Dumbbell bench exercises engage the stabilizing muscles of your joints and enable you to move through a full range of motion. Paul Chek of the Corrective High-Performance Exercise Kinesiology Institute believes that the over-use of machine weights weakens your stabilizer muscles. Weak stabilizers increase your tendency to hang on to support structures, such as a desk or chair, to maintain an upright position. Improve your ability to do everyday activities by incorporating plenty of dumbbell exercises on a bench.
Flat Dumbbell Presses
Flat dumbbell presses engage your pecs with assistance from your triceps and your anterior shoulder muscle. Contract your core as you lie back to keep your balance on the bench. The small muscles of your shoulder joint and the muscles which keep your shoulder blade in place must work to stabilize your shoulders while you do a dumbbell press.
Sit at the end of a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Lie back on the bench and push the dumbbells directly over the center of your chest. Perform dumbbell presses by lowering the inside end of each dumbbell toward your shoulder with your elbows out to your side. Press the dumbbells back over the center of your chest and repeat.
One-Arm Dumbbell Rows
One-arm dumbbell rows work the muscles of your back. You must stabilize your shoulders, hips and knee joints to maintain proper form and reduce the strain on your lower back. You only need one dumbbell for this exercise. Place your left knee and your left hand along the length of the flat bench, your right foot on the floor. Stick your buttocks out to flatten your back. Perform a dumbbell row with the dumbbell in your right hand by raising your elbow behind your rib cage to squeeze your shoulder blade toward the middle of your back. After one set, switch over to the other side of the bench to work the left half of your back.
One-Arm Triceps Extensions
Triceps extensions focus on the back of your arm while engaging your core and your shoulder blade muscles to stabilize your body. Lie back on the bench with a dumbbell in your right hand. Raise the dumbbell directly over your shoulder so your elbow joint is in line with your shoulder joint. Perform a triceps extension by bending your elbow, lowering the dumbbell toward your head. Do not move your shoulder joint as you do triceps extensions. Complete one set then switch to your left arm without getting off the bench.
References
- "Equal But Not The Same, Considerations for Training Females"; C.H.E.K. Institute; 1997
- "Anatomy & Physiology"; Gary Thibodeau, Ph.D., and Kevin Patton, Ph.D.; 2007
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