I have seen many different ideas on bench press but what do you feel is proper form for a taller guy? Going down to slightly under parellel or all the way down to the chest? I am 6'3 with pretty long arms.
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Go all the way down ! People use long arms as an excuse to cover up weaknesses.
Plenty of long armed people that can bench plenty of weight... Just train
it depends what your goal is - when I was powerlifting, I used a very wide grip, created a great arch, and barely had to move the bar to hit my chest - if you are bodybuilding, you need to feel comfortable in the motion and get as full range as you can get without straining your shoulders (rotators) - I'm not talking about wussing out, just staying safe - people confuse the "good" pain of really pushing it on a movement with the very "bad" pain of forcing your body to do something that it shouldn't.I have seen many different ideas on bench press but what do you feel is proper form for a taller guy? Going down to slightly under parellel or all the way down to the chest? I am 6'3 with pretty long arms.
it depends what your goal is - when I was powerlifting, I used a very wide grip, created a great arch, and barely had to move the bar to hit my chest - if you are bodybuilding, you need to feel comfortable in the motion and get as full range as you can get without straining your shoulders (rotators) - I'm not talking about wussing out, just staying safe - people confuse the "good" pain of really pushing it on a movement with the very "bad" pain of forcing your body to do something that it shouldn't.
Bottom line - do what works for you - push your limits but stay safe.
hope this helped.
just my 2c fwiw
It does help......I just like to stay in good shape and look good....I usually go about 3 inchs from the chest but just wondered if this is right....i see many people bouncing off their chest, yanking their ass off the bench and so fourth...I just like to keep a fluid movement and bring it down to where my elbos are slightly below 90 which would be roughly 2-3 inches above my chest....feels fine to me but wasnt sure if there were any issues with it.....
aren't you like 5'4"? not being a douche, but you don't have personal frame of reference, especially to be labeling anything as "covering up weaknesses".
no, you don't have to touch your chest. stop a couple of inches from your sternum. doing that also keeps the muscle groups under tension for the entire movement.
bro, I do not take offense. I am speaking from years of training and experience weight lifting.
to obtain maximum muscle stimulation you need to do a full range of motion. stopping short of your chest will not fully stimulate your chest muscles (regardless of arm length).
NOTE: power lifters or people going for a 1rm maxes are not concerned with maximum muscle stimulation they are concerned with MOVING the weight, hence they can shorten the ROM by doing a power arch.
I am NOT saying that bench will be easy for you. I will also admit being shorter and having a shorter ROM is why short stocky people excel in bench press. However, this does not detract from the point that you need to properly stimulate your muscle fibers and to properly do that you should be doing a full ROM--at least for bodybuilding purposes (if your goal is to build muscle).
also, I say people hide behind excuses because that is exactly what they do. "I have long arms so i cant bench" or "dude your 5'4 of course you can bench a lot." Bro, i started with a 135lbs bench press and that was after 6months of pushup / pullup/ dip training. I worked for every pound of my 400lbs bench press. Short arms or not.
so, if you have long arms, struggle through the FULL ROM. don't cut yourself short and do half, or 90 degrees, or anything else. there will come a time for that sure (using plyes, etc). But, for general training purposes touch your chest and come back up.
Hey bro im 6'8" i like to go to my lower chest with a semi narrow grip. Elbows should be be 45° at the bottom. Benching was always uncomfortable for me as well bro. Now i can do over 400 no problem. Keep experimenting brother.
bro, I do not take offense. I am speaking from years of training and experience weight lifting.
to obtain maximum muscle stimulation you need to do a full range of motion. stopping short of your chest will not fully stimulate your chest muscles (regardless of arm length).
NOTE: power lifters or people going for a 1rm maxes are not concerned with maximum muscle stimulation they are concerned with MOVING the weight, hence they can shorten the ROM by doing a power arch.
I am NOT saying that bench will be easy for you. I will also admit being shorter and having a shorter ROM is why short stocky people excel in bench press. However, this does not detract from the point that you need to properly stimulate your muscle fibers and to properly do that you should be doing a full ROM--at least for bodybuilding purposes (if your goal is to build muscle).
also, I say people hide behind excuses because that is exactly what they do. "I have long arms so i cant bench" or "dude your 5'4 of course you can bench a lot." Bro, i started with a 135lbs bench press and that was after 6months of pushup / pullup/ dip training. I worked for every pound of my 400lbs bench press. Short arms or not.
so, if you have long arms, struggle through the FULL ROM. don't cut yourself short and do half, or 90 degrees, or anything else. there will come a time for that sure (using plyes, etc). But, for general training purposes touch your chest and come back up.
You and a couple guys in white lab coats lol
it seems everyone has definite views on this - some even on hand placement, which is definitely dependent on each person's individual body width - I would just like to point out if I may that full rom will definitely cause more muscle activation, but if the trade-off is a possible shoulder tweak every once in a while - is it worth it?
I can't go all the way down it puts to much stress on my shoulders .....so I stop four fingers above chest
people have told me flexibility because I've never been injured I guess I'm just going to have to start going with lighter weight working it all the way down to build flexibility and comfortYou Gixxermaniak, either have
1) injury, from the past
2) Weak shoulders
3) poor flexibility
4) or any number of possible things and should see someone about why you can not do a full ROM
people have told me flexibility because I've never been injured I guess I'm just going to have to start going with lighter weight working it all the way down to build flexibility and comfort
DRUGS ARE BAD MMMMKKKAAYYYY
Full range all the way. If you can get your upper extremities into a chest touch position without pain, you should be going there. Doing otherwise is creating weakness as you won't be strong through a full range of motion. It's really up to you though.
And for what it is worth, I think most serious weight lifters wouldn't really give respect to a partial ROM lift.