Chest
Dumbbell Pullover Press
The Dumbbell Pullover Press is a strength exercise with dumbbells for your chest. Share of the load in the Zulta muscle model: lats (upper) 19%, lats (lower) 14% and mid chest 14%.
How to do it
- Lie on a flat bench holding a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing each other, feet flat on the floor.
- Press the dumbbells up over your chest.
- Bend the elbows and lower the dumbbells back behind your head until the upper arms are beside your ears.
- Pull the elbows forward over your chest, keeping them bent, until the dumbbells are above your chest.
- Press the dumbbells up to straight arms to finish the rep.
Tips
- Keep the elbows pointing forward and close together during the pullover part.
- Make the pull and the press two clear phases instead of one blend.
Common mistakes
- Letting the elbows flare wide as the weights go behind the head.
- Arching the lower back at the deepest point.
- Rushing the pullover and only doing the press with control.
Muscles worked by the Dumbbell Pullover Press
Share per muscle in the Zulta muscle model. The model spreads the load of one rep over 40 muscles, based on EMG and biomechanics research.
Lying pullovers load the pec as much as the lats (Marchetti and Uchida 2011). A press at the top adds triceps and chest. With the elbows locked, shoulder extension isolates the lats and the long head of the triceps; lying pullovers bring the sternal pec in strongly.
Dumbbell Pullover Press alternatives
Same equipment
Different equipment
Easier
Make it harder
Make it easier
Frequently asked questions
What muscles does the Dumbbell Pullover Press work?
Mainly the lats (upper) and lats (lower). The mid chest, lower chest, triceps (long head), triceps (lateral head) and rear delts assist.
Is the Dumbbell Pullover Press good for beginners?
The Dumbbell Pullover Press is rated intermediate. If you are new, learn the Band Straight Arm Pulldown first and build up from there.
What is a good alternative to the Dumbbell Pullover Press?
For example the Barbell Pull Over, Lying Cable Pullover and Dumbbell Lat Pullover. They train mostly the same muscles, some with different equipment.
How do you make the Dumbbell Pullover Press harder?
Add weight or reps, or move on to the Front Lever Raise and Skin the Cat.
Sources
- Marchetti and Uchida 2011, J Appl Biomech 27(4):380-384 (pullover, pec and lats)
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