Straight-Arm Dumbbell Pullover
The straight-arm dumbbell pullover has you lie on a bench, arms locked nearly straight, and lower a single dumbbell from overhead down behind your head before pulling it back up over your chest. It's less about building raw pressing strength and more about loading your chest and lats through a stretch that most pressing exercises never reach.
Why it works
Keeping your elbows locked turns this into a shoulder-extension and shoulder-flexion movement rather than an elbow-bending one, which shifts the load onto your chest, lats, and the muscles around your shoulder blade instead of your triceps. Lowering the dumbbell behind your head stretches your chest at a length very few other exercises reach, since a bench press or fly both stop well before your arms travel that far overhead. Reaching that extra overhead range also asks your ribcage to expand more than most lifts do, which is part of why some lifters feel it as much in their upper back and breathing mechanics as in their chest.
Set up
- Lie on a flat bench with your head near one end, feet planted firmly on the floor.
- Hold a single dumbbell with both hands, palms pressed against the inner plates, arms extended straight up over your chest.
- Choose a noticeably lighter dumbbell than you'd use for a chest press, since this exercise loads a long, unforgiving lever arm.
- Brace your core lightly so your lower back doesn't arch excessively as the weight moves overhead.
How to do it
- Keeping your elbows locked at a slight, fixed bend, lower the dumbbell back and down in an arc toward the floor behind your head.
- Lower only as far as your shoulder flexibility comfortably allows, feeling a stretch through your chest and lats.
- Pause briefly at the bottom of the stretch without bouncing.
- Pull the dumbbell back up and over your chest along the same arc, keeping your arms in their fixed, slight bend throughout.
- Finish each rep with the dumbbell back over your chest before starting the next.
Form cues
- Keep your elbows in one fixed position the entire set, neither locking out fully nor bending more.
- Move the dumbbell in a controlled arc, not a straight vertical line.
- Keep your ribs from flaring up as the weight lowers behind your head.
- Stop the descent at the point your shoulders feel a stretch, not pain.
Breathing: Inhale as you lower the dumbbell behind your head, and exhale as you pull it back up over your chest.
Common mistakes
Using a dumbbell as heavy as a chest press weight.
Fix: Drop the load significantly below your pressing weight, since the long lever arm here multiplies the demand on your shoulder.
Letting the ribcage flare up as the dumbbell lowers.
Fix: Keep light tension in your core so your ribs stay down instead of lifting off the bench to chase extra range.
Bending the elbows more to lower the weight further.
Fix: Keep your elbow bend fixed throughout; if you need to bend more to reach lower, the weight is too heavy or the range is too far for today.
Bouncing out of the bottom stretch instead of controlling the reversal.
Fix: Pause briefly at the deepest point and pull back up smoothly, since bouncing adds strain without adding benefit.
How to program it
- The long-lever stretch position is demanding on the shoulder, so once or twice a week is plenty, paired with your regular chest or back training.
- 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps with a conservative weight builds the stretch and strength benefit without excess shoulder fatigue.
- Use it after your main pressing or pulling work, since it's better suited as an accessory stretch-and-strength movement than a primary lift.
- Increase the range of motion gradually over weeks before increasing the weight, since shoulder flexibility usually improves slower than strength does here.
Safety notes
- Start with a very light dumbbell, lighter than feels necessary, until you've confirmed your shoulders tolerate the overhead stretch well.
- Stop immediately if you feel pinching or sharp pain in the front of the shoulder rather than a general stretch.
- Keep a spotter nearby or use a lighter weight when training this alone, since the overhead position leaves little margin if you lose control of the dumbbell.
Exercise profile
- Force
- Pull
- Mechanics
- Compound
- Category
- Strength
Frequently asked questions
How much weight should I use for a straight-arm pullover?
Significantly less than your chest press weight, since the long, locked-arm lever makes even light dumbbells feel demanding on the shoulder.
What does this exercise do that a bench press doesn't?
It stretches your chest and lats through an overhead range a bench press never reaches, since a press stays in front of your body while this exercise travels behind your head.
Should my elbows be completely straight?
Keep a slight, fixed bend rather than locking them out fully; a small bend protects the elbow joint while still keeping the movement in your shoulders.
What can I do if lowering behind my head hurts my shoulder?
Try the bent-arm version, which shortens the lever and reduces the stretch demand while still training the same chest and lat pattern.
How many reps should I do?
3 sets of 10 to 12 controlled reps, once or twice a week, is enough to build the stretch and strength benefit without overloading the shoulder.
Should I feel this exercise in my lats or my chest?
Both, though most people feel the deeper stretch across the chest first, with the lats and the muscles around the shoulder blade joining in more as you pull the dumbbell back up and over.