# Is the bench press really superior to dumbbell chest press?



## Zola (Mar 14, 2012)

We all know that compound moves are at the foundation of muscle building.

Along with squats and deadlifts, the barbell bench press has been included in the ultimate 'must do' compound move.

I find myself doing dumbbell press a lot more as its harder and its an equal distribution of weight. I do like doing the barbell press when i have a spotter though..

Why is the dumbbell press mor considered a compound move when all the same muslces are being used?

Is it because its not on a singular bar? Am I selling myself short by not using the Barbell bench as much as the dummbbell press?


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## bigchickenlover (Jul 16, 2013)

I preferred for a number of years the bench barbell press to add mass and strength to my chest. But have deep regrets now that I suffer with shoulder problems brought on by bad warm up routine and too heavy..

I really enjoy the decline bench now to add mass and find it easier on the shoulders to push the weight up

I can also do limited presses with the dumbells to mix up the routine..

My advice would be if your training to compete in power then u need bench in a routine if not id leave it the hell alone! Just my two cents..


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## FlunkyTurtle (Aug 5, 2013)

I did bench for 5 months and now as i dont have a spotter i've switched to dumbells. Personally i prefer it as i'm able to put equal weight on both pectorials. I've also noticed my right boob has caught up to my left as of recent which shows i was favouring the left when using a bar.


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## Chelsea (Sep 19, 2009)

Zola said:


> We all know that compound moves are at the foundation of muscle building.
> 
> Along with squats and deadlifts, the barbell bench press has been included in the ultimate 'must do' compound move.
> 
> ...


For me mate flat barbell chest press is the best mass builder out there, dumbells are awkward to get up, harder to spot and in my opinion just not as good as flat bench.

I literally only do dumbells when im in a rush and the benches are busy but usually I would wait for them to be vacated.


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## bigmitch69 (May 14, 2008)

Chelsea said:


> For me mate flat barbell chest press is the best mass builder out there, dumbells are awkward to get up, harder to spot and in my opinion just not as good as flat bench.


DBs are definitely a pain getting up and you really need a good spotter or 2 if you want to go very heavy. I love dumbbell presses but I find it hard to get the most out of them when training alone. Barbell I can go as heavy as I like due to the safety bars on my squat rack if I fail.


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## Mingster (Mar 25, 2011)

Barbell Bench Press for me too. You shouldn't really need a spotter imo. Stop a rep or two short of failure on each set and gradually progress over time. Use a rack when the weights get dangerously heavy. Save the going to failure stuff for dips and flyes.


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## Chelsea (Sep 19, 2009)

Mingster said:


> Barbell Bench Press for me too. You shouldn't really need a spotter imo. Stop a rep or two short of failure on each set and gradually progress over time. Use a rack when the weights get dangerously heavy. Save the going to failure stuff for dips and flyes.


See I love negatives mate and believe that's what makes the chest grow and without a spotter negatives cant be done so I would have to disagree with the failure stuff but each to their own.


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## TwoCanVanDamn (Jun 22, 2012)

I always do flat bench first and work up to a heavy set of 2 or 3 and then back the weight off to do a few sets of 6-12. And then I always do incline dumbbell presses next, but stay in the 8-12 rep range for them for all 5 or 6 sets. That way I've got my strength work in from the low rep sets of flat bench and the repetition work and volume from the moderate weight flat bench sets and the dumbbell presses. Plus doing dumbells second means I don't have to knee thrust a huge pair of dumbbell in to position on an incline bench and possibly injure myself due to already being tired by the time I get to them so I require less weight


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## HAWKUS (Jan 11, 2012)

I think weighted dips are better than the both.

Was speaking to this guy at the gym and he told me any exercise that moves more of you body through space is better eg dips move you full body up and down,while bench press you just move your arms...pull ups move your whole body,while again pull downs just move your arms...then obviously deadlifts and squats your moving your whole body with each....it seems to be correct imo.


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## Mingster (Mar 25, 2011)

Chelsea said:


> See I love negatives mate and believe that's what makes the chest grow and without a spotter negatives cant be done so I would have to disagree with the failure stuff but each to their own.


Yes, but you have a spotter doing most of the work for you

Only kidding. You bodybuilders are a strange breed


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## Chelsea (Sep 19, 2009)

HAWKUS said:


> *I think weighted dips are better than the both*.
> 
> Was speaking to this guy at the gym and he told me any exercise that moves more of you body through space is better eg dips move you full body up and down,while bench press you just move your arms...pull ups move your whole body,while again pull downs just move your arms...then obviously deadlifts and squats your moving your whole body with each....it seems to be correct imo.


