ExercisesStrength Training — Free Weights
Close Grip Bench Press: A Complete Guide
Also called Narrow Grip Bench Press, CG Bench
Quick Intro
Close Grip Bench Press, also called the Narrow Grip Bench Press, is a compound strength exercise performed by lying on a bench and pressing a barbell up from the chest using a hand spacing at shoulder width or narrower. It’s a variation of Barbell Bench Press that shifts the emphasis toward the back of the upper arm (triceps brachii) by shortening the range the elbows travel out to the sides.
Equipment Needed
Close Grip Bench Press needs a Barbell, loaded with weight plates to the working load, the only required equipment. A Squat Rack or bench with an attached rack makes unracking safer, though the lift can be performed from any flat bench with a spotter or safety pins in place.
Why Close Grip Bench Press Matters
Pressing the bar up with a narrow hand spacing shifts work onto the back of the upper arm (triceps brachii), which extends the elbow through a longer share of the press than a standard-width grip demands. The chest (pectoralis major) still contributes meaningfully to the press, and the front of the shoulder (deltoid, anterior) drives the bar upward alongside both. Muscular strength is the main demand, close to what a standard-width press asks even with the narrower grip. Power comes into it too, from driving a loaded bar upward with force.
When to Do It
Close Grip Bench Press fits naturally into a pressing-focused upper body day, either as a triceps-emphasis alternative to a standard-width bench press or as accessory work after the main pressing lift is done. Once or twice a week, spaced apart from other heavy pressing work, gives the elbows and wrists recovery time between sessions.
Anyone with a current wrist or elbow issue should approach this lift with caution, since the narrower hand spacing increases the angle both joints work through compared to a standard grip. Keeping the grip at shoulder width rather than pushing it much narrower reduces that added strain while still shifting emphasis toward the triceps.
Getting Ready
A few minutes of easy arm circles or light rowing on a machine warms the shoulders and elbows before the bar gets involved. A handful of empty-bar presses at the intended close grip previews the wrist angle and elbow path before adding weight.
Once the bar is loaded, a short ramp of warm-up sets, working from a light weight up toward the day’s working weight, lets the wrists and elbows adjust to the narrower grip before the first hard set.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. The setup. Lie on the bench and grip the bar at shoulder width or just inside it, feet flat on the floor.
2. The unrack. Unrack the bar and hold it steady directly over the chest before beginning the descent.
3. The descent. Lower the bar under control to the lower chest, keeping the elbows tucked close to the torso.
4. The press. Press the bar back up along the same path, driving through a full lockout at the top.
How Many, How Often
Close Grip Bench Press is dosed by reps, sets and the weight on the bar, generally a touch lighter than an equivalent standard-width bench press since the triceps take on more of the pressing load.
| Level | Where you’re at | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | Comfortable pressing at a standard grip width | 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps with a light to moderate weight, focused on keeping the elbows tucked through the full range. |
| Intermediate | The elbow path stays tucked and controlled through a full set | 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 10 reps with a weight where the last rep or two feels hard while the elbows stay in. |
| Advanced | Comfortable pressing a heavy bar with a consistently tucked elbow path | 4 sets of 6 to 8 reps, treating this as dedicated triceps-emphasis pressing work. |
Elbows that stay tucked close to the torso through the whole rep matter more here than the exact grip width, since flaring the elbows out shifts the emphasis right back toward the chest and defeats the purpose of narrowing the grip in the first place.
Modifications and Variations
Close Grip Bench Press has two alternatives, one at standard grip width and one that isolates the triceps.
As an alternative that widens the grip back out, Barbell Bench Press spreads the hands to a standard width, shifting emphasis back toward the chest while keeping the same fundamental pressing pattern.
As a further alternative that isolates the same muscle from a different angle, Skull Crushers lowers a barbell or EZ bar toward the forehead while lying on a bench, a more targeted triceps isolation move than a compound press can offer.
