BENCH PRESS: Make up your mind

[Hannibal]

You hear it all the time..."how muchya bench?" I guess it is the only way that people that don't lift know how to strike up a conversation with us that do. It seems as if the bench press is the standard measure of a man in the gym and or fitness center. And it doesn't really help the matter that Monday is officially "Bench and Bicep Day" for the masses of part time lifters. They somehow manage to find excuses for the rest of the week..don't want their legs to get "too big".

The point of this rambling is that unless you are a powerlifter does it really matter how much you bench? If you are a bodybuilder...then you workout to increase muscle mass and *shiver* symetry. If that's your thing...then do it. I see BB post on the training board asking how they can make their bench go up. The only problem with this is that they want to train like a bodybuilder, but have the strength of a powerlifter. For about 99% of the world that is not a realistic goal.

If you want your bench to go up....train like the people that do it "for a living"..powerlifters. If you want to bench like a bodybuilder to isolate your pecs...then don't worry about the weight...your rotator cuffs will thank you.

 

[louden_swain]

I totally agree with this!! It is getting old when people are always asking how much you bench!!

Does anyone ever come up to you and ask you how much can you squat or deadlift? Probably not. As a matter of fact, most people do not squat and deadlift.

It is also funny when people brag about a 315lb bench for 6 reps. In powerlfiting and bodybuilding, this weight is nothing!!!

 

[Intenceman]

True, but the name of the game is still progressive resistance.....
but on ALL lifts, not just the stupid bench press.....I think thats hy I hate it now cuase thats about the idiots ever do.........bench and db curls.......

 

[solidj55]

I know what your saying on this, I hate that question. Why dont they ever ask how much you can incline press or squat or deadlift or hang clean or push press or or or or or... This is because of the fact that the bench press was once to be said the true test of upper body strength(which I dont really agree with).

 

[Intenceman]

exactly. Why not deadlifts or rows or squats?

 

[revexrevex]

There are problems with what you said. It is very important for a bodybuilder to have a big bench, or should I say constant progress in benchpress. You will never build big chest by benching 225 and never progress. It is not only benchpress, its also on all other exercises. The stronger you are, the bigger you are. Obviously many gains are due to CNS adaptation, but if a bodybuilder goes from 225 x 10 to 365 x 10, you can be sure he will have a bigger chest.

So when people ask how to increase their bench, don't immediately laugh at them. They want a bigger chest, and the way to get a bigger chest is to have a bigger bench (or constant upward progress in benchpress).

 

[revexrevex]

exactly. Why not deadlifts or rows or squats?

You see many bodybuilding posts asking "How do I get my squat strength up" or "How do I make my deadlift strength go up". What is wrong with "How do I make my bench strength go up". YOU NEED TO GET STRONGER TO GET BIGGER

 

[Hannibal]

So when people ask how to increase their bench, don't immediately laugh at them. They want a bigger chest, and the way to get a bigger chest is to have a bigger bench (or constant upward progress in benchpress).

Whoa...lets back up a bit. I have never laughed at anyone for wanting to better themself at anything. And I wasn't saying that increasing the bench isn't important to a bodybuilder.

However the best way to increase your bench press is to NOT train or bench like a bodybuilder. Take bignate for example. He was willng to be open minded about it...made some form changes and his bench press is increasing..and he is much safer doing it. The problem is that alot of BB are not open minded...or willing to change. They want to bench with the same form they have been using...with the same periodization....but they want different results this time. It doesn't work that way.

The other problem with the "typical" boybuilding bench form...elbows wide pressing back towards the rack. Is that there is a tremendous amount of shoulder rotation. There are so many shoulder injuries as a result. And instead of changing their form...people will start doing partial reps. Worse yet...they will scrap flat bench altogether instead of just learning to press the right way.

 

[JOKER47]

It is also funny when people brag about a 315lb bench for 6 reps. In powerlfiting and bodybuilding, this weight is nothing!!!

Great.....thanks.....Now I feel worse than I did before.......

 

[revexrevex]

agree

Whoa...lets back up a bit. I have never laughed at anyone for wanting to better themself at anything. And I wasn't saying that increasing the bench isn't important to a bodybuilder.

However the best way to increase your bench press is to NOT train or bench like a bodybuilder. Take bignate for example. He was willng to be open minded about it...made some form changes and his bench press is increasing..and he is much safer doing it. The problem is that alot of BB are not open minded...or willing to change. They want to bench with the same form they have been using...with the same periodization....but they want different results this time. It doesn't work that way.

The other problem with the "typical" boybuilding bench form...elbows wide pressing back towards the rack. Is that there is a tremendous amount of shoulder rotation. There are so many shoulder injuries as a result. And instead of changing their form...people will start doing partial reps. Worse yet...they will scrap flat bench altogether instead of just learning to press the right way.

I agree with periodization, no way will you be able to increase your bench even by 5 lbs if you keep doing 8 -12 rep fucking 'hypertrophy' range. But as long as you are making progress, even 5 lbs every 3 months, using full range of motion and same form its all good. I also agree that the BEST (notice BEST in capitals) way to increase bench is to do powerlifting bench.

For bodybuilder though, what really counts is not the number that he/she benches, but the constant upward progression (or lack of it) he/she achieves.

 

[CytoMel]

I get the "How much can you bench?" all the time.

People who dont train or people who train but are weak are often facinated by how much someone can bench..They dont care about squatting, rows and curls..They never will care either.

