Muscles worked
Your chest drives your hands straight forward, backed up by your triceps and front shoulders. Because you are standing and the band pulls backwards, your trunk works the whole time to stop you tipping towards the anchor, and your legs give you a steady base. Resistance grows the further forward your hands travel, so the last few centimetres before straight arms are the hardest. Working one arm at a time adds a twist your abs have to resist.
Common mistakes
- The anchor is insecure. A band that slips out of a door can snap back at you. Fix the door anchor on the hinge side of a door that opens away from you, close it firmly, ideally locked so nobody opens it mid-set, and tug the band before you start.
- Your elbows sit out at shoulder height. With your elbows high and wide, more of the press lands on your shoulders. Keep them just below shoulder height in the start position, roughly as at the bottom of a push-up.
- The band bends your hand back. The band pulls the ends back over your wrist, and a bent wrist loses force. Grip hard with your knuckles facing forward, so your wrist stays in line with your forearm.
Variations and alternatives
- The standing cable chest press is the gym version, where you see exactly what you lift.
- Push-ups give most people more resistance and need nothing but the floor.
- Band chest flyes fit after the press, with the same anchor, to train your chest without the triceps.
Sets and reps
Use 10 to 20 reps per set over 2 to 4 sets, for muscle or endurance. It works as your main press at home if you cannot yet do push-ups, and as extra volume after them if you can. There is more on choosing reps and sets under sets and reps.
When pressing single-handed, start with the weaker arm and match its reps with the other. Make it harder by standing further from the anchor, switching to a stronger band or holding your arms straight for a second or two on each rep. Change one thing at a time and stay there until every set feels solid: that is progressive overload without a gym.