Incline Dumbbell Press BETTER | Targeting The Muscle Series

[@theveryplumdarcey]

"There are many right answers" Dr Mike is clearly a Doctor of philosophy too.

[@theveryplumdarcey]

@@ShermanKyle Oh thank you.

[@ensnaredbyflesh1030]

Literally what PhD means in fact

[@theveryplumdarcey]

@@ensnaredbyflesh1030 Indeed

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

@@ShermanKyle Hey! Thanks for the props! - Dr. Mike

[@ShermanKyle]

@@RenaissancePeriodization you do great work doc!

[@mark_w_4458]

Dr. Mike continues the "it depends" series and I LOVE IT!

[@Shvabicu]

After a couple years of lifting I intuitively understood it's mostly autoregulation and not what all those instagram form police channels show

[@Devil-ig7kl]

​@@Shvabicu exactly and all of the excercise are good.....

[@TheExplosiveCandy]

@@Shvabicu to o

[@catedoge3206]

yuh

[@stujacks88]

"I am a freight train of stability and strength" is my daily mantra

[@m_js5709]

Amazing

[@t1nna885]

what does this mean

[@David_99778]

@Tomyum19 😂😂

[@pdannysan13]

Freight train or fright train? Cause it wasn't clear to me. ;)

[@focusedtortoise]

@@pdannysan13 freight train means a train that carries cargo

[@zamin_ali]

I'm in my 40s and never worked out in a gym in my life. I started watching your Channel and started going to the gym. Watching these types of videos that you put out has helped me to know what to do while at the gym. I appreciate this type of content, thank you. 👍🤘🙏

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

Amazing, keep up the work! - Dr. Mike

[@CredibleHulk10]

This is beautiful!

[@matthewbusse1059]

Just started doing this a few weeks ago with 25's, the stretch and activation is awesome. The small guys doing 75's next to me keep giving me funny looks

[@akmal94ibrahim]

I started working out at the gym 2 months ago and for the past few weeks, have been watching Dr Mike's videos the day before I do my workouts, just to remind myself of the form, the tips and for motivation. Doing chest tomorrow

[@amirianozakwano]

@@matthewbusse1059 Shouldn't bother about what others are thinking or even what weight they are doing. You do you, set a progress goal and work towards it. Be the strongest version of yourself. Not the strongest dude in the gym. Never try to ego lift. Little by little, you will reach your goal.

[@devonwallace4186]

You know he’s legit when he’s say “ there are multiple variations”. That was it for me. Because there is no one specific way to do any movement. So many people with different sizes and shapes. Not everybody will conduct movements the same way. As long as you’re getting a good contraction, and feeling the specific muscle you’re targeting. Good video

[@ifly211]

I love this series. It’s giving me the confidence to try things that work for me instead of years of doing “perfect form” someone else’s way

[@Sam-pr6oe]

So glad to see the scapula section, keeping my shoulder blades locked and pinched wasn’t only fucking with my stability, it was irritating the front of my shoulder as I wasn’t letting them get in their strongest position, down and out (as opposed to down and in)

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

Yeah man, it's a common carryover from barbell pressing that doesn't ... carry over! - Dr. Mike

[@NieLL1]

yeah me too, I tried inclined DB pressing yesterday and kept getting weird clicks on my shoulder, very annoying. Now I know why! Thanks Dr. Mike

[@nvmffs]

@@RenaissancePeriodization So in barbell pressing (is that bench pressing?) it's actually recommended to retract your shoulder blades as much as possible?

[@KanarisTwitch]

@@nvmffs If you're talking about flat bench pressing, then yes, that is by far the popular recommendation. "Shoulder blades back and down" is quite possibly the most recited cue in all of powerlifting / bodybuilding. It's to keep the shoulders from having to internally rotate at the bottom of the pressing motion, supposedly (and anecdotally for myself) putting them at greater risk of injury. The reason it works on barbell pressing is because the bar connects your hands, so pressing slightly outwards doesn't make the weight fall out to your sides like it would for dumbbells. I don't know what mike and jared do currently in their incline barbell pressing on chest day, but it looks like their shoulder blades are pretty retracted. Thus it's likely a difference only between barbell and dumbbell, not flat and incline. Lastly there's a video from Eugene Teo recommending to flat bench press without permanently retracting your shoulder blades, but it's a very controversial take. If you're going to try anything like that, I recommend you do it with very light weights and then very gradually and carefully work your way up in weight. The main benefit from my PoV would be to work on serratus anterior and get strong in shoulder protracting, but you can do that in safer positions with other movements. The extremely wide consensus is that you should barbell bench press keeping your shoulder blades back and down the whole time (think lats activated, nice and stable).

