Paused bench press

A compound exercise for the chest, with help from the triceps, front delts. Equipment: barbell, flat bench and squat rack.

Orbit

Drag to rotate

WorksChestTricepsFront delts

Drag to turn the figure. The highlighted muscles are the ones doing the work.

How to do it

Setup: Set up as for the bench press, a little lighter than usual.
Hold the bar still on the chest for a second
Press without bouncing

Muscles worked

Paused bench press: 3D figure mid-rep with the chest highlighted

Chest · main
Triceps
Front delts

Equipment

Barbell
Flat bench
Squat rack

Alternatives

Exercises that train the same main muscles. See all paused bench press alternatives.

Archer push-upNo equipment
Ball chest passMedicine ball
Ball push-upMedicine ball
Band chest pressResistance bands
Banded push-upResistance bands
Barbell bench pressBarbell, Flat bench and Squat rack

More chest exercises

Incline barbell pressBarbell, Adjustable bench and Squat rack
Dumbbell bench pressDumbbells and Flat bench
Incline dumbbell pressDumbbells and Adjustable bench
Dumbbell flyDumbbells and Flat bench
Machine chest pressChest press machine
Pec deck flyPec deck

Put the paused bench press in a plan that adapts

Liftsmith decides when to do it, how many sets and reps, and the weight, from your recovery and last session. Log each set in one tap; the rest timer starts on its own.

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