# Dumbell or Barbell benching



## JakeRuss91 (Jul 29, 2021)

Hey fellas, just wanted to get yalls advice on something. I really like benching with dumbbells vs a barbell. What are your thoughts,  as in is a dumbbell press not as good for muscle growth as a barbell?


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## Bro Bundy (Jul 29, 2021)

Both are great . Mix it up man


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## JakeRuss91 (Jul 29, 2021)

That was my take to. My chest gets hit twice every week with my split so one day is bb the next db. I've just always felt better isolation with the db's


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## CJ (Jul 29, 2021)

Whichever you feel the most should be the primary movement, ride it out for as long as you're making progress. Mix in the other on occasion as well if you like. 

I feel my chest so much more on DB presses. I just vary the angle from time to time, and add in machine work for volume. I just don't feel the BB in my chest as much, so I don't do them.


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## Bro Bundy (Jul 29, 2021)

Try superseting bb bench press then dB flies .. It’s  a real motherfucker


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## JakeRuss91 (Jul 29, 2021)

Bro Bundy said:


> Try superseting bb bench press then dB flies .. It’s  a real motherfucker


Tomorrow is my chest, delts, and tris.. giving it a shot


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## JakeRuss91 (Jul 29, 2021)

CJ275 said:


> Whichever you feel the most should be the primary movement, ride it out for as long as you're making progress. Mix in the other on occasion as well if you like.
> 
> I feel my chest so much more on DB presses. I just vary the angle from time to time, and add in machine work for volume. I just don't feel the BB in my chest as much, so I don't do them.


Definitely feel the db's more also


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## Mind2muscle (Jul 29, 2021)

My chest has always responded better to dumbbell presses vs the barbell bench. I do mix it up every once in a while but my go to for chest day is dumbbells. My focus is more bodybuilding style anyways so it works for me. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## PZT (Jul 29, 2021)

what ever keeps your body healthy injury wise keep doing it


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## IsaacRobertson (Jul 30, 2021)

JakeRuss91 said:


> Hey fellas, just wanted to get yalls advice on something. I really like benching with dumbbells vs a barbell. What are your thoughts,  as in is a dumbbell press not as good for muscle growth as a barbell?


You can grow muscle with either one if you do the exercise correctly. The benefits of dumbbell benching are that it allows for the more natural positioning and for a greater range of motion, while barbell benching is easier to load and puts less physical stress on the spine.


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## ftf (Jul 30, 2021)

I like db press because it doesn't hurt my shoulders.


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## TeddyBear (Jul 30, 2021)

Dumbbell is when I started to see the most growth.
Strength stalled fast for me on barbell bench.

incline feels like I get the most activation.


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## Skullcrusher (Jul 30, 2021)

BB for heavier and DB for lighter...that's my preference.


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## MrBafner (Jul 30, 2021)

Hits your pecs from different angles .. it's so lovely.

With db's have a little fun ..

10 db incline presses / 10 db incline flys (superset) .... soon as you do 10 dd incline presses, do the flys.

Heck yeah .. mix it up a little. You can even just go for strength .. my best db flys is 40kg for 10, feels good - probably a little cheating, but who gives a shit if you feel good.

Just be careful, people with weak chest / shoulders can have injuries with heavier db movements.

https://www.reddit.com/user/MrBafne.../?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3


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## Sicwun88 (Jul 30, 2021)

JakeRuss91 said:


> Hey fellas, just wanted to get yalls advice on something. I really like benching with dumbbells vs a barbell. What are your thoughts,  as in is a dumbbell press not as good for muscle growth as a barbell?


Been doing 1 arm bench presses on the Smith machine! 
Best to use dumbbells and barbell,
Always mixing it up


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## Trump (Jul 30, 2021)

Sicwun88 said:


> Been doing 1 arm bench presses on the Smith machine!
> Best to use dumbbells and barbell,
> Always mixing it up


dont have time in my life for 1 armed anything


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## OldeBull1 (Jul 31, 2021)

I think of of a barbell bench press as a mover, a power lift where as the poundage is the goal and growth stimulus. 
I think of dumbbell bench press as a builder, used to build and shape muscle. 
Barbell is my primary,  and I use builder exercises to strengthen the muscles associated with that.  
I used db for range of motion and reps, no need to go gonzo on the weight.


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## sfw509 (Jul 31, 2021)

Everyone is different, so mix up to find what works for you.

I definitely go higher volume with dumbbells.

Im at a point with my shoulders, especially the left one, that i have to do barbell bench with a slight incline to reduce shoulder pain. I can still do flat dumbbell press though because my wrists are not locked.


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## notsoswoleCPA (Jul 31, 2021)

I start out with the bench press then move over to doing dumbbell presses when I work out chest.  I find the dumbbell presses are better for chest muscle engagement/development, but I like incorporating the classic lifts into my routine.  

My stepfather designed my current workout for me and dubbed it a "power building" style where I incorporate both strength training and body building style training into the same routine.  Classic lifts for the strength portion first, then switch to machines/dumbbells/cables for the muscle building portion.


