Hi all , just wanted some clarity on this
According to friend of mine who has been lifting almost a year , I am performing dumbbell fly incorrectly because I do 6 reps on one arm then stop and do 6 reps on the other arm.
According to him this promotes poor growth of muscles as they are being worked individually rather than simultaneously ( ie left side of body then right side ) and can also lead to increased risk.
Is this correct ?
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
Hi all , just wanted some clarity on this
According to friend of mine who has been lifting almost a year , I am performing dumbbell fly incorrectly because I do 6 reps on one arm then stop and do 6 reps on the other arm.
According to him this promotes poor growth of muscles as they are being worked individually rather than simultaneously ( ie left side of body then right side ) and can also lead to increased risk.
Is this correct ?[/quote]
This is bullshit. It doesn’t matter. That being said…
a) why do you do it this way?
b) why does a beginner do dumbbell flyes at all?
A) I suppose it’s because it’s the way I started doing it.
B) well I incorporate it into a chest workout.
[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
Hi all , just wanted some clarity on this
According to friend of mine who has been lifting almost a year , I am performing dumbbell fly incorrectly because I do 6 reps on one arm then stop and do 6 reps on the other arm.
According to him this promotes poor growth of muscles as they are being worked individually rather than simultaneously ( ie left side of body then right side ) and can also lead to increased risk.
Is this correct ?[/quote]
This is bullshit. It doesn’t matter. That being said…
a) why do you do it this way?
b) why does a beginner do dumbbell flyes at all?[/quote]
This.
I’ve never seen anyone do the lift your way before but I see no big flaws in it. How do you do them, lying flat on a bench?
The only real benefit to doing them the normal way is you’ll likely halve your time yet have the same tut.
That’s weird. I like the old Arnold advice of doing flyes like you’re “hugging a big tree.”
Also, I’d say that using a 6RM on flyes is a shoulder injury waiting to happen…
your friend’s an idiot. And I agree with Yogi. Heavy dumbbell flyes are a bad idea. Use a weight you can get AT LEAST 10 reps with.
That being said, I think dumbbell flyes are pretty useless for beginners.
This is a pretty funny thread.
The correct way to do it is whatever helps you reach your goal. Is your goal to work towards a heavy one arm DB fly or build your chest muscles? If it’s the latter, you feel your chest doing work and you think it’s an effective tool, then keep at it.
With that said, I would still prefer doing both sides at the same time, lol. DB flyes can be a useful tool if you need help learning to engage your chest while benching.
[quote]lift206 wrote:
The correct way to do it is whatever helps you reach your goal. Is your goal to work towards a heavy one arm DB fly or build your chest muscles? If it’s the latter, you feel your chest doing work and you think it’s an effective tool, then keep at it.
With that said, I would still prefer doing both sides at the same time, lol. DB flyes can be a useful tool if you need help learning to engage your chest while benching.[/quote]
I used to use db fly’s as a pre-exhaust technique before chest pressing in my mass-building days. I can’t imagine using them as an honest-to-god strength exercise.
[quote]dagill2 wrote:
[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
Hi all , just wanted some clarity on this
According to friend of mine who has been lifting almost a year , I am performing dumbbell fly incorrectly because I do 6 reps on one arm then stop and do 6 reps on the other arm.
According to him this promotes poor growth of muscles as they are being worked individually rather than simultaneously ( ie left side of body then right side ) and can also lead to increased risk.
Is this correct ?[/quote]
This is bullshit. It doesn’t matter. That being said…
a) why do you do it this way?
b) why does a beginner do dumbbell flyes at all?[/quote]
This.
I’ve never seen anyone do the lift your way before but I see no big flaws in it. How do you do them, lying flat on a bench?[/quote]
Yes I just lie on the bench and do one arm then stop and do the other , in fairness I know this is viewed at as being peculiar … but I just enjoy doing them this way.
[quote]dagill2 wrote:
[quote]lift206 wrote:
The correct way to do it is whatever helps you reach your goal. Is your goal to work towards a heavy one arm DB fly or build your chest muscles? If it’s the latter, you feel your chest doing work and you think it’s an effective tool, then keep at it.
With that said, I would still prefer doing both sides at the same time, lol. DB flyes can be a useful tool if you need help learning to engage your chest while benching.[/quote]
I used to use db fly’s as a pre-exhaust technique before chest pressing in my mass-building days. I can’t imagine using them as an honest-to-god strength exercise.[/quote]
I use them as a pre start to the bench press , I wouldn’t use them exclusively as a chest exercise.
Although I’m curious to as to why people don’t seem to think the dumbbell fly is useful for beginners , it a simple exercise to perform.
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
[quote]dagill2 wrote:
[quote]lift206 wrote:
The correct way to do it is whatever helps you reach your goal. Is your goal to work towards a heavy one arm DB fly or build your chest muscles? If it’s the latter, you feel your chest doing work and you think it’s an effective tool, then keep at it.
With that said, I would still prefer doing both sides at the same time, lol. DB flyes can be a useful tool if you need help learning to engage your chest while benching.[/quote]
I used to use db fly’s as a pre-exhaust technique before chest pressing in my mass-building days. I can’t imagine using them as an honest-to-god strength exercise.[/quote]
I use them as a pre start to the bench press , I wouldn’t use them exclusively as a chest exercise.
Although I’m curious to as to why people don’t seem to think the dumbbell fly is useful for beginners , it a simple exercise to perform.[/quote]
Because it’s a very limited, mostly useless exercise, unless you’ve already developed a quality physique. You are not likely to get substantial results from it, and it’s time you could spend doing more effective exercises.
