Bench Press to a Better Chest

Most men use the bench press as a measure of strength, power, and sometimes even athletic ability. The bench press is the king of strength exercises— regardless of the popularity of functional training, kettlebells, cross training, or yoga. It matters little that leg strength is more important than upper-body strength in most sports. The bench press is the hallmark of a man’s strength.

Most men use the bench press as a measure of strength, power, and sometimes even athletic ability. The bench press is the king of strength exercises— regardless of the popularity of functional training, kettlebells, cross training, or yoga. It matters little that leg strength is more important than upper-body strength in most sports. The bench press is the hallmark of a man’s strength.

Next time you go to the gym, see what people do when they see a guy bench-pressing 300 or 400 pounds. Usually, conversations stop and everyone watches in envy as the strong man benches the mammoth weight. The other guys in the gym seem almost embarrassed as they struggle with 165 pounds. The sad part is they could bench press big iron too, if they used good bench-pressing technique and followed a scientifically-designed training program.

You can add at least 100 pounds to your bench press in only 12 months if you work hard and consistently, develop proper technique, use a training program that develops your muscles and nervous system, and follow a scientifically sound nutrition program that builds muscles and provides energy for intense training. Follow the advice in this article and you will be the guy people watch in envy.

The Bench Press is a Whole-Body Exercise

Lesson number one is that bench-pressing heavy weight is a skill— just like hitting a tennis ball, throwing a baseball, or shooting a basketball. The nervous system develops motor patterns based on practice and “rewinds” these nervous patterns when you perform the skill. You must learn and practice skills precisely to maximize performance. Your goal is to increase your bench press. Therefore, you must learn a precise motor pattern that will allow you to bench press a lot of weight for just one rep.

Lesson number two is that the bench press is a whole-body lift. Most guys approach the bench press very casually and pay little consideration to factors that determine success in the lift. They lay down on the bench, hoist the bar over their chest, and do the exercise without thinking about grip, proper placement of the feet, butt, shoulders, elbows, or hands, the path the bar follows during the lift, or the cadence of the exercise. They use the wrong bar or bench or choose incompetent spotters. Learn proper technique and use the right equipment and you can increase your bench press by 25 to 50 percent in a few weeks. Your new bench-pressing persona will serve as the foundation for truly remarkable gains in the future.

Weight training books describe the bench press as an upper-body exercise that builds mainly the pectoralis major (chest), triceps brachius (back of the arms), and deltoid muscles (round shoulder muscles). While these muscles are certainly important, building a big bench press also requires strong legs, abdominal, and back muscles that act as stabilizers during the lift. Also, you need to build strength and flexibility to maximize the height of the chest and minimize the distance you push the bar during the lift.

Use the Right Equipment

The next section of the article may seem boring, but it’s vital to peak performance in the lift, so pay attention!

Olympic Bar: Use an Olympic bar designed for powerlifting, and avoid bars bent from overuse. While Olympic weightlifting bars made by companies such as Eleiko are wonderful for doing cleans and snatches, they are too elastic and unstable for bench pressing and require too much energy to maintain control. Some bars are thicker than others, so find one that feels comfortable (circumference of 9 to 9.5 centimeters; 3.5 to 3.7 inches).

Use a bar with comfortable knurling (roughened part of the bar). Too little knurling will cause your hands to slip during the lift, while too much feels uncomfortable and can tear up your hands. Many lifters use chalk to keep their hands from slipping. Take careful note of the circular markings on the bar because they help you get a balanced grip. Most lifters grasp the bar with the pinky fingers just inside the ring, but the location of the ring varies from one bar to the next. Try to use the same bar every time you bench press because even small changes in grip width will affect performance.

The Bench: The dimensions of the bench are critical for peak performance in the bench press. Firm leg support is an important part of peak performance in this exercise. You are dead in the water before you start if your legs flail around during the lift because the bench is too high. Most competitive benches are 17.5 inches high, which allows average-sized people to place their feet flat on the floor with knees bent at an acute angle of slightly less than 90°. The bench should be wide enough to support your scapulae (shoulder blades) but not so wide that it restricts arm movements. Most benches used in competition are 12.5 inches wide. Use a bench with firm foam that rebounds when compressed.

