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Exercise library · Chest

Floor press

Horizontal press for the chest with a barbell.

How to do it

1 of 3

Lie on the floor, knees bent

  1. Starting position

    Lie on the floor with bent knees, feet flat, and grip the bar slightly wider than your shoulders.

  2. The movement

    Lower the bar until your upper arms lightly touch the floor, then press it straight up over your chest.

Most common mistake

Don't bounce your elbows off the floor, lower the bar with control and pause briefly before pressing up.

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Muscle group
Chest
Equipment
Barbell
Where
Gym
Logged as
Weight × reps

Muscles worked

The floor press trains your chest, triceps and the front of your shoulders, but the movement ends when your upper arms reach the floor. The bottom part of a regular bench press, where your chest is most stretched, drops out, so your triceps take a larger share of the work. Your legs lie on the floor and cannot help, so your upper body has to press on its own. Since your elbows never go below your torso, some people with sensitive shoulders find it more comfortable than the bench press.

Common mistakes

  • Getting the bar into place without a rack. Rolling a heavy bar over your hips or hauling it off the floor is hard work and easily goes crooked. Use a rack with low hooks and the safety arms just below the bar's lowest point.
  • Lifting your hips into a bridge. When it gets heavy, many people push their hips up for help from their legs. Keep your bum down and use your feet only for stability.
  • Your elbows land straight out to the sides. With your upper arms at right angles to your body, your shoulders take more of the load at the bottom. Tuck your elbows in a little so they land nearer your hips.

Variations and alternatives

  • The dumbbell floor press is easier to set up at home and works each arm separately.
  • The bench press gives the full range and leg drive, for training your chest in the stretched position.
  • The close grip bench press also puts more on your triceps, but with the full range on a bench.

Sets and reps

The floor press can handle heavy sets. For strength, 3 to 6 reps over 3 to 5 sets works, and 6 to 10 reps for building muscle. The pause on the floor removes momentum, so do not expect your bench press weights. Many use it alongside the bench press to strengthen the top half of the press. Warm up with lighter sets as in the guide to warming up, and see sets and reps for choosing reps.

Add weight in small steps, such as 2.5 kg in total, once every set goes with a clear pause on the floor. Keep the pause the same length every session, so you measure real progressive overload and not just more bounce.

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

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