Dumbbell Chest Fly
A step-by-step form guide from the Ægir Iron exercise library: how to do the lift, what to watch for, and the muscles it trains.
- Equipment
- Cable
- Dumbbell
- Machine
HOW TO PERFORM
- Set up lying on a bench or standing between two cables, load in each hand over the chest.
- Keep a slight bend in the elbows and hold that same bend for the whole set.
- Open the arms out wide in an arc until you feel the chest stretch, stopping level with the torso.
- Squeeze the arms back together over the chest along the same arc.
FORM TIPS
- The elbow angle never changes. As soon as it opens and closes you are pressing, which is a different exercise and lets you use weight the stretch position cannot handle.
- The bottom is the loaded stretch and the reason to do flyes at all, but it is also where shoulders get hurt. Stop where it is strong, not where it is maximal.
TARGET MUSCLES
Primary
- Chest
Secondary
- Shoulders
In the app
This guide covers these exercises in the Ægir Iron library:
- Cable Chest Fly
- Dumbbell Chest Fly
- Cable Incline Chest Fly
- Cable Seated Chest Fly
- Dumbbell Decline Chest Fly
- Dumbbell Incline Chest Fly
- Machine Pec Fly
Log it in Ægir Iron to track your PRs and estimated 1RM, and to see the sets each muscle gets every week. Free for individual lifters.