Side-Lying Lateral Raise

Muscles worked by the Side-Lying Lateral Raise

Primary

Side DeltsLateral Deltoid

Secondary

SupraspinatusTrapsTrapezius

Also called: side deltoid, lateral delt, side delt, medial deltoid, lateral deltoid.

Equipment

Dumbbell

Also called: db, dumbell, hex dumbbell, rubber dumbbell, hand weight.

How to do the Side-Lying Lateral Raise

1. Lie on your side on a flat bench with your bottom arm supporting your head or gripping the bench edge.
2. Hold a dumbbell in your top hand with your arm resting along your side.
3. Keeping your elbow slightly bent, raise the dumbbell upward until your arm is perpendicular to the floor.
4. Pause briefly at the top, then lower the dumbbell slowly back to your side.
5. Complete all reps on one side before switching.

Form tips

• Keep your torso still — only the working arm should move.
• The lying position removes momentum and isolates the lateral deltoid effectively.
• Use a lighter weight than your standing lateral raise — the leverage is more challenging.

At a glance

Side-Lying Lateral Raise in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Arnold Press
• Barbell Overhead Press
• Barbell Upright Row
• Behind the Neck Press
• Bodyweight Lateral Raise
• Cable Lateral Raise
• Cable Upright Row
• Double Dumbbell Overhead Carry

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "side-lying-lateral-raise",
  "name_en": "Side-Lying Lateral Raise",
  "name_de": "Seitheben Seitliegend",
  "name_es": "Elevación Lateral Tumbado de Lado",
  "description_en": "A dumbbell lateral deltoid isolation exercise performed lying on one side on a flat bench, providing constant tension and eliminating momentum from the standing position.",
  "description_de": "Eine Kurzhantel-Isolationsübung für den seitlichen Schultermuskel in der Seitenlage auf einer flachen Bank, die konstante Spannung ohne Schwungnutzung gewährleistet.",
  "description_es": "Un ejercicio de aislamiento del deltoides lateral con mancuerna en posición lateral sobre un banco plano, que proporciona tensión constante sin impulso.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "push",
  "mechanic": "isolation",
  "difficulty": "beginner",
  "equipment": "dumbbell",
  "body_part": "shoulders",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "lateral_deltoid"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "supraspinatus",
    "trapezius"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "hypertrophy"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "shoulder_focus",
    "push_day",
    "requires_bench"
  ],
  "is_unilateral": true,
  "is_bodyweight": false,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Lie on your side on a flat bench with your bottom arm supporting your head or gripping the bench edge.",
    "Hold a dumbbell in your top hand with your arm resting along your side.",
    "Keeping your elbow slightly bent, raise the dumbbell upward until your arm is perpendicular to the floor.",
    "Pause briefly at the top, then lower the dumbbell slowly back to your side.",
    "Complete all reps on one side before switching."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Auf einer flachen Bank seitlich liegen, den unteren Arm zur Kopfstütze oder zum Griff an der Bank nutzen.",
    "Kurzhantel in der oberen Hand halten, Arm locker an der Seite.",
    "Mit leicht gebeugtem Ellbogen die Hantel anheben, bis der Arm senkrecht zum Boden steht.",
    "Kurz oben halten, dann die Hantel langsam zurück zur Seite absenken.",
    "Alle Wiederholungen ausführen, dann Seite wechseln."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Túmbate de lado sobre un banco plano usando el brazo inferior para apoyar la cabeza o sujetar el borde del banco.",
    "Sujeta una mancuerna con la mano superior con el brazo descansando a lo largo del costado.",
    "Con el codo ligeramente flexionado, eleva la mancuerna hasta que el brazo quede perpendicular al suelo.",
    "Pausa brevemente arriba, luego baja la mancuerna despacio hasta el costado.",
    "Completa todas las repeticiones en un lado antes de cambiar."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Keep your torso still — only the working arm should move.",
    "The lying position removes momentum and isolates the lateral deltoid effectively.",
    "Use a lighter weight than your standing lateral raise — the leverage is more challenging."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Oberkörper ruhig halten — nur der arbeitende Arm soll sich bewegen.",
    "Die liegende Position verhindert Schwung und isoliert den seitlichen Deltamuskel effektiv.",
    "Leichteres Gewicht als beim stehenden Seitheben wählen — der Hebelarm ist anspruchsvoller."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Mantén el torso quieto — solo el brazo de trabajo debe moverse.",
    "La posición tumbada elimina el impulso y aísla eficazmente el deltoides lateral.",
    "Usa un peso más ligero que en la elevación lateral de pie — la palanca es más exigente."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/side-lying-lateral-raise-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/side-lying-lateral-raise-peak.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "side-lying-lateral-raise");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.