The Fastest Way To Blow Up Your Bench Press (4 Science-Based Steps) + Sample Program

Summary

This fitness video script focuses on enhancing bench press performance with immediate impact strategies. It emphasizes the importance of a proper lifting arch and correct bar path, pressing back towards the face and then up to maximize strength. The script advises taking a wider grip, bench pressing more frequently, and incorporating heavy top sets for confidence. It also recommends reviewing the scripter's bench press specialization program and 'How to Bench Press' guide for comprehensive training.

Takeaways

• 🏋️‍♀️ For fitness goals, gradual progress is often more beneficial than quick fixes, especially for fat loss and muscle building.
• 🤸‍♂️ Proper lifting form is crucial, particularly for the bench press, where a correct arch can significantly impact strength gains.
• 📏 Adjusting the bar path in the bench press to press back towards your face and then up can enhance max strength by reducing the moment arm and emphasizing horizontal shoulder adduction.
• 🔄 Understanding basic biomechanics and physics can help optimize the bench press movement, making it more efficient and strengthening the pecs more effectively.
• 📉 Reducing the range of motion by pressing the bar back first can decrease the work required from the front deltoids, making the lift stronger and more efficient.
• 🤲 Taking a wider grip on the bar can lead to a stronger bench press by shortening the range of motion and making the lockout easier.
• 🔄 Wider grip facilitates better upper back tightness and stability due to increased scapular retraction and depression.
• 📈 Increasing the frequency of bench press exercises can improve strength, but it's important to focus on technique to avoid reinforcing bad habits.
• 🔆 A daily undulating periodized (DUP) setup can be an effective way to train the bench press, focusing on different adaptations each day to avoid overtraining.
• 🏋️‍♂️ Heavy top sets can help build confidence and comfort with heavy weights, improving overall strength without overtaxing recovery.
• 🔗 For a comprehensive bench press program, consider resources like the bench press specialization program and the 'How to Bench Press' guide from Stronger by Science.

Q & A

What is the importance of a proper lifting arch in bench press technique?

A proper lifting arch is crucial for maximizing strength and efficiency in the bench press. It helps to maintain a strong and stable base, which allows for better force transfer from the body to the bar, and also helps to protect the spine during the lift.

Why should the bar path in a bench press not be vertical?

The bar path in a bench press should not be vertical because the movement involves both horizontal shoulder adduction and shoulder flexion. Pressing the bar back towards the face and then up reduces the moment arm between the bar and the shoulder, making it easier for the front delts to bring the bar back into balance over the shoulder.

What is the biomechanical reason for pressing the bar back first in a bench press?

Pressing the bar back first reduces the moment arm between the bar and the shoulder, which decreases the demand on the front deltoids to overcome shoulder flexion. This allows for a stronger press and emphasizes horizontal shoulder adduction over shoulder flexion.

How does the bar path affect the range of motion in a bench press?

Lowering the bar down and slightly forward and then pressing it back and up reduces the total range of motion the bar has to travel, making the lift stronger and more efficient.

What is the significance of the 'sticking point' in a bench press?

The 'sticking point' is the最难的部分 of the lift, which is a few inches off the chest. By pressing the bar back first, the lifter can reduce the work required from the front delts at this critical point, making it easier to push through the sticking point.

Why is a wider grip recommended for bench pressing?

A wider grip can lead to a stronger bench press because it shortens the range of motion, eases the midpoint and lockout portions of the lift, and allows for better maintenance of a tight upper back due to increased scapular retraction and depression.

How can increasing bench press frequency improve strength?

Increasing the frequency of bench pressing allows for more practice and repetition, which can lead to better technique and muscle memory. This can result in increased strength as long as the practice is focused and the lifter is not just repeating bad habits.

What is a daily undulating periodized (DUP) setup and how can it be used in a bench press program?

A daily undulating periodized setup is a training program where the focus of each training session varies from day to day. For bench pressing, this could mean focusing on hypertrophy one day, power the next, and strength on another, which can help to avoid overtraining while still targeting different aspects of strength and muscle development.

What are heavy top sets and how can they benefit a lifter's bench press?

Heavy top sets are sets performed at or near a lifter's one rep max before doing the main work for the day. They help the lifter get comfortable with heavy weights and can improve confidence and strength, as long as they are not overused and are part of a balanced training program.