Sorry mate but there is no way on earth that weighted dips are better than barbell or dumbell pressing.


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## Chelsea (Sep 19, 2009)

Mingster said:


> Yes, but you have a spotter doing most of the work for you
> 
> Only kidding. You bodybuilders are an awesome breed


Most the positive work so that you can exhaust the negative 

I know we are mate, glad you could admit it  :whistling:


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## HAWKUS (Jan 11, 2012)

Chelsea said:


> Sorry mate but there is no way on earth that weighted dips are better than barbell or dumbell pressing.


Obviously differs person to person then cos ive made some great gains in my chest since i stopped doing flat bench and done dips instead.

I find it more of a natural movement,more functional.


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## barsnack (Mar 12, 2011)

prefer barbell bench press for flat bench pressing but dumbells for incline


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## Redbeard85 (Mar 26, 2011)

I enjoy DB work more than barbell tbh mate. I think my chest has looked it's best when I dropped out barbell press and just done the DB press/flys etc. I have started doing barbell press again to see if it makes any difference, but the weight is shocking compared to DB work lol!


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## Chelsea (Sep 19, 2009)

HAWKUS said:


> Obviously differs person to person then cos ive made some great gains in my chest since i stopped doing flat bench and done dips instead.
> 
> I find it more of a natural movement,more functional.


I just find this extremely hard to believe, not that im calling you a liar but it goes against everything I do training wise, personally for me even leaning forward loads the triceps are still far too involved in the dips and you certainly can go nowhere near as heavy on dips as you can with benching so just cant see how you could get great gains doing this.

Are you doing no pressing movement at all?


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## dtlv (Jul 24, 2009)

I think individual biomechanics make a huge difference to which chest exercises people find most effective... the two best pec building exercises for me are weighted dips and reverse grip bench press, yet my longest serving training partner didn't get as much from weighted dips as me but did from benches. We had very different builds though, with his ribcage being more barrel shaped and mine flatter, and my arms proportionately longer than his compared to our torsos.

For benches themselves the best variation for me, other than reverse grip for the upper pecs, seems to be to do them with a barbell and guillotine style - elbows wide, bar pressed high on chest. I also need to work with high-ish reps to get my chest to grow, and actually progress more quickly when training in the 8-12 rep zone than compared to say 5-6 reps per set... that is a reflection of my fiber type distribution though I think, and certainly not true of everyone.


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## marknorthumbria (Oct 1, 2009)

personal preference

im a dumbbell kinda guy, only press incline too..


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## marknorthumbria (Oct 1, 2009)

Chelsea said:


> I just find this extremely hard to believe, not that im calling you a liar but it goes against everything I do training wise, personally for me even leaning forward loads the triceps are still far too involved in the dips and you certainly can go nowhere near as heavy on dips as you can with benching so just cant see how you could get great gains doing this.
> 
> Are you doing no pressing movement at all?


weighted dips rule, but i would only finish up with them tbf, wouldnt use them as a main exercise


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## HAWKUS (Jan 11, 2012)

Chelsea said:


> I just find this extremely hard to believe, not that im calling you a liar but it goes against everything I do training wise, personally for me even leaning forward loads the triceps are still far too involved in the dips and you certainly can go nowhere near as heavy on dips as you can with benching so just cant see how you could get great gains doing this.
> 
> Are you doing no pressing movement at all?


Depends how you do them with regards to the tricep imo,look up lee preist dips,thats how i do them,little to none pressure on the triceps...in terms of how much weight being used,flat bench i was doing 120,weighted dips i can add 3 20s around my waist with a bodyweight of 16 odd stone so thats probably more overall.

Im really tall,i think that might have something to do with it,i can just generate alot more power with a dip...i will do some type of pressing movement on an incline bench but my main exercise which i always do first now is dips.

I know alot of people who also dont agree with me,lads ive trained with etc but it just really works for me.


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## monkeybiker (Jul 21, 2010)

bigmitch69 said:


> DBs are definitely a pain getting up and you really need a good spotter or 2 if you want to go very heavy. I love dumbbell presses but I find it hard to get the most out of them when training alone. Barbell I can go as heavy as I like due to the safety bars on my squat rack if I fail.


I don't find them that hard to get into position. I put them on my knees and chest when sat at the end of the bench and roll back and do the reverse to get back. Just takes a bit of practice.


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## vtec_yo (Nov 30, 2011)

Always do db. Barbell makes me crunch in the collar bone, and wrists. Bloody hate it.


