Arms / Beginner / Compound (multi-joint)

Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press

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

At a glance

Primary

Triceps

Secondary

Chest, Front delts, Serratus anterior

Equipment

Barbell, Bench

Movement pattern

Horizontal push

Level

Beginner

Type

Arms, Compound (multi-joint)

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

How to do it

1. Lie back on a flat bench. Using a close grip (around shoulder width), lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms locked. This will be your starting position.
2. As you breathe in, come down slowly until you feel the bar on your middle chest. Tip: Make sure that - as opposed to a regular bench press - you keep the elbows close to the torso at all times in order to maximize triceps involvement.
3. After a second pause, bring the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out and push the bar using your triceps muscles. Lock your arms in the contracted position, hold for a second and then start coming down slowly again. Tip: 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.

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