Is Bench Press good for strength or injuries?

[methodman]

I am just wondering if the flat barbell bench press is must putting on an athlete routine or are there any substitues for that lift which are safer and as effective as it?

I know that different athletes have different needs and they need different kind of level of strength in different palces but I am somewhat possesed with greed when it comes to strength I want to have it all over my body in the safest manner possible and most effective.

I am doing right now the planche pushups progression. If I will be able in the future to perform the planche pushups should I drop the becnch press from my routine or should I drop the bench press right now once and for all?

I will post the rest of my questions later.

[Edward Smith]

well i personally don't know that much about weight lifting, i do know a little. but i would just have to say that if you are doing planche progressions then the bench pressing isn't required but if you want to then go for it or if you feel it's helping you with it then that's ok as well.

really the only reason i would think you should be doing it is for some dynamic work.

[Shaf]

There is no need to drop or limit the bench press from a regimen. While it's not the most perfect of exercises, it has several advantages:

1. Easily found. Everywhere.

2. Easy progression (add weight, reps, sets. or some combination)

3. Overloads the chest pressing muscles quite nicely.

And several disadvantages.

1. Often performed wrong - this is a huge topic. If you are interested in how to perform the bench press safely and effectively, I'd recommend checking out Mark Rippetoe's book "Starting Strength" for one of most complete and technical treatises on how a beginner should approach the lift.

2. Can lead to a pattern overload injury and loss of flexibility if practiced to the exclusion of other type movements...this means if you bench press for a few months and don't do your full ROM gymnastics strength & conditioning moves, you will be in for an ugly surprise when you get back to them.

In a well balanced program, the bench press can be useful and effective. Many people dislike it, and I've seen folks doing ring pushups with weight vests as a sub. If it fits your needs and your temperament, there's no reason to avoid it, but if you dislike the thought of clogging up your elegant gymnastics and bodyweight routine with the movement, then there's no reason to do it.

Similar exercises, like the dumbbell bench press, or incline and decline presses as well can be done instead of the bench press, ususally with similar results.

[John Sapinoso]

bench press IMO is one of the most useless exercises, if you feel then need to do pressing with weights, lie on a swiss ball and press dumbbells.

[methodman]

True ed x I agree with you because I am still not able to do planche puhsups and I am doing only static work when I will be able to perform planche pushups then I can probably have the dynamic strength from the planche push-ups.

Don't you think I can substitue it with weighted pushups? For few reasons I think weighted push-ups are very good first it feels more natural propbably safer but I need to udnerstand what's the correct way of performing push-ups and the whys? Weighted push-ups are also Closed kinetic chain.

Shaf unfortuantely I am not able to check that book now because I simply don't have the money to order it now nor the interest to study it now because I have a lot of things to study. But is this how the bench performed according to the authors of strating strenght?

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpost. ... ostcount=9

No I don't have anything against any exercise as long as it gives me excellent results safely I add it to my training program because I don't compete in powerlifting so it's not a must to perform the bench press for me that's why I am just looking for the safest and the most effective way to train the muscles that are involved with the bench press.

I think the muscles of the shoulders and triceps can easily be trained with other exercises to achieve high level of strength safely but about the chest I am not so sure.

yts00nami the exercise you talked about sound like a bench press on swiss ball that's if I understood correctly which is not so good exercise in my opinion because the stability will rob the effectivness of the main muscles exercised.

[Shaf]

There are a lot of athletes who've found the bench press to be a valuable part of their routine. It's very individual. I am not advocating the bench press as the only exercise, but as a part of a synergistic routine for upper body strength.

Dumbbells on swiss balls will limit the progression to your biggest dumbbell. (while this might not be a problem to some, it is a distinct ceiling for others) I do think it's a fine movement, and would even venture to guess that it is a better option for a gymnast/parkourist/etc.

Systematic and intelligent programming of bench press is one of the best strengtheners of the chest, triceps, and shoulders.

Haphazard and dumb programming of the bench press is a big waste of time, and the potential for injuring the shoulder complex increases dramatically.

There is a very distinct reaction against the bench press due to popular gym culture. The backlash is very apparent and most noticeable among "functional" trainers and bodyweight enthusiasts. It's just a basic, effective barbell lift.

[Shaf]

I think the muscles of the shoulders and triceps can easily be trained with other exercises to achieve high level of strength safely but about the chest I am not so sure.

If it's the muscles of the chest that concern you the most, then I would recommend dumbbell benching with a neutral (hands facing) grip over barbell benching.

That description of how to perform a bench press is fine.

It boils down to what you're most comfortable with doing, and it'd be better to do an exercise you are enthusiastic about than one your feel lukewarm or vaguely negative about.

[methodman]

Shaf I know you are not but I want to understand why it should be performed in certain way to understand what's going on and not doing it blindly without knowing the why's thank you for your participation in the discussion I appreciate it.

If it's the muscles of the chest that concern you the most, then I would recommend dumbbell benching with a neutral (hands facing) grip over barbell benching. Why that kind of grip is it because this kind of grip engage the chest muscles more?

[Shaf]

The start and the first third of the bench press is what is really works the chest. I've just found that doing dumbbell benches gives you more ROM in that range. (with the neutral grip...lets them get by the shoulders)

When a powerlifter wants to improve the start of his bench presss, he tends to perform dumbbell presses.

When a bodybuilder wants to improve the muscular size of his chest, he often includes dumbbell flies and pulley work.

Both strategies improve the ROM where the chest is stretched. I would imagine deep ring dips are very good for building a stronger chest, but I'd leave that recommendation to someone who knows more about their execution and programming than I do.

Ethan Reeve, the S&C coach for Wake Forest recommends a 1 armed dumbbell press for his athletes, to make the instability across the body an issue and add to the training effect. He also uses a handle and chain set up on his racks to perform movements similar to that of rings or EliteFTS' blast straps.

[Raizen]

Personally I'm not really a big fan of bench pressing, even though it is considered by many to be a great upper body horizontal compound pushing drill. I only skimmed this one so I'm not 100% on what's going on, but from what I understand you're following the golden planche progression, though I don't know what stage you've reached. If I were you, I would ditch the bench press entirely, continue performing the planche progressions, and instead start performing dips of some sort as an alternative horizontal push. It's dynamic, and if you do it on rings it's a good deal more engaging. Besides, not as many people at the gym can do dips at any impressive poundage, while everyone has enormous bench presses, so you'll be radder. :wink: