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Exercises

How to warm up for chest day

Published October 24, 2026

To warm up for chest day, pedal easy for 3 minutes, do 10 arm circles each way and 5 rotational push-ups per side, then 12 one-arm band chest flies per side, 15 band pull-aparts and 10 push-up pluses, and finish with 2 or 3 ramp-up sets of your first press, whether that is dumbbells, a machine or the incline. Six minutes of drills, then the ramp.

  1. Stationary Bike Quads, Hamstrings
  2. Arm Circles Shoulders
  3. Rotational Push-Up Chest
  4. Single-Arm Band Chest Fly Chest
  5. Band Pull-Apart Shoulders, Upper Back
  6. Push-Up Plus Chest
  7. Incline Dumbbell Press Chest
  8. Flat Dumbbell Press Chest

Raise: 3 easy minutes on the bike

Chest day does not need a hard leg warm-up, just enough to raise your temperature. Three minutes on a bike at light resistance does it.

Raise: low-impact pedaling to lift your heart rate

Stationary Bike

Quads, Hamstrings

Easy on the legs you trained recently, and enough to get warm before the drills.

How to do it

  1. Adjust the seat to hip height when you stand beside the bike.
  2. Pedal at a light resistance with a steady, smooth cadence.
  3. Add a little resistance in the last minute so you finish slightly out of breath.

Cues

  • Smooth circles
  • Slightly warm, not tired

Common mistakes

  • Cranking heavy resistance: this is to get warm, not to train your legs before chest day.

Swap for: Air Bike, Rowing Machine, Elliptical

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Open the chest and shoulders

Pressing works best when the chest can stretch at the bottom of each rep. Arm circles loosen the shoulders, and rotational push-ups stretch the chest dynamically while turning the upper back.

Mobility: shoulder circles that grow from small to large

Arm Circles

Shoulders

A quick check of both shoulders before you start loading them.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your arms out sideways at shoulder height.
  2. Draw small forward circles with your hands, then make them gradually bigger.
  3. Do the same number backward, keeping your ribs down and your neck relaxed.

Cues

  • Start small, finish big
  • Both directions

Common mistakes

  • Shrugging your shoulders up to your ears: keep them low while the arms turn.

Swap for: Plate Halo, Dumbbell Around the World, Jumping Jack

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Mobility: push-up that opens into a side reach

Rotational Push-Up

Chest

It stretches the chest under bodyweight and turns the upper back, the closest dynamic stretch to the bottom of a press.

How to do it

  1. Start in a high plank hands below your shoulders.
  2. Do one push-up, then rotate onto one hand and reach the other arm straight to the ceiling.
  3. Bring the hand back down, do another push-up, and rotate to the other side.

Cues

  • Follow the top hand with your eyes
  • Stack the shoulders

Common mistakes

  • Rushing the turn: pause a beat with the arm up so the upper back actually rotates.

Swap for: Push-Up, Plank Shoulder Tap, Walkout

Build a session with Rotational Push-Up

Wake up the chest and the shoulder blades

A light band fly gets the chest working on its own before the presses, and pull-aparts and push-up pluses get the shoulder blades both squeezing and spreading. An incline push-up set is the last bridge into the first press.

Activation: one-arm band fly to wake up the chest

Single-Arm Band Chest Fly

Chest

Working one side at a time against a light band gets the chest firing without tiring it.

How to do it

  1. Anchor a band at chest height and stand facing away with the handle in one hand, arm out to the side.
  2. Keep a slight bend in the elbow and sweep the hand forward across your chest.
  3. Let the arm open back slowly until you feel a light stretch across the chest.

Cues

  • Hug a tree with one arm
  • Chest up

Common mistakes

  • Bending the elbow more and more to press the band: hold the same elbow angle all the way.

