Mastering The Incline Dumbbell Press: A Step By Step Guide

A body doesn’t get strong without preparation and key training practices. Even if you’re one of the lucky ones who was born with a good base to work with, you still need to put the work in to maintain it.

The incline dumbbell press is one exercise worthy of making its way onto your list of weekly workouts. But you’ve gotta be sure you’ve really mastered this movement to get the most out of it.

Why the incline dumbbell press matters

Think of the body as a holistic organism. It has a lot of moving parts that come together to give you the ability to flow like a cheetah and make decisions in a split second. If you take your physique seriously, one of those decisions should be to do the incline dumbbell bench press. And here’s why.

Regardless of whether you’re competing in a bodybuilding competition or are just a meatface who likes to get swole and show off to the ladies, this exercise helps round out your upper body. Plus, it’ll enable you to perform daily activities that involve the upper body with more tact and precision.

If you choose to keep it out of your programming, to put it bluntly, you’ll be missing out.

Which muscle group does the incline press target?

Your upper body contains several large muscles. All are pretty important to focus on in the gym. But perhaps the ones that are gonna turn the most heads at the beach are the pectorals – AKA your chest.

This is the main muscle group that the incline press targets. More specifically, it hits the upper region of the pectoralis major. But, there are also some secondary muscles at play. They would be the deltoids (located within the shoulders), triceps (the back of the arms) and even the rectus abdominis (in the abdomen).

How to perform the incline dumbbell press with proper form

Any serious bodybuilder should know that form trumps all when it comes to working out. Regardless of whether it’s an incline dumbbell bench press, mace 360, Indian club slasher or seated biceps curl. Own your form and your body will react accordingly.

Here's how it’s done:

Prefer to read the steps? No problem! When performing the incline press, pay close attention to the following:

1. Grab a pair of dumbbells and rest them vertically on your thighs while sitting on the seat of an incline bench.
2. Lean backward and hoist the weights up by the outside of your shoulders with your palms facing forward. Your elbows should be bent at this point and your back and head should be pressed flat against the bench.
3. Tighten your abs to brace your body and push the dumbbells upward and toward each other in an arcing motion.
4. Stop when the weights are about an inch apart or when they lightly touch each other. Don’t be an idiot and bang the weights together! This is an amateur mistake and it’ll not only prevent you from maximizing your results from the exercise, but it’ll also make you look like a goofball.
5. Squeeze your pecs forcefully at the top for a full second, then slowly reverse the arc to lower the weights down.
6. Stop when your elbows are down by your sides and repeat for a set of reps.
7. Once you’re done, carefully bring the weights back to your thighs, lean forward and then stand up to rerack them. Again, don’t be an inconsiderate d-bag and throw the weights on the floor. If they’re too heavy to manage for your set, get lighter ones.

Seeing results from the incline dumbbell press

The only reason you ever really do anything in the gym is to see results. What other motivation would there be? When it comes to the incline press, you’re only gonna see results if you execute proper form all of the time. Anything less will render you half-assed results, which, let’s face it, aren’t really results at all.

If you throw this drill into your rotation two or three days a week with good form, you can definitely start to see and feel a difference in about two weeks. But this will vary depending on the person because no two bodies are exactly the same.

Exercises which compliment the incline dumbbell press

To really get the most benefit from the incline press, there are a few other exercises you should add to your program. These would include flat bench presses, decline bench presses, and flys. By throwing all of these into the mix, you’ll target your upper, middle, lower and inner chest, which will give you the best shot of building bulk and definition.

Here is a detailed guide to 3 Exercises to Build a Well-Defined Chest >>

As for flys, feel free to do them from all three angles – decline, flat and incline. That’ll give you the best chance of developing that serrated look in the center of your chest.

Video Tutorial From Chris Tripp: Master Skull Crushers >>

Over to you

Knowledge is power, and now you have that knowledge, you have everything you need to make the incline dumbbell press work for you. Slot it into your training regime this week – I don’t think you’ll be disappointed by the gains it brings!

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