Muscles worked
The front raise isolates your front delts, which lift your arm forwards. The upper chest, the part attached to the collarbone, helps out, and your shoulder blade rotates more and more as your arm rises. Your abs and back keep your body still. Your front delts already get plenty of work from bench presses, overhead presses and push-ups, so many people need only a few sets of front raises a week, and some need none at all. It is most useful as a little extra on top of your presses.
Common mistakes
- Lifting above shoulder height. Higher up, your shoulder blade and trapezius handle a growing share of the movement, and your shoulders tend to creep towards your ears. Stop when your hands are level with your shoulders.
- Rolling your shoulders forwards. As the arms rise, many people slump through the chest. Keep your chest up and your shoulders back and down, so only your arms move.
- Resting the dumbbells on your thighs. Setting them down against your legs between reps lets the tension in your shoulders go. Turn just in front of your thighs and start the next rep straight away.
Variations and alternatives
- The plate front raise uses both hands on one plate, a simple option when plates are all you have to hand.
- The cable front raise keeps tension on your shoulder right from the bottom.
- The band front raise does the same movement with a resistance band at home or when travelling.
Sets and reps
Front raises suit light weights and 10 to 15 reps over two or three sets, after the pressing exercises in your session. If your body starts to sway when both arms lift together, alternate them, which makes it easier to stand still. There is more in the guide to sets and reps.
Heavier dumbbells usually mean a big jump in an exercise this light, so add reps before you pick up heavier ones, in line with progressive overload. Lowering the dumbbells over two to three seconds also makes the same weight harder. Switch pairs only once all your sets hit the top of the range without help from your body.