Swap for: Cable Fly, Push-Up, Dumbbell Chest Fly

Build a session with Single-Arm Band Chest Fly

Activation: upper back and rear delts with a band

Band Pull-Apart

Shoulders, Upper Back

It warms the upper back you press against, so your shoulder blades stay set through the session.

How to do it

  1. Hold a light band in front of your chest with straight arms and hands shoulder width apart.
  2. Pull the band apart until it touches your chest, pinching your shoulder blades.
  3. Let it come back slowly to the start without losing tension.

Cues

  • Lead with the hands, not the neck
  • Pause at the chest

Common mistakes

  • Arching the lower back to finish the rep: use a lighter band.

Swap for: Band Face Pull, Band Rear Delt Fly, Band Scapular Retraction

Build a session with Band Pull-Apart

Activation: push-up with an extra push at the top for the serratus

Push-Up Plus

Chest

The extra push at the top moves the shoulder blades fully forward, balancing the pull-aparts.

How to do it

  1. Start in a high plank hands below your shoulders.
  2. Do a push-up, and at the top keep pushing so your upper back rounds a little and the shoulder blades spread.
  3. Let the blades come back together, then start the next rep.

Cues

  • Push the floor away at the top
  • Body stays in one line

Common mistakes

  • Sagging the hips while you reach: brace before each rep.

Swap for: Kneeling Push-Up, Plank Shoulder Tap, Incline Push-Up

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Primer: push-up with hands raised on a box or bench

Incline Push-Up

Chest

An easy set with hands raised warms the pressing pattern at a low effort right before the dumbbells.

How to do it

  1. Put your hands on the edge of a box or bench, slightly wider than your shoulders.
  2. Walk your feet back so your body is straight, then lower your chest to the edge.
  3. Press away until your arms are straight.

Cues

  • Chest to the edge
  • Straight line, heels to head

Common mistakes

  • Touching with your chin or belly first: the chest arrives first.

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

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Ramp-up sets for your first press

Take 2 or 3 light sets of the press that opens the day, reps dropping as weight climbs. The second chest exercise needs one light set; flies and machines later on need none.

First lift: incline dumbbell press with ramp-up sets

Incline Dumbbell Press

Chest

Many chest days open on the incline; its ramp-up sets warm the upper chest and front delts first.

How to do it

  1. Sit on a low incline bench with dumbbells on your thighs, then kick them up as you lie back.
  2. Press the dumbbells up over your upper chest.
  3. Lower until your elbows are a little below the bench, then press again.

Cues

  • Deep, controlled bottom
  • Dumbbells over the shoulders at the top

Common mistakes

  • Clanking the dumbbells together at the top: stop just short and keep tension.

Swap for: Incline Barbell Bench Press, Machine Incline Press, Flat Dumbbell Press

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First lift: flat dumbbell bench press with ramp-up sets

Flat Dumbbell Press

Chest

If the flat dumbbell press comes first, ramp it the same way, with the first pair light enough to set up calmly.

How to do it

  1. Lie back on a flat bench holding the dumbbells over your chest.
  2. Lower them to the sides of your chest with the elbows angled slightly in.
  3. Press up until your arms are straight.

Cues

  • Wrists stacked over elbows
  • Same path down and up

Common mistakes

  • Lowering only halfway: take the full range on the light sets so the heavy ones feel familiar.

Swap for: Barbell Bench Press, Machine Chest Press, Incline Dumbbell Press

Build a session with Flat Dumbbell Press

First lift: seated chest press machine with ramp-up sets

Machine Chest Press

Chest

On a machine chest day, two quick light sets on the stack are all the ramp you need.

How to do it

  1. Set the seat so the handles line up with your mid-chest.
  2. Press the handles forward until your arms are straight without locking hard.
  3. Let them come back until you feel a stretch across the chest.

Cues

  • Shoulder blades on the pad
  • Smooth turnaround

Common mistakes

  • Seat set too low, so the press runs up toward your shoulders: raise it to chest height.

