Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Jul 7:16:1611468.
doi: 10.3389/fphys.2025.1611468. eCollection 2025.

Dumbbell versus cable lateral raises for lateral deltoid hypertrophy: an experimental study

Stian Larsen  1   2 , Milo Wolf  3 , Brad J Schoenfeld  3 , Nordis Ø Sandberg  1 , Andrea B Fredriksen  1 , Benjamin S Kristiansen  1 , Roland van den Tillaar  1 , Paul A Swinton  4 , Hallvard N Falch  1
Affiliations

Dumbbell versus cable lateral raises for lateral deltoid hypertrophy: an experimental study

Stian Larsen et al. Front Physiol. .

Abstract

Introduction: This study compared the effects of dumbbell versus cable lateral raises on lateral deltoid muscle thickness (MT) in resistance-trained men and women, with shoulder adduction/abduction range of motion standardised and matched between conditions.

Methods: Twenty-four participants completed an eightweek intervention comprising two weekly resistance training sessions of five sets of lateral raises completed to momentary failure. The study employed a within-participant design with each participant's arms randomly allocated to the cable or dumbbell lateral raise. MT of the proximal and distal lateral deltoid was assessed via B-mode ultrasound. Data were analysed in a Bayesian framework including both univariate and multivariate mixed effect models with random effects. Differences between conditions were estimated as average treatment effects, with inferences based on posterior distributions and Bayes Factors (BFs).

Results: Results showed that lateral deltoid muscle thickness increased by 3.3%-4.6% during the intervention. Moreover, univariate analyses provided "moderate" support for the null hypothesis for both the distal (BF = 0.27) and proximal (BF = 0.22) lateral deltoid. Multivariate analysis provided "extreme" support for the null hypothesis (BF < 0.01). Within-intervention results indicated that conditions produced small or small to medium improvements based on resistance training specific thresholds.

Conclusion: In conclusion, our data suggest that both dumbbell and cable lateral raises are similarly effective for increasing lateral deltoid muscle hypertrophy in resistance-trained lifters.

Keywords: Length-tension relationship; muscle thickness; resistance profile; shoulder; within-participant design.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

BJS formerly served on the scientific advisory board for Tonal Corporation. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
CONSORT diagram that shows the data collection process.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Illustration of the two lateral raises conditions trained with.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Representative ultrasound images of the lateral deltoid muscle measuring muscle thickness. The left panel shows the proximal region, and the right panel shows the distal region.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Standardized mean difference estimates of change in muscle thickness during the intervention. Densities illustrate posterior density estimates of within-intervention changes standardized relative to group baseline standard deviation.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Mean ± SD repetition volume lifted each resistance training session for the cable and dumbbell group in the unilateral lateral raise exercise. Black = dumbbell group. Grey = cable group.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bhansing K. J., Van Rosmalen M. H., Van Engelen B. G., Vonk M. C., Van Riel P. L., Pillen S. (2015). Increased fascial thickness of the deltoid muscle in dermatomyositis and polymyositis: an ultrasound study. Muscle and Nerve 52 (4), 534–539. 10.1002/mus.24595 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bloomquist K., Langberg H., Karlsen S., Madsgaard S., Boesen M., Raastad T. (2013). Effect of range of motion in heavy load squatting on muscle and tendon adaptations. Eur. J. Appl. physiology 113, 2133–2142. 10.1007/s00421-013-2642-7 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Botton C. E., Wilhelm E. N., Ughini C. C., Pinto R. S., Lima C. S. (2013). Electromyographical analysis of the deltoid between different strength training exercises. Med. Sport, 17 (2). 10.5604/17342260.1055261 - DOI
    1. Bürkner P.-C. (2017). Brms: an R package for Bayesian multilevel models using stan. J. Stat. Softw. 80, 1–28. 10.18637/jss.v080.i01 - DOI
    1. Coratella G. (2022). Appropriate reporting of exercise variables in resistance training protocols: much more than load and number of repetitions. Sports Medicine-Open 8 (1), 99. 10.1186/s40798-022-00492-1 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources