The bench press has become one of the most popular exercises at the gym and the one people like to brag about the most. "What's your bench max?" is a question you'll probably be asked a lot if you frequent a highly populated gym. So aside from being a great chest workout, the bench press can also make you look good in the eyes of your peers. However, many people might not know that there are other muscles other than the chest that can be used to improve a bench press max.
One of the first places you can start improving the bench press max is by doing the decline bench press. This exercise will allow you to add slightly more weight than the standard bench press as well as working out different parts of your chest, the main muscle used for the bench press. By lifting heavier weight on the decline bench press you will prepare the body for the heavier weight on the flat version.
Although the chest is the main muscle used for the bench press, the back is also very important. During many exercises your back is what stabilizes your body. The bigger and stronger the back becomes, the more stability it can provide for heavier weights. Another good thing about building up your back muscles is that the bigger they are the closer you will be to the starting point of the bar during bench press. This will shorten the range of motion during the exercise itself, allowing you to use more weight.
Another important factor is the position of your legs. If you position them correctly they can provide extra lifting power during the bench press. The key is to bend the knees at slightly less than a 90 degree angle, as if you were going to push your body up the bench. When going for a bench press max you will have a large amount of heavy weight holding the body down, preventing it from sliding up. This will redirect the force from the legs from pushing your body up to helping push the bar up. This technique is only really useful if you have very heavy weight on the bar, otherwise your body might actually move up the bench and throw off your balance.
Yet another important body part often over looked is the rotator cuff. The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles that stabilize your arm bone in the should joint. The more stability you have the more weight you can lift. Regardless of what weightlifting goals you have. you should workout the rotator cuff anyway to strengthen it and reduce the risk of injury. A rotator cuff injury can be one of the most devastating in weightlifting. There are several different exercises for the rotator cuff, choose the ones you like best but be sure to hit it from all angles.
A good technique to use is pinching the shoulder blades together before attempting your bench press max. This will improve stability and stability improves how much weight you can lift. Start off by laying down on the bench and grabbing the bar. Now lift yourself up and pinch your shoulder blades together as much as possible and lower yourself back down. This will put the shoulders in a more stable position as well as making your torso a bit thicker, decreasing the range of motion during the actual bench press.
A good technique to use is pinching your shoulder blades together before attempting your bench press max. This will improve stability and stability improves how much weight you can lift. Start off by laying down on the bench and grabbing the bar. Now lift yourself up and pinch your shoulder blades together as much as possible and lower yourself back down. This will put your shoulders in a more stable position as well as making your torso a bit thicker, decreasing the range of motion during the actual bench press.
references:
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