Full Disclosure: I am not a fantastic presser. I’m not going to sit here and attempt to regal you with stories from high-school where I used to drive a Camaro, hookup with the Prom Queen, and bench 405 for reps (you know, before that nasty football injury in the State Championship ruined everything).1
Nope, this is not that kind of story. I recognize the bench press often serves as a litmus test for general level of badassery, but I’ve always considered myself an average presser (personal best of 315 lbs at a bodyweight of sexy). Or, in Dave Tate’s words “I suck.”2
I know how to coach it, however, and have worked with many people in my years at Cressey Sports Performance and now presently, at my studio CORE, to hone their bench press prowess. More commonly, though, is helping people work around a nagging shoulder injury.
NEWSFLASH: Many people complain that the bench press bothers their shoulder.
And while the first inclination is to nix the bench press altogether and jump into corrective exercise mode and start having people blow into balloons or perform any number of thoracic mobility or scapular stability drills to get at the (possible) root of the problem, I feel we sometimes need to pump the brakes.
Telling a guy to stop bench pressing is tantamount to this:
I mean, I agree that for many people their upper back mobility is atrocious and that it’s likely a very good use of their time to address it. And yes, some people may have gunky tissue quality or less than exemplary scapular stability or kinematics which likely is playing a significant role in their ouchie shoulder.
A thorough assessment or appointment with a manual therapist can hopefully help.
But too, maybe the reason why someone’s shoulder(s) hurt during bench pressing is because their technique makes my eyes bleed?
*shrugs*
Maybe all they need is a little more coaching. As I always say:
“Correct movement can be corrective.”
This is why, when someone’s shoulder hurts during the bench press, my first “tier” to attack is technique. The fitness industry has become too corrective at the expense of coaching our athletes/clients. Taking the 5-10 minutes to address someone’s set-up can make a huge difference in how the movement feels.
Are they driving their upper traps into the bench?
Are they getting their scapulae retracted and depressed?
Do they press the bar up and out of the j-hooks, or do they “guide” the bar out?
Do they “let the bar settle” before they lower it?
Do they “meet the bar with their chest? Or do they allow their shoulders to roll forward?
All of these can be easy-to-fix snafus that may eliminate any shoulder discomfort during the bench press.
Bench Press Set-Up
What happens if you address technique, it’s sound, and the bench press still hurts? You can still implement other pressing variations that can work in the interim while you address the root cause(s).
Decline Bench Press
Think about what’s not happening during a decline bench press as opposed to a flat or incline bench variation?
In a decline there’s less shoulder flexion involved which helps keep many trainees out of the “danger zone” of shoulder pain. So if flat bench pressing hurts you may be able to get away with a decline.
Spoto Press (Invisible Board Press)
A common flaw I see is some people have a hard time “meeting the bar with their chest” and end up having their shoulders roll forward as they lower the barbell.
Popularized by Bench Press Captain America, Eric Spoto (722 lbs, unequipped), the Spoto Press is a variation to combat this where you stop the bar a few inches above the chest, pause, and then press back up.
When In Doubt, Use Dumbbells
When you grab a barbell with a pronated (overhand) grip, you “lock” the humerus in an internally rotated position which can be problematic since it narrows the acromion space.
Using dumbbells alleviates this issue because you can nudge a little more external rotation by adopting a neutral grip. This is a major reason why I prefer DB pressing variations for overhead athletes as opposed to straight bar.
Corrective Pressing Variations That Don’t Feel Corrective
While not always the case, a common thread I see when it comes to shoulder pain is the INability of the shoulder scapulae to be able to move. In order to move big weight you need to respect tension and stability. In some cases, however, the shoulder blades are kinda “stuck” (usually downward rotation) and lack the ability to move through a full ROM.
It’s still vital to be able to access scapular movement for overall shoulder health.
When this happens I prefer to use pressing variations that allow for a little more wiggle room. As in: we allow the shoulder blades a little breathing room. Push-ups will always be my first choice here. But relax, I recognize most would rather swallow a live grenade than read more about push-ups.
For those interested you can READ this brief article.
