Liftworthy
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Liftworthy

Every exercise ranked by research, by lifters and by results. Find what’s S-tier for your goal, then train it.

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General training information, not medical advice. If something hurts, stop and see a professional.
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Explore/Chest

Incline Dumbbell Fly

DumbbellIsolationTakes some practice
Front
Back
Primary Secondary

Works

Chest

Also delts

You need

Dumbbells, Bench

How to do itPictures · 3 steps
Lying on a bench, seen from above
1Start: over your chest
Lying on a bench, seen from above
2Stretch: arms wide
Main musclesAlso working
  1. 1Bench at 30°, a slight bend in the elbows
  2. 2Open wide until you feel a deep chest stretch
  3. 3Bring the dumbbells together over your upper chest

Most common mistake

Dropping too deep with heavy dumbbells, which strains the front of the shoulder.

Watch a demo

Good for

  • Loads the muscle while it’s stretched
A
For chest
#15 of 32
See the full list →
Research
71
Scored by hand
Results
Soon
From the app
How lifters rate itBe the first
S
A
B
C
D
F
Why research scores it 71
Target tensionStrong
Loaded stretchExcellent
ProgressionGood
Low costGood

A big stretch for the upper chest at the bottom, but tension fades near the top and heavy flyes strain the shoulder.

Research behind these criteria

  • Target tension: Zabaleta-Korta et al., 2021 · Kinoshita et al., 2023
  • Loaded stretch: Maeo et al., 2021 · Maeo et al., 2023 · Pedrosa et al., 2022 · Kassiano et al., 2023
  • Progression: Plotkin et al., 2022 · Pelland et al., 2026
  • Low cost: Schoenfeld et al., 2021 · Refalo et al., 2023
How scores work

Machine taken? Swap to

  • SCable FlyCable
  • SPec DeckMachine
  • SHigh-to-Low Cable FlyCable
  • ADumbbell Bench PressDumbbell

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