Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press
How to do the Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press with correct form, the muscles it works, and where it fits a training plan you actually stick to.
Triceps
Chest, Shoulders
Barbell
How to do the Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press
- 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.
Log it, see it on your body.
Every Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press set you log feeds Ascend's anatomy heatmap — so your triceps volume is visible at a glance — and counts toward your bodyweight-strength tier.
More triceps exercises
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