Fitness Volt
  • Bodybuilding
  • Powerlifting
  • Strongman
  • Workouts
    • Training
    • Exercise Guides
    • Workout Plans
    • Celebrity Workouts
    • Training Programs
  • Nutrition
    • Supplements
    • Diet
    • Diet Plans
    • Nutrition Tips
  • More
    • CrossFit
    • News
      • Results
      • Mr. Olympia 2022
      • 2022 WSM
      • Arnold Classic
    • Fitness Calculator
    • Food Facts
    • Profiles
    • Motivation
    • Videos
    • MMA
    • Deals
  • Reviews
No Result
View All Result
Fitness Volt
  • Bodybuilding
  • Powerlifting
  • Strongman
  • Workouts
    • Training
    • Exercise Guides
    • Workout Plans
    • Celebrity Workouts
    • Training Programs
  • Nutrition
    • Supplements
    • Diet
    • Diet Plans
    • Nutrition Tips
  • More
    • CrossFit
    • News
      • Results
      • Mr. Olympia 2022
      • 2022 WSM
      • Arnold Classic
    • Fitness Calculator
    • Food Facts
    • Profiles
    • Motivation
    • Videos
    • MMA
    • Deals
  • Reviews
No Result
View All Result
Fitness Volt
No Result
View All Result
Exercise Guides

How To Do The Dumbbell Arnold Press (Shoulders)

Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the greatest icons in fitness and bodybuilding; it's no wonder there are exercises named after him. Learn more about this shoulder press variation in this exercise guide.
Malik, DPT

Written by Malik, DPT

Last Updated onJanuary 14, 2021

Arnold Press

Arnold Press

The Arnold Press is a very effective exercise that builds the deltoid muscles. It’s a unique variation of the dumbbell overhead press and was named after the one and only iconic figure Arnold Schwarzenegger. 

The technique allows you to maximize the activation of both the lateral and front deltoids so it’s a great two-in-one movement. 

The Arnold Press is appropriate for most exercisers and poses little risk of injury unless you have limited shoulder mobility. It makes a great addition to any shoulder routine and can be utilized during any portion of your workout as it’s a compound exercise.

Keep reading to learn how to do it with tips, variations, and more. 

In This Exercise:

  • Target Muscle Group: Anterior Deltoid
  • Type: Hypertrophy, strength
  • Mechanics: Compound
  • Equipment: Dumbbells
  • Difficulty: Beginner/intermediate 

Muscles Worked 

The Arnold press works a few different muscles of the arm. Here’s a short description of each one involved in this exercise.

Deltoid Anterior 

The deltoid anterior or front deltoid is one of the three shoulder heads. It works with the deltoid posterior or rear delts to stabilize the arm while the deltoid lateral abducts (moves away from the midline of the body) the arm.

It also works with the pec muscles to flex the arm while walking. 

Deltoid Lateral

The deltoid lateral is one of the three shoulder heads. It gives width to the upper body and is responsible for abducting the arm from 15-100 degrees.

If you want impressive shoulders, you must do exercises that maximize the recruitment of this deltoid head. 

Serratus Anterior

The serratus anterior is that cool-looking muscle located over the ribs and shaped like a fan. It’s primarily responsible for the protraction of the scapula and is commonly called the boxer’s muscle as a result. 

It also works with the trapezius muscle to assist in lifting objects overhead. 

Triceps Brachii

The triceps brachii or triceps for short is a three-headed muscle as you probably guessed. It has a lateral (outer), medial (middle), and long (inner) head. 

The triceps function primarily to extend the forearm at the elbow and is typically responsible for 2/3 of upper arm mass, whereas the biceps usually make up about 1/3. 

All pressing exercises involve the triceps muscles. 

Pectoralis (clavicular)

The Arnold press may be a shoulder-focused exercise. However, any overhead press also includes the chest muscles, and more specifically, it emphasizes the upper portion by the clavicle. 

This part of the chest is highly activated when the arms are pressed upward in front of the body. 

How To Do The Arnold Press 

Here are step-by-step instructions for how to perform this exercise.