I mentioned in another thread that I do not do dumbbell flyes, ever, and I wouldn’t consider them unless I had 3 hours to spend in the gym every day, or I was a competitive bodybuilder. If you want to build your chest, dips are far more effective. If you think you have time/energy to do flyes after dips, just do more sets of dips instead.
You need to have a rationale for everything you do.
Why would you do a dumbbell flye?
It was believed long ago that you can put emphasis on your inner and outer chest. This is not possible because of the way the fibers run.
Get extra volume without incurring joint stress. This is true for someone benching really heavy. You are a beginner so you aren’t benching heavy.
Ditch the flyes.
[quote]flipcollar wrote:
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
[quote]dagill2 wrote:
[quote]lift206 wrote:
The correct way to do it is whatever helps you reach your goal. Is your goal to work towards a heavy one arm DB fly or build your chest muscles? If it’s the latter, you feel your chest doing work and you think it’s an effective tool, then keep at it.
With that said, I would still prefer doing both sides at the same time, lol. DB flyes can be a useful tool if you need help learning to engage your chest while benching.[/quote]
I used to use db fly’s as a pre-exhaust technique before chest pressing in my mass-building days. I can’t imagine using them as an honest-to-god strength exercise.[/quote]
I use them as a pre start to the bench press , I wouldn’t use them exclusively as a chest exercise.
Although I’m curious to as to why people don’t seem to think the dumbbell fly is useful for beginners , it a simple exercise to perform.[/quote]
Because it’s a very limited, mostly useless exercise, unless you’ve already developed a quality physique. You are not likely to get substantial results from it, and it’s time you could spend doing more effective exercises.
I mentioned in another thread that I do not do dumbbell flyes, ever, and I wouldn’t consider them unless I had 3 hours to spend in the gym every day, or I was a competitive bodybuilder. If you want to build your chest, dips are far more effective. If you think you have time/energy to do flyes after dips, just do more sets of dips instead.
[/quote]
Thank you for this , I will now do dips instead of alternating one arm fly , I just didn’t think a bodyweight exercise would be as useful as weighs.
[quote]dt79 wrote:
You need to have a rationale for everything you do.
Why would you do a dumbbell flye?
It was believed long ago that you can put emphasis on your inner and outer chest. This is not possible because of the way the fibers run.
Get extra volume without incurring joint stress. This is true for someone benching really heavy. You are a beginner so you aren’t benching heavy.
Ditch the flyes.[/quote]
Sorry to say I have been misinformed , I have now removed them and added dips.
And while I’m at it ,
Are the following exercises at all beneficial for a beginner
Goblet squat
Stationary lunge
Shoulder press
Wrist curl
Hammer curl
Deadlift … Heard its bad for the back and should not be done by beginners , source , I believe it was the hodge twins on YouTube
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
Sorry to say I have been misinformed , I have now removed them and added dips.
And while I’m at it ,
Are the following exercises at all beneficial for a beginner
Goblet squat
Stationary lunge
Shoulder press
Wrist curl
Hammer curl
Deadlift … Heard its bad for the back and should not be done by beginners , source , I believe it was the hodge twins on YouTube [/quote]
I think that’s a good start. On top of adding dips, add some pullups too. Feel free to submit technique videos when you think your form is consistent.
Read Dr. John Rusin’s arcticle to get a better understanding on the deadlift and orthopedic health.
[quote]Theorangebanana wrote:
[quote]dt79 wrote:
You need to have a rationale for everything you do.
Why would you do a dumbbell flye?
It was believed long ago that you can put emphasis on your inner and outer chest. This is not possible because of the way the fibers run.
Get extra volume without incurring joint stress. This is true for someone benching really heavy. You are a beginner so you aren’t benching heavy.
Ditch the flyes.[/quote]
Sorry to say I have been misinformed , I have now removed them and added dips.
And while I’m at it ,
Are the following exercises at all beneficial for a beginner
Goblet squat
Stationary lunge
Shoulder press
Wrist curl
Hammer curl
Deadlift … Heard its bad for the back and should not be done by beginners , source , I believe it was the hodge twins on YouTube [/quote]
Goblet squats are the BEST way to learn to squat, in my opinion. Every beginner should do them.
Lunges are fine. I should probably do them more.
Shoulder press is great.
Wrist curls are more useless than db flyes.
Hammer curls are good.
Deadlift is the only thing on the list that I think is questionable. I love the deadlift, and I think most people can perform it safely. Not everyone can though. This, to me, is something you should figure out for yourself. It certainly doesn’t NEED to be involved early. There are plenty of lifts that incorporate most of the muscles involved in the deadlift. If you’re squatting and rowing regularly, the deadlift probably won’t be missed.
[quote]flipcollar wrote:
Goblet squats are the BEST way to learn to squat, in my opinion. Every beginner should do them.
Lunges are fine. I should probably do them more.
Shoulder press is great.
Wrist curls are more useless than db flyes.
Hammer curls are good.
Deadlift is the only thing on the list that I think is questionable. I love the deadlift, and I think most people can perform it safely. Not everyone can though. This, to me, is something you should figure out for yourself. It certainly doesn’t NEED to be involved early. There are plenty of lifts that incorporate most of the muscles involved in the deadlift. If you’re squatting and rowing regularly, the deadlift probably won’t be missed.[/quote]
I agree. I think RDLs are a better alternative compared to deadlifts because the range of motion can be limited to maintaining a rigid torso.