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Exercises

Push day exercises: chest, shoulders and triceps in the right order

Published October 29, 2026

A push day trains chest, shoulders and triceps. Start with a heavy press like the barbell bench press or overhead press, then an incline dumbbell press or dips, then lateral raises for the side delts, a cable fly, and finish with triceps pushdowns and overhead extensions. Five to seven exercises and 15 to 22 working sets is enough for one push day a week; on a six-day push-pull-legs split, do two shorter push days with 4 or 5 exercises each. Stop most sets 1 to 2 reps short of failure.

  1. Barbell Bench Press Chest
  2. Incline Dumbbell Press Chest
  3. Barbell Overhead Press Shoulders
  4. Chest Dip Chest, Triceps
  5. Dumbbell Lateral Raise Shoulders
  6. Cable Fly Chest
  7. Cable Triceps Pressdown Triceps
  8. Overhead Cable Triceps Extension Triceps

Chest presses: the first lift of the day

Every push day opens with a press for the chest, because it is the heaviest lift and moves the most muscle. Pick one heavy press and one at a different angle; the triceps and front delts work hard in both.

Chest, horizontal press

Barbell Bench Press

Chest

The bench press lets you load the chest, front delts and triceps heavier than any other push exercise, so it is the anchor of a strength-focused push day and the easiest lift to track week to week.

How to do it

  1. Lie on the bench with your eyes under the bar, feet planted, and squeeze your shoulder blades back and down into the pad.
  2. Grip the bar a little wider than shoulder width, unrack it, and hold it over your shoulders with locked elbows.
  3. Lower the bar to your lower chest, around nipple height, with your elbows angled roughly 45 to 70 degrees from your sides.
  4. Touch your chest without bouncing, then press the bar up and slightly back until it is over your shoulders again.

Cues

  • Shoulder blades stay pinned
  • Bar to the nipple line
  • Drive your feet into the floor

Common mistakes

  • Flaring the elbows straight out to the sides: let them sit a bit closer to your ribs so your shoulders stay comfortable.
  • Lifting your hips off the bench to finish a rep: keep your glutes down and count that rep as your last.

Swap for: Flat Dumbbell Press, Smith Machine Bench Press, Machine Chest Press

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Upper chest, incline press

Incline Dumbbell Press

Chest

The incline angle shifts more of the work to the upper chest and front delts, and dumbbells give each arm its own path. It is the usual second press after a flat bench.

How to do it

  1. Set the backrest to about 30 to 45 degrees and sit with the dumbbells on your thighs.
  2. Lean back and bring the weights to the outside of your shoulders as your back meets the pad.
  3. Squeeze your shoulder blades back and keep your hips on the seat.
  4. Press up and slightly in until your arms are straight over your upper chest.
  5. Lower under control until your elbows are just below the bench line.

Cues

  • Low incline, not a shoulder press
  • Wrists stacked over elbows
  • Touch the stretch, then press

Common mistakes

  • Setting the bench steeper than about 45 degrees: the front delts take over. Drop it a notch if you mostly feel your shoulders.
  • Lifting your hips off the seat to finish a rep: that turns it back into a flat press.

Swap for: Single-Arm Incline Dumbbell Press, Incline Dumbbell Squeeze Press, Incline Barbell Bench Press

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Chest, machine press

Machine Chest Press

Chest

A machine press lets you push close to failure without a spotter, which makes it a strong first press for beginners and a high-rep second press for anyone else.

How to do it

  1. Raise or lower the seat until the handles line up with the middle of your chest, then sit with your back on the pad.
  2. Take the handles with straight wrists and your shoulder blades pressed back.
  3. Push forward until your arms are nearly straight.
  4. Return slowly until your hands are level with your chest, then press again.

Cues

  • Handles at mid-chest
  • Back stays on the pad
  • Slow on the way back

Common mistakes

  • Seat too high, so your shoulders take over: lower it until the handles meet your mid-chest.
  • Stopping the handles short of your chest: let them come all the way back each rep.

