Learning how to improve your bench press is a tricky and often over complicated affair for most gym members. Many of them spend time focusing on endless sets of cable crossovers and other assistance exercises in a bid to pack on more poundage when they hit the bench but, as you will discover in today's article, the answers to getting bigger compound lifts are actually quite simple.
Of course, it is important to recognize the fact that owning a big, powerful deadlift or squat is not really important in the grand scheme of things. You can build a fantastic physique without having a particularly powerful personal best. However, in most gyms it remains a barometer for how well your training program is progressing, so increasing the three big lifts remains very important to most guys.
Most men are shocked to learn that they could easily be adding 10-20 kilograms to their heaviest sets by ironing out a few common errors made on the bench. These include:
1. Work on your grip strength with assistance exercises focusing on forearms.
2. Reverse warm-up sets are a fantastic technique when used correctly
3. Perform negative reps with a spotter on any lift you wish to increase.
The first rule is perhaps the most important of all. Without a firm grip you will be unable to increase many of your compound lifts, especially your deadlift. That's because your lift will be limited to the strength of your forearms, which will easily give out before your back or your legs. This means priority number one simply has to be incorporating more grip-based strength work into your routine around those big lifts.
Despite the confusion on most guys faces when you ask them what their favorite forearm exercise is, there are a number of exercises which you can do for this relatively small muscle group. Favorites include reverse barbell curls, timed hangs and plate grips.
Of course, your grip also plays a hugely underestimated role on exercises like chest press. Learn how to focus on 'pulling the bar apart' as you do the exercise and you will begin to notice how much more you can derive from every repetition.
Reverse warm-ups are also fantastic when used correctly. This involves getting yourself warmed up before performing one set with a weight which is actually heavier than you plan to go in your working sets of the exercise ahead. So, for instance, perform a set of just a few reps with 100 kg if you plan to squat 80-90 kg in your working sets. Obviously, it pays to have a spotter at hand when using this technique. The body recruits many more muscle fibers than it usually would for this technique, meaning when you drop the weight and perform your normal working sets you will suddenly find your 80-90 kg lifts feeling rather easy!
Providing you use it safely and sparingly, you can increase any big compound lift using this technique.
The final technique for increasing your compound lifts in the gym comes in the form of negative repetitions. The negative section of a repetition is the portion where your muscle isn't working, i.e. the phase of a bench press where you are lowering the bar towards your chest. Believe it or not, that is the phase which most people have the greatest difficulty with, not the lifting phase. It is also the phase where most people go wrong, lowering the bar too quickly. At least 50% of the benefits to a compound move can be found in correctly performing the negative phase of the move, so stop dropping down so fast on your squats and deadlifts.
You should use a weight heavier than you would usually use, due to the fact you are only performing half of the repetition on your own.
If you adopt the three techniques in today's article you will undoubtedly see an increase in any big lift on the gym floor. If you have been wondering how to improve your bench press and were performing endless assistance exercises such as dumbbell flyes and cable crossovers, you may be surprised to find that the techniques today involve simple things such as grip and reverse warm-up sets. However, each of the methods is proven and very, very effective.
Of course, it is important to recognize the fact that owning a big, powerful deadlift or squat is not really important in the grand scheme of things. You can build a fantastic physique without having a particularly powerful personal best. However, in most gyms it remains a barometer for how well your training program is progressing, so increasing the three big lifts remains very important to most guys.
Most men are shocked to learn that they could easily be adding 10-20 kilograms to their heaviest sets by ironing out a few common errors made on the bench. These include:
1. Work on your grip strength with assistance exercises focusing on forearms.
2. Reverse warm-up sets are a fantastic technique when used correctly
3. Perform negative reps with a spotter on any lift you wish to increase.
The first rule is perhaps the most important of all. Without a firm grip you will be unable to increase many of your compound lifts, especially your deadlift. That's because your lift will be limited to the strength of your forearms, which will easily give out before your back or your legs. This means priority number one simply has to be incorporating more grip-based strength work into your routine around those big lifts.
Despite the confusion on most guys faces when you ask them what their favorite forearm exercise is, there are a number of exercises which you can do for this relatively small muscle group. Favorites include reverse barbell curls, timed hangs and plate grips.
Of course, your grip also plays a hugely underestimated role on exercises like chest press. Learn how to focus on 'pulling the bar apart' as you do the exercise and you will begin to notice how much more you can derive from every repetition.
Reverse warm-ups are also fantastic when used correctly. This involves getting yourself warmed up before performing one set with a weight which is actually heavier than you plan to go in your working sets of the exercise ahead. So, for instance, perform a set of just a few reps with 100 kg if you plan to squat 80-90 kg in your working sets. Obviously, it pays to have a spotter at hand when using this technique. The body recruits many more muscle fibers than it usually would for this technique, meaning when you drop the weight and perform your normal working sets you will suddenly find your 80-90 kg lifts feeling rather easy!
Providing you use it safely and sparingly, you can increase any big compound lift using this technique.
The final technique for increasing your compound lifts in the gym comes in the form of negative repetitions. The negative section of a repetition is the portion where your muscle isn't working, i.e. the phase of a bench press where you are lowering the bar towards your chest. Believe it or not, that is the phase which most people have the greatest difficulty with, not the lifting phase. It is also the phase where most people go wrong, lowering the bar too quickly. At least 50% of the benefits to a compound move can be found in correctly performing the negative phase of the move, so stop dropping down so fast on your squats and deadlifts.
You should use a weight heavier than you would usually use, due to the fact you are only performing half of the repetition on your own.
If you adopt the three techniques in today's article you will undoubtedly see an increase in any big lift on the gym floor. If you have been wondering how to improve your bench press and were performing endless assistance exercises such as dumbbell flyes and cable crossovers, you may be surprised to find that the techniques today involve simple things such as grip and reverse warm-up sets. However, each of the methods is proven and very, very effective.
About the Author:
About the author: Top physique coach Russ Howe PTI teaches you how to improve your bench press with these brand new tips. Discover how to build muscle with the expert knowledge on his fitness and nutrition website today.
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