Floor Press with Chains

advanced · push_horizontal

Setup

Set the rack's safety pins at the height the bar sits at when your elbows are on the floor, so a failed press can be parked on the pins and you can slide out. Set the J-hooks at a height you can reach while lying on the floor, and loop a length of chain onto each end of the bar so most of the links rest on the floor at the bottom. Lie on your back with your head near the base of the rack, pull your shoulder blades together, then pull the bar off the hooks. Dedicated chains are hard to find at ordinary Vietnamese gyms; without them, a plain barbell floor press covers similar short-range-of-motion work.

Execution

Grip the bar wider than shoulder-width and pull it off the hooks without letting your shoulder position collapse.
Inhale and lower the bar toward your lower chest or upper stomach, elbows tucked close to the body, gripping the bar like you are trying to bend it.
Lower until the back of your upper arms touches the floor, stopping under control without letting it slam or bounce.
Exhale and press the bar up as fast and hard as you can right from the pause; the chain lifts off the floor and adds load as your arms near lockout.
If you stall mid-press, let your elbows rest fully on the floor — that is this exercise's built-in stop, not something you need a spotter for.
Get out from under the bar by parking it on the safety pins, or by rolling it down your stomach to your hips, sitting up and setting it on the floor; never lie there waiting under it.
Guide the bar back onto the J-hooks once the set is done.

Breathing

Inhale as you lower the bar, exhale as you press it up. Do not hold your breath to move the weight; if you have high blood pressure, heart disease, a hernia or you are pregnant, never hold it at all.

Quick cues

The floor is a stop, not a launch.
The chains bite hardest at your strongest point.
Try to bend the bar apart.
Elbows tucked the whole press.
Drive up fast and decisive.

Common faults

Fault: Letting the elbows slam into the floor instead of lowering under control
Fix: Slow the last part of the descent and land softly on the back of the upper arms.
Fault: The chains swinging into the floor or the lifter's body mid-set
Fix: Check the chain length before starting and lay them straight along both sides of the body, not crossed over.
Fault: The elbows flaring out on the way down
Fix: Tuck the elbows in closer, around 45-60 degrees, before starting the descent.
Fault: Pressing up slowly instead of exploding from the pause
Fix: Think about firing the bar toward the ceiling the instant the elbows touch down; this drill is about speed, not a slow grind.

Equipment

barbell, power_rack, other

Muscle groups

arms, chest, shoulders