Muscles Worked in Bench Press
The bench press is a fantastic upper body movement. Everyone should train this movement at some point in their life to build strength, muscle and athleticism. This blog will cover the muscles worked in the bench press.
Muscles Worked in the Bench Press
These are the muscles worked in the bench press.
- pecs
- shoulders
- serratus
- triceps
- biceps
- forearms
Supporting Muscles in the Bench Press
Some other muscles also take on more of a supporting role. These muscles help you stabilize so you can bench press safely.
- lats
- upper back
- lower back
- rotator cuff muscles
- quads
- glutes
Muscles Used in the Close Grip Bench Press
The close grip bench press trains the same muscles as the regular bench press. However, using a close grip means that your triceps will work harder in this exercise variation. In contrast, this exercise does not train the chest and shoulders as hard as the traditional bench press.
Muscles Used in the Incline Bench Press
The incline bench press trains the same muscles as the regular bench press. However, the incline position allows your upper chest and shoulders to do more of the work. Thus, this exercise is great for building definition in the upper portion of the chest.
Muscles Used in the Decline Bench Press
The decline bench press trains the same muscles as the regular bench press. Putting the bench at a slight decline allows you to target your lower chest a bit more than the traditional bench press.
Muscles Used in the Floor Press
The floor press is similar to a traditional bench press. However, you will have a reduced range of motion compared to the bench press. This means the chest muscles do not get as much of a stretch at the bottom, so this exercise may be less effective at building strong chest muscles than the traditional bench press. However, this exercise is great for tricep strength. You can use heavy loads and really build your tricep muscles.
Putting it all Together
The bench press and bench press alternatives are great for building the muscles of the chest, shoulders and triceps. If you liked this article, please feel free to leave a comment below!