Swap for: Barbell Bench Press, Flat Dumbbell Press, Push-Up

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Lower chest and triceps, bodyweight press

Chest Dip

Chest, Triceps

Dips load the lower chest and triceps through a deep stretch with your own bodyweight, and you can add a belt later. They fit well as the second compound on a push day.

How to do it

  1. Grip parallel bars and step or jump up until your arms are straight and you are holding yourself above the bars.
  2. Lean your chest slightly forward with your legs under you or a little behind.
  3. Bend your elbows to sink down until your upper arms are about level with the bars.
  4. Press back up to straight arms and lock out.

Cues

  • Shoulders down, chest proud
  • Slight forward lean
  • Lock out every rep

Common mistakes

  • Sinking so deep your shoulders ache: stop when your upper arms reach the level of the bars.
  • Swinging your legs to get up: keep them still and end the set when you need momentum.

Swap for: Machine Chest Dip, Close-Grip Bench Press, Push-Up

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Chest and triceps, bodyweight press

Push-Up

Chest

Push-ups work as a finisher after the heavy presses or as the main press at home. Sets to near failure at the end of a push day add volume without needing more equipment.

How to do it

  1. Set your hands slightly wider than your shoulders with your body straight from head to heels.
  2. Lower until your chest nearly touches the floor, elbows at about 45 degrees.
  3. Press back up to straight arms.

Cues

  • One straight line
  • Elbows angled back

Common mistakes

  • Flaring the elbows straight out: tuck them toward your ribs.

Swap for: Kneeling Push-Up, Incline Push-Up, Push-Up Plus

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Overhead presses

A vertical press builds the front delts and triceps, and it balances a day that would otherwise be all horizontal pressing. Put it second if you bench first, or swap the order every other week.

Shoulders, standing vertical press

Barbell Overhead Press

Shoulders

The standing overhead press is the heaviest way to train the front delts and triceps overhead, and it makes the trunk work to stay upright. It can open the day instead of the bench.

How to do it

  1. Set the bar in a rack at collarbone height and grip it just outside your shoulders, wrists stacked over your elbows.
  2. Unrack it onto your upper chest, take one step back and set your feet about hip width apart.
  3. Squeeze your glutes, brace your abs so your ribs stay down, and take a big breath.
  4. Press straight up, pulling your chin back so the bar clears your face.
  5. Once the bar passes your forehead, push your head through until the bar sits over the middle of your foot with your arms locked.
  6. Lower it along the same line to your upper chest and re-brace before the next rep.

Cues

  • Glutes tight, ribs down
  • Chin back, bar straight up
  • Head through at the top

Common mistakes

  • Leaning back to finish reps, which turns the lift into an incline press: lower the weight until your torso stays vertical for the whole set.
  • Pressing the bar forward around your face: pull your chin back and keep the bar close enough to brush your nose.
  • Stopping short of lockout: finish every rep with the bar over your mid-foot and your arms straight, or the rep doesn't count in your log.

Swap for: Dumbbell Shoulder Press, Landmine Press, Machine Shoulder Press

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Shoulders, seated dumbbell press

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Shoulders

Seated with back support, you can press for more reps with less lower-back demand than a standing barbell press. A good choice for the second push day of the week.

How to do it

  1. Set a bench upright or one notch back from vertical, sit with your feet flat, and rest a dumbbell on each thigh.
  2. Kick one knee up at a time to bring the dumbbells to shoulder height, then set your back against the pad.
  3. Turn your elbows slightly forward so they sit a little in front of your torso, palms facing forward or angled in.
  4. Drive both weights overhead on a slight inward arc until your elbows are straight, keeping your ribs down and your back on the pad.
  5. Lower slowly until the dumbbells are around ear height or a bit below, then press again.

