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Bench Press

Around the IOL forum, Gary Edwards is probably the current powerlifting competitor available to answer questions. He's written up this 4-week bench press routine and this full meet preparation routine.

• Bill Keyes wrote up my favorite bench routine of all time, a 5x5 bench press routine that will keep you adding weight for a long, long time.

• There's a coach's checklist over at Brian Mac's, and you'll find a one-rep max calculator at the bottom of that page, too.

• If you decide to go for a boost in your max, there are tips to increase your one-rep bench press, here.

Bench Press Description
Taken from Dave Draper's book, Brother Iron, Sister Steel

One of the patriarchs of weight training, and one of the three lifts in the sport of powerlifting, a family whose siblings are the squat and the deadlift. This comprehensive movement builds a network of upper torso muscles including primarily the front deltoid, the pecs and the triceps.

Lying on your back, grasp the racked bar with a grip some six inches wider than shoulder width; press overhead with a slight arc to a neutral starting position directly over your shoulders. Once you’ve momentarily established and briefly held your starting position, lower the bar slowly and deliberately (the eccentric or negative motion) to the bottom of your pectoral muscles. Allow the bar to make full contact with the body before immediately reversing the motion and pressing the weight to its original starting point (the concentric or positive motion). Smoothly repeat until your designated reps are achieved.

Focus on the muscles involved, carefully locating the bar through its range of motion until you discover your groove — the exact track for the bar’s movement according to your skeletal-muscular mechanics. Allow one or more seconds to lower the bar and power up steadily after reaching the chest. Practice — there’s no failure at this stage, only correcting and re-correcting, trying your best and improving. You’ll personalize all your exercises as you grow, perform, learn and understand.

• So far, so good. Now don't forget your rotator cuff warmup.

• Another tip you won't see often: strengthen the opposing muscles, in this case using Cajin Rows.

• In this blog post, Byron Chandler discusses bench press partials.