Compound — upper body

Incline Bench Press

Barbell or dumbbells and an incline bench

The incline bench press targets the upper chest and builds the full, well-developed upper body most lifters are after. Combined with the flat bench it covers the whole chest.

The upper chest is the region most lifters under-develop, and the flat bench does relatively little for it. An incline of 30–45° changes that without the shoulder cost people fear — the risk comes from going too steep, at which point you are effectively doing a poor overhead press.

Technique

1. 1Set the bench to 30–45 degrees — steeper recruits too much shoulder
2. 2Lower the bar to your upper chest, not your throat
3. 3Keep your shoulder blades pulled down and back throughout
4. 4Controlled, even speed down, explosive up
5. 5Dumbbells give a greater range of motion and recruit more stabilisers

Common mistakes

• Setting the bench too steep

  Fix: Past about 45° the front delts take over and the chest contribution drops. 30° is plenty for most people.

• Lowering the bar to the throat

  Fix: Aim for the upper chest, just below the collarbone. Bringing it to the neck puts the shoulder in a vulnerable position.

• Letting the shoulder blades roll forward

  Fix: Retract and depress them into the bench before unracking, exactly as on the flat bench. The incline makes this harder, not less important.

• Using flat-bench weight

  Fix: Incline pressing is usually 15–25% weaker. Starting too heavy forces the elbows to flare and the shoulders to take the load.

Sets and reps

How to progress

Treat it as your second press, not your first. Add 1.25 kg at a time with microplates, and if it stalls, hold the load and build reps from 8 to 12 before increasing. Two upper-body pressing sessions a week, one flat and one incline, progresses both faster than hammering either alone.

Variations

• Incline dumbbell press

  More range of motion, each side works independently, and easier on the shoulders for most lifters.

• Low-incline press

  15–20° is a subtle change that keeps more chest involvement while still biasing the upper fibres.

• Incline dumbbell fly

  Isolates the upper chest without triceps involvement — a good finisher.

Frequently asked questions