Barbell Incline Close Grip Bench Press

Description

How to Do Barbell Incline Close Grip Bench Press

1. 1
   Setup

   Set an adjustable bench to a 30-45 degree incline. Lie back on the bench with your feet flat on the floor, directly under your knees.

2. 2
   Setup

   Grip the barbell with an overhand, pronated grip, hands approximately shoulder-width apart or slightly narrower, ensuring your wrists are straight. Unrack the barbell and hold it directly above your upper chest with your arms fully extended.

3. 3

   Inhale and slowly lower the barbell towards your lower chest/upper abdomen, keeping your elbows tucked close to your sides throughout the movement. Control the descent until the barbell lightly touches your chest.

4. 4

   Exhale and powerfully press the barbell back up to the starting position by extending your elbows, focusing on contracting your triceps. Maintain control and stop just short of locking out your elbows to keep tension on the triceps.

Tips

• Keep your elbows tucked in close to your body to maximize triceps engagement and reduce stress on your shoulders; flaring them out will shift emphasis to the chest.
• Maintain straight wrists throughout the lift to prevent injury and ensure efficient force transfer from your triceps to the barbell, avoiding wrist extension or flexion.
• Perform both the lowering and pressing phases with control, avoiding bouncing the weight off your chest; this ensures constant tension on the triceps and prevents momentum from doing the work.
• Lower the bar until it lightly touches your chest to achieve a full stretch in the triceps, and press up until your arms are nearly straight to get a strong contraction.

Common Mistakes

• ×Avoid letting your elbows flare wide during the descent, as this reduces triceps engagement and increases shoulder strain; instead, keep them tucked close to your torso.
• ×Do not grip the barbell too wide, as this shifts the focus away from the triceps and onto the chest; instead, use a grip that is shoulder-width or slightly narrower.
• ×Prevent bouncing the barbell off your chest to initiate the press, as this uses momentum rather than muscle strength and can lead to injury; instead, control the descent and press smoothly.