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## OZinPHIL (Aug 1, 2021)

JakeRuss91 said:


> Hey fellas, just wanted to get yalls advice on something. I really like benching with dumbbells vs a barbell. What are your thoughts,  as in is a dumbbell press not as good for muscle growth as a barbell?


Why not do both?


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## JakeRuss91 (Aug 1, 2021)

OZinPHIL said:


> Why not do both?


I fo. Mostly DB's as of recently


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## CJ (Aug 1, 2021)

JakeRuss91 said:


> I fo. Mostly DB's as of recently


If the DBs work better for you, no need to use a barbell. There's no magical must do exercise.


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## Warteezy (Aug 1, 2021)

JakeRuss91 said:


> Hey fellas, just wanted to get yalls advice on something. I really like benching with dumbbells vs a barbell. What are your thoughts,  as in is a dumbbell press not as good for muscle growth as a barbell?


Barbell hits more muscle groups for mass probably


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## ccpro (Aug 1, 2021)

At 52 I do neither, but when I was still pressing a few years ago I only did dumbbells.  Straight bar wrecks my shoulders...too confining for me personally.  My flexibility/range of motion has never been spectacular.  I always got stronger pressing dumbbells, goes for inclines as well.


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## tinymk (Aug 2, 2021)

I know plenty of solid guys who bench only with DB,  I really only bench with a BB though.   I am a competive powerlifter so I need to be under a barbell to focus on my lift..


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## Bdbolo (Aug 31, 2021)

JakeRuss91 said:


> Hey fellas, just wanted to get yalls advice on something. I really like benching with dumbbells vs a barbell. What are your thoughts,  as in is a dumbbell press not as good for muscle growth as a barbell?


I would think that doing dumbbell bench preses would actually be better for strength and muscle growth 👍


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## dirtys1x (Aug 31, 2021)

I switch to DB work on my chest days after heavy maxing on BB. Give my shoulder a little more rest and focus more on optimal chest contraction. Realistically, a good program should incorporate both. Neither are better than the other and they both serve good purposes.


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## MrInsensitive (Sep 1, 2021)

I honestly haven’t read anyone else’s comments. Just the OP.
I want to speak about this.
I’ve been a serious lifter for over a decade. Since 2008.
I never had a chest. It’s my genetics. I have monster shoulders that over power and take over on flat bench. I’ve learned.
I now have a really nice chest that’s full and rounded.
What changed? My mind muscle connection. I leave my ego at the door and I grab light dumbbells until I felt it in my pecs. Tried all sorts of variations until I established a good connection. Once that mountain of a task was complete I learned how to isolate my pecs.
the best growth and rounding came from decline flies. High Cables and heavy incline dumbbell.
my bench is TERRIBLE! I’m weak AF for my size because I do not barbell bench for strength. I do sets of 10-25. I go to failure but not heavy. It hurts. Too many years too many injuries on bench.
ive learned the hard way that my body grows best, with sets to failure with 20 reps or more. The lower sets of like 10 reps, are after I’m beat and just incline until failure.
this is what worked for me after all these years.
my point is; you can’t have it both ways in my opinion, I can’t anyway, but barbell is fantastic for strength and power but not so much for isolation that causes serious growth. 
dont ignore barbell!


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## Bdbolo (Sep 1, 2021)

MrInsensitive said:


> I honestly haven’t read anyone else’s comments. Just the OP.
> I want to speak about this.
> I’ve been a serious lifter for over a decade. Since 2008.
> I never had a chest. It’s my genetics. I have monster shoulders that over power and take over on flat bench. I’ve learned.
> ...


Wow now your situation is the same as mine, man I'm glad I read your comment because I'm definitely gonna be trying your routine on the next chest day 💯 thank you 👍💪


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## MrInsensitive (Sep 1, 2021)

Man I'm really excited to hear your feedback about it. 
Btw what's your diet look like a couple hours before lifting and after? Imo, you've GOT to smash that window of opportunity. I load up before the gym. 2 hours prior25g protein. 
After workout, I usually drink egg whites. About 25g roughly. 
Btw man, I believe this window is just as vitally important. 
We don't build muscle in the gym, we break it down. We build muscle in the kitchen! That's how I feel. If that makes sense.


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## Badleroybrown (Sep 1, 2021)

MrInsensitive said:


> I honestly haven’t read anyone else’s comments. Just the OP.
> I want to speak about this.
> I’ve been a serious lifter for over a decade. Since 2008.
> I never had a chest. It’s my genetics. I have monster shoulders that over power and take over on flat bench. I’ve learned.
> ...


