Bench Pressing Tips

When performing the bench press many lifters make simple mistakes that affect the amount of weight that they can lift. The form that they use may even cause injury over an extended period of lifting incorrectly. The bench press is one of the most popular, if not the most popular exercise in a gym among many men and unfortunately most are bench pressing with poor form.

Lifting naturally and raw is much harder so using proper form and eliminating bad form is key to bench pressing a lot of weight. Here are a few tips that you can implement immediately so you can improve how much you can lift. Using these tips will also help you to reduce the risk of injury that can be caused by bench pressing.

Tip 1: Pay close attention to your oxygen and your breathing.

There is power in your breath and how you use oxygen in your body. It is important to control your breathing as you lift the weight. Your breathing should be in a rhythmic pattern. You should inhale deeply as you lower the weight and then exhale as you explode the weight off your chest. There are a few key things to remember and you must concentrate during the lift. It is important that you keep your body stable and don't simply release all the air when you begin pressing up. It is better to exhale as you're pushing the bar off your chest and maintain the proper bench pressing posture.

Tip 2: Keep the range of motion short.

When lifting weights, the less distance that you move the weight the easier it will be to lift the weight. That's why some people with short arms can bench press a lot of weight. This does not mean if you have long arms that you will not be able to bench press a lot of weight it just means that you will have to really use good form. Shortening the range of motion can be easily accomplished by bringing your heels as close as is comfortable to your head when you're lying on the bench. You want to create an arch with your back and if you bring your shoulders together this will happen. Don't over arch or you may be risking injury.

Tip 3: Keep the bar low.

When you press the weight bring the bar down just underneath your nipples as this will help to reduce the reliance on your shoulder muscles. It will help your bench pressing abilities if you can use your back muscles more than your shoulder muscles. The back muscles are a much bigger muscle group and can provide better assistance and stability than the shoulders.