Decline Dumbbell Flyes

How to perform

1. 01Secure your legs at the end of the decline bench and lie down with a dumbbell on each hand on top of your thighs. The palms of your hand will be facing each other.
2. 02Once you are laying down, move the dumbbells in front of you at shoulder width. The palms of the hands should be facing each other and the arms should be perpendicular to the floor and fully extended. This will be your starting position.
3. 03With a slight bend on your elbows in order to prevent stress at the biceps tendon, lower your arms out at both sides in a wide arc until you feel a stretch on your chest. Breathe in as you perform this portion of the movement. Tip: Keep in mind that throughout the movement, the arms should remain stationary; the movement should only occur at the shoulder joint.
4. 04Return your arms back to the starting position as you squeeze your chest muscles and breathe out. Tip: Make sure to use the same arc of motion used to lower the weights.
5. 05Hold for a second at the contracted position and repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.

Form cues

• —Brace your core before the first rep and keep it braced.
• —Drive through the full range — do not cut the lockout short.
• —Control the lowering phase — that is where most of the growth stimulus lives.

Common mistakes

• —Using momentum instead of the target muscle.
• —Cutting the range of motion short to add load.
• —Adding weight before the movement pattern is clean.