The Tate Press is a beginner-friendly dumbbell strength exercise that targets the triceps, with the shoulders and chest working alongside. Here's how to do it right — and what to stop doing.
Primary musclesTriceps
Secondary musclesShoulders, Chest
EquipmentDumbbell
LevelBeginner
TypeStrength
3D demo in the EGON app
01 Execution
How to do the Tate Press
Sit on a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand and lie back, keeping the weights close to your chest.
Press the dumbbells to lockout with a pronated grip and the inner ends touching.
Brace your abdominals and keep your ribcage down against the bench.
Bend the elbows and let them flare out to the sides, lowering the dumbbell ends toward your chest.
Stop when the dumbbells touch the chest, then extend the elbows to press back to lockout.
Squeeze the triceps at the top and repeat for your target reps.
02 The payoff
Why it earns its spot
Isolates the triceps at an elbow angle standard extensions do not cover.
Adds triceps volume without loading the shoulder joint overhead.
Light loads produce high tension, so it suits high-rep accessory work.
03 Don't do this
Common mistakes
Letting the dumbbells separate, which removes the inward pressure the movement depends on.
Arching the lower back to help the press, which loads the spine and shortens the working range.
Going too heavy, which turns the flared elbow path into a shoulder-stressing partial press.
Dropping the weights fast, which skips the eccentric where most of the triceps tension sits.
EGON Put it on record
Track it in EGON.
Log every set of the Tate Press, get your PRs detected automatically, earn aura for the work — and climb five leagues of statues, from Stone to Ego.
