MY BENCH SUCKS, BECAUSE I NEVER BENCH…sure i dumbbell press, mostly incline but lately i’ve decided to begin benching, increasing my #'s as motivator in the gym, giving me something to get fired up about.
with all the elbow, shoulder woes on this site, and within the BB forum in particular, i thought a thread w/ videos on bench techniques could be useful for myself and others. Creating a dialog w/ senior members critiquing/chiming in about +/-'s of the vids and methods would be cool.
i understand that methods vary from powerlifting to bodybuilding: partials, lockout, arch, hand placement for power, synergistic recruitment vs. hypertrophy, bodybuilding that said please add to the thread constructively with commentary, insight, and video links as well. Ideally i’m looking for the best of both worlds, they overlap more than most new trainers could imagine.
In that video he says to push towards the rack while that first video says push straight up…[/quote]
The popular technique for bencing for powerlifting is to begin by pressing in a straight line and as the bar reaches midpoint, flare the elbows and have the bar travel in an arch towards the rack. It’s better instructed live than explained. Jim Wendler and Sebastian Burns showed me in person at workshops.
[quote]Oroborus wrote:
So how are we supposed to bench press with hypertrophy as the main goal?[/quote]
TBH I hate benching for bodybuilding. Flat-BB-benching, anyway.
I’d rather go with DB’s, HS Machines, inclines and declines, smith etc.
If you absolutely MUST flat-bench for bodybuilding, retract your scapulae as done in a pl setup, but flare your elbows out as necessary. I think branch warren etc semi-flares, while most bodybuilders flare fully (that never felt right to me… Pec-tear danger is at the max then and for many people, it’s hell on the shoulders).
You don’t need a big arch for bbing, obviously, though having some arch can help esp. if you’re still small and have long arms or so (thus possibly overstretching your shoulder capsule at the bottom of the bench press). The arch shortens the ROM a bit…
Better imo would be benching with a dead stop off the pins (set just above the chest, at whatever height feels right to your shoulders). That also gives you a boost to your off-the-chest strength, should you ever decide to compete in a meet.
Quite a few vets here seem to prefer the incline bench in general… I had trouble with it at the beginning, the ROM was awkward on my shoulders… So I stopped a few inches off the chest (doesn’t allow for as much weight to be used) and today I can do it full ROM no problem due to bigger pecs and some arch.
Another thing: “Pulling the bar apart” and lowering it with your rear/side delts and back musculature pretty much eliminates the chest involvement for the most part… So don’t do that if sheer pec size is the goal (and again, I wouldn’t use the bench press for that anyway, unless you’re totally built for it and it feels perfectly natural to you to bench with your pecs…)
thanks for the info. C_C and others…i understand that PL bench, and flat bench in general, aren’t the greatest tools for building a bigger chest (i mentioned that in my opening remark).
right now just increasing my #'s is kind of motivating me. Different motivations over different periods of time you know. Ultimately hypertrophy and growing is the main focus but getting my #'s up gives me a new spark at the gym lately. that being said, avoiding unnecessary injury, avoiding ego lifting is also key, hence this thread.
[quote]Cephalic_Carnage wrote:
Oroborus wrote:
So how are we supposed to bench press with hypertrophy as the main goal?
TBH I hate benching for bodybuilding. Flat-BB-benching, anyway.
I’d rather go with DB’s, HS Machines, inclines and declines, smith etc.
If you absolutely MUST flat-bench for bodybuilding, retract your scapulae as done in a pl setup, but flare your elbows out as necessary. I think branch warren etc semi-flares, while most bodybuilders flare fully (that never felt right to me… Pec-tear danger is at the max then and for many people, it’s hell on the shoulders).
You don’t need a big arch for bbing, obviously, though having some arch can help esp. if you’re still small and have long arms or so (thus possibly overstretching your shoulder capsule at the bottom of the bench press). The arch shortens the ROM a bit…
Better imo would be benching with a dead stop off the pins (set just above the chest, at whatever height feels right to your shoulders). That also gives you a boost to your off-the-chest strength, should you ever decide to compete in a meet.
Quite a few vets here seem to prefer the incline bench in general… I had trouble with it at the beginning, the ROM was awkward on my shoulders… So I stopped a few inches off the chest (doesn’t allow for as much weight to be used) and today I can do it full ROM no problem due to bigger pecs and some arch.
[/quote]
Thanks. I was just wondering because my progress on the flat DB bench has stalled for a few weeks and I was looking for alternative. I did 5x5 for nearly 6 months and my shoulders suffered benching thrice a week.