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## Chelsea (Sep 19, 2009)

HAWKUS said:


> Depends how you do them with regards to the tricep imo,look up lee preist dips,thats how i do them,little to none pressure on the triceps...in terms of how much weight being used,flat bench i was doing 120,weighted dips i can add 3 20s around my waist with a bodyweight of 16 odd stone so thats probably more overall.
> 
> Im really tall,i think that might have something to do with it,i can just generate alot more power with a dip...i will do some type of pressing movement on an incline bench but my main exercise which i always do first now is dips.
> 
> I know alot of people who also dont agree with me,lads ive trained with etc but it just really works for me.


I suppose at the end of the day if it works for you mate then fair play.


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## Mingster (Mar 25, 2011)

Stick 50kg on your belt and do them like this...


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## Mogy (Oct 21, 2013)

Zola said:


> We all know that compound moves are at the foundation of muscle building.
> 
> Along with squats and deadlifts, the barbell bench press has been included in the ultimate 'must do' compound move.
> 
> ...


Personally prefer dumbbell press.

One thing that's interesting to bear in mind though is that based purely on people's morphology, some are predisposed to have issues with bench press due to the angles it places their limbs..


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## str4nger (Jul 17, 2012)

my chest has come on leaps and bounds since switching from barbell to dumbell


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## 2004mark (Oct 26, 2013)

Zola said:


> Why is the dumbbell press mor considered a compound move when all the same muslces are being used?


They are both compound movements... one no more than the other.

The reason the barbell press has the 'status' it does is it's more conducive to use for maxing out on 1 or 2 reps than db's, and these are the number people want to hear/talk about. No one's ever asked me what I can db press for 8.


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## bigmitch69 (May 14, 2008)

monkeybiker said:


> I don't find them that hard to get into position. I put them on my knees and chest when sat at the end of the bench and roll back and do the reverse to get back. Just takes a bit of practice.


I just feel I use half my energy getting the [email protected] up. If you have good (good!) spotters I think you can lift more plus try for the extra rep knowing if you fail you won't get your face smashed


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## paulandabbi (Mar 13, 2013)

2004mark said:


> They are both compound movements... one no more than the other.
> 
> The reason the barbell press has the 'status' it does is it's more conducive to use for maxing out on 1 or 2 reps than db's, and these are the number people want to hear/talk about.* No one's ever asked me what I can db press for 8*.


Well..................


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## oldskoolcool (Oct 4, 2009)

None of this really matters all that matters is breaking the muscle down which ever way you like.


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## Info Junkie (Nov 22, 2013)

Dumbbells are far better and implement the function of the pec bringing the arm it across the chest , bench press hits front delt and triceps too much , majority bench with ego forgetting the negative and contraction , Doran Yates thinks bench is the worst chest builder there is


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## estuFilippe (Sep 10, 2013)

I bench pretty much exclusively using dumbells, very rarely use barbell as I find it activates my shoulders too much and one side dominates. With dumbells you develop more stability strength, can move the weight through a better ROM IMO. Personal preference, I started out on 15s a few years ago and now I can comfortably rep out on 40kgs for 12 and my chest has grown a hell of a lot bigger too.


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## mattc1991 (Jan 2, 2012)

If you look at biomechanics you see that decline hits more chest fibres, and doing heavy decline dumbell chest press isn't ideal as it can be very awkward once going heavy, so for me decline barbell wins every time (for dem gorilla titties) I do prefer dumbel for incline. Flat bench press isn't needed as decline & incline is more than adequate so why waste time on flat?


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## ohh_danielson (Oct 16, 2013)

I prefer DB press.

I find with barbell I use my left side of my body a lot more, and feel it on my shoulders when going heavy.

DB I can use equal weight on each side, meaning both sides of my body are working equally, and doesnt stress my shoulders!!


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## Casper13 (Sep 20, 2013)

I'd rather dumbell but i have a home gym with barbell weights. When i can afford a good dumbell set i will swap over


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## Info Junkie (Nov 22, 2013)

surprising how much people prefer dumbbells


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## shane89 (Apr 30, 2011)

why not have best of both worlds ie my chest routine includes 4set 4reps on barbell and 5sets of 10reps on the dumbells, really bringing my chest back into action


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## Info Junkie (Nov 22, 2013)

if your aim is muscle growth then fully fatigued pecs are what you want after a session so its everyone's personnel opinion on how to do that , I just find dumbbells destroy my chest when contract and do slow negatives , some of my friends just love benching


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