Dumbbell Incline Y Raise

How to Perform the Dumbbell Incline Y Raise

Set a bench to a 30-45 degree incline and lie face down with your chest supported against the pad, holding a light dumbbell in each hand.
Let your arms hang straight down with your palms facing each other or thumbs pointing forward.
Raise both arms upward and outward at roughly a 45-degree angle from your head, forming a Y shape.
Lift until your arms are in line with your torso or slightly above, squeezing your lower traps and rear delts.
Hold the top position for 1-2 seconds, focusing on the contraction in your upper back.
Lower the dumbbells slowly back to the starting position and repeat.

Using too heavy a weight

This exercise targets small stabilizer muscles; use very light dumbbells (3-10 lbs) to maintain proper form.

Shrugging the shoulders up toward the ears

Depress your shoulder blades down and back before initiating the raise.

Raising the arms too far apart (T shape instead of Y)

Angle your arms about 45 degrees from your head to form a true Y shape for proper lower trap activation.

✓Strengthens the lower trapezius, which is often weak and contributes to poor posture.
✓Improves scapular stability for safer and stronger overhead movements.
✓Activates the posterior shoulder muscles to balance out anterior-dominant pressing programs.

●Think about reaching long and pulling your shoulder blades down into your back pockets.
●Use a thumbs-up grip to encourage external rotation and reduce impingement risk.
●This is an excellent prehab exercise to include in your warm-up before pressing or overhead work.

Strength

4-5 sets of 3-5 reps at 80-90% 1RM

Hypertrophy

3-4 sets of 8-12 reps at 65-75% 1RM

Endurance

2-3 sets of 15-20 reps at 50-60% 1RM

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