Off-Bench DB Press
Scooting a smidge to the side of a bench will allow more scapular movement. What’s nice about this exercise is that it’s also a great core exercise (you have to fire like crazy in order to not fall off the bench) in addition to an awesome way to further engage the glutes. You can’t quite see it with the angle of this video, but I’m also situated further down on the bench so my lower half isn’t resting on it.
Bottoms-Up Press – Off Foam Roller
I snaked this one off Dr. Joel Seedman. Using a KB and holding it in the bottoms-up position is a fantastic way to ramp up rotator cuff activation…you really have to fight to stabilize and keep the joint centrated.
Moreover, by lying on the foam roller the shoulder blades are now able to move to a higher degree. And, much like the off-bench variation above, there’s also a high degree of glute engagement as well as foot and ankle engagement.
And That’s That
Don’t be so quick to bust out the band external rotations and t-spine drills. Addressing technique on the bench press can be every bit as corrective in terms of addressing shoulder pain. Likewise, don’t be so quick to omit all pressing variations. All aren’t equal and it oftentimes is a matter of choosing the right variation for the individual and nice vice versa.
I wrote it and people loved it. I had no idea so many people would share it.
One of the more comical responses to it was from my boy Dean Somerset:
“If you’re one of those D-bags who bench presses with your feet in the air:
1. Punch yourself in the face. Hard.
2. Read this article and realize that leg drive is necessary (NECCESSARY) to have sufficient stability and neural drive to press up some realistically heavy weights.”
His comment brought up an interesting “debate” (which I don’t really feel is an actual debate; at least to those who put rationale thinking into practice) on the whole “bench pressing with the feet in the air” parade, which led me to write this article for Stack.com that went live yesterday.
It’s a short one (something like 600 words), and may serve as nice ammunition for those reading who have that buddy or friend or colleague or coach from 1985 who’s adamant that doing so is safer or that it isolates the pecs more, and need something to tell them to shut up.
UPDATE: I should mention that there is one thing that’s dumber: bench pressing with a thumbless grip – like THIS. Now THAT’s pretty much like playing with fire.
I know I’m a bit of an anomaly in saying this, especially considering I make my living as a strength coach and fitness writer, and you know, I’m a dude, but here it goes: I really, really dislike bench pressing.
Not that I think it’s a bad or dangerous exercises or anything. On the contrary I’d rank the bench press right up there as one of the top exercises one can perform to build overall strength and muscle mass – especially in the upper body. It’s not considered one of the “big three” (squat, deadlift, bench press) in powerlifting circles for nothing.
And least we forget: chicks dig a big bench press. Right, ladies?
Outside of overhead athletes or someone with a significant history of shoulder injuries, where it would contraindicated, the bench press is pretty much a staple exercise in any well-rounded fitness routine.
But back to me for a second. Because, you know, it’s all about me….;o)
I dislike the bench press because, well, I suck at it!
In fact if I had to make a list of things I dislike in this world, I’d place the bench press in the same breath as Jar Jar Binks, Rocky V, poodles, belly button lint, and Tracy Anderson.
Yeah, I hate it that much.
I still do it, of course. But I’ve come to the foregone conclusion that, because of my abnormally long arms, I’ll most likely never be a great bencher.
I just picked the wrong parents in that regard.
Nevertheless, my best bench (so far) is 315 lbs, and I’m cool with that. If it goes up, it goes up. If it doesn’t, it’s not the end of the world.
So yeah, there you go: I have a personal disdain for the bench press, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love to coach it and help others improve their performance.
I’ve written in the past some common tips that I feel will help improve one’s bench press prowess, so I’m not going to get into the ins and outs of proper foot position, elbow positon, leg drive, bar path, grip, the efficacy of a back arch, or any number of other things that have been discussed ad naseam on the interwebz.
Instead I want to touch on something that hardly ever gets talked about, and something I feel can help improve one’s bench performance almost instantly.
And that is:
Getting a Proper Hand-Off
At Cressey Performance our athletes and clients don’t ask for a “spot.” Rather they as for a hand-off. Ask any top-notch or world class bencher what one of the main keys are, and he (or she) will say……TIGHTNESS.
