So I realised today that while I squeezed my shoulder blades together while setting up for the bench, I’d let them slide apart as the reps progressed. So today I squeezed them together the whole time, and I noticed something: I felt the work more in my pecs. I would think I would feel it less, due to the bottom inch or two of the movement not being included. SO I’m curious: why would my pecs be more involved?
pulling your shoulder blades together will stretch your chest out
It may just be that you are getting less shoulder involvement.
[quote]cap’nsalty wrote:
So I realised today that while I squeezed my shoulder blades together while setting up for the bench, I’d let them slide apart as the reps progressed. So today I squeezed them together the whole time, and I noticed something: I felt the work more in my pecs. I would think I would feel it less, due to the bottom inch or two of the movement not being included. SO I’m curious: why would my pecs be more involved?[/quote]
It’s the same for me, it’s the only way I feel my chest working.
[quote]Kaz wrote:
It may just be that you are getting less shoulder involvement. [/quote]
Bingo. I read the blades-together-for-maximal-pec-stimulation before, but cannot remember who/what/where.
Funny you wrote this… I’ve been putting an emphasis on that this week. The same goes for flies.
1st of all. Good for you for contracting your scaps. during benching.
This is the 1st thing Ian King teaches in benching.
If you are not acustomed to benching with your scaps. retracted. It does take some time. But keep @ it.
- If shoulders keep coming apart. Find out y?
- Reduce your load, until you can keep your scaps. 2gether.
- Don’t lock your arms out @ top of bench.
I encourage everyone who gets on the bench press, view Ian Kings guide to the Bench Press.
[quote]MNguns wrote:
1st of all. Good for you for contracting your scaps. during benching.
This is the 1st thing Ian King teaches in benching.
If you are not acustomed to benching with your scaps. retracted. It does take some time. But keep @ it.
- If shoulders keep coming apart. Find out y?
- Reduce your load, until you can keep your scaps. 2gether.
- Don’t lock your arms out @ top of bench.
I encourage everyone who gets on the bench press, view Ian Kings guide to the Bench Press.[/quote]
wait why wouldnt you lock out? Isn’t that good training to load the tris?
[quote]consumer wrote:
wait why wouldnt you lock out? Isn’t that good training to load the tris?
[/quote]
Yes, except they aren’t working on triceps. They are working on keeping the shoulder blades together while benching to keep the chest tight, so you don’t need to waste energy locking out trying to figure out how to do this. If you are just bench pressing, and not trying to figure out leverage then go ahead and ignore this thread. But they are lifting for leverage (powerlifting).
I forgot which contributor posted it (Mike Robertson, JB, or Eric Cressey? Sorry guys) but I do recall there was an excellent article which was the first or second to use FLASH video to demo exercise technique and BENCH press with retracted shoulder blades was on the list of exercises demonstrated… SEARCH for it.
Shoulders normally down and back, correct? This also applies to daily posture as I recall.
Like I said before.
Pick up Ian Kings “Bench press” video.
He goes into complete depth about scapula retraction.
You’re simply doing it the correct way.
You’re doing it the correct way if you’re trying to fuck up your shoulders and give yourself a nasty muscle imbalance in the long term.
Do a search for the Big Bench = Bad Shoulders thread
Your body is designed so that your scapulae abduct when you push on something. Trying to get around that fact will only lead to long term pain.
i was lead to believe the complete opposite… retracting the scapulae, and keeping your elbows from flaring out is supposed to be much easier on your shoulders in general… keeping you from developing that “long term pain” that you speak of.
It seems sound, that retracting the scapulae will keep you from rounding your shoulders at the top of the movement.
[quote]ubiquitous wrote:
i was lead to believe the complete opposite… retracting the scapulae, and keeping your elbows from flaring out is supposed to be much easier on your shoulders in general… keeping you from developing that “long term pain” that you speak of.
It seems sound, that retracting the scapulae will keep you from rounding your shoulders at the top of the movement.
[/quote]
Well, when you press, the load is meant to be shared between the muscles that bring the humerus in and the muscles that abduct the scapula. Taking one out of the equation is putting a lot more pressure on the joint. Fine if you want to activate the pecs, and the pecs only, but not a long term solution.
[quote]CHEKonIT wrote:
You’re doing it the correct way if you’re trying to fuck up your shoulders and give yourself a nasty muscle imbalance in the long term.
Do a search for the Big Bench = Bad Shoulders thread
Your body is designed so that your scapulae abduct when you push on something. Trying to get around that fact will only lead to long term pain.[/quote]
How the fuck will scapular retraction cause a muscle imbalance? Maybe you should return to your big bench thread, and actually LISTEN to some of the other posters, rather than being so close-minded.
How bout this, your a chek follower. If scapular retraction during the bench press is so bad for the shoulders, then WHY do you advocate pressing on a swiss ball, which naturally retracts the shoulders.
[quote]wressler125 wrote:
How the fuck will scapular retraction cause a muscle imbalance? Maybe you should return to your big bench thread, and actually LISTEN to some of the other posters, rather than being so close-minded.
How bout this, your a chek follower. If scapular retraction during the bench press is so bad for the shoulders, then WHY do you advocate pressing on a swiss ball, which naturally retracts the shoulders.
[/quote]
How the fuck, you ask? When you’re taking a complex movement pattern and stripping away half of the muscles used when performing the same function, you’re going to end up with an imbalance. In this case, your pectoralis major will strengthen and hypertrophy beyond the ability of your pectoralis minor and serratus anterior muscles to keep up their normal function.
The Swiss-Ball does not naturally retract the shoulders. Retraction of the scapulae in itself isn’t the problem, it’s the keeping the scapulae retracted that is the problem. To get a full range of motion in your press, your scapulae have to be retracted at the start of the press.