Arms · Dumbbell
Dumbbell Close Grip Press
How to do the dumbbell close grip press, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Dumbbell
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- HorizontalPush
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Lie flat on a bench holding two dumbbells pressed together over your chest with a neutral grip, palms facing each other. Lower the dumbbells to your lower chest while keeping your elbows tucked close to your body, then press them back up while keeping the weights touching. The tight elbow path shifts more of the work onto your triceps.
- 1Triceps taking the bulk of the load as you press the weights up
- 2Elbows tucked close to your sides through the whole press
- 3Inner chest squeezing as you keep the dumbbells pressed together
Common mistakes
- Flaring your elbows out wide; keep them close to your body
- Letting the dumbbells drift apart at the top
- Bouncing the weights off your chest or arching your back hard
Muscles worked
The dumbbell close grip press mainly works the triceps and mid chest, with the upper chest, lower chest, and front delts assisting.
- TricepsPrimary
- Mid ChestPrimary
- Upper ChestSupport
- Lower ChestSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
- Upper AbsMinor
Kovo programs the dumbbell close grip press for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More triceps exercises
- How to do the bent-over tricep extension
- How to do the crossbody tricep extension
- How to do the cable katana tricep extension
- How to do the cable single arm tricep extension
- How to do the kickback
- How to do the lying tricep extension
Last reviewed June 2026.