Board Press
The board press stacks a set of wooden boards on your chest and presses the bar down to touch them instead of your sternum, shortening the range of a normal bench press. That shorter range lets you overload the lockout portion with more weight than you could handle through a full bench press, building strength specifically in the top half where your triceps take over. It's a powerlifting accessory used to target a weak lockout, not a stand-in for full-range bench pressing.
Why it works
Cutting the bar path short removes the bottom portion of the bench press, where your chest and shoulders do most of the work, and isolates the top portion where your triceps drive the bar to lockout. Because the range is shorter, you can load more weight than your full bench press allows, overloading your triceps and lockout strength beyond what a normal working set would. Your chest, shoulders, lats, and forearms still stabilize the bar and your position on the bench, but the triceps carry most of the extra demand this exercise is built around.
Set up
- Stack the number of boards your training calls for and have a spotter hold them on your chest, or use a strapped board setup if you're training alone.
- Load the bar heavier than your full-range bench press weight, since the shortened range lets you handle more.
- Set up on the bench as you would for a standard bench press, feet flat, shoulder blades pulled together.
- Confirm the board height with your spotter before you unrack the bar.
How to do it
- Unrack the bar and lower it under control toward your chest.
- Stop the bar the moment it touches the top board; don't bounce off it.
- Pause briefly on the board with the bar still under tension.
- Press back up to full lockout, driving hardest through your triceps.
- Reset your position before the next rep rather than rushing.
Form cues
- Touch the board, don't bounce off it.
- Keep your shoulder blades pinned throughout.
- Drive the bar straight up to lockout.
Breathing: Take a breath and brace before you unrack, hold it through the descent and press, and exhale once you lock out.
Common mistakes
Bouncing the bar off the boards instead of pausing under control.
Fix: Stop the bar with control on the board and hold a brief pause before pressing back up.
Choosing a board height that barely challenges your lockout.
Fix: Pick enough boards that the remaining range genuinely targets the top portion of the press, usually two to four depending on your sticking point.
Loading a plate weight close to your full bench press instead of heavier.
Fix: Since the range is shorter, load more than your full bench press; that overload is the entire point of the exercise.
How to program it
- Use this as an accessory to address a lockout weak point, not as your main bench press for the day.
- Three to five sets of 2 to 4 reps at a heavier-than-usual weight fits the purpose of this exercise well.
- Once a week is enough given how heavy the loading gets; more than that risks overloading the shoulders and elbows without added benefit.
Safety notes
- Always have a spotter, ideally one holding the boards steady, since the heavier loads make a missed rep harder to bail out of safely.
- Keep the board height consistent across a training block so you can track real progress in your lockout strength.
Exercise profile
- Force
- Push
- Mechanics
- Compound
- Category
- powerlifting
Frequently asked questions
How many boards should I use?
Most lifters start with two or three boards, depending on where their bench press tends to stall, then adjust based on how the range feels.
Is board press the same as a floor press?
Both shorten the bench press range to target lockout strength, but a floor press sets the limit at the floor with your upper arms, while board press lets you choose the exact height with the boards.
How much heavier should the bar be for board press?
It depends on your board height, but many lifters use 5 to 15 percent more than their full-range bench press for a similar rep range.
Do I need a partner for this exercise?
A spotter holding the boards steady on your chest is the standard setup and the safest way to train this movement.