Seated Shoulder External Rotation
Also known as: Seated Dumbbell External Rotation, Elbow-on-Knee Dumbbell External Rotation, Seated 90/90 External Rotation
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Description
Sit on a bench with your upper arm propped on a raised knee and rotate a light dumbbell up beside your head to strengthen your rotator cuff. The work happens at the back of the shoulder: the infraspinatus and teres minor on your shoulder blade turn the arm out, and the rear delt helps. Because the knee carries the weight of your arm, the side and front delts have little to do, so this won't build your delts. The elbow sits at shoulder height, close to overhead and throwing positions, which suits lifters who press a lot and anyone cleared to train after a shoulder problem.
How to Perform
- Sit tall on a flat bench and put your working-side foot up on the bench beside your hip, so that knee rises high.
- Keep the other foot flat on the floor and rest your free hand on that knee.
- Hold a light dumbbell overhand and rest the back of your upper arm, just above the elbow, on the raised knee. Shoulder down and back.
- Your elbow, bent to 90 degrees, sits at or just below shoulder height, and the forearm hangs in front of your stomach.
- Keeping the elbow on the knee, turn at the shoulder so the forearm swings forward and up like a windshield wiper.
- Stop when the forearm is vertical and the dumbbell is beside your head, palm facing forward. Hold for a second or two.
- Take about 2 seconds to lower until the forearm points down again.
- After the last rep, put the other foot up on the bench and switch the dumbbell to the other hand.
What Muscles Work
Primary Muscle:
Secondary Muscles:
Tips
- Two or three sets of 12–20 reps per arm suit this lift, with a 1–2 second hold at the top; 8–12 is about as heavy as this lift should get. Add reps first. Once both arms reach 20 in every set with the elbow still on the knee and a slow lowering, pick up the next dumbbell, usually just 0.5–1 kg (1–2.5 lb) heavier, and build the reps back up.
- Working weights here are tiny, often 1–5 kg, so even 1 kg is a big jump. If the next dumbbell is too much, first stretch the top hold to 2–3 seconds or take 3 seconds to lower. Too hard as it is? Do it with no weight, or stop when the forearm points straight ahead.
- The work sits behind your shoulder blade and at the back of the shoulder, most in the top half and the hold. A pinch at the front or top of the shoulder means you went too far, the elbow sits too high or the dumbbell is too heavy. If lifting the arm to shoulder height hurts even without weight, switch to the side-lying version; in a rehab program, use the range and load your clinician gives you.
- Substitutes: Side Lying External Rotation, the gentler position with the elbow at your side and a good first step; Dumbbell Cuban Rotation, the same upward turn but standing, with nothing under the arm; Cable Face Pull, which trains the rear delts and external rotators together with both arms and more weight.
Common Mistakes
- The elbow slides off the knee or lifts away as the dumbbell rises, so the rotation turns into a raise. Bring the foot closer to your hip to raise the knee, and go lighter.
- Straightening the elbow at the top and pressing the dumbbell up. The 90-degree bend stays fixed and the rep ends when the forearm is vertical: rotate, don't press.
- Leaning back or twisting your torso to help the weight up. Sit tall with your chest facing forward and your free hand on the other knee; only the forearm moves.
- Letting the dumbbell drop from the top. Take about 2 seconds to lower it on the same arc, and if you can't, it's too heavy.
- Forcing the forearm past vertical or bending the wrist back to squeeze out a few more degrees. Finish at vertical, or earlier if it pinches, with your wrist straight.
Recommended Exercises
Explore exercises related to Seated Shoulder External Rotation for shoulders training and similar movement patterns.
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