How to Bench Press: Workout for Power and Strength

How to bench press properly technique is essential to know because it can give you the power and can shape your upper body. Your shoulders, chest and triceps must be well-built for strength in lifting objects.

How to bench press is a skill you need to learn if you want to have an effective workout for your upper body. In doing this exercise, you will need a bench. The bigger the seat, the bigger the chest.

In doing the bench press, the bar stays in its position when you do the exercise correctly. Unlike the squat or deadlift, the movement goes to your mid-chest over your shoulders. It is the safest way to bench press for your joints.

For quick learnings, here are some basic techniques on how to bench press. Lie on the bench with your eyes under the bar. Then grab the bar with a medium grip width. Pull-up the bar to get it off the rack. When doing this, make sure your arms are straight. Then lower the bar to your mid-chest. Press the bar back up until your arms are straight.

But if you are looking for more detailed bench press form tips, you will need to focus on being stable as possible on the bench. For maximum strength and size, here are the techniques you want to know on how to bench press.

Grip it as you mean it!

First, get the proper grip of the bar with your shoulder, and then width apart to maintain the best position to press the weight up; this is the key on how to do this effectively. The significance of getting a grip is giving pressure to your shoulder joints and small places on your elbows. Then wrap your thumb around the bar to bring more tension around the muscles.

Press your feet on the floor.

As a starting position on how to do this workout, your feet should stay on the floor. Like with your head, upper back and glutes into the bench, you will do the same with your feet on the floor. As you do this, it will create total-body tightness that allows your muscles to be in its maximum potential.

Support your lower back with an Arch

While lying on the bench and lifting the weight, maintain support to your back with an arch. As you lower the pressure, focus on getting into this position before putting your hands on the bar. Also, make sure that your glutes are in constant contact with the bench. It will make your lower back, and your core braced stable. If you are not able to do this, it will create tension across your torso. It will create body compact, giving you the ability to push harder when lifting heavier.

Perfect form means keeping your elbows close

Keep your elbow close while lowering down the bar slowly until it touches your chest near the nipples. The ideal way means your elbows stay close to your sides as possible.

Support Back of your Head

While doing the bench press, you need to support your body part, especially your head. In doing this, your head should be in contact with the bench from the moment you lie down to the moment you rack the weight. The support is essential, especially when you are trying to raise your head. Also, make sure that your shoulders and upper back should stay in contact with the bench for the whole duration.

Bench Press Incline

There are various bench press workouts. One of which is the bench press incline. The incline bench press is an exercise involving the chest muscles. The shoulders and triceps can be indirectly involved, as well.

In this position, it targets the upper portion of the chest. When doing this workout, this part of our body is seldom involved. So if you want to have perfect chest, strong arms, firmed shoulders, you can include this in your chest workouts and full-body workouts.

How to bench press in incline position?

If you are not familiar on how to bench press in an incline position, here are the fundamental and easy steps to do it.

1. Start your position by lying your back flat on an incline bench, setting your hands outside of shoulder width.
2. Next is set your shoulder blades by leaning them together into the bench.
3. Then, hold a deep breath before you lift the weights from the rack. To do this, you will need an assistant to help you raise. Also, keeping your breath steady will help you maintain the tightness through your upper back.
4. After lifting the weights, let the pressures settle and maintain the tightness in your upper back.
5. Inhale to allow the bar to go down slowly by unlocking the elbows. Lower the bar in a straight line to your lower chest, touching it.
6. After completing the lift, push the bar back up in a straight line by pressing yourself into the bench. In this way, it will drive your feet into the floor for leg drive. It will extend the elbows.
7. You can repeat your desired number of repetitions.

Bench Press Decline

On the contrary, the bench press decline is the opposite of the bench press incline. Doing the bench press decline has many benefits. Such benefits are targeting the lower portion of your chest better than the necessary bench press or the incline bench and making your chest around, full and defined. Also, the routine of bench press decline is fixing imbalances that you may have noticed in your chest due to a lack of lower pectoral stimulation. It also increases your chest strength significantly.

The positioning of the bar in this workout helps your shoulders do less of the work. Meaning, your chest is doing every exercise. Also, it minimizes strain on your lower back after doing the flat bench press.

How to bench press in decline position?

If you feel like doing the bench press decline, we have the necessary and simple steps to do the workout.

1. Get a decline bench and slide it into a power rack.
2. Make sure you place your feet at the end of the decline bench and lay back flat.
3. Watch for the bar not to hit your head, so make sure it is placed even with your head.
4. If you do it correctly, the weight will be positioned at the center of your chest.
5. Then, grab the bar slightly wider than your shoulder width.
6. When you lift off the bar from the rack, breathe in and lower the bar towards your chest slowly.
7. Once the bar is lowered to your chest, pressing the bar back up to its original position. Do the presses while exhaling.
8. Repeat desired sets and reps.

Do’s and Don’ts

Like other workouts, there are things in doing bench press that need to be avoided, and keep this in mind all the time.

For instance, the first rule on how to bench press is making sure your back is always arched. Your elbows are essential to be in 45 degrees and keep them flat. Your elbows should be in 45 degrees and keep them in-tacked. Also, you need to keep your knuckles up throughout the entire lift to avoid injury the wrist.

On the other hand, you will need to avoid that your upper back, glutes and feet come off contact with the bench or floor. Don’t do push up when de-racking. Instead, pull the bar with your lats.

As we conclude it

Doing the bench press is essential to your upper body. Your shoulders, chest and upper arms are needed to be built stronger and firm. So, learn the bench press techniques for the best results of this workout.