Shoulders · Bodyweight
Shoulder - Abduction
How to do the shoulder - abduction, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Stand tall with your arm at your side. Raise your arm out to the side and up toward overhead, leading with the side of your shoulder. Pause at the top, then lower with control and repeat on each arm.
- 1Feel the side of your shoulder lift the arm out and up
- 2Raise the arm through a smooth arc to full range
- 3Keep your torso upright and your shoulder down, not shrugged
Common mistakes
- Do not shrug the trap up as you raise the arm
- Avoid swinging or using momentum to lift
- Do not lean your torso to the opposite side
Muscles worked
The shoulder - abduction mainly works the side delts, with the upper traps assisting.
- Side DeltsPrimary
- Upper TrapsSupport
- Mid TrapsMinor
- Lower TrapsMinor
- Front DeltsMinor
Kovo programs the shoulder - abduction for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More shoulders exercises
- How to do the battle rope alternating waves
- How to do the arm circles
- How to do the arnold press
- How to do the resistance band front raise
- How to do the resistance band lateral raise
- How to do the resistance band overhead press
Last reviewed June 2026.