The bench press exercise has become somewhat of a measuring tool for masculinity. I can’t even count how many times I’ve been asked the ever-so-popular question – “how much do you bench?”. No other exercise signifies strength and dominance (from most peoples perspective) than the bench press. For that reason, I’ve assembled some easy to apply lifting tips for you to implement into your next workout.
Bench Press Tip #1
Squeeze The Bar: This one relates to grip strength. It’s been shown that increasing your grip strength and squeezing the bar can increase your bench press strength by up to 10{2dd333ed9c7b2074fdfda098a56357c21ab487243e335d9241a31e34dbd5cf30}. The reason for the increased force output comes from an increased activation of the triceps. As you know, the triceps (back of the upper arm), work to extend the arm.
Bench Press Tip #2
Contract Glutes: This may seem like a weird one but contracting your glutes (bum in layman’s terms) will actually help you bench more. Reason being, the activation of the glutes and core muscles will allow for an optimal power transfer from your feet (as you’re driving them against the floor) all the way up your torso to your chest and shoulders. Keep in mind that whenever you’re lifting a maximal load, the entire body is involved in some way or another.
Bench Press Tip #3
Retract Your Scapula: Your “scapula” refers to your shoulder blades. By squeezing them together, you can reduce the distance that your arms will have to travel in order to elevate the barbell. It should go without saying that the shorter the travel distance, the easier each repetition will be. The time under tension (T.U.T) will be less.
So there you have it. Three easy to implement and extremely effective bench press tips. These are only 3 of many, so keep checking back for more articles.
