Chest / Intermediate / Compound (multi-joint)

Barbell Guillotine Bench Press

A barbell exercise for the chest, with the front delts, triceps and serratus assisting.

At a glance

Primary

Chest

Secondary

Front delts, Triceps, Serratus anterior

Equipment

Barbell, Bench

Movement pattern

Horizontal push

Level

Intermediate

Type

Chest, Compound (multi-joint)

Loads the shoulder. Use a load you can control and skip it if it causes pain.

How to do it

1. Using a medium width grip (a grip that creates a 90-degree angle in the middle of the movement between the forearms and the upper arms), lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over your neck with your arms locked. This will be your starting position.
2. As you breathe in, bring the bar down slowly until it is about 1 inch from your neck.
3. After a second pause, bring the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out and push the bar using your chest muscles. Lock your arms and squeeze your chest in the contracted position, hold for a second and then start coming down slowly again. It should take at least twice as long to go down than to come up.
4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
5. When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.

Common mistakes

• ✗ Doing it heavy or without safeties.

  Why it hurts: The bar comes down to the neck with flared elbows; a missed rep can land the bar on the throat, and the shoulders are in an impingement position.

  ✓ Instead: Use light weight with safety pins or a spotter. Most people are better served by a dumbbell press or cable fly.

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