This is a good exercise to isolate the outer, mid and lower sections of the chest. Secondary muscles involved in this movement are the front delts.
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: 30-40 seconds depending on amount of repetitions performed and setup time.
Here's How:
- Lie down on a flat bench with a dumbbell on each hand on top of your thighs. The palms of your hand will be facing each other.
- By using your thighs to help you get the dumbbells up, clean the dumbbells one arm at a time so that you can hold them in front of you at shoulder width. This will be your starting position.
- With a slight bend on your elbows in order to prevent stress at the biceps tendon, lower your arms out at both sides in a wide arc until you feel a stretch on your chest. Breathe in as you perform this portion of the movement. Keep in mind that throughout the movement, the arms should remain stationary; the movement should only occur at the shoulder joint.
- Return your arms back to the starting position as you breathe out. Make sure to use the same arc of motion used to lower the weights.
- Hold for a second at the starting position and repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
Tips:
- For variety purposes you may want to also try a variation of this exercise in which the palms face forward instead of facing each other.
- Another variation for this exercise is to perform it on an incline bench or with the cable machine.
What You Need
- Adjustable bench
- Dumbbells
