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Dumbbell Floor Press
A dumbbell press performed lying on the floor, cutting the range at the elbows to spare the shoulders and overload the lockout.
ChestDumbbellHorizontal press
GoLightWeight mediadumbbell-floor-press
Demonstration coming soon
Primary
Pectoralis majorTriceps
Secondary
Anterior deltoidsCore
Equipment
Dumbbell
Pattern
Horizontal press
Setup
- 01Lie on your back on the floor with the knees bent and feet flat.
- 02Bring the dumbbells to the shoulders and press them to arm's length over the chest.
- 03Pull the shoulder blades together and keep the lower back close to the floor.
Execution
- 01Lower the dumbbells under control until the upper arms rest gently on the floor.
- 02Pause briefly with the forearms vertical, keeping tension in the chest.
- 03Press the dumbbells back up and slightly together over the chest.
- 04Lock out the elbows without letting the shoulders roll forward.
Checkpoints
- -Upper arms touch down softly; no bouncing off the floor.
- -Elbows stay at roughly 45 degrees from the torso.
- -Forearms stay vertical at the bottom of every rep.
- -Shoulder blades stay pinned through the entire set.
Common mistakes
- -Slamming the upper arms into the floor to rebound the weight.
- -Flaring the elbows straight out to the sides.
- -Relaxing at the bottom pause and losing chest tension.
- -Arching the lower back off the floor to press bigger loads.
Programming notes
- -Use 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 12 reps; the dead-stop bottom suits strength work.
- -Add a full 1-second pause on the floor to build pressing power out of the hole.
- -A good bench press substitute when shoulders are irritated or no bench is available.
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