Bench Pressing: Bar all the way to your chest?

i always change my technique everynow and then. I used to hold the bar about shoulder width... but i changed that to wider than shoulder width and the results have been brilliant for me. I got a wide looking chest now.

i've never been comfortable letting my the bar come down to my chest.... but i think i will try that for few sets next time. just for variety's sake.

Hawar


i always change my technique everynow and then. I used to hold the bar about shoulder width... but i changed that to wider than shoulder width and the results have been brilliant for me. I got a wide looking chest now.

i've never been comfortable letting my the bar come down to my chest.... but i think i will try that for few sets next time. just for variety's sake.

Try and read a good piece on bench press technique and also read up on competition bench press rules. A lot of the guys posting in this thread do not know what a legal bench press is - legal by depth and also width. The competition bench press has rules to prevent abuse.

I see too many guys in my gym only going as far as 3-4" from chest and then extending their arms fully.  I tried to explain that they were hitting their triceps more than fully working the chest, but it went in one ear and out of the other!!
I would rather touch chest and not lock out fully as this is what has worked for me.

100% agree Uncle Peter.
 
Much better to touch the chest than lockout (if you can't do both).
 
It makes me laugh when you see blokes with miles too much weight on the bar only going half way!

Definitely don't bench to your chest if it hurts, but I personally touch my chest because that is the correct way to bench press. The best thing to do is find out why it's hurting you when you bench to your chest. If it's something that you can't fix or cure, then bench to where it's comfortable and try and do other chest exercies as well. But please don't be someone who benches like 3 inches from their chest. Had some guy tell me he could rep 90kgs easily, so i said show me and he benched like that. I told him that's not a bench press.

As a beginner intermediate trainer then do the exercise with a full ROM and don't bounce obviously. As an advanced trainer or PLer then you can break the movement up to achieve specific goals i.e. lockouts for triceps, board presses etc.. when trying to test my maximum bench I would do a full ROM touch and go (I was a BBer not a PLer) but would often do the exercise, coming to an inch or so off chest and not locking out in a continuous fashion which was for me an effective chest builder. Now both my shoulders have had it lol, I can't lock out for the pain other than light sets and the last inch or so at the bottom is excruciating so I don't do it.

Have to admit I don't touch chest when I'm lifting my maximum.
 
Think this is because I train alone and am paranoid about not being able to get the weight back up if I go too low.
 
You could say I should use a lighter weight but I train bench twice a week - once with lower weight, concentrating on full ROM for higher reps, and once using a heavier weight for about 5 reps where I don't go to chest, for safety.
 

Cannot see the point in not touching the chest and locking the arms, its cheating.

Unless it hurts of course.

Varg- you realise that what your are doing will not prevent and injury? It is in fact false logic. In that if you miss a lift you will still be in the same trouble if you touched the chest as not. Not touching the chest infact will lead to a bigger risk of injury as you'll be using a load too heavy for full ROM when you finally do miss.

Same as not going into the hole when squating.

NB If you bench in your own do not use collars.

iaink


Varg- you realise that what your are doing will not prevent and injury? It is in fact false logic. In that if you miss a lift you will still be in the same trouble if you touched the chest as not. Not touching the chest infact will lead to a bigger risk of injury as you'll be using a load too heavy for full ROM when you finally do miss.

Same as not going into the hole when squating.

NB If you bench in your own do not use collars.

I see now.
Next time I'll just work on full ROM, even if it means lowering the weight.
 
Thanks.
 

I see a lot of guys on here saying to close your blades (and I assume arch the back!?)

I always used to flat bench this way as its how I naturally lay when benching. I found although I could lift more I was engaging the lower pecs too much and just seemed to be developing the lower and lateral parts.

When I changed my posture to open the shoulder blades, I naturally lost the arch and started engaging right fibre's- and my chest visibly improved.