[@hetfieldjohn9844]

this is some actual real advice, i have been going to the gym for about 1,5 years give or take and Dr mike is the only one that says, "try a bunch of stuff" and see how it feels, this is as legit as it can get

[@jonasw2935]

Thank you so much for this, there is so much to learn. Please never stop this series :)

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

Well I hope we can keep them cranking, but there are only so many exercises! - Dr. Mike

[@Shane_Bedard]

3:20 "I haven't, but I'm trying"... Pure comedy

[@thecrab3544]

Was literally doing these yesterday and thought about Dr. Mike doing a video and I open up to this today. It’s like he knew 👀😳

[@3x3Qt]

Lol same! My shoulders were clicking like mad because I was referencing the older Jared video with elbows out 90 degrees. Luckily this one convinced me to try again at around 60 degrees and it’s WAY more comfortable. I’ll take a slightly reduced pec stretch over clicking shoulders any day! 😂

[@marlonrodney2457]

This is excellent. Just tonight I implemented the step of not retracting my shoulder blades, and the dumbbell press hit my upper chest so much better.

[@wadzilla3711]

The shoulder blade tip really helped me. I identify with your cauliflower ear Dr. Mike. 52 years old and BJJ keeps me young!

[@jbsbigboy.1]

Thanks!

[@bultvidxxxix9973]

Being tall may make it easier to put your feet on the ground, but it also makes it harder to get into a Lamborghini.

[@ME-ls9de]

Tall guys don’t need to have a lambo to get laid 😂🤝🏼

[@theswede5402]

This has become one of my fave chest exercises for sure.

[@David_99778]

Yeaa frr same for me

[@mattcarlson1052]

This is already my favorite chest exercise, and I think I'm going to like it even more after I incorporate the tips I learned in this video. Thanks!

[@Liveeachdaytothefullest]

I'm learning so much from this channel than from all the personal trainers I had in my life.

[@drevil4454]

I trainmmy chest exactly like the Doc says we should. You just cannot go heave. My max weight I use 55lbs dumbells at best but optimum rep range is 45lbs. The other guys in the gym use 2x 110lbs but their chest look like crap and they are half my age. I'm ancient. This channel is a wealth of information and even I learn new stuff.

[@leecourtney1225]

Spot on, I had this realisation and fairly strong for a small guy, wasn't until I really lightened the load and learned to connect, use drops, rest pause etc that I started to 'grow' training for hypertrophy and power lifting isn't the same, even that is more nuanced as some muscles like weight (lats for me) others like lots of blood higher rep (biceps/chest for me). Also dropping the weight I suspect can actually put more weight on the muscle, sure at 65KG I can press 60lb dumbells for 8s no probs, but probably get 30lb on the chest 20lb loaded on the front delts and the rest on my triceps whereas with 45lb probably 35lb on chest and far less on my delts as if the weight is too heavy, the body is amazing and you can be damn sure other muscles will jump in (traps on everything😂😂) . I get it that its a compound lift and the shoulders and tri (back as well weirdly) going to be involved but its a damn chest exercise 😉

[@JM-tj5qm]

But I want to get stronger…. I don’t really care about size that much

[@giannil2498]

Awesome video, sick and tired of folks half repping their incline dumbbell presses, not even touching the chest.

[@JoshBenware]

Yes, I worry so much about other people too!

[@giannil2498]

@@JoshBenware i don't care about how other people train, I care about misinformation spreading. Some influencer will say "only go down to 90 degrees otherwise you'll injure your shoulders" and bunch of clueless people will start doing it and preaching it

[@timmian85]

I think its good that other people dont get any gainz, makes me look bigger.

[@Ryry-ig6sn]

Everyone's biomechanics are different, so what works for someone might not work as well for someone else 🙄🥲😉

[@rossnicolson4615]

Can you explain how continuing to internally rotate at the shoulder past the point of full pec lengthening in order to touch the chest would result in more pec growth?

[@danielcruzado9354]

This vid came out right on time for my upper pec training. Thanks Dr. Mike!

[@JimmyR83]

Hey bro start doing some drop sets if you aren’t already. I bust out the 80s for 10-12 then immediately grab the 35s and try to blast out 20 if you can. It’s making my chest grow like crazy

[@alfiemarie]

i love the music and the transitions

[@l33tarded60]

Tried this today and I've never felt my upper chest stretch like that. Thanks doc, just when I thought I knew it all, you never cease to amaze!

