As a muscle enthusiast and former competitive power lifter,
I am frequently asked by exercise novices how to improve their bench press. I
usually inquire about their current exercise program to rule out overtraining
or totally worthless routines.
Lately I
have been surprised to learn that many people who want to increase their bench
press completely neglect close grip bench presses. My first, and usually only, recommendation is
to immediately introduce close grip bench presses into the workout routine and
assess progress in six weeks.
The close grip bench press is performed in the same manner
as a traditional bench press with one important exception. Grip width on a close grip bench press is
much closer than that of the standard grip.
Generally, the grip width of a close grip bench press is ten inches, but
this varies depending upon personal preferences and the amount of triceps
recruitment is desired.
The muscles of the triceps play a vital role in the
performance of the bench press. In the
case of a standard, flat bench press, the triceps act as the primary pushing
mechanism to propel the bar away from the body.
While the muscles of the chest and shoulders contribute to the movement,
strong, powerful triceps are critical in the achievement of a big bench press.
When incorporating close grip benches into a workout
routine, it is important to remember that injuries can occur as a result of
overtraining and poor technique. It is
crucial to maintain a tight, “coiled spring” body position when performing
every set of bench presses, close grip or otherwise. This will provide a solid
base for performance of the movement and allow focus to be concentrated on the
target muscles.
When setting up on the bench to perform close grip bench
presses, the feet should be flat on the floor, hips, shoulder blades and head
should be in constant contact with bench and the back should be arched enough
to provide stability and power.
The bar path of the close grip bench press should be similar
to that of the traditional bench press. To
provide the most amount of stress to the triceps, the elbows should be kept
tucked into the sides and allowing the bar to drift back toward the bench
uprights should be avoided. If the bar
has a tendency to drift toward the uprights, that is an indication of weak
triceps as the muscles of the shoulder compensate for the lack of triceps
strength.
If the ultimate goal is to increase the weight used on the
bench press, close grip bench presses should be treated as a primary
exercise. Performing close grip bench
presses while the triceps are fresh will yield the best results, as executing
them with low priority will not provide adequate stress to the pushing muscles,
preventing them from adapting to the load.
A general recommendation would be to perform a few light
warm up sets followed by three to five sets of progressive resistance up to a
three rep max. Once the three rep max is
established, efforts should be made to improve upon that measure. That will include work to increase triceps
speed and explosive power through practice and repetition and conditioning of
the central nervous system through heavy double and single rep sets.
Focusing on diligent
performance of close grip bench presses one time per seven day period can
dramatically improve the amount of weight that can be used on the traditional
bench press in as little as six weeks’ time.
While other exercises exist that can also enhance the bench press, few
can match the direct carry over that the close grip bench press provides.
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