Chest · Dumbbell
Dumbbell Incline Fly
How to do the dumbbell incline fly, 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
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Sit back on an incline bench holding a dumbbell in each hand above your upper chest with palms facing each other and a slight bend in your elbows. Open your arms out wide in an arc until you feel a stretch across your upper chest, then bring the dumbbells back together at the top. Keep the elbow bend fixed so the upper pecs drive the movement.
- 1Stretch across your upper chest at the bottom of the arc
- 2Upper pecs squeezing the dumbbells together at the top
- 3Fixed slight elbow bend held through the full range
Common mistakes
- Bending and pressing with your elbows instead of flying
- Dropping your arms too far and straining the shoulders
- Using momentum or rushing the reps
Muscles worked
The dumbbell incline fly mainly works the upper chest, with the mid chest and front delts assisting.
- Upper ChestPrimary
- Mid ChestSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
- Upper AbsMinor
Kovo programs the dumbbell incline fly 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 chest exercises
- How to do the archer push-up
- How to do the assisted dip
- How to do the resistance band chest flyes
- How to do the resistance band push-up
- How to do the barbell bench press
- How to do the paused bench press
Last reviewed June 2026.