Incline Dumbbell Press
Muscles worked: Chest (assisted by front delts, triceps).
How to do it
- Lie back on an incline bench with a dumbbell in each hand atop your thighs.
- Then, using your thighs to help push the dumbbells up, lift the dumbbells one at a time so that you can hold them at shoulder width.
- Once you have the dumbbells raised to shoulder width, rotate your wrists forward so that the palms of your hands are facing away from you.
- Be sure to keep full control of the dumbbells at all times.
- Lock your arms at the top, hold for a second, and then start slowly lowering the weight.
Coaching cues
The two cues IronPack shows on this exercise's card mid-workout:
- Bench 30°, not 45°
- Lower to upper chest, elbows under the bells
Logging it
IronPack suggests working in the 6 to 10 rep range, progressing in 2 kg jumps when you own the top of the range. Records are tracked automatically at every rep count from 1 to 12. Check your estimated 1RM from any hard set.
Related exercises
- Barbell Bench Press - chest
- Dumbbell Bench Press - chest
- Incline Barbell Press - chest
- Dips - chest, triceps
Track the incline dumbbell press properly
IronPack logs every set, tracks your records at every rep count, shows these form photos mid-workout, and turns the training into a card game you play with your mates.
Get IronPack free on the App StoreFree download, iPhone. Currently on the New Zealand App Store, wider rollout to follow.
Photos and steps: free-exercise-db (public domain). Cues, muscle weighting and logging guidance are IronPack's own app data. Last generated 2026-07-17.