  1. Sit upright on a bench or stand and hold two dumbbells shoulder level with palms facing you.
  2. Press both dumbbells overhead and halfway through, rotate your wrists until they are facing away from you, and continue until both arms are locked out or close to it.
  3. Lower the dumbbells back down and halfway through, twist your wrists until they are facing you, and bring the dumbbells to the original starting position.
  4. Complete the exercise for the desired number of reps.

Here’s a video example… 

Dumbbell Arnold Press Tips:

  • Start light and practice good form before progressing to heavier dumbbells. You want to control the movement and not press wildly. This will throw off the form and is not ideal for maximizing muscle development. 
  • Make sure to keep your torso upright to protect your lower back during the movement.
  • If doing the standing variation, you can use your legs for momentum to press heavy weight. This is only recommended for more advanced exercisers. 

3 Variations

Here are three variations that’ll work just as well as the Arnold Press for building the deltoids. 

Dumbbell shoulder press

If you don’t have the mobility or prefer to keep things simple, you can never go wrong with the basic overhead dumbbell shoulder press.

It’ll no doubt allow you to handle more weight overall and is a classic.

Single-arm Arnold press

Want to really challenge your core and total-body stability, try the exercise using one arm at a time. You may even find that you prefer this variation over the conventional two-arm version. 

Kettlebell Arnold Press

Want to make this a more functional exercise? We recommend the kettlebell Arnold Press.

But what makes it more functional?

First off, as with most kettlebell exercises, you’ll start by swinging the bell through your legs before transitioning into the press. This is simply good practice for training the hip hinge movement.

Learning to properly hip hinge is important for athletic and everyday movements. We also suggest you include the kettlebell swing and its variations in your workouts if you haven’t already as there are so many amazing benefits. 

The next advantage of using a kettlebell/s is that it helps to improve shoulder mobility and stability more so than if you were to use dumbbells. That’s because the bulk of the kettlebell rotates around the hand.

Learn more about kettlebell training here and check out the video below for how to do this variation. 

How To Incorporate The Dumbbell Arnold Press Into Your Training Routine 

The dumbbell Arnold press is a great exercise to include regularly or mix things up in your shoulder training workouts. 

It’s a viable variation for working the lateral and anterior heads at once and consequently is the perfect movement if you’re short on time. 

You probably won’t be able to move as much weight as you could using other variations however, that’s not the point. Not to mention, it could help to improve overhead shoulder mobility. 

An ideal shoulder workout that includes this exercise would look something like the following. 

Shoulder workout/exercise

  • Barbell or machine overhead press 2 sets x 10-12 reps
  • Arnold press 2 sets x 10-12 reps
  • Dumbbell lateral raise 2 sets x 10-15 reps
  • Dumbbell rear delt raise 2 sets x 10-15 reps
  • Face pulls 2 sets x 12-15 reps

This ensures that you hit all heads and are able to handle various weights to optimally stimulate your delts. 

Sets/reps

We recommend 2-3 sets for the Arnold press and anywhere from 7-20 reps. This ensures you’re not training too light or too heavy. 

Wrapping Up

The dumbbell Arnold Press is a classic from a legend. Arnold Schwarzenegger clearly knew what he was doing hence the iconic physique and the 7 Mr. Olympia title.

Whether or not he came up with the idea, well, we don’t know but we get to benefit from a great variation. 

It’s a viable option for working a large part of the deltoid muscles and we hope that this guide helps you to maximize its use to improve your muscle development. 

For the latest news and updates please follow us on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
Facebook Twitter Reddit Flipboard LinkedIn
Categories: Exercise Guides Shoulders
Previous Post

Weighted Captain’s Chair Leg and Hip Raise (Abdominals)

Next Post

Cable Horizontal Pallof Press (Core)

Malik, DPT

Malik, DPT

I'm NASM Certified Personal Trainer and nutritional coach since 2012. I've many certifications including NASM-FNS, NASM- CES and NASM-CPT I am part-time writer, have written for many publications include flex, fitnessvolt, coachmag and M&F.

Recommended For You

100 Kettlebell Swings A Day

13 Advantages of Doing 100 Kettlebell Swings a Day

A kettlebell is a cast-iron or cast-steel ball with a handle attached to its top and resembles a cannonball with...

