A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched and our feet down , now this guys question is this :
" why when I raise my head I can press a weight for 15 reps and when my head is on the bench I can only press it for 12? " anyone got an idea?
All your other muscles are helping when you start to roll up like that. Laying back is how you angle the exercise to primarily target your pecs.
S
It’s because when his head is lifted, his body is primed to consume a freshly toasted Pop Tart. In anticipation of the snack, every single motor neuron is firing.
[quote]PonceDeLeon wrote:
It’s because when his head is lifted, his body is primed to consume a freshly toasted Pop Tart. In anticipation of the snack, every single motor neuron is firing.[/quote]
BWAH-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA
(I actually choked on my oatmeal, thanks so much)
S
[quote]SirFlexAlot wrote:
A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched[/quote]
I never arch my back while benching…
Ive also wondered why some guys have their heads up and some dont (me).My buddy Billy keeps his head up and he benches a ton.
[quote]Rippemanewone wrote:
SirFlexAlot wrote:
A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched
I never arch my back while benching…
[/quote]
You should.
This could be mainly a psychological thing. He could feel that he can put more effort into the press if he feels more of his body contracting. It would be the same thing a person would do if they were to push a large object while standing up. They would extend their arms out and flex their head forward to put a maximal effort into it. Once he starts to train himself to keep his head on the bench then he won’t be able to bench any other way
[quote]DOHCrazy wrote:
Rippemanewone wrote:
SirFlexAlot wrote:
A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched
I never arch my back while benching…
You should.[/quote]
Why? It makes benching easier. Id rather make my workouts harder anyway i can.
[quote]Rippemanewone wrote:
DOHCrazy wrote:
Rippemanewone wrote:
SirFlexAlot wrote:
A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched
I never arch my back while benching…
You should.
Why? It makes benching easier. Id rather make my workouts harder anyway i can.[/quote]
You can start making them harder by adding more weight…
[quote]The Mighty Stu wrote:
All your other muscles are helping when you start to roll up like that. Laying back is how you angle the exercise to primarily target your pecs.
S
[/quote]
what other muscles? like anterior delt?
[quote]patrickk wrote:
Rippemanewone wrote:
DOHCrazy wrote:
Rippemanewone wrote:
SirFlexAlot wrote:
A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched
I never arch my back while benching…
You should.
Why? It makes benching easier. Id rather make my workouts harder anyway i can.
You can start making them harder by adding more weight…[/quote]
lol, there is such as thing as flat-back benching done on purpose, and not because you dont know any better
If you are quite tight/inflexible in the shoulder girdle area (especially if you are thick) then putting your head back on the bench can feel awkward, can overstretch some areas and make you weaker. For normal people this would be like trying to bench with your head hanging off and extended from the regular bench press, that might feel awkward to you.
For some people that is kind of how it feels to bench with their head back. If he doesn’t compete it is not that big of a deal, he could put a small pad or towel under his head so he doesn’t strain his neck holding his head up (and he could work on his flexibility).
This thread is a clusterfuck. I just want to say a couple of things here -
-
Everyone benches differently -
if you’re not using your pecs as prime movers - with or without leg drive, with or without a slight arch, whether or not you flare your elbows or angle them out - AND you need to ask someone else if you are or are not using your pecs, THEN you either fail at BBing or are a rank beginner. -
Depending on your form/execution (extreme emphasis on this) - rolling your neck up MAY involve your serratus assisting you at the bottom of the movement. ORRR you just may be stabilizing your scapulae better. Obviously someone with a better knowledge of anatomy etc will be able to contribute more than I can here, but what I mean to say is —
YOU the lifter should have enough experience to figure out whats happening for YOU during the movement, AS WELL AS the ROM you need to use. IF you’re unable to figure out for yourself how adjusting the form/execution changes the focus on the prime movers etc, then getting sugegstions from members who CAN’T SEE YOU PERFORMING said movement is next to useless.
So the answer to your friend’s question is - HE SHOULD KNOW EXACTLY WHY HE’s GETTING MORE REPS ONE WAY IF HE KNOWS WHAT HE’s DOING.
Usually the only people at my Gym that lift their heads up when they bench is with Incline Bench and they are usually looking at their awesome self bench those 25lb plates in the mirror.
[quote]caveman101 wrote:
patrickk wrote:
Rippemanewone wrote:
DOHCrazy wrote:
Rippemanewone wrote:
SirFlexAlot wrote:
A guy in my gym asked me this and I didnt know what to say maybe you will , we all know that when benching we need to keep our head down our back arched
I never arch my back while benching…
You should.
Why? It makes benching easier. Id rather make my workouts harder anyway i can.
You can start making them harder by adding more weight…
lol, there is such as thing as flat-back benching done on purpose, and not because you dont know any better
[/quote]
Yeah, when I’m benching to make my pecs bigger I don’t bother to use the same arch I use in a meet. I’m not quite flat as a pancake, but close.
OTOH, if you have a terrible bench and you are an Aunt Jamima bencher (flat as a pancake) you could probably get farther ahead by developing an arch, benching like a powerlifter and getting your bench up to a non-pathetic level. Then do whatever you want/need to do.
I got into the groove of raising my head off the bench a while ago and now I really cant stop doing it.
I lift my head up long enough to watch the placement of the bar. Then as I press I lower my head and by the time I am at lockout my head is resting on the bench again.
I feel like I have more concentration that way. Just my two cents.
I lift my head up just enough to make sure there’s hot bitches checking out how super strong I am. If not, I can figure out how loud I need to grunt to get their attention.
Fast Forward to 6:30 to get a visual.
some of these answers are pretty funny.
[quote]maraudermeat wrote:
some of these answers are pretty funny. [/quote]
Well, it’s the bb forum.
I’d actually be quite interested in your take on the issue…
I personally keep my head on the bench and stare at some imaginary point at which I “aim” the bar or DB’s… (well, sort of)
Whenever I do the whole “raise head when bar comes down” thing, my barpath goes to hell.
Lots of people do that though, including a lot of very strong benchers I’ve seen… So yeah. Whatcha think?