What does the Arnold press work?

The front of your deltoid does the work. The side head assists through the rotation, and your triceps and traps steady the weight. It is not a rear delt exercise, despite being described as one.

Is the Arnold press better than the shoulder press?

Neither is better outright. The straight shoulder press lets you load more weight and is the better lift for pressing strength. The Arnold press works the front delt through a longer range with less weight. Most people press straight as the main lift and use this as a variation.

How do you do an Arnold press correctly?

Start with the dumbbells at chest height, palms facing you and elbows in front of your ribs. Press up and rotate your palms forward at the same time, so the turn is finished as your arms straighten. Reverse it on the way down. The rotation should be continuous, not a twist tacked on at the top.

Should you do the Arnold press seated or standing?

Seated, for most people. A back rest holds your position so your shoulders take the load and you can use more weight. Standing shifts the limit to your midsection, which trains something different.

Why is it called the Arnold press?

It is named after Arnold Schwarzenegger, who used the rotating press in his own shoulder training. The name stuck; the rotation is the only thing that separates it from a normal dumbbell press.

How much weight should you use on the Arnold press?

Less than your straight dumbbell shoulder press. The rotation happens while the weight is up, so a load you can press but not turn smoothly is too heavy. If your palms only come around at the top, drop the weight.

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Dumbbell · intermediate · shoulders

Dumbbell arnold press

Also called Arnold shoulder press, Arnold dumbbell press, Arnold DB press, Seated Arnold press.

The short answer

The dumbbell Arnold press is an overhead press that starts with your palms facing you and rotates them forward as you push. The rotation keeps the front of your shoulder under load through a longer arc than a straight press does, so the front delt is the one pushing it overhead. Your triceps and traps assist, and you will handle less weight than on a standard dumbbell shoulder press because the rotation happens while the weight is up.

How to do it

Step oneSit on a bench with back support and hold a dumbbell in each hand at chest height, palms facing you.
Step twoBegin the press by rotating your palms to face forward as you push the dumbbells upward.
Step threeContinue pressing until your arms are fully extended overhead.
Step fourReverse the motion, rotating your palms back to face you as you lower the dumbbells to chest height.

What usually goes wrong

Each starts with what you would notice.

Your lower back is what aches afterward, not your shoulders.

WhyYour ribs flare as the dumbbells pass overhead, so your spine extends to find the range your shoulders are not giving.

FixSet your ribs down over your hips and brace before the first rep. If you cannot press overhead without your ribs flaring, press seated with a back rest until you can.

You finish with your neck and upper traps burning.

WhyYour shoulders shrug toward your ears in the last few inches to complete the press.

FixStop the press where your elbows are almost straight rather than locking and reaching. The last inch of shrug adds nothing to the delt.

It feels like a lateral raise at the bottom, and the shoulder joint pinches.

WhyYour elbows are flared out wide at the start instead of pointing forward, so your arm is turned out to the side and rotating under load.

FixStart with your elbows in front of your ribs and your palms facing you, close to a hammer curl position. Let the rotation open them, rather than starting open.

The rotation happens at the top, in a rush, once the weight is already up.

WhyThe load is too heavy to turn smoothly, so the press happens first and your wrists catch up.

FixDrop the weight until the turn is continuous from the first inch of the press. The rotation is the exercise; if it is not smooth, you are doing a shoulder press with a flourish.

Arnold press or shoulder press

A standard dumbbell shoulder press travels straight up and straight down with the palms facing forward the whole way. Because nothing rotates, you can steady the weight more easily and load it heavier, which makes it the better choice when the goal is pressing strength.

The Arnold press trades that load for range. Starting with your palms turned in puts the front of your shoulder in a longer position, and the rotation keeps tension on it through the whole press. Expect to use noticeably less weight than your straight press, and treat that as the exercise working rather than as a problem.

They are not rivals. If you only press one way, press straight and load it. If you already press and want the front delt worked through more range, this is the variation for it.

Seated or standing

Seated against an upright bench takes your balance out of it. The back rest holds your position, so your shoulders get the load and you can use more weight. That is the version most people should do, and the version most demonstrations show.

Standing removes the back rest, so your midsection has to stop your ribs flaring as the weight goes overhead. You will use less weight, and the limiting factor becomes your trunk rather than your shoulders. Useful if that is what you want to train, unhelpful if you came here to work the delt.

When a standing set leaves your lower back sore, that has answered the question for now.

The rotation adds range, not a rear delt

Almost every guide to this movement says it works all three heads of the deltoid, and some go further and credit it with building the rear delt or improving your posture. That oversells it.

The rotation genuinely brings the side head in more than a straight press does, and it lengthens the range the front head works through. But this is still a press, and a press is driven by the front of the shoulder. If the rear head is what you want to grow, it needs pulling work: rows, face pulls, rear delt flyes. No amount of pressing substitutes for that.

Which is the useful way to read your own sets. The front of your shoulder should be the thing that gives out. If something else does, the section above tells you what it means.

What it is for

The Arnold press is a dumbbell shoulder exercise targeting all three heads of the deltoid. The rotational component of the press engages the front, side, and rear delts throughout the movement, providing more complete shoulder development than a standard press.

Questions people ask

What does the Arnold press work?: The front of your deltoid does the work. The side head assists through the rotation, and your triceps and traps steady the weight. It is not a rear delt exercise, despite being described as one.
Is the Arnold press better than the shoulder press?: Neither is better outright. The straight shoulder press lets you load more weight and is the better lift for pressing strength. The Arnold press works the front delt through a longer range with less weight. Most people press straight as the main lift and use this as a variation.
How do you do an Arnold press correctly?: Start with the dumbbells at chest height, palms facing you and elbows in front of your ribs. Press up and rotate your palms forward at the same time, so the turn is finished as your arms straighten. Reverse it on the way down. The rotation should be continuous, not a twist tacked on at the top.
Should you do the Arnold press seated or standing?: Seated, for most people. A back rest holds your position so your shoulders take the load and you can use more weight. Standing shifts the limit to your midsection, which trains something different.
Why is it called the Arnold press?: It is named after Arnold Schwarzenegger, who used the rotating press in his own shoulder training. The name stuck; the rotation is the only thing that separates it from a normal dumbbell press.
How much weight should you use on the Arnold press?: Less than your straight dumbbell shoulder press. The rotation happens while the weight is up, so a load you can press but not turn smoothly is too heavy. If your palms only come around at the top, drop the weight.