"How much ya Bench?" is all too common of a question.
Quite frankly, I've never enjoyed the bench press. Nothing is really satisfactory about laying down on my back and pressing a weight away from me. However, I do like the reaction of common folk when they ask for my bench number (even though it isn't impressive in the powerlifting community with a paltry 375).
Anyway, on to a few things that I've discovered in my pursuit for a larger bench press. Tips and tricks if you will.
1. Bench with a comfortable grip width. The legal width, index finger to index finger is on the smooth rings which are 32 inches apart. That does not mean everyone should bench with their index fingers on the rings. You should use a grip that will prove itself in longevity. Do what makes most sense for comfort and painless movement.
2. Wide grip does not equal power. Coinciding with the first tip, using a wide grip doesn't always make sense. Some guys with long arms can't bench wide. I certainly can't. Common advice says to bench as wide as possible to get the most leverage, and I don't think that is necessarily true. My advice is use a comfortable grip where you get the most explosiveness off your chest. Longer armed individuals (especially long forearms) also have to take into consideration that their elbows have to go a lot further below their chest. That extra range of motion can be quite the B-word on the shoulder capsule.
3. A good arch and leg drive save your shoulders. Being able to meet the bar with your chest and decrease the range of motion of the movement is not only beneficial for power, it also benefits the shoulders. Developing a good setup with a decent arch and good leg drive will aid this.
4. Squeeze the glutes. Imagine you are trying to pinch the leather on the bench with your booty. It helps keep your arch and prevents your back from fatiguing as well as helps keep your legs tight and stable.
5. Forearm curl the lockout. If you use a suicide/thumbless grip this does not apply to you. But, if you're having trouble with the last few inches of lockout, imagine you are doing a forearm curl with the barbell (curling it towards your feet) and your triceps should engage hardcore. (This is actually an old Bill Kazmaier trick).
6. Pressing with a bent wrist vs a straight wrist.
Left: Bent Wrist -Right: Straight Wrist
There's a common debate between how one should "correctly" press with their wrist. Most say straight, but a lot of people use a bent wrist and perform some impressive presses. I think it's individualistic and mainly depends on the size of the individual's hands. I've seen a lot of guys with small hands that tend to use a bent wrist. I've never been able to use much of a bend in my wrist because I don't feel any power transfer. It feels like my tightness of my back, pecs, shoulders, triceps and forearms just bleeds out of my wrists if they are bent. So, my advice to you is to perform pressing movements with a straight wrist if you don't already do so. If you're hella strong and use a bent wrist, great! Do what works for you.
7. More triceps. Develop your back arms. They have a lot more longevity and tend to not be as abusive to the shoulders when they are highly developed comparatively to the pecs.
8. Use a slingshot. More importantly than overloading, use a slingshot to protect your shoulders. If you love dips but the range of motion bothers your shoulders, slap on a slingshot and do them. It'll help. For longevity reasons, I can not stress enough the importance of protecting your shoulders.
Overall, my main point is to look at the bench press with the future in mind. Do you want a big ass bench by any means necessary now, or do you want to be able to keep benching into your late adulthood?
