5 of the Best Lower Chest Exercises to Do at Home

3. Dumbbell bench press

This is an extremely effective exercise for developing upper body strength and increasing muscle mass. The dumbbell bench press has the advantage of lowering the dumbbells further than with a barbell press, enabling more muscle fiber stretch and subsequently muscle growth.

What muscles does the dumbbell bench press work?

Primary muscles:

The pectorals are the primary muscles involved in performing the dumbbell bench press.

Secondary muscles:

The triceps are responsible for the elbow extension of the bench press. The deltoids are also working to stabilize the shoulder joint.

Benefits of the dumbbell bench press

1. The dumbbell bench press helps build more muscle and strength

Bench pressing can generally create substantial strength and hypertrophy gains.

2. The dumbbell bench press helps improve unilateral strength

Unlike barbell bench presses where the muscles of one side of the body tend to work harder to lift the combined weight, bench pressing with dumbbells allows the muscles on either side of the body to work independently.

Instructions for the dumbbell bench press

1. Sitting on the edge of the bench, lift the dumbbells up to the shoulders with palms facing up. Lift each dumbbell up from the floor one at a time to prevent strain on the lower back. With one foot hooked under the bench bar and the other foot resting on the bench with the leg bent, lower yourself onto the bench until you are laying back. Place both feet on the floor and the dumbbells slightly on the outside of the torso at chest level with palms facing forward; this will be the starting point of the exercise.

2. Squeezing the shoulder blades together, drive the dumbbells up over the chest while keeping the elbows at 45 degrees.

3. Lower the weights until you return to the starting position while keeping the elbows at 45 degrees throughout the movement. Repeat for the desired amount of repetitions.

4. This exercise can be done with 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 repetitions, meaning that the above steps need to be repeated for 8 to 12 times with 1 -2  minute break before repeating the set another 2 or 3 times.

Dumbbell Bench Press