HOW TO DO MACHINE CHEST PRESS
- Set the seat so the handles meet the mid-chest. Too high and you shrug; too low and you press into the shoulders.
- Plant the feet, glue the upper back to the pad, and take a grip that lets the elbows stay under the wrists.
- Press to a soft lockout without losing contact with the pad. Return until you feel a stretch, not until the stack slams.
COMMON MISTAKES
- Letting the head and ribs come off the pad. You just turned a machine press into a messy floor press. Stay on the pad.
- Logging every chest machine as this lift. Incline, decline, and pec-deck are different slugs. Scan the tag — LIFTAG opens the one on that frame.
VARIATIONS
- Machine incline chest press — Upper-chest machine counterpart.
- Pec deck flys — Isolation on a similar footprint.
- Barbell bench press — Free-weight version of the pattern.
PROGRESSIONS
- Light stack, full range, no bounce.
- Add plates or pins when the last two reps are still clean.
PROGRAMMING NOTES
Machine press is weekly chest volume you can do without a spotter. 3–4 sets of 8–15. At a partner gym, the QR or NFC tag on this frame should open this slug — if it opens a different press, tell the gym so the log stays honest.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Open Machine Chest Press in LIFTAG, or tap the NFC tag / scan the QR code on the machine at a partner gym. Log each working set as weight × reps. The rest timer starts after you save the set, and PRs plus estimated 1RM update automatically.
