What Are The Proper Incline Bench Press Technique?

Bench press workout is one of the most popular forms of exercise, and the incline bench press technique is a variation of this exercise. Gym trainers suggest bench press exercises to build upper body strength and muscle building.

Unlike the average bench press, here the bench is at an angle of 45 degrees. This position mainly helps in strengthening your upper chest area and your shoulders than the flat bench press. In this article, we’ll look at everything you want to know about this exercise form and how to build a more muscular and stronger chest.

Incline Bench Press – Form & Techniques.

A bench is a first and foremost thing you need to do this exercise. Usually, you can find one in a gym, or if you are working out in your home, you can use a standard bench and place it at an angle of 45 degrees with a barbell. Now that you have everything to get started, let’s look at the form and technique for this exercise.

Position Yourself.

The first step is to position the bench in the correct position. Next, lie down on the bench on your back with the feet planted firmly to the floor.

Test Your Setup.

Before you start the exercise, test the setup with an empty barbell to check if everything is in place. This bench press form is extremely helpful for people to stabilize loads more effectively.

The Grip.

One of the most important things about this barbell bench press is the grip as it shouldn’t be either far nor near. It is good to have a grip that is a bit wider than your shoulders to get a comfortable grip on the barbell.

Unrack The Barbell.

Now gently unrack the bar and bring it to a position directly on top of your shoulders. Ensure that your arms are straight at a 90-degree angle to your body

Lower the Bar.

Next, slowly lower the bar and ensure that your upper chest has complete control over the weight. In this position, your arms should be at a 45-degree angle with your body

Repeat.

While your feet are firmly grounded, try lifting the bar to the starting position. Repeat this for 2-3 times.

Want to bench press like a pro

Benefits of Incline Bench Press Technique.

• The incline bench press works help in strengthening your upper body as well as various muscle joints contribute to the success of this exercise. Let’s look at the numerous benefits of this exercise.
• It is a compound lift exercise that requires power and strength from various joints from the upper chest. Unlike the standard flat bench press, the angle of the bench transfers the work more to the upper chest and shoulder joints. The larger the angle, the more weight gets transferred on to the shoulders.
• Whether it is a flat, incline or a decline bench press, the pectoral muscles or the chest is the most worked up part with the exercise. But this variation of the bench press makes it even more special to target the upper pecs than other types of the bench press
• By varying the angles of inclination of the bench, athletes can easily work out specific areas of their bodies. Even muscle weakness issues and muscle growth get addressed with this form of incline press exercise.

What Are The Muscles Worked?

Let’s take a look at the bench press muscles worked with this workout:

• Chest (Pectorals)
• One of the important bench press muscles worked with this bench press machine is the upper part of the chest. It is the angle of the bench that requires more extensive support from your upper chest and muscle joints.
• Front Shoulders (Anterior Deltoids)

Like the upper part of the chest, another part is the shoulder that plays an active role in this exercise. When the athlete unracks the bar and positions it over the shoulder, it is the anterior deltoids that get a lot of attention

The Backside Of The Arm (Triceps).

The triceps or the backside of the arm gets a lot of involvement or focus in this bench press variation. It also works on the core and even the glutes.

Different Workouts.

All forms of bench press workout need to start with lighter loads. It allows the body to get used to the conditions. Once the body gets acclimatized, the lifters can move to moderate and heavy loads slowly.

Fitness experts recommend sticking to a specific routine for a certain period to concentrate on a particular part of your body. One of the common mistakes that many people do is to go for heavy loads without even stabilizing their bodies. Your body needs to get acclimatized to the loads before trying moderate and heavier loads.

Lighter Loads.

For starters do 4 sets with 8 repetitions of the bench press with lighter loads. Take rest whenever needed between these incline barbell bench press exercises.

Moderate Loads.

The next level is to use moderate loads and perform 5 sets with 5-10 repetitions. However, ensure that you use reasonable resting periods.

Heavy Loads.

This is for serious professionals as the weights involved can be quite heavy looking to increase their muscle endurance. The resting periods are comparatively lower than other load levels. The lifter needs to work out 3-4 sets with 15 repetitions.

Alternatives For Incline Bench Press Technique.

Below are some of the variations of this exercise to help you provide workouts to your upper chest in a different manner

Incline Dumbbell Press.

One of the widely used variations of the incline bench press technique is the incline dumbbell bench press one. In this form, the athlete lies on his back on the bench with feet grounded and uses a dumbbell to provide more strength and power to the shoulders.

Seated Shoulder Press.

This variation primarily focusses on the shoulders rather than the upper chest. In this form, the person is seated rather than. Lifters and athletes can change the angle of inclination to provide more emphasis to the shoulders.

Incline Close Grip Dumbbell Bench Press.

The next variation in our list is the incline close grip bench. Here, instead of a full grip, a closer provides more emphasis on the upper chest and triceps. In addition to this, the close grip also ensures that the shoulder doesn’t get involved to a great extent.

Incline Hex Press.

Power up your pectoral muscles with the incline hex press. In this form, lie down on your back on the incline bench and lift dumbbells of moderate to heavy weights in rapid movements to give a sudden pump to the joints.

Final Thoughts

I hope the above article provided you with all the information needed to help you figure out forms and techniques along with the benefits of the incline bench press technique. Please post your comments and suggestions in the feedback section below. Moreover, readers can also share their experiences and benefits of the incline bench press workout for others.