Building a Bigger Bench Press

Dino Bravo – World Bench Record – 1988

It goes without saying that the Bench Press is one of the most popular lifts that are done in the gym.

And no wonder – it’s one of the best lifts for building upper body muscle, especially the chest, shoulders, and triceps. On top of the mass building potential of the Bench Press, it is also a great lift for building upper body strength.

In this post, I am going to cover a subtle adjustment you can make when you Bench Press to increase the weight you are able to press, the number of reps you can perform, and the safety of the Bench Press itself. When you can increase those three factors, your potential for size increases and strength gains is practically guaranteed.

The Power of the Lats in the Bench Press

Many trainees do not think about the lats when they Bench, because the lats are part of the back and are prime movers in rows and pull-ups, but the lats actually play a very important role.

Unfortunately, they do not realize that the lats are there to provide stability to the shoulder during the Bench Press. When the lats are activated properly, they provide a much better foundation for the shoulder, and this can be HUGE for your confidence under the barbell, when you are benching.

So, since the lats are so important, it makes sense to get them involved in the Bench Press as soon as possible, correct?

Well, many lifters miss the boat on that one as well. In fact their problems begin right from the moment they prepare to take the barbell out of the rack or hooks.

You can see exactly what I am talking about in the short video below.

Activating the Lats RIGHT AWAY for a Bigger Bench Press

I really want to thank Todd Hamer, strength coach from George Mason University, for showing me this technique modification. I met up with him at the Juniata Strength Clinic in June and asked him to take a look at my Benching Technique, and this has been a big help to me. It starts each new Bench Press set off with a completely different feel.

This way of un-racking the barbell may only be slightly different from what you are doing right now, but the way the bar feels in your grip and as you support it in the ready position is not. There is a night and day difference between these two techniques, and when you get this right, you can begin to see big improvements in your Bench Press.

And what’s great is, you can use this pulling lat activation method on your other Bench Press variations, such as Incline Bench and Decline Bench.

Let me know how you like this technique. Give it a try and leave a comment below.

All the best in your training.

Jedd

Hey there, I hope your week has been awesome.

Today I have a review for you on a new report called, Bench Press Explosion, by Mike Westerdal, which is only $7 until tonight at Midnight.

Bench Press Explosion, just $7 until midnight tonight – get your credit card out!

This is in ebook format, so in a matter of minutes you can be reading it and sampling from the routines of some of the strongest benchers that have ever lived.

Review: Bench Press Explosion

This ebook is heavy loaded on two things: Technique and even moreso on Sample Routines.

Technique: It starts and ends with emphasis on the importance of proper technique in order to accomplish your maximum strength and muscle gains.

Routines: In many cases, the routines shows are the exact routines that the monsters of the bench would follow themselves.

Keep in mind something as you read through this sampling of routines from the ebook:

These programs are coming from the best in the world. It only makes sense to follow what the best in the world have done – why try to reinvent the wheel? And with so many different routines to choose from, you could be set for about the next full year for bench press routines. If you document and track your results the right way, you should easily be able to understand which ones work best for you. So go to the store, but a notebook for $1 and track your progress.

Now, let’s look at some of the routines featured in this ebook. Take note, this is by no means the exhaustive list of routines. These are just a few of the ones that struckme in particular when I reviewed the manual.

Pat Casey’s Routine

Pat Casey broke the 600-lb Bench Barrier with 617 and he used no ergogenic aids like equipment, substances or techniques. His routine focuses on weight, technique, and volume. In fact, in some cases, to spawn gains, he would go through periods of TREMENDOUS VOLUME. Wait until you read the kinds of volume numbers he would hit with his “Binge Workouts” on the Dip Stand. Other Worldly!

Ted Arcidi’s Blueprint for Benching

Ted Arcidi is someone I have been researching quite a bit lately, both due his success as a powerlifter, and because he spent some time competing in the Wrestling Ring during the 1980’s. If you haven’t heard of him, he was billed as the World’s Strongest Man, as he was the first man to bench 700 in a recognized competition. What is awesome is Bench Press Explosion outlines his exact routine he used, which he refers to as his Bench Press Blueprint for building chest strength and size.

Ken Lain’s Program Matrix
Ken Lain has benched 721 and 740 and Bench Press Explosion shows you exactly what he did to get to the 740 mark. What else is awesome is that this routine can be used for other multi-joint exercises, so if you want to transition into a period where you emphasize a different exercise, then you can use this program to build your other big movements, such as Squats, Deadlifts, Overhead Press and more.

Bench the Chuck Sipes Way

Chuck Sipes was just plain a bad-ass. In his hey day, not only was he stacked with rock solid muscle, but this crazy bastard used to bend nails and bars, often with the bar in his teeth, as shown to the right, so you know this guy was cool. In adddition to his steel bending prowess, this strongman trained up to a bench of 570 and even a set of 6 at 520 – AWESOME! This routine is specifically indicated for thos who are “stuck in a standstill” on the bench press.

John Carl Mese
This is another dude I am not familiar with, but what I liked about this section is that it gave some indications to look for as far as specific weaknesses you might have in your bench, depending on the spots you fail at, so you can work on your weaknesses, another big part of bench press success. Mese’s program also emphasizes balance between the upper, middle, and lower chest.

DIESELS, this is only scratching the surface of what is included in this ebook. There are actually over 15 Bench Press programs included in this report.

One word to the wise, however – don’t be jumping back and forth between programs. If you are not seeing results after just two weeks on a given program, don’t abandon it and move on to another one. That is a recipe for sure failure. Instead, pick one program out of the many listed here and use it as your guide from beginning to end. Track your results, including the prescribed sets and reps, but also take note of how the sets felt. You may be surprised as you look back how a certain percentage of your Max early on may feel tough and then a few weeks later it is a breeze. It is nice to have indicators like that written down in your work logs.

Then, when the program is complete, assess the results. You may try going through it again, or switching completely. With this ultra-cheap $7 report, you are going to be able to enjoy a great deal of flexibility in your training for months and even years to come.

OK, guys. That’s it for my review.

Take note, this ebook is on sale for a maniacally low price of just $7, but you have to pick it up before tonight at Midnight or else the price will go up.

You can get your copy here = > Bench Press Explosion

All the best in your training.

Jedd

Hey everyone. Jedd here.

I just wanted to write to let you know that AJ Roberts opened up his new product UP YOUR BENCH and get this.

He’s selling it for 50% off!

Until midnight on Friday, you can get his entire UP YOUR BENCH training system for half off.

Here’s where you can grab your copy:

http://www.upyourbench.com

When you pick up AJ’s system for 50% off, you Get Five Free Bonuses.

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