Progression path: Barbell Bench Press at a standard grip width sits alongside Close Grip Bench Press as a parallel triceps-emphasis alternative, with Skull Crushers available as a more isolated accessory once pressing volume is already covered.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Flaring the elbows out to the sides during the press. It directly undoes the point of narrowing the grip: elbows that flare wide shift the work back toward the chest and shoulders, the opposite of the triceps emphasis this variation is chosen for. Keeping the elbows tracking close to the torso through the whole rep protects both the shoulders and the intended muscle emphasis.
Gripping far narrower than shoulder width. Pushing the hands much closer together than shoulder width increases wrist and elbow strain without adding meaningful extra triceps benefit beyond what a shoulder-width grip already provides. Keeping the hands just inside shoulder width gets the emphasis shift without the added joint stress.
Losing wrist alignment under the bar. A narrower grip makes it easier for the wrists to bend back under load, which transfers unwanted strain into the joint instead of the muscle. Stacking the wrists directly under the bar and held straight keeps the load where it belongs.
After Your Set
A minute of easy arm swings settles the shoulders and elbows before anything else. Lying face-up and letting both arms fall open out to the sides, palms up, opens the chest and front shoulders that just finished pressing at a narrower angle than usual. Extending one arm straight out and gently pulling the fingers back with the other hand releases the forearm and elbow that worked through a narrower, more elbow-intensive path than a standard-width press.
Going Deeper
Close Grip Bench Press usually sits either as a standalone pressing day built around triceps emphasis or as a second pressing movement after a standard-width bench press, since the narrower grip trains a different portion of the same pressing chain. Doing it after the main press, once the chest and shoulders are already somewhat fatigued, still leaves enough in the triceps to make the narrower grip meaningful.
Progress here tends to stall on elbow position rather than raw pressing strength: a lifter who presses a heavy standard-width bench with ease may still find a close grip humbling purely because keeping the elbows tucked through a full range under load is its own separate skill. Dropping the weight down and rehearsing the tucked elbow path on lighter sets tends to fix this faster than pushing through with elbows that keep drifting out.
Someone new to this variation generally finds a comfortable, consistent grip width within the first couple of sessions, and works up to a working weight that feels triceps-limited somewhere in the three to five week range.
How to Know You’re Improving
- Elbows that stay tucked close to the torso through the entire rep, with no outward flare
- Wrists that stay straight and stacked directly under the bar through the press
- A working weight that leaves the last rep or two hard while the elbow path stays tucked
- A press that feels noticeably more triceps-driven than the same weight on a standard-width bench
Elbows that stay tucked through the whole rep, not the exact grip width, is the marker of progress on this lift.
Muscles Worked
- Triceps Brachii (the back of the upper arm, doing most of the work once the hands come inside shoulder width)
- Pectoralis Major (the chest muscle, contributing through a shorter path than a wide grip creates)
- Anterior Deltoid (the front of the shoulder, assisting the press with the elbows tucked close to the ribs)
FAQ
How much narrower should my grip be compared to a regular bench press? Just inside shoulder width is enough to shift emphasis toward the triceps without adding unnecessary wrist and elbow strain (see Common Mistakes above for what happens when the grip goes much narrower than that).
Will this exercise build my chest as much as a regular bench press? It still trains the chest meaningfully, but with a smaller share of the total work than a standard-width press, since the narrower grip and tucked elbows shift more of the load onto the triceps (see Why Close Grip Bench Press Matters above).
Why does this feel harder on my elbows than a regular bench press? The narrower hand spacing increases the angle the elbow travels through on every rep, which is exactly why keeping the grip just inside shoulder width, not drastically narrower, matters for joint comfort.
Should I use the same weight here as on a regular bench press? A slightly lighter weight is standard, since the triceps generally can’t move as much load as the chest and shoulders working together on a wider grip.
Related: Skull Crushers, a lying triceps extension that isolates the same muscle.