Dumbbell Pullover Press
The dumbbell pullover press is a combination exercise done lying on a bench: you take two dumbbells back over your head in a pullover, bring them back over your chest, then bring them down to your chest and press them up. It works the chest, lats and triceps in one rep.
Also called: Pullover to Press, DB Pullover Press, Dumbbell Pullover to Press, Dumbbell Pullover and Press · Equipment: dumbbell · Pattern: push
Step by step
- Lie on a flat bench with your feet flat on the floor, holding a dumbbell in each hand over your chest, arms straight and palms facing each other.
- Brace your trunk and keep your ribs down and the small of your back in its natural arch.
- With a slight bend in your elbows, take the dumbbells back over your head in an arc until your upper arms are level with your ears.
- Pull the dumbbells back along the same arc until they are over your chest again.
- Bend your elbows and bring the dumbbells down to the sides of your chest, elbows tucked about 30–45° from your body.
- Press the dumbbells back up to straight arms over your chest to finish the rep.
- After the last rep, bring the dumbbells to your chest and sit up with them resting on your thighs.
- Ribs down as the arms go back
- Upper arms level with your ears
- Same arc out and back
- Elbows tucked for the press
- Press straight up over your chest
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Pectoralis major: sternocostal (mid) | Prime mover | C |
| Latissimus dorsi | Prime mover | C |
| Triceps brachii: long head | Secondary | C |
| Anterior deltoid: anterior | Secondary | C |
| Serratus anterior | Stabiliser | D |
| Rectus abdominis | Stabiliser | D |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Ribs flaring and back arching overhead
Fix: Brace and keep your ribs down as the dumbbells go behind your head.
Going too deep in the pullover
Fix: Take the dumbbells back only until your upper arms are level with your ears.
Bending the elbows through the pullover
Fix: Hold one slight elbow bend through the whole arc.
Elbows flaring in the press
Fix: Tuck your elbows about 30–45° from your body as the dumbbells come down.
Choosing the weight for the press
Fix: Pick a weight you can take back over your head under full control.
What the research says
Muscle growthGeneral fitnessEndurance
- Muscle activity — EMG studies found the pullover shifts activity towards the lats and triceps compared with the bench press, while still working the chest strongly. There is no research on the pullover-and-press combination itself.
- Load and effort — Research finds muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are hard, and sets finishing a few reps short of failure capture most of the benefit.
- Volume — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns.
- Reps — Pullover presses are commonly done for 8–15 reps with a weight chosen for the pullover half.
Swap it mid-workout
- Dumbbell Bench Press
- Dumbbell Decline Bench Press
- Dumbbell Floor Press
- Barbell Bench Press
- Barbell Decline Bench Press
- Barbell Floor Press
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the dumbbell pullover press in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.
General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.