The Single Arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press is an intermediate dumbbell overhead press that primarily trains the shoulders, with the triceps assisting. It is useful for building overhead pressing strength with the shoulders and triceps.
Primary muscles
shoulders
Secondary muscles
triceps
Equipment
dumbbell
Difficulty
intermediate
TARGET AREA
Muscles worked
Primary muscles
shoulders
Secondary muscles
triceps
THE MOVEMENT
How to perform
Sit or stand with the dumbbell on one side at shoulder height.
Brace the torso and keep the forearm stacked under the load.
Press overhead while keeping the ribs controlled and shoulder path comfortable.
Lower slowly to the same shoulder-level start position.
IRONYOU / CORE
Core cues
Keep the torso or pelvis stable and match the range of motion between sides.
Keep the forearms stacked under the load as you press.
Use a repeatable start and finish position instead of shortening the range as you fatigue.
STAY SHARP
Common mistakes
Rotating or shifting the torso/pelvis to make the working side easier.
Letting the elbows or wrists drift into an unstable position.
Using leg drive or momentum when the goal is a strict shoulder press.
YOUR PROGRESS
Your strength
Use your best set to calculate your current IronYou rank and see what comes next.
IRONYOU RANK CALCULATOR
127 exercises. One ladder. Your first rank is free.
Published reference points from the production IronYou rank system.
IronYou has 13 strength ranks: Copper I–III → Silver I–III → Gold I–III → Titanium I–III → IRON. IRON is the highest IronYou rank. The public standards tables show the estimated 1RM required to enter Silver I, Gold I, Titanium I, and IRON. Standards vary by sex and bodyweight.
Logged load: load for the working side. Public value: per logged side.
Single Arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press Strength Standards — Male
Male
Published estimated 1RM thresholds by bodyweight. Load is recorded as per logged side.
Single Arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press estimated 1RM strength standards by bodyweight and IronYou rank — Male.
Bodyweight (kg)
Silver I
Gold I
Titanium I
IRON
50 kg
16.8 kg
22.2 kg
27.6 kg
39 kg
60 kg
18.6 kg
24.6 kg
30.6 kg
43.2 kg
70 kg
20.2 kg
26.8 kg
33.3 kg
47 kg
80 kg
21.7 kg
28.7 kg
35.7 kg
50.4 kg
90 kg
23 kg
30.5 kg
38 kg
53.5 kg
100 kg
24.2 kg
32.1 kg
39.9 kg
56.3 kg
110 kg
25.3 kg
33.5 kg
41.7 kg
58.9 kg
120 kg
26.3 kg
34.8 kg
43.4 kg
61.2 kg
Single Arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press Strength Standards — Female
Female
Published estimated 1RM thresholds by bodyweight. Load is recorded as per logged side.
Single Arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press estimated 1RM strength standards by bodyweight and IronYou rank — Female.
Bodyweight (kg)
Silver I
Gold I
Titanium I
IRON
40 kg
7.8 kg
10.4 kg
12.9 kg
18.2 kg
50 kg
10.4 kg
13.8 kg
17.2 kg
24.2 kg
60 kg
12.1 kg
16 kg
19.9 kg
28 kg
70 kg
13.1 kg
17.3 kg
21.6 kg
30.4 kg
80 kg
13.7 kg
18.2 kg
22.6 kg
31.9 kg
90 kg
14.1 kg
18.7 kg
23.2 kg
32.8 kg
100 kg
14.3 kg
19 kg
23.7 kg
33.3 kg
Values are estimated 1RM thresholds required to enter the named IronYou major rank tier.
Standards are derived from the production IronYou Rank V1 model.
KEEP EXPLORING
Variations
Related variations: Barbell Shoulder Press, Machine Shoulder Press, and Single Arm Machine Shoulder Press.
Use single-side work to match control between sides, or a bilateral version when you want both sides working together.
EARLY ACCESS
Track Single Arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press in IronYou.
Keep your last session, progress and next target with you when you train.