Choose a bench with variable weight support heights so that you can grasp the bar with your arms almost fully extended. Lifting with low weight supports can cause serious shoulder rotator cuff injuries— even using light weights. The rack should support the bar at the ends of the gripping areas to prevent hand injuries.

Finding a bench you like can make a huge difference in how much weight you can lift. Try benches in different clubs before choosing a gym. Some newer benches include hydraulic lifts to move the bar up and down and special hardware to attach elastic bands for variable resistance training (see below).

A Powerful Technique that Will Add 100 Pounds to Your Bench

Use the major muscles of your body to bench press— not just your chest, arms, and shoulders. Proper set-up determines short-term and long-term success— just as it does in golf, bowling, tennis, and discus throwing. Start with a firm position with your feet planted firmly and you will make improvements in leaps and bounds.

Lie on the bench with the bar at eye level. Place your feet flat on the floor, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Try to move your feet backward toward your head, while keeping them flat on the floor. This position provides stability and will help keep your back arched and chest up during the lift. It will also allow you to drive with your legs during the exercise without lifting your butt from the bench. Never lift your butt from the bench: it puts excessive stress on the spine, reduces your base of support, and increases the risk of injury to almost any of the active muscle groups and joints used during the exercise.

Arching the back and pushing out with the chest are difficult at first, but will improve as you increase flexibility. The arched back technique will allow you to make large, rapid improvements in the bench press because you don’t have to push the bar as far and the position gives you an exceptionally strong base.

Pull your scapulae (shoulder blades) together and try to keep them retracted during each repetition of the exercise, and stabilize your spine by pulling down with your lats. This position provides spinal support and helps to maintain a high chest and arched back during the lift.

Grasp the bar firmly with your thumbs aligned in the opposite directions from your fingers. Rest the bar near the heel of your palm so that your wrists stay straight and help transfer force to the bar from your chest, shoulders, and arms. Do not use a thumb-less grip. An average of five people a year are killed in America doing the bench press because people drop the weight on their throat or head— most from not using spotters and using the thumb-less grip.

Start with hands spaced slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. For most people, that means gripping the bar just inside the circular spacing marks. For competitive powerlifting (squat, bench press, deadlift), the maximum hand spacing cannot exceed 81 cm.— measured between the forefingers. Grip spacing is highly individual, so experiment with wider and narrower grips. Also, training with varying grip widths is a good idea because each hand placement works the muscles differently: a narrower grip puts more load on the triceps, while a wider grip puts greater stress on the chest.

Use a spotter to help move the weight over your chest. Try to use the same spotter every time you lift or at least someone with experience who is not intimidated by heavy weights. Establish a signal, such as “one, two, three,” and lift the weight above the lower chest. Brace (tighten) your ab muscles (tighten them but don’t suck them in) to increase stability. Learn to brace and breathe independently. However, strain and hold your breath during the first part of the lift to maximize stability (called Valsalva’s maneuver). While this practice increases blood pressure, it will help you lift more weight. Also, few people can lift more than 85 percent of maximum effort without using the Valsalva’s maneuver.

Lower the bar under control to a point below the nipple line. Pause briefly, squeeze your glutes together, and then push the bar explosively in a straight line above the chest, keeping the elbows in, shoulders back, while keeping an arch in your lower back. Pushing the weight explosively from the bottom activates more motor units (muscle fibers and their nerve) and decreases the chance of the bar stalling during the lift.

Most guys push the bar in a curve until it goes over their eyes. Pushing in a straight line reduces the distance the bar travels, so you expend less energy and can lift more weight. Have the spotter help you rack the bar after completing your last rep.

Technique is an important part of bench-pressing big weights. Always use good form, whether you’re warming up with 135 pounds or doing heavy singles. Lift explosively when doing reps or singles: train your nervous system to react quickly when pushing the bar from your chest. Finally, keep focused and work consistently for small gains. On heavy training days, try to lift at least one more pound than you did during the last workout. As four-time Olympic discus thrower and coach John Powell says, “Yard-by-yard is hard; inch-by-inch is a cinch.”

Training Aids to Boost Your Bench

Great bench pressers have developed some amazing techniques and training aids to boost their bench presses into the stratosphere, including bench shirts, power rack training, band and chain training, and board training.