[@delltross1721]

Thanks Dr. Mike. Incline DB Press has never worked super well for me, but I'll give it another shot with these tips

[@chaoctic7278]

How did it work out brotha❤

[@tamamalosi]

Not only outlines the exercise parameters and benefits, but makes it patently clear that it is what works best for your body that works best. Excellent advice. Love it. 💪😎.

[@andythousand345]

Awesome tips Dr Mike. I had to do incline dumbbell pressing today and I noticed the difference immediately. Thanks Doc.

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

Excellent! - Dr. Mike

[@nikos.1644]

Awesome! To the point, reliable, funny and friendly. Dr. Mike is a god damn G!

[@Nunyabiz187]

Mike has helped me lift so much better. Thank you RP

[@jjohns17]

Thank you very much for this video! I tend to retract my shoulder blades on this exercise and I've always thought my technique was off. Can't wait to apply this and see if my technique and feeling cleans up!

[@nightingalelaurence6092]

Everytime i watch a video, i learn new stuff. You are a blessing!!

[@PaulieHo]

Mans giving me a top tier kinesthesiology lecture in a faygo shirt. Words cannot describe how much I love this channel. Appreciate the knowledge--as always!

[@ataraxical6694]

Incline dumbbell is one of my favorites. Amazing SFR personally

[@jzepp7013]

Glad Dr. Mike explained about retracting shoulder blades. For years i have always retracted my shoulder blades on all chest pressing because thats what was told you do when working chest. Been doing wrong for 20 years now. Wow!

[@Mary-yi6hx]

Thanks again! I've been doing seated dumbbell work at 15 degrees in addition to Incline Bench at 30 degrees, and standing Arnold. I feel inspired to try my seated dumbbell at a different angle for the sake of my shoulders since my delts are so well covered.

[@Tenzordk]

"different variations of awesome" positiv and inspirational quote of the year.

[@nogheadz4987]

Intro was siiiiick. RIP scott the video guy…. So sad he hear he passed Edit: it has come to my attention that Scott the video guy may still be alive

[@WildAsDaTaliban]

Where did you hear that?

[@denoffitness3379]

Wow. What an amalgamation of knowledge and humor.

[@maxklein8518]

Shoulder - Chest - Traps section looking real good Mike 🎯🙌

[@macinead7]

Mike is just a legend. Funny without being funny. 🤣 Need more of these. Bible of technique

[@AgiAgainstTheWorld]

OMG the cue about the shoulders fixed my whole incline bench

[@narendrasonkar2388]

Genius Dr. Mike 😇.. thank you for improving our training daily/ regularly 🙏

[@corrysmith6109]

Liked for you being so knowledgeable and not being stuck in the mindset that one thing works best for everyone I hate people who think like that.

[@Russellviews]

I like how he always points out the variables of each lift...which is real life.

[@pannonianfit1582]

6:01 when you buy your girl an ice cream but not the exact one she wanted and now she regrets her life choices and questions her future with you

[@philthyphil3324]

Man, im spamming these targeting the muscle videos before each workout, these are freaking gold!

[@leecourtney1225]

Been struggling with shoulder pain from a previous boxing injury (rotator cuff tear)when I do any horizontal press for years (weirdly which even physio's are unsure why OH is way easier) and found that switching dumbbells for kettle bells has not only really helped (I suspect due to the leverage of the KB promoting a degree of external rotation) also allows for a super deep stretch. Would love to get Dr. Mike's view on this, as has been a game changer for me in promoting 'correct form' whilst understanding the differences in human structure mean that its actually slightly and even wildly different from person to person(you wouldn't believe how wide this short guy has to have his feet when squatting to connect, get depth and avoid knee pain)

[@ascendedmaster1126]

Been waiting for this one. Thanks Doc!

[@thedestroiagymlog6461]

Thank you, Dr Mike. I focussed on the bottom stretch and felt my pectoralis minor activate more during my five rep strength training. It was truly stimulating!

[@enginerd0001]

I was guilty of the shoulder blades being squeezed for this movement, thanks for informing me on this!

