Barbell Floor Press
The barbell floor press is a bench-press-style lift done lying on the floor, so the backs of your upper arms settle on the ground at the bottom of each rep before you press back up. The floor shortens the range, which puts more of the work on the triceps and the top half of the press, and makes it a popular lockout and triceps builder.
Also called: Floor Press, Barbell Floor Bench Press, Dead-Stop Floor Press · Equipment: barbell · Pattern: push
Step by step
- Set the bar in a power rack at a height you can reach with straight arms while lying on the floor, and set the safety pins just below the bar's lowest point.
- Lie on your back with your eyes under the bar. Bend your knees with your feet flat, or keep your legs straight.
- Grip the bar about as wide as your bench press grip, with the bar low in your palms and your wrists stacked over your forearms. Pull your shoulder blades back and down into the floor.
- Brace, press the bar out of the hooks and move it until it sits over your shoulders.
- Bring the bar down under control, elbows angled about 45–70° from your torso, until the backs of your upper arms rest on the floor.
- Pause for a moment with your arms on the floor, staying tight rather than relaxing or bouncing.
- Press the bar up and slightly back to finish over your shoulders with straight arms. After the last rep, return the bar to the hooks.
- Upper arms settle, then press
- Elbows 45–70° from your sides
- Shoulder blades pinned to the floor
- Wrists stacked over your forearms
- Press up and back over your shoulders
- Finish with straight arms
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Triceps brachii: lateral head | Prime mover | B |
| Triceps brachii: medial head | Prime mover | B |
| Pectoralis major: sternocostal (mid) | Prime mover | C |
| Anterior deltoid | Secondary | B |
| Triceps brachii: long head | Secondary | C |
| Pectoralis major: clavicular (upper) | Secondary | C |
| Serratus anterior | Stabiliser | C |
| Forearm flexors | Stabiliser | D |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Bouncing the arms off the floor
Fix: Let your upper arms settle on the floor for a moment before each press.
Elbows flared out towards 90°
Fix: Angle your elbows about 45–70° from your sides, forearms vertical.
Wrists bent back
Fix: Set the bar low in your palms with your wrists stacked over your forearms.
Relaxing on the floor
Fix: Keep your shoulder blades pinned and your trunk braced through the pause.
Bar drifting towards the face or belly
Fix: Bring the bar to the same spot each rep and press it back over your shoulders.
Training without safeties
Fix: Set the rack safety pins just below the bar's lowest point before your first set.
What the research says
PowerStrengthMuscle growthRehab & prehabGeneral fitnessSport performanceEndurance
- Range of motion — Reviews find full range of motion generally gives equal or greater gains than partial range, although upper-body growth evidence is limited. Many lifters pair the floor press with a full-range press rather than using it on its own.
- Range-specific strength — A training study found strength gains were largely specific to the part of the range trained, which is why lifters use the floor press to target the top half of the press.
- Triceps — An EMG study found the medial head of the triceps works at every effort level, while the lateral head contributes more as efforts get heavier. This is muscle activity, not growth.
- Load and effort — Research comparing loads finds maximal strength favours heavier loads, while muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure. Sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the benefit.
- Paused reps — There is no direct research comparing the floor press with the bench press, or paused with touch-and-go floor pressing.
Swap it mid-workout
- Barbell Reverse Grip Bench Press
- Dumbbell Floor Press
- Kettlebell Floor Press
- Assisted Dip Machine
- Dip
- Ring Dip
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the barbell floor press in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.
General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.