Cues

  • Ribs down, back on the pad
  • Elbows a little forward
  • Press up and slightly in

Common mistakes

  • Arching your lower back off the pad to finish reps: that turns it into an incline press, so lighten the weight and keep your ribs stacked over your hips.
  • Flaring the elbows straight out at shoulder height: bring them a little forward so the shoulder joint stays comfortable at the bottom.
  • Stopping each rep well above your ears: lower to around ear height so the delts work through a full range.

Swap for: Machine Shoulder Press, Arnold Press, Landmine Press

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Side delts and chest fly

Presses barely load the side delts, which give shoulders their width, so raises earn a spot on every push day. A cable fly trains the chest in its stretched position without the triceps limiting it.

Side delts, raise

Dumbbell Lateral Raise

Shoulders

No press trains the side delts well, and they are the muscle that makes shoulders look wider. Light weights for 12 to 20 reps on every push day is the simplest fix.

How to do it

  1. Pick light dumbbells you can raise for 12 clean reps, and stand with your feet hip width apart, the weights hanging by your thighs.
  2. Lean your chest forward a few degrees, pull your shoulders down away from your ears and soften your elbows.
  3. Sweep the weights out and slightly forward, leading with your elbows, until your upper arms are level with your shoulders.
  4. Hold that top position for a beat, then take two to three seconds to lower until the dumbbells are a hand's width from your thighs.
  5. Start the next rep from there without resting at the bottom or bouncing out of it.

Cues

  • Elbows lead, hands follow
  • Shoulders down, neck long
  • Push the weights out, not up

Common mistakes

  • Shrugging the weight up: if your shoulders rise toward your ears, drop to lighter dumbbells and stop each rep where your upper arm is level.
  • Swinging the torso to start each rep: brace, stand still and keep the first inch of the lift as slow as the rest.
  • Bending the elbows more and more as the set goes on: set the bend on rep one and keep it, or the lever shortens and the set gets easier without you noticing.

Swap for: Cable Lateral Raise, Machine Lateral Raise, Band Lateral Raise

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Side delts, cable raise

Cable Lateral Raise

Shoulders

The cable keeps tension at the bottom of the raise, where dumbbells are lightest. Standing between two low pulleys with the cables crossed, you raise both arms together, a good swap for dumbbell raises on alternate push days.

How to do it

  1. Set both pulleys of a crossover at the bottom and stand between them, feet about shoulder width.
  2. Cross your arms low in front of your thighs: your right hand holds the left handle, your left hand the right one.
  3. Stand tall and raise both arms out to the sides, elbows slightly bent, until your hands reach shoulder height.
  4. Lower slowly until the handles cross again in front of your thighs. On a single pulley, do the same one arm at a time.

Cues

  • Lead with the elbow
  • Push the handle out, not up
  • Shoulder height and stop

Common mistakes

  • Heaving the weight up with a lean and a shrug: if your torso moves, drop the pin a step.
  • Raising past shoulder height: the traps take over above that point.

Swap for: Leaning Cable Lateral Raise, Dumbbell Lateral Raise, Cable Y Raise

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Chest, fly

Cable Fly

Chest

A fly trains the chest without the triceps giving out first, so the chest gets the last hard sets of the day. The cables keep tension through the whole arc.

How to do it

  1. Set both pulleys at the lowest notch and take a handle in each hand.
  2. Stand in the middle with your feet about shoulder width and knees soft, arms low and slightly behind your hips, elbows softly bent.
  3. Sweep both handles forward and up in a wide arc until they meet in front of your chest.
  4. Lower them back down and out along the same arc until your chest is stretched, then repeat.

Cues

  • Scoop up and in
  • Elbows stay soft and fixed
  • Squeeze for a second where the hands meet

Common mistakes

  • Bending and straightening your elbows each rep: that turns the fly into a press. Lock the elbow angle and move only at the shoulder.
  • Leaning back to heave the handles up: stand tall and take a plate off the stack.

