Dumbbell Bench Press

ChestDumbbellBeginnerCompound
Dumbbell Bench Press — start position
Start
Dumbbell Bench Press — finish position
Finish
Muscles worked
PrimaryChest
SecondaryShoulders, Triceps

How to do it

  1. 01

    Lie down on a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand resting on top of your thighs. The palms of your hands will be facing each other.

  2. 02

    Then, using your thighs to help raise the dumbbells up, lift the dumbbells one at a time so that you can hold them in front of you at shoulder width.

  3. 03

    Once at shoulder width, rotate your wrists forward so that the palms of your hands are facing away from you. The dumbbells should be just to the sides of your chest, with your upper arm and forearm creating a 90 degree angle. Be sure to maintain full control of the dumbbells at all times. This will be your starting position.

  4. 04

    Then, as you breathe out, use your chest to push the dumbbells up. Lock your arms at the top of the lift and squeeze your chest, hold for a second and then begin coming down slowly. Tip: Ideally, lowering the weight should take about twice as long as raising it.

  5. 05

    Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions of your training program.

In the app

Dumbbell Bench Press appears when you own dumbbells and the day's window has room for it. Loads come from Rule 3 (Loads rise when earned, read from RPE, graded strong) and climb on the reps you actually did.

If a machine is taken the engine swaps a same-pattern movement and says why.

If you don't have dumbbells

Same movement pattern, same primary muscles — swap by what you have.

With barbell
With bodyweight
With dumbbell
With machine

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