Chest · Dumbbell

Dumbbell Incline Palm-in Press

How to do the dumbbell incline palm-in press, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.

Animated demonstration of the Dumbbell Incline Palm-in Press
Equipment
Dumbbell
Difficulty
Intermediate
Logged as
Weighted reps
Movement
HorizontalPush
Mechanic
Compound

How to do it

Lie back on an incline bench set to 30 to 45 degrees with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing in toward each other. Press the dumbbells straight up over your upper chest, keeping the neutral grip, then lower under control to chest level.

  1. 1Feel your upper chest and triceps press the dumbbells up from the incline
  2. 2Keep your palms facing in and elbows tucked closer to your torso
  3. 3Pull your shoulder blades down and back into the bench

Common mistakes

  • Do not flare your elbows wide; the palm-in grip keeps them tucked
  • Avoid arching your lower back excessively off the bench
  • Do not bounce the dumbbells at the bottom of each rep

Muscles worked

The dumbbell incline palm-in press mainly works the upper chest and mid chest, with the triceps, front delts, and lower chest assisting.

  • Upper ChestPrimary
  • Mid ChestPrimary
  • TricepsSupport
  • Front DeltsSupport
  • Lower ChestSupport
  • ForearmsMinor
  • Upper AbsMinor

Kovo programs the dumbbell incline palm-in 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 chest exercises

See all chest exercises →

Last reviewed June 2026.