Science Based Tricep Exercises

Revealed: The Best Triceps Exercises According to Science

Bodybuilding is a time-consuming activity. Not only do you have to find time to train 4-6 times a week, but...

Hunter Labrada Push Day

Bodybuilder Hunter Labrada Shares a Brutal Push Day Workout Video

Hunter Labrada is considered one of the frontrunners for winning the 2022 Mr. Olympia, scheduled for Dec. 15-18, 2022, in Las...

Landmine 180 Exercise

Landmine 180 – How To, Benefits, Muscles Worked and Variations

Crunches, leg raises, and planks all have their place in an ab-building regime, but so do the more unconventional exercises...

Mountain Climber Exercise

Mountain Climbers — How-To, Benefits, Muscles Worked, and Variations

Mountain climbers are a fun and challenging way to mix up your workouts, burn calories, improve cardio fitness, strengthen your...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest

Reducing Body Fat

Ripped: How to Get Down to 10% Body Fat

Bulgarian Split Squat Variations

The 10 Best Bulgarian Split Squat Variations for Muscular, Athletic Legs

Iranian Hulk Vs Kazakh Titan

Iranian Hulk Agrees To a Boxing Match vs Kazakh Titan

Recent Reviews

Best Cacao Nibs

10 Best Cacao Nibs of 2022

Ghost Legend Pre-Workout Review

Ghost Legend Pre-Workout Review

Best Vitamin C Supplements 1

10 Best Vitamin C Supplements of 2022

Fitness Volt

At FitnessVolt.com Our mission is to help our readers to achieve their fitness goals, regardless of where you’re at on your journey, we are on a mission to educate You with the latest from strength and fitness space. Read more.

Email: sm(at)fitnessvolt.com

Disclosure: FitnessVolt.com has an affiliate relationship with different brands and is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. However, our reviews are based on well research backed analysis.

Follow Us

Trending Topics

  • Mr. Olympia
  • Bodybuilding
  • Strongman
  • Powerlifting
  • CrossFit
  • At Home Workouts
  • Bodyweight Exercises
  • Best Pre-workouts
  • Best Fat Burners
  • Bodybuilding Diet
  • Bicep Workouts
  • Triceps Workouts
  • Chest Exercises
  • Back Workouts
  • Leg Workouts
  • Front Squat Guide
  • Calf Workouts & Exercises
  • Forgotten Exercises
  • Jefferson Deadlift

Calculators

  • Calorie Burning Calculators
  • IF Calculator
  • TDEE Calculator
  • Calorie Calculator
  • Keto Calculator
  • RMR Calculator
  • Macronutrient Calculator
  • Creatine Calculator
  • Wilks Calculator
  • EER Calculator
  • FFMI Calculator
  • IBW Calculator
  • LBM Calculator
  • Fat Intake Calculator
  • Calories Burned Swimming
  • Calories Per Meal Calculator

  • Food Nutrition Analysis
  • Carb Cycling Calculator
  • Weight Gain Calculator
  • Weight Loss Calculator
  • Calories Burned Calculator
  • Strength Standards
  • One Rep Max Calculator
  • Body Fat Calculator
  • EER Calculator
  • Weight Loss Percentage
  • Treadmill Calorie Calculator
  • Body Surface Area Calculator
  • Running Pace Calculator
  • Bench Press Calculator
  • Protein Calculator
  • Water Intake Calculator
  • Body Type Quiz
  • Steps to Miles Calculator
  • Calorie Deficit Calculator
  • Home
  • About
  • Jobs
  • Accessibility
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Syndication
  • Sitemap
  • DMCA
  • Copyrights
  • Terms
  • Privacy

© Copyright 2010 - 2022 Fitness Volt IBC. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Bodybuilding
  • Powerlifting
  • Strongman
  • CrossFit
  • Workouts
  • Mr. Olympia
  • Exercise Guides
    • Arms
    • Back
    • Chest
    • Core
    • Legs and Glutes
    • Shoulders
  • Training
  • Nutrition
  • Reviews
  • More
    • 2022 WSM
    • Diet
    • News
    • Arnold Classic
    • Motivation
    • Videos
    • Food Facts
    • Deals
    • Fitness Calculator

© Copyright 2010 - 2022 Fitness Volt IBC. All Rights Reserved.