Incline Dumbbell Bench With Palms Facing In
This variation presses a pair of dumbbells straight up from an incline bench while your palms face each other the whole rep, instead of rotating to face forward. It trains the upper chest, front shoulders, and triceps, and the neutral grip keeps your elbows tracking closer to your body than a standard incline press does. It suits lifters whose shoulders feel cranky in a wide, palms-forward grip.
Why it works
Turning your palms to face each other locks your forearms into a position that naturally keeps your elbows closer to your ribs as you press, rather than letting them flare out wide. That narrower elbow path shifts a bit more of the work onto the triceps compared to a standard grip, while still hitting the upper chest through the incline angle. It also removes the internal shoulder rotation that a palms-forward grip demands at the top of the press, which is often the part of the movement that bothers people with shoulder discomfort. Because each arm presses independently, it also exposes and helps correct any strength imbalance between your left and right side.
Set up
- Set an incline bench to 30 to 45 degrees.
- Sit with a dumbbell in each hand resting on your thighs, then lie back, kicking the weights up to your shoulders one at a time.
- Position the dumbbells at chest height with your palms facing each other and feet flat on the floor.
How to do it
- Press both dumbbells straight up, keeping your palms facing each other the whole way.
- Let your elbows travel close to your torso rather than flaring out to the sides.
- Extend your arms fully at the top without locking your elbows hard.
- Lower the dumbbells back down under control until your upper arms are roughly parallel to the floor.
- Keep your shoulder blades pulled back and down against the bench throughout.
- Repeat for the target number of reps.
Form cues
- Keep your palms facing each other the entire rep.
- Let your elbows stay close to your sides, not flared wide.
- Drive through your palms, not your fingers, on the way up.
- Keep your shoulder blades pinned to the bench.
Breathing: Inhale as you lower the dumbbells, exhale as you press them back up.
Common mistakes
Letting the palms drift apart to face forward partway through the press.
Fix: Keep your grip fixed with palms facing each other for the whole rep, or you lose the elbow position that makes this variation different from a standard press.
Flaring the elbows out wide like a barbell bench press.
Fix: Let your elbows travel down close to your ribs instead. The neutral grip works best when the elbow path stays narrow.
Bouncing the dumbbells at the bottom of the rep to get momentum for the next press.
Fix: Lower under control and pause briefly at the bottom before pressing back up.
How to program it
- Three or four sets of 8 to 12 reps builds size and strength well in this rep range.
- Once a week as your main pressing movement is enough if you're also doing other chest or triceps work that same week.
- Start a chest session with this exercise if shoulder comfort is the priority, since fresh joints handle the pressing pattern better than fatigued ones.
- Match dumbbell weight to what lets you keep the neutral grip steady through every rep; a wobbling grip usually means the load is too heavy.
Safety notes
- Have a spotter or use a bench with side racks for heavier sets, since getting pinned under two dumbbells is harder to escape than a barbell.
- Stop if you feel sharp pain at the front of the shoulder rather than normal muscle fatigue in the chest and triceps.
Exercise profile
- Force
- Push
- Mechanics
- Compound
- Category
- Strength
Frequently asked questions
How many sets and reps should I do for this exercise?
Three or four sets of 8 to 12 reps is a solid range for building upper chest and triceps strength.
Is this exercise easier on the shoulders than a regular incline dumbbell press?
Many lifters find it more comfortable, since the neutral grip removes the internal shoulder rotation that a palms-forward grip requires near the top of the press.
What's a good bodyweight version if I don't have dumbbells?
Incline push-ups train the same upward pressing angle without any equipment.
Why does one arm feel weaker than the other during this exercise?
Pressing two dumbbells independently exposes side-to-side strength differences that a barbell can hide. Keep the reps controlled and let the weaker side set the pace rather than rushing to match the stronger arm.