Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly
A bent-over dumbbell reverse fly — the classic rear-delt and upper-back isolation in any shoulder program.
How to do it
- Stand tall with a dumbbell in each hand, then hinge at the hips until your torso is nearly parallel to the floor.
- Let your arms hang freely below your shoulders, palms facing each other, elbows slightly bent.
- Brace your core, keep your back flat, and lock that slight elbow bend for the entire set.
- Sweep your arms out to the sides in a wide arc, leading with your elbows toward the ceiling.
- Squeeze your rear delts and mid-back together at the top, pausing briefly.
- Lower the dumbbells under control over 2-3 seconds back to the hanging start position.
Key technique cue
Torso near parallel, back flat; sweep the arms out in an arc, don't row.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Standing too upright, which turns the exercise into a partial lateral raise and misses the rear delts.
- ✕ Pulling the dumbbells back like a row, which swaps rear-delt isolation for mid-back work.
- ✕ Shrugging at the top, which shifts the work from the rear delts to the traps.
- ✕ Rounding the lower back in the hinge, which loads the spine instead of the working muscles.
Benefits
- ✓ Builds the rear delts for balanced shoulder development.
- ✓ Strengthens the muscles between the shoulder blades for better posture.
- ✓ Counteracts the forward shoulder drift that comes from high pressing volume.
Progression: from easier to harder
-
Step 1 -
Step 2 -
Step 3 You are here - Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly
About the exercise
The Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly is the standing, bent-over version of the reverse fly. Hinging at the hips and sweeping the arms wide loads the rear delts and the muscles between the shoulder blades, building rear-shoulder mass that balances out the front-delt work everyone gets from pressing. It is the core rear-delt exercise. Use it on pull days, in posture workouts, and in hypertrophy programs that need symmetrical front-to-back shoulder development. Most lifters' rear delts lag behind — and this one dumbbell exercise helps fix that.
Updated
Similar exercises
A week of training and meals built for you
Workoutify plans workouts around your days, time and equipment — and a menu for your goal and macros.