I myself feel the same way. I did a lot of heavy bench in my younger days. When I hit 41/42 it took a tax on my shoulders. I switched it up to only db’s. I have a nice size chest. Not bragging just making a point. When you bench even at a light weight it is very hard to keep that “mind Muscle” for sure. One side is usually always stronger so you have to take that into effect. Also when you use DB’s you can really squeeze and contract the muscle..  that to me is BBing. Anyone can throw weight up with a BB. Unless you are a straight up PL’r and you are going to stop and push. Like in a comp. but most don’t. 
I hit chest and tri’s today. After some light shoulder work I started at 50lbs db’s. I worked my way up to 145pndr’s for reps. 2 sets. Once you get past 115/120 the hardest part is getting the weight off the rack. I take the bench and I move it down to the heavy dB’s so I don’t have far to move. Also my rack at the gym has the heavy ones in the floor. So I take another bench and set it next to it and put the db’s on it. It makes the distance to travel very short. If I trained with someone I would throw up more.. but unfortunately my gym only goes up to 170. But at that point I would rather squeeze out a good 8 then do all that work for 3-5.. so do what works for you. I did do flys off the bench right afterwards. Only with 25-pndr’s. And I made sure I had a really wide good stretch so all the blood really flowed. Then I did incline BB. 135 only. I also gave it a good stretch. Bar to the chest with slow movements. I don’t believe in heavy flat and heavy incline. It’s one or the other. If I did heavy incline I would got ultra light flat… tris and then sucked down two bananas and 40grams of protein. Does not matter
What you do just train smart and train hard.🤙🤙🤙🤙🤙🤙🤙✌️


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## MrInsensitive (Sep 1, 2021)

good post badleroybrown. I agree whole heartedly and I concur you must be a beast. That’s some serious weight youre throwing up bro. Thanks for posting that. 
I get taxed pretty easy packing dbs to the bench.  Usually take a break for a second. I’ll try your way.


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## dirtys1x (Sep 1, 2021)

Badleroybrown said:


> I myself feel the same way. I did a lot of heavy bench in my younger days. When I hit 41/42 it took a tax on my shoulders. I switched it up to only db’s. I have a nice size chest. Not bragging just making a point. When you bench even at a light weight it is very hard to keep that “mind Muscle” for sure. One side is usually always stronger so you have to take that into effect. Also when you use DB’s you can really squeeze and contract the muscle..  that to me is BBing. Anyone can throw weight up with a BB. Unless you are a straight up PL’r and you are going to stop and push.



honestly, I feel that this is the case for almost any heavy lift. I can hit 130s for like 5-7 reps on DB, but when you’re lifting heavy it’s just way too hard to focus on the muscle. You’re always going to be using favorable leverage points to get the weight up. So this happens even with DBs. However it is much easier for me to drop to 60-70 lb dbs and punch out like 15 super controlled reps. That’s where I feel like DB bench really excels.


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## Badleroybrown (Sep 1, 2021)

MrInsensitive said:


> good post badleroybrown. I agree whole heartedly and I concur you must be a beast. That’s some serious weight youre throwing up bro. Thanks for posting that.
> I get taxed pretty easy packing dbs to the bench.  Usually take a break for a second. I’ll try your way.


If your bench is 10’ away and you are heavy handed, it’s like doing a farmers walk and then trying to bench.. The only thing I hate is my gym has those old school racks that look like heavy gauge steel stock. You DO NOT want to pinch a fingered between heavy weight and a piece of steel. Training session after that would suck.🤪


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## MrInsensitive (Sep 1, 2021)

Ohhh yes. And me being lazy, and leaving my dbs next to the bench. I’ve gone to drop weight and hit my hand on those I left on the floor. 
live made some pretty stupid mistakes lol.


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## Badleroybrown (Sep 1, 2021)

Been there. Also tripped on one or two.


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## Badleroybrown (Sep 1, 2021)

dirtys1x said:


> honestly, I feel that this is the case for almost any heavy lift. I can hit 130s for like 5-7 reps on DB, but when you’re lifting heavy it’s just way too hard to focus on the muscle. You’re always going to be using favorable leverage points to get the weight up. So this happens even with DBs. However it is much easier for me to drop to 60-70 lb dbs and punch out like 15 super controlled reps. That’s where I feel like DB bench really excels.


There is a difference between throwing up DB just to throw them up, or having some form and still keeping the muscle contracted. I myself still keep the muscles contracted. That being said I am not going to lie to be something I am not. After two or three sets of some heavy ass db work there does comes a point that they get thrown up. At that point it doesn’t really stay so strict, but more for straight up power..🤙


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## Badleroybrown (Sep 1, 2021)

You can also try this so the fatigue isn’t there. A lot of people will take light db’s and bang out high reps of 2 or 3 sets of a light weight to say get the blood flowing. If maybe they would do some nice shoulder work before you begin and maybe some machine flys to start activating your upper body. Then instead of thanking 50/60/70 pound db and banging out reps of 15-20. If someone was going to say bang out sets in 120’s they could start with 90’s . Do two three sets of 4-5. Then move right into 120’s. The muscle won’t be fatigued right off the bat from doing a bunch of WU sets. This will help keeping the muscle fresh and may have a better impact on the mind muscle. Try it out you may find you like it. Then go down to a way lower weight and bang out some high reps for a set or 2.✌️


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## JakeRuss91 (Sep 2, 2021)

MrInsensitive said:


> Ohhh yes. And me being lazy, and leaving my dbs next to the bench. I’ve gone to drop weight and hit my hand on those I left on the floor.
> live made some pretty stupid mistakes lol.


This happens to me like twice a week lol


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