Smith Machine Bench Press

How to do the Smith Machine Bench Press

1. Place a flat bench underneath the smith machine. Now place the barbell at a height that you can reach when lying down and your arms are almost fully extended. Once the weight you need is selected, lie down on the flat bench. Using a pronated grip that is wider than shoulder width, unlock the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms locked. This will be your starting position.
2. As you breathe in, come down slowly until you feel the bar on your middle chest.
3. After a second pause, bring the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out and push the bar using your chest muscles. Lock your arms in the contracted position, hold for a second and then start coming down slowly again. Tip: It should take at least twice as long to go down than to come up.
4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
5. When you are done, lock the bar back in the rack.

Muscles worked

Role	Muscles
Primary	chest
Secondary	shoulders, triceps
Equipment	machine
Difficulty	beginner
Type	compound

No machine? Train the same muscles with these

Ordered by how likely you are to own the 6 options.

Clock Push-Up Bodyweight Decline Push-Up Bodyweight Incline Push-Up Bodyweight Incline Push-Up Medium Bodyweight Incline Push-Up Reverse Grip Bodyweight Incline Push-Up Wide Bodyweight

Harder than the Smith Machine Bench Press

Plyo Kettlebell Pushups expert · Kettlebell Flat Bench Cable Flyes intermediate · Cable Machine Incline Cable Flye intermediate · Cable Machine

Superset the Smith Machine Bench Press with

Opposing middle back and lats and traps work — alternate sets without extra rest.

Leverage High Row middle back Leverage Iso Row lats Smith Machine Bent Over Row middle back Smith Machine Upright Row traps

Common questions

What muscles does the Smith Machine Bench Press work?

The Smith Machine Bench Press primarily works the chest, with the shoulders and triceps as secondary movers. Alternating Floor Press, Barbell Bench Press - Medium Grip, and Barbell Guillotine Bench Press train the same muscle, across 11 equipment types.

What equipment do you need for the Smith Machine Bench Press?

A Machine. Without a machine, Clock Push-Up, Decline Push-Up, and Incline Push-Up train the same muscle, and 17 of the catalogue's options for this muscle need no equipment.

Is the Smith Machine Bench Press suitable for beginners?

Yes, the Smith Machine Bench Press is rated beginner. Plyo Kettlebell Pushups, Flat Bench Cable Flyes, and Incline Cable Flye are the progressions from here.

Where should the Smith Machine Bench Press go in a workout?

Early — the Smith Machine Bench Press is compound, working 3 muscle groups, so run it first or second while you are fresh, then superset Leverage High Row and Leverage Iso Row later.

Similar exercises

Alternating Floor Press Kettlebell Barbell Bench Press - Medium Grip Barbell Barbell Guillotine Bench Press Barbell Barbell Incline Bench Press - Medium Grip Barbell Bench Press - With Bands Resistance Bands Bent-Arm Dumbbell Pullover Dumbbell