All about the Incline Dumbbell Fly
(Chest)
BENEFITS & MUSCLES WORKED: Chest, Upper Back, Shoulders, Arms, Biceps
Watch: Incline Dumbbell Fly video
START POSITION: Lie back on an incline bench, which has been set for an incline of around 25 – 45°. The image below shows an angle of no more than 40°. Hold two dumbbells directly above your Shoulders at arm’s length. You’re ready to go.
NOTES: Difficulty Rating: 59%
From the Start Position, begin the Incline Dumbbell Fly by lowering the Dumbbells downwards and outwards by bending the elbows and encouraging the Chest to expand sideways. At the bottom of the movement, your elbows should be lower than your shoulders. For super-fit athletes who use very heavy Dumbbells, it’s not unusual for the elbows to sink very low, even below the top surface of the bench.
Breathe out on the way up and in (best through your nose) on the way down. You can pause for a half second at the top position, where the Dumbbells are close to each other, and give a slight squeeze of your Chest muscles. This helps activate and engage more of the muscles, thereby making the exercise more efficient.
This Incline Dumbbell Fly requires less weight than the heavier Chest exercises, such as the flat Bench Press. This is because you are working the Upper Chest more than the bulkier lower and mid Chest muscles. The Upper Chest is always weaker than the Middle Chest, so I would recommend using at least half the weight you usually Bench Press with.
Incline Flies (as with all incline-style gym exercises) serve as an accessory exercise to the more powerful main Chest exercises (such as Push-ups and Flat Bench Press). They are critical for serious athletes because they ensure that weaker areas of the body are strengthened, thereby maintaining a well-balanced physique. As with all accessory exercises (and especially if you are new to this), aim to use low weights and high repetitions, which provide a great workout with a significantly reduced risk of injury.
Some examples of accessory exercises for other muscle groups include Calf Raises (for the Legs) and Reverse Flies (for the Back). The Mojoh Method advocates for training the whole body, including strength, Flexibility, and various accessory exercises, such as a large number of Pilates exercises. Do it all. It is far better to train everything with light weights (and get it all done) than to train heavily on only half your body.