You have to get tight. Especially in the upper back. Without getting into the extreme details, I like to coach guys to place their feet on the bench (relax, it’s only for a few seconds), grab the bar, lift their hips up, and drive their upper back into the bench. Simultaneously, I’ll tell them to consciously think to themselves, “together and DOWN” with the shoulder blades.
For the anatomy geeks out there – basically what I’m looking for is that the shoulder blades are adducted and posteriorly tilted.
Really it’s all fancy schmancy talk to try to get them more compact and tight so that they’re more stable and able to transfer force more efficiently through the body.
Which begs the question: Why go through all that trouble to get tight, compact, and ready to hoist a barbell off your chest, only to NOT get a proper hand-off, and lose all of it when you un-rack the bar?
Think about what happens when you un-rack a bar on your own. You essentially have to press/protract the shoulders just to get the bar off the j-hooks. As a result, the scapulae abduct and (most likely) anteriorly tilt as well, and stability is compromised.
Seems a bit counterproductive in my eyes, and serves as the impetus behind today’s video.
Bench Press Technique: The Hand-Off
A few points to consider that I didn’t cover in the video:
1. The “spotter” or hander-offer guy isn’t lifting the bar off the j-hooks, but rather “guiding” the bar to the starting position.
2. Moreover, the lifter shouldn’t think of it as pressing the bar up and into the starting postion, but instead “pulling” into position. Kind of like a bastardized straight-arm pressdown (albeit on your back).
3. Getting down the cadence of 1….2….breath….lift off is the key here. It’s going to take some practice, which is why I highly advocate finding a training partner you trust.
3. If at any point the guy providing the hand off starts chirping, “all you, all you, all you” when he’s clearly got his hands on the bar, immediately rack the bar and scissor kick him in the face.
I’ve told this story numerous times via email exchanges and presentations I’ve given, so please forgive me if you’ve heard this one before.
Awhile back I wrote an article on T-Nation titled My Shoulder Hurts: The Finest Whine, and in it I detailed, among other things, some of the more common reasons why someone’s shoulder may hate them in addition to outlining some strategies to help alleviate said shoulder from hating them.
I thought it was a pretty baller article, and it helped a lot of people. At one point I made mention that my best bench press is 315 lbs (raw, no gear) and that one of the reasons why I feel myself – as well as most of my athletes and clients I train – rarely suffer from shoulder pain is because I place a premium on balancing my pressing numbers with my pulling numbers.
Speaking more precisely, in an ideal world, I like to see a healthy “balance” between one’s 1RM bench press and his or her’s 3RM chin-up.
Using myself as an example, my best bench press is 315 lbs, and my best 3RM chin-up is 301 lbs. Not too shabby if I say so.
Almost predictably, some asshat made a comment in the LiveSpill that he stopped reading the article after he saw that I owned up to only bench pressing 315 lbs – insinuating that that was a piss-poor number and that I couldn’t possibly know what I was talking about.
I guess in order for it to count and for him to be impressed, I had to perform that for reps. With my feet in the air. And with Kate Beckinsale feeding me grapes.
Rather than get into some arcane pissing match with someone I didn’t even know (or had the inclination to use his real name), I made a snide comment back that: “yeah, well, my internet max is like 405 lbs, so that has to count for something.”
Suffice it to say, I recognize that a 315 lb bench press isn’t THAT big of a deal, and certainly doesn’t give me any bragging rights – especially considering some of the insane weights that guys like Vinny DiCenzo, Rock Lewis, and countless other raw and powerlifters put up on a regular basis.
That said, I still know how to COACH the bench press, and below is an article that I wrote last year that sorta got lost in the shuffle and never made it to print.
Lucky for you I happened to find it and decided I post up here. Enjoy!
Tips For a Badass Bench Press
In the realm of fitness, deadlifts and Shake Weights* aside, no other exercise exhibits as much machismo and general “badassery” as the bench press. Like a moth to a flame, it’s the first thing that most trainees (especially newbies) gravitate toward when they embark on a fitness routine, or, you know, if it’s Monday.
It’s no secret that attaining an impressive bench press – whatever that number may be – is kind of a big deal in fitness circles, allowing one a certain degree of bragging rights; it’s something that many trainees strive for on a weekly, sometimes yearly, basis.
