A bench press variation in which the bar is lowered to the base of the neck or the collarbones instead of the mid-chest, with the elbows flared out to the sides. That combination puts the upper pecs through a long stretch and a much larger range of motion, which is why bodybuilders such as Vince Gironda built whole chest programs around it. The trade-off is shoulder position: flared elbows and a bar travelling over the throat are demanding on the joint and leave little margin for error, so treat it as a light, controlled accessory done in a rack with safety pins set rather than a lift you push to failure.
How to do the Guillotine Press#
- Set safety pins or spotter arms just above chest height and lie on a flat bench with your eyes under the bar.
- Take a grip slightly wider than you would use for a standard bench press and plant your feet.
- Unrack the bar and bring it over the upper chest, close to the collarbones.
- Lower the bar slowly toward the base of your neck with the elbows flared out to the sides, roughly perpendicular to your torso.
- Stop just short of contact, or touch lightly, keeping the shoulder blades pulled back and down.
- Press the bar back along the same path until the arms are straight over the upper chest.
- Keep the load light and the tempo slow, and rack the bar as soon as your control starts to slip.
Muscles worked#
- Primary: Chest (Pectoralis Major)
- Secondary: Front delts (Anterior Deltoid), Triceps (Triceps Brachii)
Common mistakes#
- Going heavy, which puts the bar over the throat with almost no margin for error.
- Skipping the safety pins or a spotter.
- Letting the shoulders roll forward off the bench as the elbows flare.
- Lowering to the mid-chest instead of the collarbones, which turns it into a regular wide-grip press.
