Close-Grip Bench Press

How to Perform the Close-Grip Bench Press

Lie flat on a bench with your eyes under the bar. Plant your feet firmly on the floor.
Grip the bar at shoulder-width or slightly narrower — your hands should be roughly 12-16 inches apart.
Retract your shoulder blades and create a slight arch in your upper back for stability.
Unrack the bar and hold it above your chest with arms fully extended.
Lower the bar to your lower chest or sternum, keeping your elbows tucked close to your sides at 30 degrees or less.
Press the bar back up explosively, focusing on driving through the triceps to full lockout.
Squeeze your triceps hard at the top and repeat for the prescribed reps.

Gripping too narrow (hands touching)

Keep hands shoulder-width apart. Too narrow puts excessive stress on the wrists and reduces pressing power.

Flaring elbows outward

Keep elbows tucked at 30 degrees or less to maximise tricep engagement and protect the shoulders.

Lowering the bar too high on the chest

Bring the bar to your sternum or lower chest — this keeps the elbows properly tucked.

Using the same weight as regular bench press

Expect to use 70-80% of your flat bench weight. The narrower grip reduces leverage.

✓Builds significant tricep mass with heavier loads than isolation exercises allow
✓Directly improves bench press lockout strength
✓Still provides substantial chest stimulation alongside the tricep emphasis
✓Reduces shoulder stress compared to wide-grip pressing

●Think of this as a tricep exercise that also works the chest, not a chest exercise with a narrow grip.
●This exercise has excellent carryover to improving your lockout on the regular bench press.
●Keep your wrists straight and stacked over your elbows — do not let them bend backward.

Strength

4-5 sets of 4-6 reps at 75-85% 1RM

Hypertrophy

3-4 sets of 8-12 reps at 65-75% 1RM

Endurance

2-3 sets of 15-20 reps at 50-60% 1RM

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Articles featuring the close-grip bench press in workout programs and training advice.

How to Bench Press: Complete Form Guide, Tips & Programs