Pausing at the bottom of bench.

[150shot]

ok, well, i don't plan on using a bench shirt. i want my lifts RAW (i've even abandoned gloves now....sucks cause i like my palms nice and smooth )

but isn't the pause - explosion thing all a part of CNS conditioning that helps out with heavier lifts?

say i'm warming up with 100lbs, i'd be able to force the bar up extremely fast, but then load up to my max, and yes, it'd be a lot slower, but the muscles would be ready and "trained" to explode, and would actually be doing it, even if the lift was slower. i thought that was the whole point of doing the 1-2 second pause at the bottom of the rep. over time your CNS gets ready for that explosion and it makes it easier for you to do it, even on very heavy lifts.

on a side note, it's better than some lifters i see that come down to about, oh, 3-4" from their chest, then push back up again, bar is crooked cause it's too heavy for a full rep for them, and their arms are so far apart, they're only moving the bar maybe 8" total

Crak- looks like youve got your mental game ready to go. Dont worry about the pause to much, go for some strict reps and think of your explosion when the bar is on the way down. once it hits your chest go for it. When it gets heavy during the set you may pause naturally because it will be harder to explode.

Yes its better than people that go 3-4" above their chest, they load up plates and think they are Mr. Macho while they are doing half reps...