Chest Fly (Dumbbell)
The dumbbell chest fly is an isolation exercise performed on a flat bench that targets the pectoral muscles through a wide arc of motion. It focuses on stretching the chest fibers and building muscle definition by maintaining tension away from the body's midline.
Because the chest fly places significant leverage on the shoulder joint, this app's ability to track RPE and previous injury data is vital for safety; if you have reported shoulder pain, the AI can suggest safer alternatives like floor presses. Additionally, by monitoring your recovery and HRV, the AI optimizes your weight selection to ensure you stimulate the muscle without overstraining connective tissue during this stretch-focused movement.
Form Cues
- Retract your shoulder blades against the bench
- Maintain a slight, fixed bend in your elbows
- Lower the weights in a wide arc until you feel a stretch
- Squeeze your chest muscles hard at the top
- Keep your feet flat on the floor for stability
- Don't straighten your arms completely at the top
- Don't drop your elbows below shoulder level if it causes pain
- Don't turn the movement into a press by bending elbows too much
- Don't bang the dumbbells together at the peak
- Don't lift your head or hips off the bench
Common Mistakes
- Turning the movement into a press
- Locking elbows out straight
- Going too heavy and compromising form
- Overstretching the shoulder joint
- Using momentum to lift the weights
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily isolates the pectoralis major, specifically targeting the sternal fibers to build chest width and inner-chest definition. The anterior deltoids and biceps play a secondary role by stabilizing the arm position and controlling the weight during the wide arc of movement.
Primary
Secondary
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