How to improve your bench press
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If you want to improve your bench press the following tips will help you to do so.
Prepare mentally
Before you start your bench press, you will need to prepare for it mentally and then it will be possible for you to improve your bench press both in quality and quantity. Being mentally prepared is very important for healthy lifts and if you are an experienced weightlifter, you probably already know about it. It is important to psych yourself up and then only you will be able to fit the highest level possible.
Many power lifters go through their own kind of rituals before attempting a lift. Such rituals will help you to pump yourself up before you actually go for bench press. AUT University conducted a research study with elite rugby players and they found that when these players pumped themselves up for a bench press set, their force production increased by 8%. Distractions can significantly decrease force production and the difference in power production between pumped up and distracted lifters is about 12%.
That is why pump yourself up before you go for a bench press set and concentrate on each rep and it will help you to dramatically improve your bench press number and benefits.
Mix up your rep range
If you want to do more bench presses with more weight, mixing up your rep range will help you to do so. If you're new to weightlifting, then you don't have to do this. If you're an experienced weightlifter you can go for periodizing your training or working in different rep range. So, it means while working out you need to perform a few sets with 2 to 3 reps, few sets with 4 to 6 reps and few more weight 8 to 10 reps. These different rep range will work differently. 2 to 3 reps will provide maximal overload which is crucial for building muscle and strength. 4 to 6 rep work is the sweet spot for myofibrillar muscle growth and 8 to 10 reps sets unnecessary for cellular fatigue which stimulates muscle growth.
Lift explosively
Even though many people believe that slowing the weight down improves performance, according to research this may not be true. Scientific studies have found that when you are performing bench press, you need to lower the bar quickly and without pause and then explode it upward if you want greater power gains. However, it does not mean that you should bounce the bar off your chest because that is risky and cheating. You don't have to drop the weight towards your body, rather you need to feel as if you are pulling the bar towards your chest.
Make it a priority
If you want to improve your bench press, you will have to make it a priority for you. If you are performing bench press is the last exercise in your workouts, then probably it is not surprising why you're not getting any results. Many people perform other exercises and then finally go to bench press at the end of the workout.
The order in which you perform your exercises has a significant impact on your strength and overall performance capacity. It will be better for you to start your workouts with big, compound lifts like bench press and then only move onto more isolation type exercises.
References
1. Muscle, Strength & Health
2.Improving muscle mass: response of muscle metabolism to exercise, nutrition and anabolic agents
3.Muscle growth and exercise