What is the recommended approach to increasing the grip width in bench pressing?

The recommended approach is to gradually ease the grip out by about one finger width with every workout over the course of a few weeks. This allows the lifter to adapt to the new grip width without causing discomfort or injury.

Outlines

00:00

🏋️‍♂️ Improving Bench Press Strength

This paragraph discusses techniques to enhance bench press performance. The speaker emphasizes the importance of a proper lifting arch and recommends starting with it before moving on to other steps. The first step is correcting the bar path, which should be pressed back towards the face and then up, rather than straight up, to maximize strength. This technique reduces the range of motion and the work required from the front deltoids. The paragraph also covers basic biomechanics and physics involved in the bench press, explaining why pressing the bar back first is more efficient. The speaker suggests filming your sets for analysis and adjusting your technique accordingly.

05:00

💪 Enhancing Grip and Frequency for Better Bench Press

The second paragraph focuses on taking a wider grip on the bar and bench pressing more frequently to improve strength. A wider grip shortens the range of motion and makes the lift easier at the midpoint and lockout, while also facilitating a more stable upper back position. The speaker advises increasing grip width gradually and bench pressing more often, suggesting three days a week as optimal. They also recommend incorporating heavy top sets, around 90% of one's 1RM, to build confidence and strength. The paragraph concludes with a promotion for a bench press specialization program and a guide on bench pressing from 'strongerbyscience.com'.

Keywords

💡Fitness

Fitness refers to the overall condition of a person's body in terms of strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular ability. In the context of the video, fitness is discussed in relation to achieving specific goals like losing fat or building muscle. The script emphasizes that while shortcuts may be tempting, a slower, more consistent approach is often better for preserving muscle and achieving a proportional physique.

💡Bench Press

The bench press is a weight training exercise in which a person lies flat on a weight training bench and pushes a loaded barbell or dumbbell upward from the chest towards the shoulders. The video focuses on improving bench press performance, offering tips to increase max strength and proper technique.

💡Lifting Arch

A lifting arch refers to the natural curvature of the back when performing the bench press. The script mentions the importance of setting up with an appropriate arch to maximize strength gains and avoid injury. It's a fundamental aspect of bench press technique that can significantly affect performance.

💡Bar Path

Bar path is the trajectory the barbell follows during a bench press, as viewed from the side. The video explains that contrary to common belief, the bar should not follow a perfectly vertical path but should be pressed back towards the face and then up, which is more biomechanically efficient and reduces the range of motion required.

💡Biomechanics

Biomechanics is the study of the mechanical laws relating to the movement of living organisms. In the script, biomechanics is used to explain why the bar path should be back and up during the bench press, as it aligns with the natural movement patterns of the shoulder joint and reduces the work required from the front deltoids.

💡Range of Motion

Range of motion refers to the extent of movement possible in a joint or series of joints. The video discusses how altering the bar path in the bench press can reduce the range of motion, making the lift easier and allowing for greater strength gains.

💡Moment Arm

A moment arm is the perpendicular distance between the line of action of a force and the axis of rotation or fulcrum. The script explains that by pressing the bar back first, the moment arm between the bar and the shoulder is reduced, making it easier to lift the bar off the chest.

💡Grip Width

Grip width refers to the distance between the hands on the barbell during a bench press. The video recommends a wider grip for a stronger press, as it shortens the range of motion and makes the midpoint and lockout portions of the lift easier.

💡Scapular Retraction and Depression

Scapular retraction and depression are movements that involve pulling the shoulder blades back and down, respectively. The script mentions that a wider grip can encourage better scapular positioning, providing a more stable base of support during the bench press.

💡Frequency

Frequency in the context of the video refers to how often one performs the bench press. It suggests that increasing the frequency of bench press training can lead to improvements in strength, provided that technique and recovery are properly managed.

💡Top Sets

Top sets are additional sets performed at the beginning of a workout with a heavy weight for a lower number of repetitions. The video recommends including a heavy top set to build confidence and strength, suggesting it should be done once a week before lighter work.

Highlights

For fitness, shortcuts aren't worth taking, especially for long-term muscle and fat loss goals.

Proper lifting arch is crucial for maximizing bench press performance.

Four immediate impact strategies for increasing bench press max strength.

Fixing the bar path is essential for better bench press performance.

