is written
- Included: Built from the same profile as your workout plan, on one account
- Days
- 7
- Meals / day
- 3-6
- Diet types
- 5
- Exclusions
- 6
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Common Dumbbell Shoulder Press Mistakes
Letting the bells drift off the working path
Keep both dumbbells travelling the same line on every rep.
Swinging more weight than the delts can actually control
Drop the load until the arm rises without help from the torso.
Easier and Harder Than Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Swap Dumbbell Shoulder Press For
Dumbbell Shoulder Press — Frequently Asked Questions
How do you do the Dumbbell Shoulder Press?
While holding a dumbbell in each hand, sit on a military press bench or utility bench that has back support. Place the dumbbells upright on top of your thighs. Now raise the dumbbells to shoulder height one at a time using your thighs to help propel them up into position. Make sure to rotate your wrists so that the palms of your hands are facing forward. This is your starting position. Use dumbbells and keep the movement controlled through the full range. The animated GIF above shows the complete rep at normal speed.
What muscles does the Dumbbell Shoulder Press work?
The Dumbbell Shoulder Press primarily targets the delts. It is classified as a shoulders exercise and is performed with dumbbells.
How many sets and reps of the Dumbbell Shoulder Press should I do?
For muscle growth: 3 sets of 10-12 reps with 90 seconds of rest. Size up only when both sides finish equally strong. Adjust the load rather than the rep target if form breaks down before the final rep.
Is the Dumbbell Shoulder Press good for beginners?
Yes. The Dumbbell Shoulder Press is a beginner-level movement, so it is a reasonable place to start. Keep the load light enough that you can control every rep and stop 2-3 reps short of failure while you learn the pattern.
What can I do instead of the Dumbbell Shoulder Press?
Try the Lever Seated Reverse Fly (parallel Grip), Resistance Band Seated Shoulder Press or the Cable Standing Shoulder External Rotation. Each trains the delts with a similar movement pattern, so you can swap based on the equipment you have available.
Routines that program Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Upper Lower Split
Four sessions a week, each muscle group trained twice. It is the split most intermediate lifters should run: enough frequency to grow, enough rest days to recover, and it survives a missed session better than a six-day plan.
4 days / week
Dumbbell Only Workout Plan
A full training week built entirely from dumbbell and bodyweight movements. Everything here works in a spare room with one adjustable pair, and it covers every major muscle group without a barbell, rack or cable stack.
3 days / week
Weight Loss Workout Plan
Losing weight is decided by your diet. What training decides is whether the weight you lose is fat or muscle. This plan keeps heavy compound lifting at the centre and adds conditioning around it, which is the arrangement that protects muscle in a calorie deficit.
4 days / week
