With this exercise, you're going to take the best part of the dumbbell flye (the bottom) and combine it with the best part of the band flye (the top).
When you put them together, they eliminate the weaknesses of BOTH exercises, giving you monster pec work.
The best part of the dumbbell flye is the bottom stretch position of the exercise. As you come up, however, you lose the loaded tension in the chest until at the very top, there's basically none.
The best part of the band flye is the top contracted position of the exercise. As you come down, you lose all the band tension until at the bottom, there's basically none.
...I think you see where I'm going with this...
What we're going to do is hold bands in your hands WHILE you're doing the dumbbell flyes, so that you get the best parts of both exercises while eliminating the "no-tension" parts of them.
This exercise will LIGHT UP your chest like no other isolation exercise you've ever felt.
To do this one, you will need a pair of bands (clearly) and two solid things to hitch them to. I'm using the posts of my cross-over machine since the distance is just about perfect.
If you need bands, click here to go to my preferred online source.
(use coupon code RBTFITSTEP for 10% off any band packages on the site).
Here's what the setup looks like...the bench in the center, a pair of dumbbells sitting on the end of the bench (35's in my case...start lighter than you think you'll need...trust me on this), the bands hitched to the solid posts.
Grab one band in your left hand and just loop it in between your thumb and forefinger.
Then step over the bench and grab the other band.
Now grip the dumbbells.
Sit back and set them on end on your thighs.
Lie back into position with the dumbbells together. You'll feel the tension in the bands right away (just wait...).
Now slowly lower the dumbbells into the bottom of the flye. Personally, I like to angle the dumbbells about 45 degrees at the bottom as it feels better on my shoulders, but you can do it however you prefer.
Hold for a few seconds to get the stretch (the best part of the flye), then come back up, squeezing the chest forcefully.
As you pass the midpoint on the way up, the dumbbell resistance will drop off and the band resistance will pick up...all the way until you being the dumbbells together at the top.
Hold and squeeze for a few seconds.
This exercise should NOT be done fast...it's all about tension and control, not cranking out reps. You literally shouldn't care how many reps you do...and shouldn't even know how many you did at the end of the set.
Don't count, just immerse your mind into the muscle.
I promise you, the tension you get on your chest will force you to do exactly that!
Again, use a light weight and small bands for this. I would recommend 2-3 sets total.
This combo exercise is going to hit your chest in a way it's NEVER been hit before.
To finish off your chest workout, utilize a tension-focused press like the 1 and 1/4 Bench Press.
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Want more unique and challenging exercises to work your entire body with simple equipment? All you need is just a barbell, dumbbells and a bench. Check out The Best Home Gym Exercises You've Never Heard Of!
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