Incline Bench Press Overview
| Exercise: | Incline Bench Press |
| Primary Muscle: | Chest |
| Additional Muscle(s): | Deltoids, Triceps |
| Type: | Compound, Push |
| Gear Needed: | Barbell, Incline Bench |
What is an Incline Bench Press?
The incline bench press is an upper chest exercise that mainly focuses on the pectoralis minor and also the upper head of the pectoralis major, along with the triceps and the deltoids from an inclined angle. This routine is one of our Barbell Exercises. While this is the barbell version of the exercise, we highly recommend doing the dumbbell version with a neutral grip which results in less tension on your shoulders.
How to do an Incline Bench Press:
- Lay back onto an incline bench. While grabbing the bar with a medium-width grip, raise the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with both of your arms in a locked position. This position will be your starting point.
- While you inhale, lower the bar slowly until the bar touches your upper chest.
- Hold for a brief second, then raise the bar to the original starting point as you exhale and push the bar using your chest muscles. Fasten your arms into a contracted position, clench your chest, hold for a brief second and then begin to come down at a slow pace. Advice: This motion should take you twice as long to lower the bar then it does to raise it up.
- Continue the motion for the preferred number of reps.
- After finishing the exercise, put the bar back onto the rack.
Caution: Using a spotter for this exercise is recommended, especially if you are new to this type of exercise. If you do not have a spotter present, make sure to use less weight than you normally would. Try not to let the bar stray too far forward. Make sure the bar touches your upper chest area.
Alternative: This exercise can be performed using different angles on the incline bench if you are using an adjustable bench.