Dumbbell Incline Hammer Press

Setup

1. 01Set an incline bench to 30 to 45 degrees.
2. 02Bring the dumbbells to the shoulders and lie back in one motion.
3. 03Turn the palms to face each other in a hammer grip.
4. 04Plant the feet and pin the shoulder blades back and down.

Execution

1. 01Press the dumbbells up over the upper chest to full lockout.
2. 02Lower under control with the elbows tracking close to the torso.
3. 03Touch the dumbbells lightly near the front of the shoulders.
4. 04Drive back up without letting the wrists rotate out of neutral.

Checkpoints

• -Palms face each other for the entire set.
• -Elbows stay 30 to 45 degrees from the torso, not flared.
• -Dumbbells finish over the shoulders, not over the face.
• -Low back keeps only a natural arch on the incline.

Common mistakes

• -Letting the elbows drift wide, which defeats the neutral grip.
• -Bouncing out of the bottom position.
• -Arching hard to turn the incline into a flat press.
• -Losing wrist neutrality as fatigue builds.