How to do a Hammerstrength Chest Press

Hammerstrength Chest Press is a variation on the more standard Barbell Bench Press. Similar to Bench Press, this compound exercise primarily targets your chest, shoulders, and triceps. The use of a Hammerstrength machine forces you to use a fixed range of motion. This can help you either learn the movement, or focus your efforts on exertion rather than stability.

1. Sit upright in a hammerstrength chest press machine while squeezing your shoulder blades together and placing your heels firmly on the ground underneath your knees.
2. The back pad should be contact with your head, shoulders, and butt at all times.
3. Grab ahold of the handles with an overhand grip just outside shoulder-width apart.
4. Keeping your core braced by breathing into your stomach and flexing the abdominal muscles, push through your palms to extend your elbows while keeping them at a 45 degree angle from your torso.
5. Once your arms are fully extended, return to the starting position.

Common Form Mistakes