[@grunge-mb9sb]

Amen I was always like wtf if I tuck the shoulder blades when I press they slide out making me feel really unstable and takes focus off the movement

[@slackerm1]

It's because of Chris Jones and these other bullshit channels talking about retracting the scapula so much. It went over the top. I fucked my shoulders up focusing on the "retraction" and not the fucking lift. Fitness dogma is fucking retarded

[@michelrood2966]

Powerlifter movement. Doesnt squeeze / contract the chest much

[@nicehatmrdog5265]

I retract my shoulder blades while doing incline DBs and have never had the problem he said, i can lock out just fine without un-retracting them, doesn't feel weird to me. I'm also not arching as much as he was in the bad example so maybe i'm just squeezing them together more gently, who knows

[@ggeessttaalltt]

Appreciate the solid info and sense of humor. Giving these a shot tonight cause my upper chest is lagging with just flat bench. Great video!

[@motechacademy1681]

Best advice iv ever heard regarding training chest. Which is something I really have struggle with activating .

[@SenpaiTorpidDOW]

God this is such an amazing series. Thanks a bunch!

[@CynicalWarlock]

Best video on incline pressing I've seen yet.

[@urizen2000]

Great timing as I'm currently specializing the upper chest using the RP Custom Templates (which are awesome BTW).

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

I'm so glad you like it! - Dr. Mike

[@vishalshah1363]

Loved this. I was retracting my shoulder blades which was causing the exact issue the Dr. Mike described here. Can't wait to try incline DB press again and feel my upper chest fire up.

[@jeffwebb-eb5hg]

Knuts on Doc... I'm pushing 70, you have been a huge, positive influence. I've dropped 28# fat while gaining mass. Common sense is not common 😅 Thanks for SHARING

[@Henry-yi4rg]

Thanks Dr.Mike. I am watching and putting it to practice in the Caribbean island of St.Lucia

[@granttrowbridge5298]

I get confused if these are exercise tutorials or snippets from Dr. Mike’s new comedy special. Never change.

[@TheIgnoredGender]

I need something like this for flys. I feel my delts getting hammered way more than my pecs with the flys.

[@xy5844]

i uswd to do flies (peck machine seatted flies) with my bb friend and never felt it in my chest properly till i kind arched my back. i dont if its a good idea though

[@trentw.3566]

You don't need to do flys at all to get a big chest. Just do more bench sets; that movement is simpler and safer.

[@Thegentlegoon]

Thanks for the video! I had my first proper chest workout in a looooong time. I started going to the gym consistently over the past few months doing barbell and dumbbell presses but hardly ever felt the pump or soreness. 6 hours after my workout i could already feel soreness starting, now 21 hours after the work out the soreness is super there. I’m afraid what the next 24 hours bring hahaha. Looking forward to these gains.

[@ckPinson-n4j]

great video, best i've seen and i've been looking for a solid incline tutorial because i've never felt my upper pecs

[@bendelaughter]

I used to do incline at 45° cause I was told by someone that is optimal. Since switching to 30° it 1. Feels more natural 2. I feel it more in my upper chest 3. I can push more weight. Definitely figure out what works best for you as an individual. Great advise.

[@helix3955]

I swear these always come out at the perfect time

[@Neophema]

Thanks for the video, Mike. I did these today at the gym, and I haven't really before. My triceps tired out way before my chest did, so I'll try the stretch method next time.

[@chrisglover718]

You sir are a God among men. You've learned me quite a few lessons lately, answered questions, and have greatly reinforced my confidence in corny dad jokes.

[@tommyshwe7077]

Great video👍 I like it how you encourage people to experiment with different variations because one size does not fit all.

[@T.Coscia]

Fantastic video, covering all the angles. Thank you Dr. Mike!

[@RenaissancePeriodization]

My pleasure! - Dr. Mike

[@kroppsomvandling]

Here is a fun finishier for this. If you like rather high incline. You can use the lower steps as a mechanical dropset. Instead of changing the weight you drop a step... Since you are stronger in horisontal push than vertikal.

[@tomjaap2933]

good timing I was just adding this exercise

[@OsamaBinMoggin]

In my opinion elbow angle was the most important one. That’s to me what really defines that deep stretch. Especially if you are touching the dumbbell to ur shoulder.

[@SilverSlugs16]

Been taking the deep stretch very seriously lately, max possible depth going wider on the way down to do so, pausing in that deep stretch. Currently my bread and butter chest movement. Getting better at it has improved both of my weekly barbell benches (flat and incline), reliably. Tears my pecs up every time even with just 2-3 truly hard sets

[@neosanking1388]

Thanks Dr Mike. dumbbell incline is King for developing Upper / Middle chest.

[@charliehaskell1926]

Wow this is a humbling experience. Pressing half the weight now. Would love one of these for the lat prayer

[@jonathangoldfarb7089]

Kept wondering why I didn't feel anything I did in my chest - turns out I wasn't getting deep enough for a good stretch and had my elbows in a bad position for me. Thanks for the help!!!

