Chest Workout at Home – No Bench Required
Can you do a dumbbell chest workout at home even without a bench?
Do you want a bigger, stronger, more toned upper body? Do you mainly do home workouts?
Is the lack of a bench holding you back?
If yes, this is the workout for you!
And while you could use a stability ball in place of a bench, not everyone has one.
The good news is you can still achieve muscle growth and improve your upper body strength and conditioning by doing a dumbbell chest workout at home that requires no additional equipment.
Not sure where to start?
No worries!
Work your chest at home with this dumbbell chest workout – no bench required.
Do three to five sets of the following exercises, doing as many reps as it takes to fatigue your chest muscles.
Rest 30-90 seconds between sets and 1-2 minutes between exercises.
The 5 Best Dumbbell Chest Exercises Without a Bench
- Decline dumbbell floor press
- Dumbbell chest fly
- Svend press
- Single-arm floor press
- Dumbbell pullover
Best Dumbbell Exercises for your Chest – Descriptions
There are two ways to do any exercise – the right way and the wrong way.
The wrong way takes stress off the target muscles, in this case, that’s the pectoral muscles, increasing your risk of injury.
The right way is safer and makes your chosen exercises more effective.
Make sure you do all the exercises in this workout at home correctly by following the instructions below.
#1. Dumbbell Floor Press
This great exercise is the at-home alternative to the barbell bench press.
It’s not only one of the best chest exercises you can do, it’s also easy on your shoulder joints.
How to do it:
- Lie on the floor holding a dumbbell in each hand.
- Push your shoulder blades into the floor and pull them down and back.
- Press the weights up to arms’ length over your shoulders.
- They should be about shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your arms and lower the weights down until your upper arms touch the floor.
- Push the dumbbells back up, returning to the starting position.
- Continue until you feel your muscles begin to tire.
Watch KC Mitchell use the Dumbbell Floor Press as an accessory to Increase your Bench Press
This dumbbell chest press variation places your body in a declined position, which emphasizes your lower chest.
After step 4 above, push your hips up and keep them elevated in a sort-of bridge position as in this video below:
#2. Dumbbell Chest Fly
Dumbbell flyes are usually done on a bench or an exercise ball, but there is absolutely nothing to say you can’t do this popular chest exercise on the floor.
Doing so does reduce the range of motion, but that is unavoidable and arguably safer without an exercise bench.
It turns out that the floor fly might be a safer chest fly.
How to do it:
- Lie on the floor with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing each other.
- Bend your elbows to about a right angle, and then keep them rigid after that.
- Open your arms and lower the weights out and down to your sides.
- Descend until your upper arms touch the floor.
- Use your chest and shoulders to bring the weights back up and together.
- Keep pumping out the reps until you feel your muscles start to fatigue.
#3. Svend press
The Svend press is a type of standing chest press.
It works your chest and shoulders, and, best of all, you don’t even need a pair of dumbbells for this exercise.
In fact, all you really need is a single dumbbell or single-weight plate.
How to do it:
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart for balance.
- Hold a dumbbell or weight plate between the palms of your hands in front of your chest.
- Push your hands together.
- Without relaxing your arms, push the weight forward and away from your body.
- Bend your arms and return to the start position.
- That’s one rep – keep going!
#4. Single-Arm Floor Press
Single-arm exercises, like this floor press variation, are a great way to identify and then fix left to right strength imbalances.
You can also use your free arm to self-spot so that you can use your non-working arm to help you finish your set if you are unable to complete a rep.
How to do it:
- Lie on your back on the floor with a dumbbell in one hand.
- Bend your legs and tense your entire body to prevent your shoulders or hips from rolling toward the weight.
- Start with your arm straight and the weight held over your chest.
- Bend your arm and lower the weight until your elbow lightly touches the floor.
- Press the weight back up and repeat.
- Try to do the same number of reps on both sides.
#5. Dumbbell Pullovers
Dumbbell pullovers are not just an effective chest exercise, but they also work your latissimus dorsi and tricep muscles.
It’s not quite a full-body exercise, but it does use most of your upper body muscles.
This exercise is also good for developing shoulder mobility and flexibility.
How to do it:
- Lie on the floor with your legs bent and feet flat.
- Holding a dumbbell in each hand, press them up and hold them over the middle of your chest, with the dumbbells pressed together.
- Bend your arms slightly, but then keep them rigid throughout.
- Lower the weights over your head and down the floor behind you.
- Pull them back up and over your chest.
- You can also do this exercise holding one dumbbell in both hands and using an alternating arm action.
Dumbbell Chest Workouts at Home FAQs
How often can I do this at-home chest workout?
Do this dumbbell chest workout once or twice per week as part of a whole body workout plan where you train different muscle groups on different days.
For example:
- Monday – chest
- Tuesday – back
- Wednesday – rest
- Thursday – shoulders
- Friday – legs
- Saturday – arms
- Sunday – rest
That way, you will develop all of your muscle groups evenly.
I don’t like one of the exercises in the workout. Can I do something else instead?
Exercising at home with nothing but a pair of dumbbells, even adjustable dumbbells, means that your exercise choices are quite limited.
In contrast, if you work out in a weight room or at least have access to a bench, your exercise library will be bigger.
Because of this, you may find it hard to come up with alternatives to any of the exercises you don’t enjoy or cannot do.
But, that said, you can always do a few sets of push-ups in place of an exercise you prefer to avoid.
Push-ups are a very effective pectoralis muscle exercise.
I have a bench – can I still do this upper body workout?
All of the exercises in this at-home dumbbell chest workout can be done using a bench.
Even the Svend press.
If you have a workout bench or even a stability ball, just do the exercises as prescribed, while enjoying the greater range of motion that bench-based training allows.
How do I warm up before this workout?
A few minutes spent warming up will reduce your risk of injury and also improve workout performance.
Do a few minutes of light cardio, such as jumping rope or jogging, and then some dynamic stretches and mobility exercises for your chest and shoulders, such as arm circles and standing flyes.
Finally, do 1-2 sets of the first 1-2 exercises in the workout using lighter weights to really loosen up your joints and muscles.
You should then feel ready to train.
What is the best time of day to do this home dumbbell chest workout?
What time to work out is a hot topic in the fitness community.
Some people believe that early morning workouts are best, while others say that you should wait until later to work out.
The truth is that it doesn’t matter too much, and the best time is actually when it’s the most convenient for you.
Working out at the “wrong” time will always be better than not working out at all!
Dumbbell Chest Exercises Without Bench – Wrapping Up
Whether you are staying safe at home these days, or simply prefer home to gym workouts, there is nothing to stop you from getting fit, losing weight, and building muscle – even if you don‘t have an exercise bench.
With nothing more than a set of dumbbells, you can work every muscle group in your body, and that includes your chest.
Dumbbell workouts are anything but dumb.
What’s Next
Don’t forget to add deadlifts to your training.
Find out why deadlifts are so great!
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Rich is a NASM-CPT (Certified Personal Trainer), an