However, not everyone makes significant progress with the bench press and even worse, many often end up hurt in the process — which is ironic, given its overwhelming popularity. It doesn’t have to be this way. A few simple tips can help your bench press soar.
But First, Lets Address the Stuff You’re Probably Going to Skip Anyways
While addressing posture may seem trivial and mundane, and yes, you may prefer to swallow a live grenade, it’s critical to discuss. So deal with it.
Let’s face it, there are a lot of people walking around with less than stellar posture. With many spending upwards of 8 to 12 hours per day sitting in front of a computer at work, not to mention the endless hours commuting, and/or hunching over their iPhone it’s no surprise.
Exhibiting a kyphotic posture – rounded shoulders and upper back, or what I like to call the Mr. Burns effect – will absolutely affect rotator cuff mobility, as well as general joint function, which in turn will affect overall performance and how much weight one will be able to bench press.
Interestingly, it’s often popular for fitness professionals to prescribe copious amounts of direct rotator cuff work to help fix one’s posture in addition to providing more “stability” to the joint – with the idea being that the more stable the joint is, the more proficient it will be at transferring force.
This is true, to a degree.
However, rarely, if ever, is the rotator cuff the issue when referring to bench press performance. Rather, what you need to be more cognizant of is thoracic spine mobility and scapular stability.
As my good buddy, Dean Somerset, CSCS, notes, “while the rotator cuff’s function is undoubtedly one of providing stability to the glenohumeral joint and allowing it to have a pivot rotation versus a gliding within the capsule, it doesn’t need a lot of direct work when training for the bench press, even if the problem is a rotator cuff tear.”
In other words, if you’re walking around with a Quasimodo posture, all the rotator cuff work in the world isn’t going to improve your bench press.
Instead by addressing the real issues — improving t-spine mobility and targeting the scapular stabilizers like the serratus anterior and lower traps, which tend to be woefully weak in many trainees — you’ll improve overall shoulder function and help place the scapulae in an optimal position to transfer force.
Using a great analogy that pretty much everyone uses and I’m no different, it’s sort of like shooting a cannon from a canoe; it’s not necessarily a good idea, nor optimal. Shoot it from solid ground, however, and it’s a different result altogether.
For many trainees, they’re so unstable – due to poor positioning – that they never see any improvements in their bench press. Make the joint more stable – again, by improving t-spine mobility and scapular stability – and good things will happen.
While there are certain scenarios where dedicated rotator cuff work might be warranted – they’re few and far between. Instead, focus on thoracic mobility (rotation as well as extension) and improving scapular function, to set yourself up for success.
Here are a few drills that might help and provide some insight:
Quadruped Extension-Rotation
Bench T-Spine Mobilization
Forearm Wall Slides – 135 Degrees with OH Shrug & Lift Off
https://youtube.com/watch?v=7QVMrFDQ0FI
Side Lying Windmill
Those are just a few, of course, but should get the ball rolling in the right direction for most people reading.
For Those That Skipped the Nerdy Stuff, You Can Start Reading Here
It All Starts With the Set-Up: Part I
How you set up for the bench press can make or break your performance, and subsequently, long-term progress to boot. While conventional wisdom will dictate that the bench press is a fairly innocuous exercise that anyone can just show up and perform (kind of like pooping), it’s actually a bit more complicated.
Firstly, rule number one of bench pressing — especially if you’re looking to push some respectable weight – is to never, ever, under any circumstance bench press with your feet up in the air. Unless, of course, you’re actually trying to make people laugh at you and/or want to be weak.
If that’s the case – have at it!
Think about it: By placing your feet up in the air, you’re making yourself more unstable, and in turn, less capable of transferring force efficiently. Resultantly, this will affect how much weight you’re able to use, which defeats the purpose if you’re looking to improve your bench pressing “badasstitude.”
It also looks dumb — really dumb. And no one wants to look dumb.
With that out of way, you need to understand some very basic set-up parameters that will undoubtedly help clean up your bench technique and lead to more weight on the bar.
Step 1: Set your Feet. Dig your feet into the ground!
