Decline Machine Chest Press

How to do it

1. Set the seat height so the handles line up with your lower chest and load the machine.
2. Sit back with your whole spine against the pad and fasten the seat belt if the machine has one.
3. Take a handle in each hand with an overhand grip and set your shoulder blades back and down.
4. Press the handles down and away from your chest until your elbows are almost straight.
5. Stop just short of locking out and hold the chest contraction briefly.
6. Return the handles slowly until you feel a stretch across the chest, then repeat.

Common mistakes

• Setting the seat too high turns the movement into a flat or incline press and removes the downward angle.
• Letting the shoulders roll forward off the pad at the finish transfers load onto the shoulder joint.
• Slamming into full lockout hands the work to the joints and drops tension off the chest.
• Letting the stack pull the handles back quickly wastes the eccentric and risks a jolt at the shoulder.