What Is a Floor Press?

The floor press is an effective strength training exercise involving lying flat on the floor while pressing a barbell or dumbbell. You lower the weight like a traditional bench press, but the movement stops when the back of your upper arms touch the floor.

This exercise is ideal for improving upper body strength and stability without the need for a flat or adjustable bench. It also targets the muscle groups of the upper body differently than the bench press.

Floor Press Muscles Worked

When performing the floor press, you target the same muscles as the bench press, including the pectorals, anterior deltoids, and triceps. However, the floor press tends to put slightly more emphasis on the triceps than the traditional bench press.

Additionally, the floor press reduces or eliminates support from the lower body, which is often used to generate more power during a bench press.

Floor Press vs. Bench Press Differences

It’s important to understand the differences between the floor press and bench press in order to use them effectively and avoid injury. In this section, I’ll walk you through the differences in setup, range of motion, and execution.

Setup for Floor Press vs. Bench Press

First, positioning your body before the exercise is critical in both the floor press and bench press to ensure safety and stability.

With the floor press, you lie flat on the floor with a slight arch in your back. You can bend your legs and place your feet on the floor, but I recommend putting your legs straight out to avoid lifting your butt while pressing.

By comparison, the bench press typically involves a more pronounced back arch while pulling your shoulder blades down to stabilize the shoulder joint. And most often, your feet are planted firmly on the floor.

The grip on the barbell or dumbbell is the same for both exercises.

Floor Press vs Bench Press Range of Motion

The main difference between the floor press and the bench press execution is the range of motion, which is shorter with the floor press compared to the bench press.

As you lower the weight during the floor press, the back of your upper arms will make contact with the floor and stop the movement when the bar is still a few inches away from your chest.

On the other hand, the traditional bench press involves lowering the bar all the way to your chest, resulting in a deeper stretch in the chest and front of the shoulders. Sort of like a conventional deadlift vs rack pull.

Your individual range of motion on either exercise will depend on your chest thickness, arm length, grip width, and how much arch you use.

Floor Press vs Bench Press Kinematics

Another key distinction between the floor press and the traditional bench press is the movement speed and the force generated by your muscles during the lift, also called kinematics.

For example, the weight should completely stop at the bottom of the floor press. The dead stop during the floor press demands overcoming zero momentum.

Comparatively, the bar often sinks into your chest slightly during a bench press, which triggers the muscle stretch reflex and helps spring the weight back up like the tension in a tight rubber band.

Essentially, your muscles must generate more power to get the bar moving again in the floor press. This is similar to the concept involved in box squats for your lower body.

When to Use Floor Press vs Bench Press

The standard bench press should remain a consistent part of your upper body workout routine. But there are a few instances where the floor press makes a terrific addition or alternative.

First, the best time to use the floor press is when you have a sticking point during a heavy bench press. This occurs when you can initiate the movement but fail to lift the bar more than a few inches off your chest.

Another example of when the floor press can be advantageous is if you struggle to lock out at the top of heavy bench press reps. In this case, you can complete 80-90% of the lift but get stuck before your arms are fully extended.

A third, albeit less common, application of the floor press is when you have a shoulder issue that becomes aggravated in the stretched position at the bottom of a full range of motion bench press. Of course, you should consult with a physician if you have an injury.

Finally, the floor press is an excellent alternative to the bench press if you don’t have a bench available. This could be the case if you have a small home gym or if all the benches are taken in a busy commercial gym.

Floor Press FAQ

After discussing the differences between the floor press and bench press, let me address some common questions you may have.

Is the floor press harder than the bench press?

You will probably find the floor press is more challenging than a regular bench press due to the requirement to control the eccentric more and come to a dead stop at the bottom. But the fact that it’s more difficult is one of the reasons it’s effective!

What percentage of bench press is floor press?

Initially, your floor press weight will likely be 75-80% of your bench press weight as you get used to the dead stop. However, on average, experienced lifters can floor press about the same weight they can bench press, according to strengthlevel.com standards.

Can you build chest muscle with the floor press?

The floor press is less effective for maximum chest growth due to the shorter range of motion than the bench press. However, it can be an excellent tool to increase your bench press strength, leading to more hypertrophy in the long run.