In the past, doing paused bench with a barbell has helped me bring my strength up a lot. Im thinking of switching out DE bench, or alternating it with paused bench, but am wondering if anyone has every done them with DBs?
I dont have a spotter on my DE bench days, so if im gonna do something else, its either going to be paused bench with DBs or rack presses.
you sho uldnt be going so heavy you need a spot on DE days 50% of your max should not require a spot IMO
[quote]bignate wrote:
you sho uldnt be going so heavy you need a spot on DE days 50% of your max should not require a spot IMO[/quote]
Good point. Save the spotters for ME days. Never tried pauses with DBs but I guess they would work. I prefer the BB pause bench because of the direct carry over.
I have used paused db work as an accessory to my heavy bench work. I don’t think it should be used as a main lift.
I do find it helps with keeping tight through the pause. IMO, if you’re gonna do it, full ROM is the only way to go. I can get a little deeper than where a barbell would touch and get some help with speed off the chest as well.
On a second bench day, do rep work or speed work. Not another max lift.
[quote]dankid wrote:
In the past, doing paused bench with a barbell has helped me bring my strength up a lot. Im thinking of switching out DE bench, or alternating it with paused bench, but am wondering if anyone has every done them with DBs?
I dont have a spotter on my DE bench days, so if im gonna do something else, its either going to be paused bench with DBs or rack presses.[/quote]
Do you mean that on the day you typically do D.E. Benches no one is in the gym to spot you should you scrap the D.E. benching and go with heavier paused reps?
I try to do all my pressing movements with a pause, this way I’m always used to it and I feel it helps keep things tighter than just throwing around D.B.'S So give it a shot it can’t hurt. Just be sure to monitor your indicator lifts to see if this is working.
D.B. presses against bands work well too. Just put the band behind your back in a figure “8”, grap a DB and press like you normally would.
Sorry guys for the confusion. Right now, ive been doing an ME day and a DE day. I dont need spotters on my DE days obviously. But I am thinking of scrapping the DE work for a while, or just doing it 1-2 times per month and sticking in some SE type work with a pause. The reason for the switch isn’t the lack of spotter. But the lack of spotter will probably keep me from using a barbell for the paused reps.
Here’s what I was thinking of doing tommorow on my normal DE day.
The weight will likely go up on any set I can get 5 reps, and i’ll do about a 2-3 second pause and then explode up.
Push press 4x6
Row 5x5
4a) triceps 4x8
4b) face pull 4x8
Something along those lines.
Also, my sticking point is usually about 3-5 inches off my chest. Should I pause all the way down where there is maximal stretch, or pause right around that sticking point on the way up?
Thx guys.
[quote]dankid wrote:
Sorry guys for the confusion. Right now, ive been doing an ME day and a DE day. I dont need spotters on my DE days obviously. But I am thinking of scrapping the DE work for a while, or just doing it 1-2 times per month and sticking in some SE type work with a pause. The reason for the switch isn’t the lack of spotter. But the lack of spotter will probably keep me from using a barbell for the paused reps.
Here’s what I was thinking of doing tommorow on my normal DE day.
The weight will likely go up on any set I can get 5 reps, and i’ll do about a 2-3 second pause and then explode up.
Push press 4x6
Row 5x5
4a) triceps 4x8
4b) face pull 4x8
Something along those lines.
Also, my sticking point is usually about 3-5 inches off my chest. Should I pause all the way down where there is maximal stretch, or pause right around that sticking point on the way up?
Thx guys.[/quote]
[quote]dankid wrote:
Sorry guys for the confusion. Right now, ive been doing an ME day and a DE day. I dont need spotters on my DE days obviously. But I am thinking of scrapping the DE work for a while, or just doing it 1-2 times per month and sticking in some SE type work with a pause…[/quote]
The De shit has worked well for me on squats but not so much on bench. I do the DE bench only on my deload week or every 4 weeks to make sure that I’m still able to fire my muscles all at once. If I feel any transitions (slight pauses) I may up the frequency)
Pause on your chest. If you want to work off of the 3-5" arae do board presses. If your gym doesn’t allow boards go get some yoga foam blocks and stick under your shirt while benching. They are 3" thick but allow the bar to sink in if you let them. These are great too if your shoulders are feeling beat up and want to limit shoulder rotation. Here’s a pic in case you don’t know what I’m talking about.
http://www.yogapro.com/images/product_original_yoga_blocks_ebony.jpg