Bench Press
Description
The bench press is one of the most popular and most effective exercises you can do for your upper body. Considering its popularity, we’ve provided an entire chapter - a blueprint if you will - profiling the bench press technique in great detail. This valuable information is available FREE and exclusively to the visitors of this site. You can request your copy of “Jacked Tactics” on the right hand side of this very screen. Enjoy!
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Bench Press Technique
- Lie with back on bench and feet secure on the ground.
- Using the bar markers, line up the appropriate arm width. Hand placement should be wide enough so your wrist is in line with your elbow on the descent of the movement.
- Inhale and lower the bar down to the midline of the chest until your arms come to a 90 degree angle. Going below 90 degrees is not recommended for beginners due to the stress that it places on the shoulder joint. Advanced trainees can lower the bar right down to the chest area.
- Exhale, and drive the barbell up towards the ceiling by extending the arms as far as possible without locking out the elbow joint. Stopping before elbow lock-out keeps the resistance on the pectoral muscles thus, resulting in a more effective training stimulus.
- Repeat until the desired number of repetitions are completed.
Variations
Utilizing a grip with the elbows parallel to the shoulders is ideal for maximum pectoral development. Unfortunately, this method is more stressful on the shoulder joints.
Allowing the elbows to drift 45 degrees below shoulder level will alleviate the stress on the shoulder joint and increase the recruitment of the triceps. This is known as the power-lifting style. Keep in mind that when implementing this technique, the additional recruitment of the triceps slightly decreases the involvement of the pectorals.
When in the maximum strength phase of a periodized program, variable resistance can be utilized for optimal power development. The biomechanics of the bench press movement are altered as the movement progresses. The bar typically feels heavier as it is lowered and easier the higher it gets on the accent. The stage when you’re pushing the bar off the chest to the halfway point of the repetition is known as the “sticking point”. The sticking point simply refers to the most difficult stage in the exercise movement. By adding a heavy-link chain on each end of the barbell, you can vary the resistance. As the chain-links hit the floor during the decent, weight is removed during the “sticking point” of the movement. On the accent as the chain-links are pushed up off of the floor, more resistance is added throughout the concentric phase of the movement.
