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Weight benches are awesome pieces of equipment. They're a great way to change up and support your exercises across a huge range of muscle groups. They take you so much further than a lot of other equipment could. There are little changes you can make to your setup to change things up entirely too. No matter where you are in your fitness journey, there's a place for a weight bench in your workout plan. Firstly though, you need to know what to do with them.
Whether you’re working out from home or you have a gym membership, with a solid weight bench and some good weights, you’re ready to make serious progress in your weight and strength training. No matter what your goals are, they can help you get there.
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As with a lot of workout plans, we’ve adopted the push-pull legs workout split to make our weight bench workout plan as efficient as possible. This helps to maximise the effectiveness of your workout plan while minimising the time you have to spend exercising. On top of that, it makes sure that you have adequate rest time too to really make sure that you’re doing what’s best for your body and your progress at the same time.
The general idea is that the plan splits into three separate workouts. They can be spread over the week however you like, as long as you are making sure you have that all-important 48-hour break into between working for the same muscle groups. For more info about the split, take a look here.
All of the exercises we use in the plan are pretty simple but incredibly effective. There are too many exercises available with a weight bench to list, so you can mix things up if you want to. For the best chance, these exercises are up there with the best of the best. It’s worth noting though that some of them are much more effective with an adjustable weight bench for these workouts.
For the best results from the weight bench workout plan, the workouts up the ante every two weeks. That keeps you progressing and makes the workouts slightly harder. Variation is one of the best ways to ultimately maximise the results that you're going to see after all. Let's break it down:
Muscle Group | Exercise | Reps | Rest |
Week 1 & 2 | |||
Chest | Barbell Chest Press | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Dumbbell Flyes | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Straight Arm Pullover | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Shoulders | Shoulder Press | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Front Raise | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Lateral Raise | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Triceps | Overhead Extensions | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Tricep Dips | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Week 3 & 4 | |||
Chest | Decline Push Ups | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Dumbbell Flyes | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Incline Flyes | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Shoulders | Shoulder Press | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Front Raise | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Lateral Raise | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Triceps | Mule Kicks & Kickbacks | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Close Grip Bench | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Week 5 & 6 | |||
Chest | Decline Push Ups | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Dumbbell Flyes | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Pullovers | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Shoulders | Arnold Press | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Front Raise | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Lateral Raise | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Triceps | Skull Crushers | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Close Grip Bench | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Muscle Group | Exercise | Reps | Rest |
Week 1 & 2 | |||
Back | Chest Supported Dumbbell Rows | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Reverse Flyes | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
SuperMan | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Biceps | Hammer Curl | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Standard Curls | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Week 3 & 4 | |||
Back | Chest Supported Dumbbell Rows | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Decline Bench Pull Over | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Reverse Flyes | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Hyper Extensions | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Biceps | Hammer Curl | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Concentration Curl | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Week 4 & 5 | |||
Back | Chest Supported Dumbbell Rows | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Single Arm Bent Row | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Reverse Flyes | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Hyper Extensions | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Biceps | Hammer Curl | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Concentration Curls | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Muscle Group | Exercise | Reps | Rest |
Week 1 & 2 | |||
Legs | Bench Jumps | 3x10 | 45 Seconds |
Split Squats | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Box Squats | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Dumbbell Step Ups | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Seated Calf Raises | 3x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Week 3 & 4 | |||
Legs | Bench Jumps | 4x10 | 45 Seconds |
Split Squats | 4x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Box Squats | 4x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Dumbbell Step Ups | 4x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Seated Calf Raises | 4x10 | 45 Seconds | |
Week 5 & 6 | |||
Legs | Bench Jumps | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Split Squats | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Box Squats | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Dumbbell Step Ups | 4x12 | 45 Seconds | |
Seated Calf Raises | 4x12 | 45 Seconds |
Before beginning any exercise or nutrition program, consult your physician, doctor or other professional. This is especially important for individuals over the age of 35 or persons with pre-existing health problems. Exercise.co.uk assumes no responsibility for personal injury or property damage sustained using our advice.
If you experience dizziness, nausea, chest pain, or any other abnormal symptoms, stop the workout at once and consult a physician or doctor immediately.