Bench Shirt: The program described in this article will improve your bench press by at least 100 pounds without a bench shirt. However, a support shirt can increase your bench press by 50 pounds or more with little training— after you get used to it. A bench shirt is a tight, sturdy shirt made from denim or polyester that increases maximum bench press performance by increasing muscle support and providing an elastic assist during the lift. If you choose to wear one, use the shirt once a week during the peak cycle (high weight, low volume).

Using a bench shirt is an artificial way of boosting your bench press. However, it is not prohibited in most powerlifting competitions, so you should not feel guilty when you bench press 300, 350, 400 pounds or more using one. Companies such as Inzer, Phenom, and Rage & Rage make good bench shirts. Purchase them on the Internet from powerlifting supply companies such as www.inzernet.com and www.crainsmuscleworld.com.

Power Rack Training: The power rack is a box-like metal frame found in most well-equipped gyms. The power rack consists of a base and four columns (the columns are supported on top with cross braces). Each column has a series of holes drilled through it so that long steel pins can be placed through them at different levels. Put a bench inside the rack and set the pins so that you work different parts of the range of motion of the lift: bar at chest level; bar 2 inches from the chest; bar 4 inches from the chest; and lockouts. For variety, you can use elastic bands attached to the power rack and bar to help you handle even heavier weights.

A typical power rack bench press routine would be as follows:

Begin with the bar placed at chest level. Warm up with a light weight (1-2 sets of 10 at 30 percent of max). Start the workout with a weight equivalent to 75 percent of your 1-rep maximum. Do one rep using good form, then increase the weight and repeat. Continue increasing the weight until you can’t lift anymore.

After you’ve maxed out with the weight at your chest, raise the pins 1-2 holes so that the bar is now placed in the middle of your bench press groove. Start with the weight you completed when the bar was directly off your chest. Do one rep, add weight, and repeat. Continue adding weight until you can no longer continue.

Finally, raise the pins so that the bar is placed near the end of the range of motion for the bench press (lockouts). Now you’re only pushing the weight a few inches. You will be able to handle much more weight than you can do during the normal exercise. Load up the bar and do one rep, using as much weight as you can. Continue doing progressively heavier max singles until you can no longer continue.

Use the power rack once every two weeks during the peak cycle. This technique is most effective for boosting your 1-rep max in the bench but can lead to overtraining injuries if used excessively. The rack will help prepare you for lifting heavy weights and is a great way to increase your bench press.

Board training is similar to using the power rack to build your bench. It involves placing boards of various heights on your chest to alter the range of motion during the lift. I think the power rack is better and safer than using boards.

Chains and Bands: On training days involving maximum effort, it’s critical that you push the bar with maximal force on each rep. Chains and bands increase the resistance at the end of the range of motion of the lift. They are particularly useful during load cycles. Bands also increase the intensity of the eccentric part of the lift (lowering the weight to the chest) and will help increase your capacity to accelerate the bar from your chest. Buy chains at any hardware store and bands at powerlifting supply Internet sites (see bench shirts above).

Training on Unstable Surfaces: Many health clubs encourage members to train on unstable surfaces such as Swiss or bosu balls. This is a mistake because it decreases your capacity to exert maximum force and will interfere with your progress.

Supplements: Take a protein-carbohydrate supplement containing at least 30 grams of protein after each workout— particularly during the load cycle. Also, taking 5 grams of creatine monohydrate per day may also boost your bench. Creatine supplements boost creatine phosphate (CP) levels in the muscles. CP is a high-energy compound important for maximum muscle strength. Several studies found that taking caffeine supplements before a workout will boost your bench press training load.

Bench Press Training

Bench press training involves overloading the muscles to increase muscle size, density, and contractile capacity and conditioning the nervous system to maximize and coordinate motor unit recruitment so that the muscles react quickly and explosively during the lift. The training process involves a preliminary conditioning cycle to prepare the muscles for intense training, a load cycle to build base strength, and a peak cycle to help you increase your bench press (single-rep maximum).

The conditioning cycle is a basic weight training program involving 3 sets of 10 reps of standard exercises. The load cycle involves doing 4 to 6 sets of 4 to 6 reps of the primary exercises (barbell bench, dumbbell bench). This cycle pushes the muscles to the max and results in rep failure (you need assistance to finish the sets). The peak cycle uses high-intensity, low-volume workouts designed to overload the neuromuscular system. You will do 3 to 8 sets of 1 to 3 reps in the major lifts using maximum weights.

