Exercises / Dumbbell Chest Fly

Dumbbell Chest Fly

Also known as: Dumbbell fly, DB fly, Flat dumbbell fly

A flat-bench fly. The bells travel in a wide arc from a chest stretch back over the sternum, elbows staying soft.

Primary muscles
Chest (pectoralis major)
Secondary muscles
Shoulders (anterior deltoid)
Equipment
Dumbbell (flat bench, pair of dumbbells)
Pattern
Isolation
Difficulty
Beginner
Line diagram of a Dumbbell Chest Fly.
Diagram: Fytniz. License: original-placeholder (Fytniz).

Stills

Two-panel photograph of a flat dumbbell chest fly.
DumbbellFlye.JPG by GeorgeStepanek, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons. License: CC BY-SA (share-alike). Source.
Line-art start position with dumbbells over the chest.
Dumbbell-flys-1.png by Everkinetic, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons. License: CC BY-SA (share-alike). Source.

Cues

  1. Lie on a flat bench with the dumbbells over the chest, palms facing each other, and a soft bend in both elbows.
  2. Lower the bells in a wide arc until the chest is stretched; do not drop the elbows below a line you can control.
  3. Keep that elbow angle; the motion is the upper arms opening, not a triceps extension.
  4. Bring the bells back over the chest in the same arc without banging them together.
  5. Keep the shoulder blades on the bench; do not shrug or let the wrists collapse.

Common mistakes

  • Straightening the elbows so the fly becomes a press or a joint dump.
  • Dropping the bells so far the shoulders roll forward off the bench.
  • Using a bounce at the bottom to start the next rep.

Safety

  • Keep a soft elbow so the shoulder is not yanked into end range.
  • Stop if you feel sharp front-shoulder pain on the stretch.