Smith Incline Shoulder Raise — start position
Start
Smith Incline Shoulder Raise — end position
End

Shoulders / Beginner / Isolation (single joint)

Smith Incline Shoulder Raise

A barbell isolation exercise for the front delts, with the chest assisting.

At a glance

Primary
Front delts
Secondary
Chest
Equipment
Barbell, Smith machine, Bench
Movement pattern
Overhead push
Level
Beginner
Type
Shoulders, Isolation (single joint)

How to do it

  1. Place an incline bench underneath the smith machine. Place the barbell at a height that you can reach when lying down and your arms are almost fully extended. Once the weight you need is selected, lie down on the incline bench and make sure your shoulders are aligned right under the barbell.
  2. Using a shoulder width pronated (palms forward) grip, lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with a slight bend at the elbows. This will be your starting position.
  3. As you breathe out, lift the bar up until your arms are fully extended. Note: The contraction should be felt around the shoulders.
  4. After a second pause, bring the bar back down to the starting position as you breathe in.
  5. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
  6. When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.

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Muscles worked

Neck (Front)Upper traps (Front)Front delts — primary (Front)Side delts (Front)Chest — secondary (Front)Serratus anterior (Front)Biceps (Front)Forearms & grip (Front)Abs (Front)Obliques (Front)Hip flexors (Front)Quads (Front)Adductors (Front)Shins (tibialis) (Front)Calves (Front)Outer shins (peroneals) (Front)Feet (arch & toes) (Front)Neck (Back)Upper traps (Back)Upper back (rhomboids, mid/lower traps) (Back)Rear delts (Back)Side delts (Back)Rotator cuff (Back)Lats (Back)Lower back (erectors) (Back)Triceps (Back)Forearms & grip (Back)Hip abductors (glute med) (Back)Glutes (Back)Hamstrings (Back)Adductors (Back)Calves (Back)
FrontBack
  • Primary: Front delts
  • Secondary: Chest

Best for

How specific this exercise is to each movement.

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Photos and instructions: free-exercise-db (github.com/yuhonas/free-exercise-db), public domain.