The Arnold press is a seated dumbbell press with a rotation: palms face you at the bottom and away at the top, so your front delts work through a long range.
1Starting positionStart2End positionFinish
Setup
Sit on a bench with back support, dumbbells in front of your chest at chin height, palms facing you, elbows in front. Back against the pad, feet on the floor.
Execution
Sit with back support, hold the dumbbells in front of your chest, palms facing you — starting position.
Exhale and press the dumbbells up, rotating your palms outward until your arms are straight overhead.
Inhale and lower them back down, rotating your palms back toward you.
Common mistakes
Rotating only at the very end — the turn happens through the whole press.
Arching your lower back — back on the pad, abs braced.
Dropping low with elbows flared — at the bottom your elbows are in front, like the start.
Using your regular dumbbell press weight — go lighter here.
Not sure about your form? Send me a video of a set — I'll take a look and tell you what to fix first.
