5 Bar-Free Alternatives to Reverse Close-grip Bench Press

If you can't perform the Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press, use movements that load elbow extension and horizontal pressing. Good options include close-grip dumbbell bench, dips, skull crushers, pushdowns, and JM presses. Cue: keep elbows tucked ~30–45° to target the triceps long head and minimize shoulder stress while maintaining full elbow extension.

Original Exercise: Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press

Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press
Primary Muscle
Triceps
Equipment
Barbell
Difficulty
Intermediate
Type
Compound
Secondary Muscles: Chest, Shoulders
How to Perform Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back pressed against the bench.
  2. Grasp the barbell with a reverse grip, hands shoulder-width apart.
  3. Lift the barbell off the rack and hold it directly above your chest with your arms fully extended.
  4. Slowly lower the barbell down towards your chest, keeping your elbows close to your body.
  5. Pause for a moment when the barbell is just above your chest.
  6. Push the barbell back up to the starting position, fully extending your arms.
  7. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Best Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press Alternatives

Best Match
Ez Barbell Jm Bench Press

1. Ez Barbell Jm Bench Press

97.2% Match
Triceps Ez-barbell Advanced Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back pressed against the bench.
  2. Grasp the ez barbell with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Lower the barbell to your chest, keeping your elbows tucked in close to your body.
  4. Push the barbell back up to the starting position, fully extending your arms.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press

2. Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press

96.7% Match
Triceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie back on a flat bench. Using a close grip (around shoulder width), lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms locked. This will be your starting position.
  2. As you breathe in, come down slowly until you feel the bar on your middle chest. Tip: Make sure that - as opposed to a regular bench press - you keep the elbows close to the torso at all times in order to maximize triceps involvement.
  3. After a second pause, bring the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out and push the bar using your triceps muscles. Lock your arms in the contracted position, hold for a second and then start coming down slowly again. Tip: It should take at least twice as long to go down than to come up.
  4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
  5. When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.
Barbell Lying Close-grip Press

3. Barbell Lying Close-grip Press

96.7% Match
Triceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back pressed against the bench.
  2. Grasp the barbell with a close grip, hands shoulder-width apart, palms facing towards your feet.
  3. Lift the barbell off the rack and hold it directly above your chest with your arms fully extended.
  4. Slowly lower the barbell towards your chest, keeping your elbows close to your body.
  5. Pause for a moment when the barbell touches your chest, then push it back up to the starting position.
Close-Grip EZ-Bar Press

4. Close-Grip EZ-Bar Press

95.9% Match
Triceps Ez-barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie on a flat bench with an EZ bar loaded to an appropriate weight.
  2. Using a narrow grip lift the bar and hold it straight over your torso with your elbows in. The arms should be perpendicular to the floor. This will be your starting position.
  3. Now lower the bar down to your lower chest as you breathe in. Keep the elbows in as you perform this movement.
  4. Using the triceps to push the bar back up, press it back to the starting position by extending the elbows as you exhale.
  5. Repeat.
Ez-bar Close-grip Bench Press

5. Ez-bar Close-grip Bench Press

95.9% Match
Triceps Ez-barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back pressed against the bench.
  2. Grasp the ez barbell with a close grip, hands shoulder-width apart, palms facing forward.
  3. Lift the barbell off the rack and hold it directly above your chest with your arms fully extended.
  4. Slowly lower the barbell towards your chest, keeping your elbows close to your body.
  5. Pause for a moment when the barbell touches your chest.
Barbell Close-grip Bench Press

6. Barbell Close-grip Bench Press

95.9% Match
Triceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back pressed against the bench.
  2. Grasp the barbell with a close grip, slightly narrower than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Unrack the barbell and lower it slowly towards your chest, keeping your elbows close to your body.
  4. Pause for a moment when the barbell touches your chest.
  5. Push the barbell back up to the starting position, fully extending your arms.
Barbell Lying Extension

7. Barbell Lying Extension

91.7% Match
Triceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your head at the end of the bench.
  2. Hold the barbell with an overhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart, and extend your arms straight up over your chest.
  3. Keeping your upper arms stationary, slowly lower the barbell towards your forehead by bending your elbows.
  4. Pause for a moment, then extend your arms back up to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Ez Bar Lying Close Grip Triceps Extension Behind Head

8. Ez Bar Lying Close Grip Triceps Extension Behind Head

91.7% Match
Triceps Ez-barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your head at the end of the bench.
  2. Hold the ez barbell with a close grip, palms facing up, and extend your arms straight up over your chest.
  3. Keeping your upper arms stationary, slowly lower the barbell behind your head by bending your elbows.
  4. Pause for a moment, then extend your arms back up to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Barbell Lying Close-grip Triceps Extension

9. Barbell Lying Close-grip Triceps Extension

91.7% Match
Triceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your head at the end of the bench.
  2. Grasp the barbell with a close grip, hands shoulder-width apart, palms facing up.
  3. Extend your arms fully, lifting the barbell above your chest.
  4. Keeping your upper arms stationary, slowly lower the barbell towards your forehead by bending your elbows.
  5. Pause for a moment at the bottom, then extend your arms back to the starting position.
Barbell Jm Bench Press

10. Barbell Jm Bench Press

91.2% Match
Triceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back pressed against the bench.
  2. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Lower the barbell to your chest, keeping your elbows tucked in close to your body.
  4. Push the barbell back up to the starting position, fully extending your arms.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Why You Might Need a Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press Alternative

You might substitute the Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press due to wrist or shoulder pain, lack of a barbell, poor setup in a busy gym, or a desire for unilateral work. Swapping exercises protects joints and preserves triceps activation through different leverage and ranges of motion. For example, switching to dumbbell close-grip bench reduces wrist pronation and allows neutral grips that align the forearm with the humerus. Cue: maintain scapular retraction and drive through the elbows to emphasize elbow extension mechanics rather than shoulder horizontal adduction.

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Select a substitute based on available equipment, pain patterns, and the triceps heads you want to emphasize. If you need joint-friendly grips, pick neutral-handle dumbbell presses or cable pushdowns to reduce wrist deviation. For overload potential choose dips or dumbbell presses; for isolation pick skull crushers or pushdowns to stress elbow extension. Cue: focus on controlled eccentric lengthening and a strong lockout to maximize triceps activation and maintain progressive overload through load, reps, or tempo.

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles does Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press work?

The lift primarily targets the triceps via elbow extension, with secondary involvement from the sternal pecs and anterior deltoids for horizontal pressing stabilization. Biomechanically it emphasizes the long and lateral triceps heads when you keep the elbows close to the torso and drive the bar through a near-vertical forearm path.

What is the best bodyweight alternative to Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press?

Parallel-bar dips performed with an upright torso are the top bodyweight substitute; they load elbow extension and allow progressive overload with added weight. Cue: keep your chest slightly up, elbows tucked, and drive through the hands to emphasize triceps lockout rather than forward leaning.

Can I build muscle without doing Barbell Reverse Close-grip Bench Press?

Yes. You can achieve triceps hypertrophy with a range of pressing and isolation variants that load elbow extension—dips, close-grip dumbbell presses, skull crushers, and cable pushdowns all work. Use progressive overload, train through full ROM, and prioritize controlled eccentrics to match the stimulus of the barbell variation.

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