Swap for: High-to-Low Cable Fly, Single-Arm Cable Fly, Dumbbell Chest Fly

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Triceps finishers

The triceps are already tired from pressing, so finish with lighter isolation work for the higher reps. One overhead movement trains the long head that pushdowns miss.

Triceps, pushdown

Cable Triceps Pressdown

Triceps

Pushdowns are the easiest triceps lift to push near failure after pressing. They add triceps volume without stressing the shoulders or elbows the way heavy presses do.

How to do it

  1. Attach a bar or rope to a high pulley and grip it with your elbows at your sides.
  2. Push down until your elbows are straight.
  3. Let the handle rise until your forearms are just past parallel, then push again.

Cues

  • Elbows stay pinned
  • Lock out at the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Letting the elbows rise and flare: keep them glued to your sides.

Swap for: Cable Cross Pushdown, Overhead Cable Triceps Extension, Close-Grip Push-Up

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Triceps long head, overhead extension

Overhead Cable Triceps Extension

Triceps

With the arms overhead, the long head of the triceps works from a full stretch, the position pushdowns and presses skip. Save it for the end of the session, when lighter weights still feel hard.

How to do it

  1. Attach a rope to a high pulley, take an end in each hand and turn away from the machine.
  2. Step forward into a split stance with your hands behind your head and elbows pointing forward.
  3. Extend your elbows until your arms are straight out in front of your head.
  4. Let your hands return behind your head for a full stretch.

Cues

  • Upper arms stay high
  • Long stretch every rep
  • Brace your trunk

Common mistakes

  • Bringing your elbows down to push: keep them up and still.
  • Shortening the stretch as the set gets hard: reduce the weight instead.

Swap for: Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Extension, EZ-Bar Skullcrusher, Kettlebell Overhead Triceps Extension

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Triceps, lying extension

EZ-Bar Skullcrusher

Triceps

Skullcrushers load the triceps heavier than cables and work well on a strength-focused push day. Keep the weight moderate and lower it with control to the forehead or just behind it.

How to do it

  1. Lie back on a flat bench holding an EZ bar or straight bar overhand, hands about shoulder width, arms straight over your shoulders.
  2. Let your upper arms tip back a little toward your head and hold them there.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the bar just behind the top of your head.
  4. Extend your elbows to return to the start.

Cues

  • Upper arms angled back
  • Elbows point at the ceiling
  • Smooth, slow lowering

Common mistakes

  • Pulling the bar over your face with your shoulders: only the elbows bend.
  • Going heavy for low reps: this lift is kinder to the elbows at 8 to 15.

Swap for: Dumbbell Skullcrusher, JM Press, Overhead Cable Triceps Extension

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Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in.

Session 1

Push day once a week on a push-pull-legs split

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts1× a week
  • Working sets22 a week
  • Per workout~60 min
  • EquipmentBarbells, Flat Bench, Dumbbells, Incline Bench +2

You train three to five days a week with push, pull and leg days, so each push day comes around about once a week and has to cover everything.

With one push day a week, it carries about 22 sets: 10 for chest, 7 for shoulders, 5 for triceps, which is close to a full week of volume for each muscle. Expect about 75 minutes.

Push day
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Barbell Bench Press2 warm-up sets first 4 × 5–8 2 3 min
Incline Dumbbell Press 3 × 8–12 2 2 min
Barbell Overhead Press1 warm-up set first 3 × 6–10 2 2:30 min
Cable Fly 3 × 10–15 1 90 s
Dumbbell Lateral Raise 4 × 12–20 1 1 min
Cable Triceps Pressdown 3 × 10–15 1 1 min
Overhead Cable Triceps Extension 2 × 10–15 1 1 min
How to run it
Run push, pull and legs on separate days with a rest day after each two or three sessions, for example Monday, Wednesday, Friday.
How to progress
Use double progression: once every set hits the top of the rep range at the target reps in reserve, add the smallest weight jump and start again at the bottom of the range. For raises and pushdowns, add reps first.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Six-day push-pull-legs: two different push days

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets32 a week
  • Per workout~45 min
  • EquipmentBarbells, Flat Bench, Dumbbells, Dip Bar +4

You lift six days a week and hit push twice, so each push day can be shorter and the two days can use different lifts.

