The benchmark upper-body press. Builds chest, front delts and triceps under heavy, repeatable load.
How To
Set your eyes under the bar, plant both feet, and pull your shoulder blades down and back into the bench.
Grip roughly one and a half times shoulder width, unrack the bar and hold it stacked over your shoulders.
Lower under control to the base of your sternum, keeping your elbows around 45 degrees from your torso.
Press back to the start, driving through your feet without letting your hips leave the bench.
Watch Out
It puts the shoulder in its weakest position. Tuck to roughly 45 degrees instead.
You lose the hardest part of the rep and load the ribcage. Touch, pause, press.
If the shoulder blades unpack mid-set you lose your press platform and stability.
Coaching
Grip the bar hard enough to leave marks — grip tension travels up into the shoulder.
Think about pressing yourself away from the bar rather than pushing the bar up.
Use a spotter or safety pins on any set you take close to failure.
Swap It Out
Same job, different equipment or difficulty. Any of these can replace the movement above.
Upper Chest · Dumbbell
Chest · Bodyweight
Triceps · Barbell