Strength:
Bench Press
5-5-5-5-5 (plus 3 warm up sets)
WOD:
40-30-20-10
Dumbbell Snatches (Alternating)
Pistols (Alternating)
We are going to Bench Press a bit today! The Bench Press is far more involved that it looks. Read the section below which is taken from Breaking Muscle.
From Breaking Muscle:
Pull Your Shoulders Bck and Down
Stop thinking about the bench press as a chest exercise, and start thinking of it as a full-body exercise. You need to set your whole body into a position that supports what you are trying to achieve. Pulling your shoulders back and down into the bench will create tension in your back, and will help you drive your chest up and lock it in place. You’re now set to take hold of that bar.
Pull the Bar Out of the Rack
Be honest, do you press the bar or pull the bar out of the rack? Thought so.
Pressing the bar out of the rack loses you valuable tension through the shoulders and upper back. Here’s how to correct it. Make sure the pins are set up to a decent height, one that doesn’t mean you have to do half a bench press just to unrack the bar – just a small press. Set yourself as outlined in step one. If you have done this correctly, you should feel tension through the lats and shoulders. Now, literally pull the bar away from the rack with straight arms. This will not only help maintain the shoulder and back position you have worked so hard to set, but will cement it and put you in a great position ready to lift. Pull in the help of a spotter (see what I did there?) to help you with this, too.
Pull the Bar Apart
You’ve got that bar in your hands. But have you got that bar in your hands? I would hope you have more than a token grip on it, seeing as that bar is currently hovering above your windpipe. Your life pretty much depends on you keeping hold of it. Therefore, please grip that bar like your life depends on it. Gripping the bar hard will send a signal to the rest of your body that you mean business. This will help you tighten your whole body.
Don’t believe this cue can have that much of an effect? Try it. While you are at it, work on pulling the bar apart and around into itself, like you want the collars to meet at your feet. This will create torque on the bar and screw your upper back and shoulders into position even more.
Pull the Bar Down to You
Now that you have pulled the bar out of the rack and into position, and are gripping it tight and trying to pull it apart, it’s pretty uncomfortable, right? Then you’d better pull that bar down to your chest as quickly as possible so you can bounce it off your chest and drive it back up. That’s how it works, isn’t it? Hell no. Though I bet you see it happening that way more often than not.
Instead of doing that, consider utilizing that tension and position you have created. Actively pull the bar down to your chest, under control. There’s that word again – pull the bar down. Use your lats to set both the pace and the path of the bar.
Pull the Elbows In
As you are pulling the bar down, pull your elbows in. This will help you hold onto the tension you have already built up. It will also spread the load better across the chest, triceps, and shoulders. Do you perform push ups in this position, too? You should. It will do wonders for the longevity of your shoulders, improve your triceps strength, and help to groove the correct pressing pattern for the bench press.
Most lifters, when they first come to me for bench press coaching, press with their elbows flared out. I’ve put this down to three reasons. One, go to most non-specialist or globo gyms and it’s what you will see. Monkey see, monkey do. Two, for those with under-developed triceps strength, they can lift more weight like this. Three, the body has a way of finding and taking the path of least resistance. In this case, it’s with the elbows out. This is a recipe for rotator cuff issues and other shoulder injuries. But, of course, your body doesn’t care about long-term injury prevention. It is only concerned with doing the task you have given it. For all these reasons, one of the first corrections I make is to ensure the lifter tucks their elbows in. The elbows should be no more than a 45-degree angle from your torso.
Whew…everything you needed to know to Bench Press!
After that, we are going to alternate between some alternating dumbbell snatches and alternating one legged squats (also known as pistols.) Let’s say alternating one more time!
Challenge yourself with those pistols today. Maybe that means alternating between 2 or more pistol modifications to make sure you work all the areas. Your Coach will go through those modifications and help you pick which one(s) that will be best for you!