Chest

Incline Barbell Bench Press

The incline barbell bench press shifts the bench press toward the upper chest and front delts.

Incline Barbell Bench Press: starting position
1Starting position
Incline Barbell Bench Press: end position
2End position

Setup

Bench at 30–45 degrees. Lie with the bar over your eyes, shoulder blades back and down, feet on the floor. Grip a little wider than your shoulders.

Execution

  1. Lie on an incline bench, take the bar with a grip a bit wider than shoulder-width, and press it straight up above you — starting position.
  2. Inhale and lower the bar to your upper chest.
  3. Exhale and press it back up, squeezing your chest at the top.

Common mistakes

  • Bar comes down to mid-chest — on the incline it touches higher, near the collarbones.
  • Shoulder blades spread — keep them pinned the whole set.
  • Bouncing off the chest — controlled touch, no rebound.
  • Hips lift off the bench — that turns the incline into a flat press.

Not sure about your form? Send me a video of a set — I'll take a look and tell you what to fix first.

More for this muscle group: Chest

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Position photos from the open free-exercise-db.