Plateaus are the blues of working out. When the weight is not going up like it used to, it’s time for a change. The bench press may be your favorite upper body exercise, but it’s not the same when your progress is plateaued. In this scenario, the body is in need of a shock. …
For fitness athletes, shoulder injuries tend to be the most common injury seen so paying special attention to your training schedule and overall shoulder volume should always be considered. For the shoulders, a little rotator cuff isolation work can be a great addition to your regular training to strengthen them and reduce your likelihood …
It’s easy to believe that spotting is just a question of gym etiquette, like wiping down machinery or putting away weights. It’s something you know you should do, but never really give much thought. Lifters who push themselves in the gym know better. To them, knowing when to ask for a spot—and knowing …
Regardless of how experienced a lifter you are, you should be reanalyzing the basics constantly, particularly on staple exercises like the bench press. It’s one of the best strength and size builders for the upper body, so doing it correctly is crucial. One of the biggest misconceptions about the bench press is that it …
It’s the same in gyms around the globe: If it’s Monday, it’s chest day. Yep, guys of all shapes, sizes, and training levels give their pecs the leadoff spot in their splits. And it’s not hard to figure out why. Chest training is fun. You get the instant gratification of pushing a heavy weight …
The incline dumbbell press is one of, if not the most effective exercise for targeting the upper portion of the chest. This move has been a staple in the chest routines of bodybuilders for many decades. So, you may be asking, if it’s not broke, why try to fix it? It’s …
There are two things that almost every lifter in the weight room cares about: growing their chest and increasing their bench. Fortunately, if you focus on one, you can usually improve the other. Although strength is usually a bigger priority for powerlifters, bodybuilders can also benefit from focusing on strength since heavier weight can …
Your workout partner ditched you again on heavy bench day. Now, you are not only missing your number-one hype man, but you don’t have a spotter. You also don’t feel like reluctantly trusting a gym rando to hand you a heavy barbell. But not benching isn’t an option—it’s your poverty lift of the big …
Q: I’m a powerlifter who wants to know if using leg drive will help me bench press more weight. Some powerlifters dismiss it; others think it’s the Holy Grail. What gives? If leg drive isn’t the Holy Grail, it’s sitting right next to it on the kitchen counter. Here are the three most important …
Mark Bell, a top competitive powerlifter, and proprietor of the famed Super Training Gym in Sacramento, California, was recently asked to give a room full of NFL prospects the low-down on how to improve their bench press in preparation of the NFL combine’s 225-pound rep test. He gave them plenty more: A full arsenal of […]
To outsiders and newbies, the bench press is just one of those macho lifts you do to impress people. A good bench, though, requires mastery of a number of subtle points of form. Lifting for maximum weight calls for a few small but important refinements in the position of your fingers, hands, elbows, shoulders, and […]
A lot has changed in the world of lifting in recent years. But a lot hasn’t. And (with all due respect to the squat, the deadlift, and every other awesome movement) for most lifters, the bench press is still the move to master. Lifting a bar loaded with big plates is an image that motivates […]
Like 99.9 percent of lifters, I’ve loved bench pressing since I first touched knurled steel back in my teens. At first, I benched for high school football, and because the coveted “250 Club” T-shirt was a must-have. After college, I hit my first official 400-pound bench in a contest—and did it raw. My competitive bench-pressing […]
Let's take a trip back in time. How far? Back before the gym was cluttered with dudes with camera crews, and stick figure lifters who strain harder for a selfie than they do during a set of squats.Back then, before the … [Read More...]