The bar should be pressed back towards the face and then up, not straight up.

Basic biomechanics and physics explain why the bar path matters.

Pressing the bar straight up can lead to a weaker lift due to increased shoulder flexion.

A back and up technique strengthens the pecs more effectively.

Elite lifters use a back and up bar path, unlike novices who press straight up.

Filming your sets can help correct bar path and improve technique.

Wider grip on the bar can lead to a stronger bench press.

Wider grip reduces range of motion and eases midpoint and lockout.

A wider grip helps maintain a tight upper back and stable base.

Bench pressing more frequently can lead to strength gains.

Practice makes perfect when technique is prioritized.

High-frequency bench programs can be effective but require careful management of volume and intensity.

Three days a week of bench pressing is recommended for most people.

Daily undulating periodization can be used to focus on different adaptations each day.

Heavy top sets can improve confidence and strength.

A bench press specialization program is available for those looking to increase strength.

The 'How to Bench Press' guide is recommended for further reading.

Transcripts

so for most things fitness-related

shortcuts generally aren't worth taking

if you want to lose fat a slower cut is

better at preserving muscle than a crash

diet if you want to build a proportional

physique it's probably going to take

years of consistent lifting however when

it comes to the bench press there are

four things you can start doing right

away that are gonna have an immediate

impact on your max strength now I

already discuss the importance of a

proper lifting arch in my benchpress

technique Tuesday video so I'm gonna

skip that here still if you're not

setting up at least some kind of arch

when pressing you're leaving a ton of

gains on the table and I'd recommend it

starting there before moving on to the

other four steps now if you'd rather use

a more moderate arch that's fine

especially if you have muscle building

goals and you'll still benefit from

these four steps okay so the first step

is to fix your bar path or the path the

bar takes when viewed from the side now

on the other to power lifts the squat

and the deadlift it's good lifting

advice to keep the bar path as vertical

as possible ideally the bar should move

up and down in a perfectly straight line

centered over the middle of the foot and

I think this has led many lifters to

assume that you should also use a

vertical bar path on the bench press

which isn't true

now to maximize strength on the bench

press you should be pressing the bar

back toward your face and then up not

just straight up and in order to

understand this we need to cover some

basic biomechanics first now with the

bench press the pecs and front delts are

contracting to perform a horizontal

shoulder adduction basically where you

bring your arm across your body like in

a fly but that's not the only movement

pattern here unless you're doing a

guillotine press or you lower the bar

straight down to your neck there will

also be some degree of shoulder flexion

occurring where you raise your arm up

like in the front raise and you can see

here from the side angle that your arm

is raising up in the bench press similar

to how it would in a front raise except

with less range of motion if we rotate

this video of the front raise so my

torso is in the same plane as the bench

you should be able to see that the basic

movement pattern is exactly the same

okay next we need to cover some really

basic physics so when you unwrap the bar

it should naturally come into position

over the shoulder joint this is because

the front delt doesn't need to do any

work performing shoulder flexion as

there's no horizontal distance or moment

arm between the

are the shoulder joint so this is where

you should start now let's look at two

different lowering scenarios on the left

we're lowering the bar straight down

like Anna guillotine press and on the

right we're lowering the bar down and

slightly forward like you would in a

traditional bench press will obviously

be stronger benching with the technique

on the right because it reduces the

total range of motion the bar has to

travel however it does pose a problem

during the concentric phase of the

movement because we've brought the bar

so far forward we've now created a

moment arm between the bar and the

shoulder this means that the front delt

has to work much harder to bring that

bar back into balance over the shoulder

again you can think about it this way by

bringing the bar forward you're

basically forcing yourself to do a bit

of a front raise so when getting the bar

off your chest you should shove the bar

back first to reduce that moment arm

between the bar and the shoulder as

quickly as possible

this way once you hit the sticking point

a few inches off your chest your front

delts don't need to work nearly as hard

to overcome that shoulder flexion demand

and this back and up technique is also

going to strengthen the pecs more since

it emphasizes horizontal shoulder

adduction over shoulder flexion that the

toughest points in the press now let's

contrast this with lowering the bar down

and forward but then pressing the bar

straight up when you press the bar

straight up off your chest you keep that

moment arm in place and your front delt

has to work extra hard to move the

weight up and you'll be much weaker if

you bench press this way data from dr.