Muscles work together during the bench press— they don’t work in isolation. While some muscles shorten to cause movement, others contract statically to provide stability, lengthen to brake movement, or act as motion sensors (proprioceptors). The ideal bench press training program helps the leg, back, abdomen, chest, shoulder, and arm muscles work in harmony to provide powerful, pain-free movement. The pecs, triceps, and deltoids are the major muscles used during the bench press, but the muscles of the back (e.g., lats and rhomboids), legs (quads, hamstrings, and gluts), and abs (rectus abdominis, transverses abdominis) stabilize and control the motion.

Muscles develop best when you subject them to many types of stress. For example, barbell bench presses will increase the weight you can bench, but strengthening the triceps, deltoids, and pecs with other exercises (auxiliary exercises) will also help. Also, using overload techniques, bands and chains, board training, negatives, and power rack training will allow you to use more resistance than you can doing regular bench presses.

Don’t overtrain! Bench no more than twice a week and only use maximum weights once a week. As discussed, train in cycles: begin with general conditioning to get used to weight training; progress to base training involving intense moderate-rep exercises (for example, 6 sets of 6 reps); do peak training involving heavy singles, doubles.

Remember lesson number one: bench pressing is a skill. Your training program should be directed toward lifting a lot of weight for 1 rep. For making truly stellar progress in the bench press, don’t mix base and peak cycles. For example, during the peak cycle your bench strength will increase at an amazing pace. You will feel so strong that you will want to grind out 10 to 20 reps with 225 pounds just to impress people in the gym. Avoid the temptation! Give your body a chance to adjust to pushing heavy weights. You will be amazed at the results.

The Conditioning Cycle: 8 Weeks

Do this cycle if you are a beginner or haven’t weight-trained seriously for a while. If you are well trained and ready to boost your bench, skip this program and begin with the load cycle.

Do this program three days per week if you decide to do the conditioning cycle. Rest approximately one minute between sets and three minutes between exercises. You can combine this weight training program with sports such as basketball, or exercises such as jogging or treadmill running. Rest at least two days per week. Increase the intensity of your lifts gradually.

Example of an 8-Week Conditioning Cycle

Load Cycle and Base Conditioning Program: 12 Weeks

The load cycle builds base strength in the major muscle groups involved in the bench press, in the support muscles that provide a platform for the lift, and in the antagonistic muscles that give muscular balance to the joints and help control the movement. Work as hard as you can during each exercise. Your spotter should assist you when you can’t complete a rep. However, try to do each rep without help. About once every two weeks, use chains or bands when doing bench presses to add variety to your workout.

Rest three to five minutes between sets. Your goal is to increase your bench press, so rest enough so that you can lift as much weight as possible during each set. Progression is critical. Each week try to add weight during each exercise— even if it is only 2½  pounds.

Example of a 12-week Load Cycle to Increase Bench Press Performance

Peak Cycle: 12 Weeks

This is the cycle when you get strong. Use as much weight as possible and push as hard as you can during each rep. Lift explosively, but maintain good form: feet planted on the floor, firm grip, back arched, butt down, chest out, elbows in, shoulder blades retracted. Use a spotter for each major lift. Take as much rest as you need between sets— usually about three to five minutes. If you want, use a bench shirt when doing heavy singles and doubles (not power rack benches), but don’t use the shirt more than once a week.

Trust the peak cycle! As discussed, you will feel incredibly strong and energized because you are lifting heavy weights and not doing much volume. Avoid the temptation of adding high-rep sets to exhaustion. The peak cycle will boost your bench press more than you thought possible. Enjoy the rest and watch your bench press explode!

Example of a 12-week Peak Cycle to Increase Bench Press Performance

Note: Do power rack bench press single reps to maximum using 3-4 pin placements (depending on the length of your arms). If no power rack is available, substitute 5 sets of 1 rep at maximum weight. Have spotter assist if you can’t complete a rep.

Feel the Power!

Adding 100 pounds to your bench press is only the beginning. You will increase your bench press significantly if you follow this program. Some people will respond almost immediately and bench big weights before finishing the program, while others will have to do repeated load and peak cycles. Stick with it, but don’t stop after you become a big bench presser. Keep going— the sky is the limit!

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