Iron Cross

Also called dumbbell iron cross, front to lateral raise and iron cross raise.

Works

Shoulders, plus chest, glutes, hamstrings, lower back, quads and traps

Equipment

Dumbbells

Level

Intermediate

Type

Compound

How to do it

Cues

• Light dumbbells, arms straight.
• Raise to shoulder height in front.
• Sweep out wide, hold 1 second.
• Lower slowly.

Common mistakes

• Shrugging.
• Using too much weight.

Where to start

A starting point, not a law. Pick a weight you could lift two or three more times than the top of the range. Tempo is seconds down, pause, up. When every set hits the top of the range, add a little weight.

Go easy, or pick an alternative, if you have a sore shoulder. Pain that's sharp or gets worse set to set means stop.

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