thomas mclaughlin found that not only

did the biomechanics make sense it also

plays out in the real world

he found that while most ventures did

correctly bring the bar down and

slightly forward in a smooth arc on the

descent only elite level ventures drove

the bar back and then up whereas novice

lifters tended to press the bar straight

up first and then slightly back now

putting this into practice I'd recommend

filming your sets from the side to get a

close look at your bar path and you can

use an app like iron path or Dartfish to

track this easily if you're pressing the

bar straight up make a conscious effort

to press the bar back first and then of

course this might feel a little bit

awkward at first you want to get to a

point where it feels natural for you

that for me I like to cue this by

thinking about pushing the floor away

from me well I simultaneously drive the

bar

and up off my chest okay the second step

is to take a wider grip on the bar

wherever you're currently gripping the

bar

you should try gradually easing your

grip out by about one fingers with every

workout over the course of the next few

weeks most of the world's top bench

press errs press with a max legal grip

width with the index fingers all the way

out to the grip rings although this may

not be comfortable for everyone

they'll typically be stronger with a

wider grip up to a point for a few

reasons first a wider grip is going to

mean a slightly shorter range of motion

secondly a wider grip is going to make

the midpoint and lockout portions of the

lift easier since the pecs won't be

quite as contracted basically a wider

grip means there's going to be more

stretch on the pecs to contract more

forcefully throughout the range of

motion and thirdly it's generally easier

to maintain a tight upper back with a

wider grip as it tends to force you into

a bit more scapular retraction and

depression giving you a more stable base

of support throughout the lift alright

so now that you've fine-tuned your

technique the next step is to simply

benchpress more frequently and whenever

people tell me they want to get their

bench press up the first question I ask

them is how often they're currently

bench pressing per week they'll usually

say once or twice a week and I'll then

say you need to bench more often if you

want to get better at any skill let's

say shooting free throws you probably

think that shooting more often is gonna

help you get better at shooting free

throws now practice doesn't always make

perfect if you're just practicing bad

habits over and over so practicing more

might not actually help much unless

you're actively addressing those

underlying issues while practicing and

that's why we covered technique first

but once you're practicing smart

focusing on improving your technique

that's when practice really does make

perfect and although I've personally run

very high frequency bench programs where

I've bench four or five times a week you

do have to be more careful with

overtraining by keeping volume and

intensity quite low on the individual

training days now so I think benching

three days a week is gonna be the sweet

spot for most people and you can easily

set that up with a daily undulating

periodized design where you focus on

slightly different adaptations each day

this type of setup was shown to increase

one rep max strength in a DOP study from

dr. Mike's or toes for example running

with a setup like this we would focus on

hypertrophy on day one with sets of

eight reps power on day two with lighter

speed work

and then strength work on day three with

heavy sets of five now you could also

optionally add in a heavy atop set

before the hypertrophy work on day one

which is going to be my fourth step here

I think top sets are a great way to get

comfortable with lifting a heavy weight

on a regular basis which is going to

improve confidence in your ability to

lift heavier without frying your

recovery

I'd recommend adding one heavy top set

somewhere around 90 percent of your 1

rep max for 2 to 3 reps before backing

off and doing your main work for that

day and you only need to do this once a

week ideally before your latest lifting

day and while I definitely wouldn't

recommend maxing out on these top sets

regularly because a strength is specific

if you want to get stronger you got to

get used to having some heavy weight in

your hands on a pretty regular basis ok

so guys if you're looking to put all of

this information together I'd recommend

checking out my benchpress

specialization program which I'm going

to knock down to 50% off for the release

of this video so for the next week if

you're looking for a complete training

program to take your benchpress

strength to the next level you can go to

Jeff nipper to calm and take advantage

of the discounted rate for the next week

this program uses an upper lower

training split with the benchpress being

prioritized three days per week with a

DUP set up and the feedback on it over

the last year or so has been amazing so

I'll have that as the first link in the

description box down below and also a

lot of the info in this video came from

the how to benchpress definitive guide

over on a stronger by science.com which

I strongly recommend giving a read if

you haven't already so I have that link

down below as well so that's it for this

one guys don't forget to leave me a

thumbs up if you enjoyed the video

subscribe if you haven't already and

I'll see you guys all here in the next

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