Hey guys im starting DeFranco’s WSBIII and have a question regarding max effort upper body. If I do close grip bench press for about say 4 weeks (im also a linemen in football and I think close grip would benefit me as i work in the vicinity of my body)and it increases wouldn’t my over all “bench press” increase as well?
Are you regular benching at all during this 4 weeks? Close-Grip bench is known to increase peoples regular bench, so sure…
Agreed. I think it MAY benefit you in football a bit more than a wider grip but that’s minutae.
I know close grips help my bench because I’m a wicked triceps bencher.
Well DeFranco’s template says:
MONDAY �?? Max-Effort Upper Body
A. Max-Effort Exercise �?? work up to a max set of 3-5 reps in one of the following exercises:
o Thick bar or regular barbell bench press
o Barbell floor press
o Rack lockouts / Suspended chain lockouts
o Incline barbell bench press (regular grip or close grip)
o Close-grip bench press (index finger on smooth part of bar)
o Weighted chin-ups
o Board presses or foam presses
o Chain bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
o Band bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
o Reverse band bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
I went with close grip. You guys have any imput it would help?
Your regular bench press will most likley increase as your close-grip increases. That’s the entire point of WS4SB and Westside. You rotate Max Effort Exercises every 1-3 weeks and as you continue to make PRs in the Max Effort Exercises, you get strength that carries over.
But if you’re really unfamiliar with Close-Grip Bench Press and you suck at it, you might end up spending that 4 weeks just becoming more proficient at close-grip without actually getting any stronger.
To make sure that doesn’t happen, you should probably rotate between Max Effort exercises more than every 4 weeks. Every 1-3 weeks would be better.
Choose your 4 favorite types of Benching and rotate through them. Decide if you’re going to spend 1, 2, or 3 weeks on that style.
You could rotate between…
Flat Barbell Bench Press
Military Press
Close Grip Bench Press
By rotating exercises frequently, you’ll be able to figure out pretty quickly if you’re just getting better at Inclines or Close-Grips, or if those gains are being transfered towards your normal bench press. Frequently rotating the Exercises will also ensure that you stay fresh and your body doesn’t adapt to one Max Effort Exercise, causing your gains to plateau.
Close-Grip Bench Press might be better for Football. But what will really be the best for football is any lift where you put the bar overhead while you’re standing. So Push Presses and Military Presses are great choices for getting better at hitting people hard. This is because you have to transfer power all the way from the floor to the bar.
Don’t abandon the Bench Press. It’s still probably the best way to add Pure Upper-Body Strength. But Military Presses and Push Presses will strengthen your body and make it better and pushing something really hard while you’re on your feet: something that you have to do when tackling or blocking someone but something you don’t have to do lying on a bench.
Wow fightingscott thank you you said it best. I get it now thank you everyone.
[quote]MarineStrong_Zm wrote:
Wow fightingscott thank you you said it best. I get it now thank you everyone.[/quote]
If you have any more questions check out the Strength Sports section and EliteFTS.com
what’s the typical difference (strength wise) between regular bench and close grip bench? Mine are almost the same, so I think I have an imbalance or something.
[quote]k8thegr8 wrote:
what’s the typical difference (strength wise) between regular bench and close grip bench? Mine are almost the same, so I think I have an imbalance or something.[/quote]
My close grip is pretty close to regular, I’m a triceps bencher, you may be as well.
[quote]derek wrote:
k8thegr8 wrote:
what’s the typical difference (strength wise) between regular bench and close grip bench? Mine are almost the same, so I think I have an imbalance or something.
My close grip is pretty close to regular, I’m a triceps bencher, you may be as well.[/quote]
Yea I guess so. My bench sucks. I am much stronger in my back/arms. Oh well, I think I’d rather have it that way then the opposite. I’m a girl so “having a big bench” isn’t all that important to me. I’m more concerned with my back and V-taper… there’s something about having a really awesome back that intrigues me greatly… 
[quote]k8thegr8 wrote:
I’m more concerned with my back and V-taper… there’s something about having a really awesome back that intrigues me greatly… :-)[/quote]
Yeah, I nice, muscular back on a woman is ultra-sexy!
I rotate every 3 wks. I have been only been doing flat bench and incline bench. I usually do week1: work up to 5rm, week2: work up to 3rm, week3: work close to 1rm (not a real max out).
I use weighted dips as my supplemental exercise on ME day. And then on RE day, I sometimes use close grip for my tricep exercise, or rope pushdowns… really depends on what I do for my max rep lift. I also use overhead pressing for my trap/medial delt exercise, alternating between seated db and push press.
There is no need for a football player to have military press as his max-effort exercise.
I think DeFranco knows HIS system best, he trains enough athletes, and none of them in his log, have ever done a overhead movement as the main max-effort exercise.
[quote]OooahhhCANTONA wrote:
There is no need for a football player to have military press as his max-effort exercise.
I think DeFranco knows HIS system best, he trains enough athletes, and none of them in his log, have ever done a overhead movement as the main max-effort exercise.[/quote]
True, DeFranco did not include Military Presses or Push Presses as a Max Effort Lift. But that does not mean there is NO REASON to use it as a Max Effort Exercise.
But the purpose of WS4SB’s Upper Body workouts are not to become better at Bench Pressing in a Shirt. Their purpose is to build Upper Body Strength.
Did you know that DeFranco recommends in his program that athletes perform a 3-5RM instead of going for a true Max Effort Attempt? Tell me exactly how hitting and breaking a 5RM Record in the Military Press is a pointless waste of time for a Football Player?
Do you really fully understand the benifit of using an Upper-Body Dominant Exercise like the Military Press that has a Kinetic Chain that runs all the way down to the floor JUST LIKE A BLOCK IN FOOTBALL.
Did you know that Loui Simmons recommends that occasionally a Max Effort Bench Workout can be replaced with a purely Repetition Effort Workout? Sounds like a heavy set of 5 reps in the Military Press would fit nicely in such a workout.
True. I’ve never seen Joe Defranco use an Overhead Exercise as a Max Effort exercise. Joe also doesn’t use Olympic Lifts in training his athletes. Does that mean Olympic Lifts are completely worthless as Max Effort Exercises as well? Better start calling most of the NFL, Olympic Track and Field Athletes, and Strongman Competitors around the world to tell them their training isn’t working.
I can think of 5 good reasons why a Military Press would be a good Max Effort Lift.
(1) The Athlete is weak off his Chest in the Bench Press.
(2) The Athlete has a strong bench but a weak core and
he cannot transfer that upper body power through his
entire body.
(3) The Athlete may not have access to Boards, Bands,
a Power Rack, or an Incline Bench and needs another
Upper Body Max Effort exercise besides the Flat Bench
Press. Or all the Benches in the gym are being used.
(4) The Athlete participates in a sport where balance
is important.
(5) The Athlete participates in a sport where he must push
against something without the support of a bench.