Typical bench form is bullshit when they push the bar towards the rack..I used to do this and I never did less than 6 reps until last year when I changed to powerliftig...Pushing the bar back over your face is a horseshit idea and pussies who cant bench much keep this hoax alive.

Nobody outside of powerlifting or football will ask or care how much you squat or deadlift. When someone wants to see a muscle you better have some biceps or you arent anything but a wannabee muscleman.

 

[Hannibal]

Nobody outside of powerlifting or football will ask or care how much you squat or deadlift. When someone wants to see a muscle you better have some biceps or you arent anything but a wannabee muscleman.

Bicep? You mean that thing on the backside of my tricep....is that what that's called?

 

[SofaGeorge]

I'm from the old school where we didn't call ourselves bodybuilders or powerlifters. We were WEIGHTLIFTERS... that wierd animal inbetween that equated lifting heavier and heavier with being in better and better shape. Note I said SHAPE... it wasn't just how we looked we equated strength with health back then... and interestingly the old school bodybuilders equated strength with size.

Also, as a foot note, the barbell bench press was NOT the measure of strength prior to the late '70s and '80s. In the '30s, '40s, and '50s at muscle beach the incline dumbbell bench press was the measure of strength. If you could handle 100s on the incline dumbbell bench press - then you were one of the strong guys. The line was drawn there. Nobody was much interestedin how much more you could do on the exercise. Strong was strong.

 

[b fold the truth]

When will the Super Yoke, Farmers Walk, and Log Clean and Press be the measure of what is strong?



People ask me all the time what I can bench...lol...

B True

 

[CytoMel]

Bicep? You mean that thing on the backside of my tricep....is that what that's called?

LOL

The most underrated muscle in powerlifting!

 

[Hannibal]

LOL

The most underrated muscle in powerlifting!

Yeah...when you convince Bob of that...I'll listen...

 

[b fold the truth]

The other night this little tiny Asian girl kept bugging me to show her my arms...lol. You should have seen the look when I:

1) Told her and her friends that the biceps were NOT a strength muscle and I rarely trained them...

2) When I showed them my arm muscle...lol

B True

 

[coolcolj]

Just becuase powerlifters don't pull doesn't mean the bicep is useless.

I use my biceps quite a bit in chins, rows and Olypmic lifts

There is a lot more to strength/power than low bar hip back squats, bench and deadlift.

No the deadlift is not a pull IMO!


You'll be using your bcieps a hella lot more in real life that's for sure. Triceps are barely used much in my life. Picking and carrying things all require bicep strength among other things. I can't recall a time where I used my triceps so much that they hurt. Life doesn't require you to push a lot of things

 

[bignate73]

my opinion on this is that if you progressively overload the muscle...ie. lift heavy. bench heavy...whatever...then the chest will grow, the lats will grow, the shoulders will grow the triceps will grow.

if you are a bodybuilder...lift heavy or go home. there is no room for cosmetic, nonfunctional athletes. be an athlete, lift weights.....thats what the sport is about.

thats my opinion. just like an asshole....everyone has one. maybe mine stinks....maybe its how it is...

 

[rebelflagkisser]

technique dogma is really pretty annoying... if someone moves heavy weight from their chest to lockout and they move the bar slightly back to their face instead of straight up, it's still impressive to me... baseball analogy: two sluggers hit 50 home runs in a season but have completely different batting stances, one considered proper form the other unconventional-- they both still hit 50 home runs, bottom line.

 

[CrimsonKing]

When will the Super Yoke, Farmers Walk, and Log Clean and Press be the measure of what is strong?



People ask me all the time what I can bench...lol...

B True

Na.. all my friends keep asking me if I'm still lifting my atlas stones (i.e. MY Balls!).... it became a focus of all conversations when they realized I liked to lift my balls for a workout!...

 

[Hannibal]

technique dogma is really pretty annoying... if someone moves heavy weight from their chest to lockout and they move the bar slightly back to their face instead of straight up, it's still impressive to me... baseball analogy: two sluggers hit 50 home runs in a season but have completely different batting stances, one considered proper form the other unconventional-- they both still hit 50 home runs, bottom line.

I agree wth your baseball analogy. If someone has their ass on the bench...brings the bar all the way down...and locks it out..then its a good lift. My point however is that there is a safer way to do it...that's all. Besides, what is the shortest distance between two points? A straight line. Why would you want to press in a arc back towards the rack and increase the bench distance....that to me does not make sense. To each their own I suppose...

 

[Tarheel]

Biceps aren't used much in powerlifting, but I rarely use triceps when I work in construction....

 

[spatts]

You never hammer anything?

 

[Tarheel]

Not much, I do concrete work. I mean I use a sledgehammer sometimes but I usually just let the weight of it work.

Ok question, why do "hammer curls" work the bicep? Isn't the hammer motion more replicated by one arm tricep pulldowns (hook a rope to the pulldown station and go at it)

 

[CytoMel]

Not much, I do concrete work. I mean I use a sledgehammer sometimes but I usually just let the weight of it work.

Ok question, why do "hammer curls" work the bicep? Isn't the hammer motion more replicated by one arm tricep pulldowns (hook a rope to the pulldown station and go at it)

Hammer curls work the bicep and gave be "big booming biceps ) because you are PULLING the weight .biceps are for pulling..

The triceps pushdown you are PUSHING the weight so your triceps are used.

Pushing-Triceps
Pulling-Biceps

The coolest muscle around-biceps
The coolest peak of any muscle-biceps
Makes up most of the arm size-triceps