How to learn the bench press: 100 kg with clean technique
Push-ups and dips first, then the barbell. Setup, breathing and scaling – the Strive Up standard is a clean 100 kg × 10 reps.
Contents
The bench press is the classic among strength exercises. In the Strive Up approach it doesn't come first – it comes after solid bodyweight foundations: push-ups and dips. Get those clean and you have shoulder mechanics under control, which lets you add the barbell in a controlled way.
Why bodyweight comes before the bench
Beginners who start straight on the bench learn movement patterns that were never questioned in bodyweight work: sagging shoulders, uneven activation, missing scapular control. On the bench that blows up quickly – usually as shoulder pain.
Muscles worked: chest, triceps, front delts. A clean bench press demands the same tension patterns as a good push-up – plus external load.
Prerequisites
- 30+ clean push-ups.
- 20+ clean dips – the direct pressing movement through full range.
- A reliable spotter or safety bars (never bench alone without safety).
Your path to the bench press
Your path to a 100 kg bench press
Bodyweight pressing (push-ups, dips) is the foundation. Only then comes the barbell bench.
Setup in 5 steps
- Position: eyes under the bar. Feet firmly on the floor, pulled slightly back.
- Bracing: shoulder blades actively back and down. Chest up. A gap between your lower back and the bench is normal.
- Grip: shoulder width to slightly wider. Thumbs wrapped around the bar (no suicide grip).
- Unracking: press the bar out of the rack and bring it into position above your shoulders.
- Pressing: lower the bar under control to your sternum, pause briefly, then drive it up explosively.
Common mistakes
- Elbows flared too wide: 90° to the spine loads the shoulders unnecessarily. 45°–60° is optimal.
- Hips lifting: if your glutes come off the bench the weight is too heavy – or your bracing is wrong.
- Bar on the neck or collarbone: the bar has to touch the sternum, no higher. Otherwise shoulder position becomes critical.
- Asymmetric press: one side comes up faster. Reduce the weight and work on symmetry instead of chasing a PR.
Training plan
Day A (heavy): 5 × 5 at 75–85 % of 1RM
Day B (volume): 4 × 8 at 65 % + 3 × 12 push-ups
Progression: add 2.5 kg per week for as long as your form stays clean.
Track it with Strive Up
A 100 kg bench press for 10 clean reps is the Strive Up standard for trained athletes. In the Strive Up app you track the bench press alongside the deadlift and overhead press as your big-three triad.
Train smarter with Strive Up
Track your training, use the EMOM timer, follow your PRs and discover your personal skill roadmap – for free.
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