10+1 tips for better bench press

First of all before we talk about the tips of how to increase your bench press. Lets talk about other factors that might you don't know about a successful bench press attempt. And not only for bench press also for other lifts like squats,deadlifts.

Number one for my opinion is safety. Yes SAFETY, well it's so easy to say "i'm safe during my lifts", "i know what i'm doing", in some cases your have right, but a bad moment will be happen for ONE time /injury/. You have to stay injury free, the second when you will get injury is the second when you stop progressing in that movement (bench press).

Another factor is muscle activation, are you really activating the muscle that you're trying to target; or you just throwing the weight around. Even if you're target that muscle and activating successfully are you activating optimally; you could be in a different physical position that will allow you to activate more muscle fibers.

Frequency, if you're benching lets say 4x times a week that's higher frequency than benching 2-3x a week. And your volume, the amount of reps and sets that you're doing and the overall added you did in that session. All of that dependent on you and your program.

Your time under tension how consistently are you keeping tension on that muscle and for how long; For example if you're benching and you dropped the bar down with peer gravity there's no tension being held in the muscle there. If you just let the bar very fast in your chest and bounced there is no tension supporting the bar at the bottom of the rep. So the key is control the weight and keep in tension at the bottom come back up and repeat, that's time under tension. Everything we talked until now is factors for hypetrophy which is the muscle growth which also result in strength.

Common quenstions

1. Should your back be flat when benching?
   

• It's actually healthier if you maintain a SLIGHT arch while bench pressing because your lower back is naturally curved.If your spine is completely flat on the bench, your shoulders will roll forward. Arching is not only healthy; if done right, it can also enhance performance. (experts opinion)

2. Why you should not arch your back while benching?

• To keep your shoulders safe during the Bench Press, you MUST keep the "ball" in the "socket." Arching your back helps draw the ball deeper into the socket and allows you to use your upper-back muscles to pull your shoulder blades down and back into a stable position.

• You want my opinion? The truth is it's up to you. Everything is You and what i mean. It's an individual thing, if you happen to have those swallower chest give it a try. I'm sure you're going to have better results from your bench pressing. If you have big chest from your genetics you don't necessarily need to worry about it.

Key Points

1. Feet placed behind knees

2. Shoulder blades squeezed

3. Chest puffed out

4. Rigid body

5. Lower the bar slowly and controlled

6. Slow and controlled press up

10 +1 WAYS TO INCREASE YOUR BENCH PRESS

1 – Keep your feet steadily

It is no coincidence that we put it as a first tip. It is one of the biggest secrets of bench pressures and perhaps the most important element in this exercise. This is because the bench pressures start from ... the floor. Solidly mounted floor soles provide better driving force, steady back and normal bending of the spine.

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2 - Use the squat rack

You have no help? No problem. Go your bench in the squat rack and adjust the safety rods a few centimeters above your chest. Surely an assistant to unlock the bar from the hooks or to help you with your last 1-3 repetitions does not compare, but at least you will not have the fear of losing 70-100 pounds on your neck. If you do not have a squat rack in your gym a) find a more serious gym or b) do not use the smith machine. Better pressures wth dumbbells ... than smith machine.

3 - Train your back

How do you expect to strengthen your chest without following your back? The back is not just a group of stretched muscles in the back of the chest that you do not see in the mirror. It is the driving force behind bench pressures, your stabilizer, your safety. As long as you "push" into the gym, you will "attract" it. So fast on upright rowing.

4- Central Nervous System

The central nervous system plays a leading role when dealing with many kilos. If your CNS is not "warm" enough, the weight you will lift will feel too "heavy". What you can do for a better warm up: If you run 1 set for warm up, run 3 sets starting from very light weights, and doing only 4-6 repetitions.

6 - Take your Time

Take your time between the heavy sets. After a very intense effort, relax (3 to 5 minutes) and give your body the chance to recover before going to the next set. Remember that you train for strength, not for speed and endurance.

7 - Do not forget the triceps

Bench press are not just an exercise on the chest. To maximize your chest, you must have built a force on the triceps. Be sure to use high quality composite triceps exercises such as bench press presses with closed handle or trickle dips (much higher field exercises or dumbbells).

8 - Do not go until full exhaustion

In fact, you never have to go to the maximum. Choose a range of sets where you can move to 8-12 reps and focus on increasing repetitions. This will build up your power until you are ready to go to a lower range of repetitions, possibly working to the maximum of your abilities.

9 - Do not change the angle on elbows

This is by far the biggest mistake most people make at bench press. Stop shaking your hands back and forth during a set as if you are going to fly.This is horrible for the shoulders, and it exhausts you very quickly.And if your form is horrible don't try to fix it during your set, lock the bar and try again correct.

10 - Patience

Stop believing that you will put 10 pounds in the bar every week. This is not going to happen. Instead, focus on small steps, such as trying to do an extra repeat per set at a time. Over time these small steps will be taken into account in big profits. Just have patience your body want rest to build so don't go crazy.

11- Food

Don't expect without good amount and quality of food to do much.

If you want to succeed in the gym, it might be best to start and end your workout in the kitchen. Scheduling meals and snacks around your fitness schedule can make a big difference in how you feel during a workout, and how much you benefit from it afterward.

It's best to eat a large meal at least a few hours before going to workout.

What can you eat before and after?

1) Eggs before,Sweet Potato With Salmon after.

2) Toasted Rye, Nut Butter before, Quinoa, Sweet Potato And Salad after.

Of course every person need different kinds of food, we're not all the same.

Conclusion

Learning how to accomplish the perfect bench press can be challenging at 1st. Once you get the hang of it then it becomes natural.  Learning how to engage and stabilize all the muscles involved will create a safe and very effective lift!  Take some time to learn and master the step by step process and you will see a big difference in weight lifted.

Thank you for reading my article. Hope you enjoy it!

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