Don’t just haphazardly flop them out in front of you like a pair of dead fish. Literally, corkscrew those mofo’s into the ground – to the side and underneath you — and use them to push your back into the bench. This is called leg drive, and it’s a trick that many powerlifters utilize to help engage more of the entire body into the movement.
That’s because the bench press is more of a full-body movement than one might think, and by incorporating more leg drive, it’s not uncommon to see an instant increase in the amount of weight used.
Step 2: Grab the bar as if you want to choke it to death.
Too often, trainees gingerly grab the bar as if they’re scared they’re going to hurt it. Grab it and strangle it! By doing so, you’ll force the rotator cuff to fire and provide more stability throughout the shoulders.
Step 3: Place your shoulder blades in your back pocket.
As Mike Robertson, CSCS and co-owner of IFAST training facility located in Indianapolis, IN, notes, “The more stable you are through your upper back, the more strength you’ll be able to display and the less likely you are to strain a pec while benching.”
Grab the bar with your hands – remember, crush it! – lift yourself off the bench slightly and try to pinch your shoulder blades together and depress them by visualizing placing them in your back pocket.
For the visual learners in the crowd, you can always just watch this superb video by Dave Tate.
It All Starts with the Set-Up: Part II
In case you haven’t picked up on it yet, placing a little more of an emphasis on technique very well may be the missing ingredient to a badass bench.
Still reading? Well, you made it this far, you might as well keep going!
Step 4: It’s okay to arch your lower back.
There’s a major misconception in the fitness community that it’s somehow detrimental to arch one’s lumbar spine while benching. While this practice may be problematic for some individuals, it’s a bit remiss to make such broad generalizations.
For starters, the lumbar spine already has a natural lordotic arch to it anyway, so why would maintaining that arch be dangerous? In fact, increasing one’s arch is another useful trick many powerlifters advocate because it helps shorten the distance the bar has to travel.
Secondly, and more to the point, Craig Rasmussen, CSCS and one of the program designers at Results Fitness located in Santa Clarita, CA, says, “I believe that many people simply confuse the (correct) advice of keeping your butt on the bench with the bogus advice of keeping the lumbar spine on the bench. This will entail having a curve in your lumbar spine. You don’t need to press your lumbar spine into the bench as you perform a bench press, but you do need to keep your butt on the bench or you’re changing the movement into an unsupported decline bench press, which is not a good idea.”
Step 5: Get a hand-off.
It sounds borderline trivial, but it’s anything but. Getting a hand-off – as opposed to a “spot” – is an often overlooked component to the bench press.
Remember all that talk above about proper upper back positioning when you bench, and how, if it’s not optimal, it can drastically affect how much weight you’re actually able to lift?
No? What the F, dude? It was like 30 seconds ago! Go back and read it again!
Well, when you don’t ask for a proper hand-off, you’re essentially setting yourself up for failure. Think about what you have to do to unrack the bar on your own: “press” the bar by protracting your shoulders and allowing them to anteriorly tilt – losing any semblance of upper back tightness in the process.
Conversely, by getting a proper hand-off, you’re able to keep the upper back compact and “tight.”
In reality, a hand-off should assist you only in the sense of “gliding” the bar over the j-hooks – the hand-off(er) should not lift the bar out of the hooks for you.
Also, just to throw it out there: every time you yell out “it’s all you, it’s all you, it’s all you” when spotting, a dolphin gets punched in the face. Stop it!
Step 6: Keep your elbows from flaring out.
Watch any elite powerlifter bench and what do you see? Well for starters, you won’t see them with their feet in the air. Seriously, stop it! Secondly, you’ll probably notice how they tend to keep their elbows from flaring out. Why? Namely, it prevents your shoulders from hating you.
Allowing the elbows to flare out – while true, does place more emphasis on the pecs – places infinitely more stress on the shoulders, and you want to protect them as much as possible.
Instead, when lowering the bar, try to keep the elbows at a 45-degree angle from the torso. In other words, if taking a bird-eye view, your arms should make more of a “W” shape than a “T” throughout the duration of the movement
It may be awkward at first, and it will definitely take some practice, but it will keep your shoulders healthier in the long run. And that’s a huge step in the right direction for long-term bench pressing success.
