All my lifts are increasing (Squat, DL, Power Clean, Weighted pull ups etc)
Except my bench and my overhead press.
(I had tendinitis in my right shoulder a few years ago and this has ended up like mild arthritis nowadays, I mention this as it can be difficult to lift heavy dumbbells with the arm to start sets)
They both have stayed roughly the same for weeks now.(Maybe half a rep more a week) I have reset 2 or 3 times and this hasn’t helped.
Can you see anything that will be causing this in my program?
My bench seems to be sticking off my chest so shall I switch to dumbbell floor presses? Bench with feet off the floor? (Power rack doesn’t have a suitable height so can’t do that)
Something to remove leg drive / assisting muscles and just build up my chest?
Floor press avoids chest. Don’t do that. Just do normal barbell press, and pause it on your chest to remove bounce or momentum. Do flies, and more flies.
For your overhead press, try doing partials, to the top of your head, and back up, then just start going lower and lower until you have a full range press.
Prioritise getting your shoulder sorted. Go and see a therapist who is knowledgable about weight training populations and preferably ART certified. Also read Eric Cressey’s articles on shoulder health.
I would actually suggest speed overhead presses, they really helped out my strict press and through that my bench.
But first thing is making sure you don’t hurt your shoulder worse in any way, if it hurts consistently and enough to disrupt your workout its a problem.
i will suggest more reps for the bench, seriously dont know why but it seens to respond better to the 5-8 range and no to many triples or singles…dont know why
Usually when someone is weak out of the hole on bench it’s due in part to a weak back. What is your bent over row strength compared to your bench strength?
[quote]-sie- wrote:
My bench seems to be sticking off my chest so shall I…Bench with feet off the floor?
[/quote]
Please don’t put your feet up on the bench when you bench…this is a sign of both being a douche and a low IQ…I always want to go up to those brotards that do this and push them off the bench…
[quote]VTBalla34 wrote:
Please don’t put your feet up on the bench when you bench…this is a sign of both being a douche and a low IQ…I always want to go up to those brotards that do this and push them off the bench…[/quote]
I know what you mean I was just trying to think of ways to isolate my chest.
[quote]LiquidMercury wrote:
Triceps…shoulders…ya know those other muscles involved in every pressing movement.[/quote]
Yeah I assumed that. I was more wondering about how it would not involve the chest so I can better understand something. I am not one for just doing something without knowing why!
[quote]jjackkrash wrote:
Watch this:
…
[/quote]
Seen it before but I will definitely go through it again. That is where my dynamic bench day comes from, if I remember rightly thou he advises floor press on max day and dynamic / close grip on the other day? Thou this would go against the idea of not doing FP??
I am not saying anyone is wrong here as I dont know hence why I am asking just wondering the ins and outs.
[quote]LiquidMercury wrote:
Triceps…shoulders…ya know those other muscles involved in every pressing movement.[/quote]
Yeah I assumed that. I was more wondering about how it would not involve the chest so I can better understand something. I am not one for just doing something without knowing why!
[/quote]
The closer the bar gets to your chest the more it hits your chest. Since floor press is naturally restricted to your arms stopping at a point much shorter then your chest (unless you just have a huge fricken chest and short stubby arms) it is going to hit the chest less then say a flat bench DB press.
If you’re getting stuck in the bottom part of your bench, chances are you have a weakness in your back, and/or your leg drive isn’t terribly great. Why don’t you film your bench and we’ll critique it.
My bench seems to be sticking off my chest so shall I switch to dumbbell floor presses? Bench with feet off the floor? (Power rack doesn’t have a suitable height so can’t do that)
Something to remove leg drive / assisting muscles and just build up my chest?
Thanks in advance!![/quote]
Dave Tate always highlights the importance of warming up before working sets in any of the big 4 lifts. DO NOT sacrifice your form. Form is crucial to success in any strength sport. If you haven’t watched the entire series of “so you think you can bench” over at EliteFTS, I highly recommend doing so. Rather than loading the bar, work with just the bar for more sets than you normally would. If you don’t have bands, order some and start pressing with bands to help develop coordination and to provide resistance. Slowly increase the weight. And if you don’t do mobility work before training, start. Your body, and shoulders, will love you for it.
Anyone following this who wants some tips on benching I just found an article on Elitefts titled ‘Bench By Numbers’ that looks good. (Hope posting that doesn’t go against any forum rules)