Shoulders · Bodyweight
Weighted Bottle Side Lying Shoulder External Rotation
How to do the weighted bottle side lying shoulder external rotation, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Lie on your side with a water bottle in your top hand and that elbow bent 90 degrees, tucked against your ribs. Keeping the elbow pinned to your side, rotate your forearm up and away from your stomach until it points toward the ceiling, then lower under control. Finish your reps, then switch sides.
- 1Feel the back of your shoulder and rotator cuff control the lift
- 2Keep your elbow tucked firmly against your ribs
- 3Move slowly through a comfortable, pain-free range
Common mistakes
- Don't let your elbow drift away from your side
- Avoid swinging or rolling your torso to lift the bottle
- Don't push into any pinch or pain at the top
Muscles worked
The weighted bottle side lying shoulder external rotation mainly works the external rotators, with the rear delts assisting.
- External RotatorsPrimary
- Rear DeltsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
- Mid TrapsMinor
Kovo programs the weighted bottle side lying shoulder external rotation 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 hips & adductors exercises
- How to do the butterfly stretch
- How to do the external rotation
- How to do the cable hip adduction
- How to do the internal rotation
- How to do the cobra pose
- How to do the core scrunch
Last reviewed June 2026.