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Rear delts

Rear Delt Fly

Tight squeeze across the back of both shoulders.

Complexity · Lowhypertrophybeginner+Dumbbells
  • Rear delts
  • Rear delts - Rear delts
  • Rhomboids
  • Traps
  • Rear delts

PrimarySecondary

What it hits

Parts of the target muscle.

  • Rear delts

    Hit

    Pulls arm back/horizontal abduction.

The movement

Get it right, not roughly right.

Optimal form

3:30· Colossus Fitness

How to PROPERLY Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly | Reverse Dumbbell Fly Tutorial

Hands together

Open and squeezed

Hinged forward (chest near parallel), dumbbells hanging down. Open the arms out and back leading with the pinkies, soft elbow bend.

Common mistakes

  • Standing too upright - gravity stops loading the rear delt.
  • Using too much weight - turns into a row.

Where you should feel it

Tight squeeze across the back of both shoulders.

Injury risk · 1/10

Variations

Same movement, moved emphasis.

Ranked by how directly each variation still trains rear delts. 80%+ means the target barely changes. Below 60%, the emphasis has meaningfully shifted — useful for variety, but less precise for the specific part. The label calls it at a glance.

  • Reverse pec deck

    Machine-guided.

    100% on target

    On target

    Same target, minor adjustment.

  • Cable face-pull

    Rope to forehead.

    95% on target

    On target

    Adds external rotation work.

Compare with another exercise

Cool-down

Worked it. Walk it back down.

A couple of minutes here pays back in soreness avoided tomorrow. Browse the full library.

  • Lat Hang

    Dead hang from a bar, fully relaxed shoulders. 30–60s. Decompresses everything pulling-related.

    LatsRhomboids

  • Child's Pose

    Knees wide, big toes together. Sit hips back to the heels, arms long overhead, forehead to the floor. 60s. Walk the hands one direction to bias one side.

    LatsLower backRhomboids

  • Cross-body Shoulder Stretch

    Pull one arm across the body with the opposite hand at the elbow. Shoulder stays down - don't let it shrug. 30s per side.

    Rear deltsSide delts

Coach note

Skipped by 90% of programs. Critical for posture and shoulder health.