[@MattFeelGood]

Thanks Dr. Mike! Great series for review

[@arvidlystnur4827]

By the way, great info. By watching your video on lats I can finally stimulate mine to grow at 64 years old.

[@BigIronEnjoyer]

I got up to doing the 100s for my dumbbell press, got up to 12 reps. 100s are the biggest my gym has, and I kind of hate barbell pressing, so I was trying to figure out where to go next. I was however only touching the weights to my chest. Found this video, and on the next chest day I selected the 80 pounders instead. Went as deep as I could possibly go on the stretch. Also decided to slow down the eccentric even more, I was usually pretty good about doing that controlled, but just slowed it down even more. Held about 1 second pause at the top and bottom too. Got 8 reps out of it. Did 3 sets of that and felt absolutely cooked, but also had the biggest pump I've had in months. And holy crap the DOMS the next day was like the first time all over again. Like A Virgin by Madonna, if you will. Now to work back up to the hundos doing it this way.

[@mattdennis6731]

This was an exilet video. It really illustrated some very good queues. I have been having difficulty feeling one pec dude to a shoulder tear. Hopefully this will help bring in my lagging pec.

[@namelessdeath]

Thank you so much! I have always had the issue of not feeling my chest during my bench press until I saw this video particularly the Elbow Angle. I'm one of few people who have to tuck in their elbow to feel the chest (I can barely feel my chest in a 45-60 degree elbow position and I can't feel my chest at all beyond 60 degree)

[@ped5906]

Great video (pace, content with explanations)! Thank you.

[@d3nd3nd3nd3n]

Great tips - thanks for sharing! Would love more dumbbell specific exercises as I don't have access to a gym..

[@BigstickNick]

Yes, I like to do different angles. It all works

[@ryanoloan4417]

Thanks Dr Mike. You're awesome 👍

[@2days92]

Flat bench press please!

[@eawavy2316]

Pleasssee

[@johnpashley8015]

Don't do it . Incline . Decline

[@Lucas-tg3hv]

@@johnpashley8015 lame

[@peamutbubber]

@@johnpashley8015 reverse grip bench is better than incline KEK

[@F-Tier_Physique]

Just max out, doing that we target just getting JACKD AND STACKD Lesgooo.

[@thoreaurug2142]

2 requests I would love to see a video just about elbow angles and their effects for the most common exercises. I would ask for future videos in this series to have different camera angles during the movements or for the camera person to walk around more to better showcase your amazing instructions. Thanks Dr. Mike!

[@KompletterGeist]

Regarding the shoulder blades: I think a lot of people confuse engaging the lats with retracting the shoulder blades. IMO you definitely want to mindfully stabilize your shoulder though and not just fully relax everything

[@theomanos3760]

Thankyou for this video. I need to try these variations. I have trouble getting my shoulders to grow especially with the width of my shoulders from lateral raises.

[@chrismckenzie898]

Literally perfect. Thanks, great video

[@nogodforjoy]

Came for the workout tips, got the best stand-up comedy 😅

[@dylanjones4621]

Great vid Mike, will incorporate some of these tips in my next session 🙌

[@matthewvanselow1979]

Thank you Dr Mike

[@joelportwood5902]

You can also think about the line of force being perpendicular to the muscle you want to hit. Higher up you go, more front delts. People also contort themselves on the incline bench with their butt up, making that line of force with respect to body like that of a flat bench. Ego is usually the culprit, which can be solved by starting at ~70% of flat dumbbell weight. You can always add more if you're finding it difficult to reach desired RIR within a certain range

[@GrindSzn7]

Trying this on Sunday thanks a bunch !!!

[@RichardThomas-lu6ej]

Great video. Thanks for sharing!

[@arsalanshakil1070]

Dr Mike, please make a video on flat dumbbell press. I’ve been feeling my forearms while doing DB press not my chest for some reason😢

[@efraingarcia9832]

Great video. The faygo shirt is absolute 🔥🔥🔥🔥 too!

[@cracknblast8247]

Again! Just what I wanted to know about after having sub-optimal inclined dumbbell sessions recently

[@mikewatson3718]

John meadows suggested doing them at the lowest incline possible, I found that also works best for me

[@kiddfamilyfarmllc9962]

Yep, saw that video today, 30 degrees.

[@randyminish111]

Appreciate the Detroit area shout out.

[@fghtk4009]

I came in expecting a slideshow. What a surprise 🤣