Floor Press for chest - who does this one?

I’ve never done this when I used to frequent a commercial gym, because, well, I guess because no one really did it.
Besides, other than Mondays, it would be more practical to wait for one of the many bench stations to be free than the squat rack, since everyday was curl day, apparently.

So anyways, since I’m working out at home these days, I decided to give it a go and this is what I got from it:

  • My chest is surprisingly sore, which I didn’t expect, considering the chest doesn’t get to a streched position;
  • My shoulders felt great. Normal benching bothers my shoulders a bit these days, but floor pressing felt very easy on them.

Admitedly, I did a higher rep range than usual (15 reps) and the soreness might be more due to the novelty of introducing a new exercise, but I still felt it way more in my chest than my triceps.

It’s a bit early to draw strong conclusions, but it seems like a better option than I thought it would be for a main chest exercise, and the fact that it seems to spare my shoulders is a good reason to keep it in rotation.

So, any of you do this one regularly?
Thoughts?
Experiences?
Results?

1 Like

Thibaudeau digs it. He explains some of what you’re experiencing here:

And the dumbbell version is cool:

4 Likes

I’ve always liked it and feel like I got a lot of chest out of it.

Basically no new info for you other than a thumbs up vote.

2 Likes

I built my chest as a teen with dumbbell floor Press and floor flys. I think going crazy deep on Bench is super overrated, considering the progress I made going to 90 degrees. As an anecdote, this is how IFBB pro Phil Hernon benched and had his clients Bench.

4 Likes

I remember Phil being a big proponent of the decline bench, but I didn’t know that. Thanks for the info.

1 Like

Does anyone think this variation might be better for those with a shoulder impingement? My impingement makes the flat bench impossible.

1 Like

It didn’t bother my shoulders one bit. The only other BB press that I can do without any issue is the decline.
Try it and report back.

1 Like

A former coach of mine had me doing DB Floor Press for triceps actually.

It worked well, but I struggled to get set up properly with dumbbells.
The 80’s were quite difficult to get situated, and I needed a good bit more weight than that.

Close Grip Floor Press is pretty cool too, but there’s no stretch-mediated hypertrophy doing it that way.
YMMV

2 Likes

I will Monday. Thanks.

1 Like

Yeah, I figure the setup has to be a motherfucker with a decent weigh.

I might get one of these later for that but I have no issues bench pressing with DBs anyway.

1 Like

I’ve been looking into these as well! And yes sir, everything I’ve seen from Phil was decline press and/or floor press for chest.

3 Likes

Tried doing unilateral DB floor presses? Makes the setup easier.

2 Likes

I agree with everyone, Floor Press and Floor Flies are surprisingly good for pecs.

I thought the same thing are not getting enough stretch or ROM. But when I started doing it, I felt a pretty big stretch in the pecs getting my elbows Out to the sides vs dropping them down.

Same thing with the floor flies. Instead of worrying about getting the DBs low to stretch pecs and straining my shoulders on the bench, laying on the floor and getting the elbows Out gave better stretch with less shoulder pain.

You can also do fun stuff like the old school bodybuilder Guillotine Press with the bar way up over you neck. Or Poliquin style Tri Sets with the bar over upper chest/mid chest/low chest. On the floor so you don’t have to worry about blasting your shoulders going too low.

5 Likes

Barbell floor press serves my shoulders well. I really only do dips and shrugs for my upper body anymore (besides some ring work), but will rotate in floor presses.

Man if you can set those up properly they are magical. I was using these this summer setting up at the lowest incline bench setting in a Smith Machine and really shrugging the shoulders, flaring the elbows and rotating the hands out on the bar (Daryl Conant) and had ZERO impingement or pain.

3 Likes

Tried doing unilateral DB bench press once, almost fell off the bench lol. Very taxing on the obliques though, probably a good exercise for athletes.

2 Likes

I’ve been doing a lot of unilateral Dumbbell Press lately, one arm up, holding the dumbbell at lockout in the contracted position while the other arm performs a rep. I’ll either go alternating every rep or use it in a muscle round where I do 4 reps, then switch. It’s great for helping to prevent rib Cage compression because one side expands while the other compresses. It’s very challenging but it feels great and gives me an insane chest stimulus. The trick to getting the most out of it is to not twist or orient your body to compensate.

3 Likes

@darnell_becker I did them today. The pain was by and large not there. There was some near the top of the movement at heavier loads, but my pain was typically at the bottom of the movement. Overall it feels much better than the bench press and I hope to make it a regular feature of my workouts.

1 Like

Do you have a small strip of mat to put under your upper back (running with the spine)? I noticed that helps my shoulder on a really bad day when normal floor press hurts (scaps can move a little better).

1 Like

The pain is in the anterior portion of my shoulder.

Same. You could also try lacrosse balling that area against the floor

2 Likes