Decline Bench Press: Muscles Worked and How to Do It
TL;DR
The decline bench press is a chest-focused pressing exercise: your chest, especially the lower portion of the pectorals, drives the bar up while your shoulders and triceps assist by extending the arms. The decline angle shifts more emphasis onto the lower chest than a flat or incline press.
- Primary muscle:
- Chest
- Secondary muscles:
- Shoulders, Triceps
Muscles worked
Your chest is the prime mover, and the decline angle emphasizes the lower fibers of the pectoralis major more than a flat bench does. Pressing the bar from your lower chest back up to lockout is almost entirely chest-driven work.
Your shoulders, specifically the front deltoids, assist by helping drive the bar upward alongside the chest. Your triceps finish the lift by straightening the elbows through the last part of each rep, so they take on more load the closer the bar gets to lockout.
Log Decline Bench Press in PR Streak
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How to do it
- Secure your legs at the end of the decline bench and slowly lay down on the bench.
- Using a medium width grip (a grip that creates a 90-degree angle in the middle of the movement between the forearms and the upper arms), lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms locked. The arms should be perpendicular to the floor. This will be your starting position. Tip: In order to protect your rotator cuff, it is best if you have a spotter help you lift the barbell off the rack.
- As you breathe in, come down slowly until you feel the bar on your lower chest.
- After a second pause, bring the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out and push the bar using your chest muscles. Lock your arms and squeeze your chest 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).
- Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
- When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.
Form tips
- Have a spotter help you get the bar off the rack. The decline angle makes an unassisted lift-off awkward.
- Lower the bar to your lower chest under control instead of bouncing it off your body.
- Keep your shoulder blades pulled together and down against the bench throughout the set.
- Lock your arms out fully at the top and squeeze your chest before starting the next rep.
Exercise details
| Equipment | Barbell |
|---|---|
| Level | Beginner |
| Mechanic | Compound |
Used by lifters following PPL, 5x5, upper/lower, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does decline bench press work the chest differently than flat bench?
Yes. The decline angle shifts more of the load onto the lower chest, while a flat bench trains the chest more evenly and an incline bench emphasizes the upper chest. The shoulders and triceps assist in all three variations.
How heavy should I go on decline bench press?
Base your load on your goal. For pure strength, 6 reps or fewer at a high percentage of your one-rep max works well. For muscle size, 6-12 reps at a moderate load is the more common range.
How do I know how much weight is on the bar?
Use a plate calculator to work out which plates to load on each side for your target weight, so you're not doing math between sets.
More chest exercises
Exercise instructions and photos come from the free-exercise-db library, public domain, the same library used inside the PR Streak app.