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

Build a session with Machine Chest Press

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. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

Dumbbell chest day, incline first

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets26 a week
  • Per workout~30 min
  • EquipmentExercise Bike, Resistance Bands, Dumbbells, Incline Bench +1

You open chest day with the incline dumbbell press, then flat dumbbells and flies.

Dumbbells need a calm setup, so the ramp starts with a light pair you can kick up without thinking, then a medium pair. The flat press after it gets one light set. Working sets stop 2 reps short of failure, which keeps the second press strong.

Chest Day
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Stationary BikeSeconds. Easy. 2 rounds back to back. 2 × 45 4 0 s
Arm CirclesEach direction. 1 × 10 4 15 s
Rotational Push-UpPer side. 1 × 5 4 15 s
Single-Arm Band Chest FlyPer side. 1 × 12 4 15 s
Band Pull-Apart 1 × 15 4 15 s
Push-Up Plus 1 × 10 4 15 s
Incline Dumbbell Press2 warm-up sets first 3 × 8–10 2 2 min
Flat Dumbbell Press1 warm-up set first 3 × 8–12 2 2 min
How to run it
Six minutes of drills, then the incline ramp. Rest 2 minutes before the first working set.
How to progress
Move up one dumbbell size when all sets hit 10 with 2 in reserve.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Busy gym, machine chest day

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets20 a week
  • Per workout~15 min
  • EquipmentExercise Bike, Resistance Bands, Chest Press

The benches are taken, so you start on the machine chest press.

Machines guide the path, so the ramp is short and the drills carry more of the warm-up. The incline push-up set replaces the rotational push-ups because it fits next to any machine.

Machine Chest
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Stationary BikeSeconds. Easy. 3 rounds back to back. 3 × 60 4 0 s
Arm CirclesEach direction. 1 × 10 4 15 s
Single-Arm Band Chest FlyPer side. 1 × 12 4 15 s
Band Pull-Apart 1 × 15 4 15 s
Incline Push-Up 1 × 10–12 5 15 s
Machine Chest Press2 warm-up sets first 3 × 10–12 2 90 s
How to run it
Do the drills next to the machine, then two light sets on the stack.
How to progress
Add one plate when all sets reach 12 with 2 in reserve.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Chest day when the front of the shoulder feels touchy

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets20 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentExercise Bike, Resistance Bands, Dumbbells, Flat Bench

Pressing has felt a little rough at the front of one shoulder lately.

This version doubles the pull-apart and push-up plus work so the shoulder blades are well set, skips the rotational push-up stretch, and opens on the flat dumbbell press, where each arm can find its own path. The ramp has three steps so the jump to working weight is small.

Shoulder-Friendly Chest
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Stationary BikeSeconds. Easy. 2 rounds back to back. 2 × 60 4 0 s
Band Pull-Apart 2 × 15 4 15 s
Push-Up Plus 2 × 10 4 15 s
Incline Push-Up 1 × 10 5 15 s
Flat Dumbbell Press3 warm-up sets first 3 × 10–12 2 2 min
How to run it
Go slower on the drills and take the full three ramp-up sets.
How to progress
Only add weight when every rep feels smooth at 2 reps in reserve.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

How do I warm up for chest day?

Three easy minutes on a bike, arm circles and rotational push-ups, a light band chest fly, pull-aparts and push-up pluses, then 2 or 3 ramp-up sets of your first press.

What should I do before chest day?

Warm up with easy cardio and moving drills, then take light sets of the first press. Leave hard ab or leg work for after or another day.

Are push-ups a good warm-up for chest day?

Yes, an easy set of incline push-ups or push-up pluses is a good bridge into the first press, as long as it stays far from failure.

Should I stretch my chest before working out?

Use moving drills such as rotational push-ups. Long chest stretches fit better after the session.

How many warm-up sets for chest day?

Two or three for the first press, one for the second, and none for flies or machines later in the session.