Incline Dumbbell Press

You crank the bench too steep, which shifts the work off the upper chest and onto the front delts.

You cut the bottom range short, stopping well above shoulder level and skipping the stretch that makes the incline press valuable.

You clank the dumbbells together at the top and let them drift out of position on the way down.

You arch your lower back off the bench and turn the incline into a flat press.

Keep your ribcage lifted and shoulder blades tucked so the upper chest, not the shoulders, carries the load.

Lower slowly into the deepest comfortable stretch, then drive the dumbbells up and slightly together as if drawing two sides of a triangle.

Squeeze the chest at lockout without fully banging the bells together, keeping tension on the muscle.