Two push days of 16 sets each give 32 push sets a week, split so chest, shoulders and triceps each get trained twice. A heavy day and a volume day keep the two sessions from repeating.

Push A: Heavy chest
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Barbell Bench Press2 warm-up sets first 4 × 4–6 2 3 min
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 3 × 8–10 2 2 min
Chest Dip 3 × 6–10 2 2 min
Dumbbell Lateral Raise 3 × 12–20 1 1 min
EZ-Bar Skullcrusher 3 × 8–12 1 90 s

Open Push A: Heavy chest in the session builder

Push B: Heavy shoulders
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Barbell Overhead Press2 warm-up sets first 4 × 5–8 2 3 min
Incline Dumbbell Press 3 × 8–12 2 2 min
Machine Chest Press 3 × 10–15 1 90 s
Cable Lateral Raise 3 × 12–20 1 1 min
Overhead Cable Triceps Extension 3 × 10–15 1 1 min

Open Push B: Heavy shoulders in the session builder

How to run it
Push A early in the week, Push B three days later, for example Monday and Thursday, with pull and legs between them.
How to progress
On Push A, add weight when the top sets reach 8 reps at 2 reps in reserve. On Push B, add reps up to the top of each range before adding weight. If both days stall for two weeks, take a lighter week.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Beginner push day, 45 minutes

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts1× a week
  • Working sets13 a week
  • Per workout~30 min
  • EquipmentChest Press, Dumbbells, Adjustable Cable

You are in your first months of lifting, you want a push day you can learn quickly, and the barbell bench still feels shaky.

Five exercises and 13 sets is enough to grow chest, shoulders and triceps while you learn the movements. A machine press and dumbbells are easier to set up than a barbell and can be pushed hard without a spotter.

Beginner push day
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Machine Chest Press 3 × 8–12 2 2 min
Dumbbell Shoulder Press1 warm-up set first 3 × 8–12 2 2 min
Push-Up 2 × 6–15 2 90 s
Dumbbell Lateral Raise 3 × 12–15 2 1 min
Cable Triceps Pressdown 2 × 10–15 2 1 min
How to run it
Once a week on a push-pull-legs week, or twice a week if you alternate it with a pull-and-legs day. Leave a day between push sessions.
How to progress
Keep 2 to 3 reps in hand for your first four weeks while you learn each movement. When every set reaches the top of the range, add weight. RIRLift sets the next session's weight from the reps in reserve you log, so you do not have to guess.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What muscles does push day work?

Chest, front and side delts, and triceps. Every pressing movement uses all three to some degree, which is why they are trained together.

Is 4 exercises enough on push day?

Yes, if you push twice a week: a chest press, an overhead press, a raise and a triceps exercise cover everything. With one push day a week, 6 or 7 exercises lets you get enough sets for each muscle.

Are 5 exercises good for push day?

Five is a good number for most people: two presses, a lateral raise, a fly or dip, and one triceps exercise, at 3 sets each. Add a second triceps exercise if your arms are behind.

How long should a push day be?

Between 45 and 75 minutes. Heavy presses need 2 to 3 minutes of rest, which takes most of the time; raises and triceps work can use 60 seconds.

What should I do first on push day?

Your heaviest press, usually the bench press or the overhead press. Alternate which one goes first every few weeks if you want both to improve.

Do squats count as push?

In a push-pull-legs split, squats go on leg day. Some upper-lower splits call squats a lower-body push, but on a push day they would only tire you for the presses.