Smith Machine Bench Press
- Pro
- Beginner
- Gym
The Smith machine bench press loads a bar that moves on a fixed vertical rail while you lie on a bench beneath it. Pressing the bar from your chest to lockout trains the chest, front delts and triceps together as a guided compound press. Beginners use it for weight and reps in the gym as a main lift.
- Muscles
- Chest, Front delts, Triceps
- Equipment
- Smith machine, Bench
- Logged as
- Weight and reps
How to
- Lie on the bench with the bar over your mid-chest.
- Grip slightly wider than shoulders and unhook the bar.
- Lower the bar to your chest with control.
- Press back up and re-hook at the end of the set.
Form cues
- Keep your shoulder blades pinched together on the bench.
- Keep your feet flat and pressed into the floor.
- Exhale as you press the bar back to lockout.
Common mistakes
- Bar path drifts toward the neck. Lower the bar to the middle of your chest.
- Shoulder blades flatten during the press. Pinch your shoulder blades together and hold them.
- Bar gets rehooked too early. Keep the bar unhooked until the last rep.
Wellboy is a wellness and fitness app, not a healthcare service, and it does not provide medical advice. Talk to a doctor or another healthcare professional before starting a new exercise or diet routine if you have a medical condition, an injury, are pregnant, or have symptoms.
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