Where should the bench press touch the chest?

This is an overview on where to touch the bench press based on my observations of experienced lifters and my personal learning on my journey to a 150kg bench press. Please also refer to other sources like Chris Duffin, Calgary Barbell, Brandon Campbell and supertraining06 to learn more and become a student of the art of strength.

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Tips and tricks to improve your bench press

So you have started to exercise more? Great! Now it is up to you to learn the new movement patterns to get even fitter, stronger and faster. After the quick introduction to cover the gym's insurance policy you now ask yourself how you can possibly get better at each of the movements. One of the more popular barbell exercises is the bench press, as it is comparably easy to learn (as the other moves on the list are the clean, the snatch, the deadlift and the squat). How to ensure the right execution of the bench press?

There are many tips and tricks which are used when teaching the bench press. "Tuck your elbows in", "Pause on the chest", "Break the bar", "Pull your pinkies in", "White knuckle", just to name a few of them. Personally, I would recommend as a beginner that you go about one thing at a time and implement it step by step to improve form. Otherwise, you will get confused during the lift and lose focus. This might lead to a failed repetition or even worse, losing control of the barbell entirely. So look at these one clue at a time when you start out with the barbell. Especially if you are already very fit and can handle a barbell easily make use of the early stages of programs like Stronglifts 5x5 or Starting Strength to really knuckle down on technique. You will benefit greatly at later stages of your journey when you do not have to turn back and start from scratch because of poor execution.

Where to touch the barbell bench press?

This outline will talk about the raw barbell bench press only and leave out discussion of variations like the dumbbell bench press, duffalo barbell bench press or shirted bench presses.

There are several points at which you can touch the bench press on your chest and they vary between individual lifters. This depends mainly on the length of the arms, proportions between upper- and underarm and the size of the chest itself. While these are general observations based on my training and what I have observed over the years in several gyms it is meant as a guidance and not as the ultimate be all, end all gospel of the strength world. Always experiment within the realms of sanity and safety to get the best possible outcomes for yourself. Also take care of medical/anatomical limitations that might prevent you from performing the lift in a certain way.

Touching the bench press high on the chest is in my personal opinion one of the least favorable options for three reasons. First, it puts you in a weaker position to perform the bench press, as you will limit the triceps brachii to contribute to the push (eccentric) part of the movement. Secondly, it does usually lead to a higher likelihood of you touching the J cups while performing the lift putting you at higher risk for failed reps and other unforeseen outcomes. Lastly, it also puts the barbell closer to the fatal areas of the throat and face and therefore increases the chances of hurting you very badly in case you lose control. So, in a nutshell, keeping the barbell away from your face as far as reasonably possible is a wise thing to do when bench pressing heavy weights for leverage and cosmetic reasons.

Touching the barbell on your stomach is a classic move from where the barbell bench press as we know it today developed. Also known as a "bellyflop" bench press in this version of the bench press the lifter touches of the barbell very low and might even bounce the weight from the body for some extra momentum. While this is clever use of the beer belly you worked so hard for over the last decade, I think it is not the best option to maximize your bench press. Mainly there are two reasons for this. First being that by bouncing the weight off your belly you are not in full control of the lift and increase injury risk (never mind the embarrassment in the gym if you manage to rupture some internal organs in the process and let go off some nasty winds). Second reason for me is that by doing this you defeat the purpose of the exercise. You wanted to become stronger and build a bigger chest, right? Why do you try to bounce the weight of your belly then? How does that possibly make your pecs grow?

Touching the barbell near the nipples is in my personal view the best option. When consent has been established around touching chests the nipple area is usually a good area to go for. The bench press is no exception from this rule. In my personal case, I touch the barbell slightly below the line of where the pectoralis major ends. You can observe the same with many elite powerlifters and this translates to touching the chest slightly below the nipples. You want to achieve the maximum amount of leverage while making use of your triceps, pecs and delts, which are the main muscles being activated in the bench press. While doing this you want the bar to travel very close to the area in which your elbows lock out as this is the strongest position you can be in for the bench press. Lower or higher than that puts you in a weaker position which make you move less load and therefore progress slower.

Conclusion

Exceptions from the rule are of course always welcome depending on your circumstances. The most favorable position to touch the barbell is just around the nipples, more often than not slightly below rather than above, to ensure maximum strength being applied in the eccentric part of the range of motion.