I bench pressed pain-free for the first time since high school yesterday, which was pretty damn cool.
Some things are best left in 2005...
Anyhow, my excitement of getting back under some heavy weight for the first time since Dispatch was relevant inspired a couple technique videos regarding horizontal barbell pressing. A few random, hopefully pertinent, thoughts;
- Reducing lumbar lordosis via foot contact and hamstring recruitment was probably the biggest "game changer" to getting me to be able to bench pain-free. Without this strategy, my "defaults" were finding stability with end range lumbar extension OR ultra-high threshold ab recruitment (also weird neck tension), both of which robbed me of the shoulder extension needed to bench. If you require end range hip/spine extension OR 10/10 ab recruitment just to get to the START position, you may want to rethink your setup and strategy (and try some I mention in the video).
- All of the above does NOT apply during a competition powerlifting bench press, where the goal is simply lift the most weight for one repetition. This is where shortening the range of motion and creating high system tension and rigidiy are ADAPTIVE. But if the goal is just to get swole and feel good, these videos are for you.
- The single arm dumbbell floor press (not mentioned in either video) deserves some serious love. It's my "go-to" for getting folks back into loading the upper extremity after injury or surgery. It also works as "meat and potatoes" strength exercise for folks with piss-poor (medical term) mobility.
Now to the videos-
Any other tips and tricks I may have missed? Feel free to comment below. Now go lift some heavy s#$t!