Learning how to improve your bench press is a tricky and often over complicated affair for most gym members. Many of them spend time focusing on endless sets of cable crossovers and other assistance exercises in a bid to pack on more poundage when they hit the bench but, as you will discover in today's article, the answers to getting bigger compound lifts are actually quite simple.
It is important to understand that while you may consider the figure you can bench or squat to be of huge importance, you can still build a great physique without ever notching up a world record of Olympic standards.
Most men are shocked to learn that they could easily be adding 10-20 kilograms to their heaviest sets by ironing out a few common errors made on the bench. These include:
1. Focus on bettering your grip strength.
2. Utilize time-served techniques such as Hulk warm-ups.
3. Negative reps allow you to focus on a portion of the exercise where the biggest strength gains can be obtained from.
Not many people understand the true importance of grip strength when it comes to your big lifts. But make no mistake about it, a good grip makes for a more impressive move. In fact, you are generally doing something wrong if you don't feel your forearms giving way before you legs and back on an exercise such as the deadlift. Given that it is a significantly smaller and less powerful muscle than the others which are involved in the exercise, it is easy to understand why it is usually the first one to go.
Despite the confusion on most guys faces when you ask them what their favorite forearm exercise is, there are a number of exercises which you can do for this relatively small muscle group. Favorites include reverse barbell curls, timed hangs and plate grips.
While it's easy to see the importance of grip strength in pulling motions such as the deadlift, you may be wondering why it is important in things like the bench press. Well, your grip can come into play here to focus on pulling the bar apart as you lift and lower to and from your chest. This is a power lifting technique which is used commonly in underground gyms.
A Hulk warm-up, or reverse warm-up as it is also known, is a great technique which you rarely see in commercial gyms. That's largely due to the fact that it often requires a spotter, but there is nothing stopping you from using this technique if you have a regular training partner who shares the same goals as you. It gets it's name from bodybuilder Lour Ferrigno, who used this technique during the 1970's and went on to play the Hulk in the TV series. It consists of using a slightly heavier weight for your final warm-up set than you plan to use in your working sets. So, if your goal is to squat with 120 kg today, get yourself warmed up and then perform a set with, for example, 140 kg for a few reps with the aid of a spotter. Your body will recruit much more fibers in the muscle due to the unexpected load, suddenly making your upcoming 120 kg lift feel somewhat light.
Providing you use it safely and sparingly, you can increase any big compound lift using this technique.
The final compound improving technique is eccentric reps, or 'negatives' as they are more commonly known. A negative rep involves a spotter or training partner helping you to perform the lifting (concentric) phase of the exercise before leaving you to slowly perform the lowering (eccentric) portion by yourself. Around half the muscle building results in compound lifts are hidden away in the negative portion of the exercise, so it makes sense to focus on this aspect from time to time.
You should use a weight heavier than you would usually use, due to the fact you are only performing half of the repetition on your own.
If you adopt the three techniques in today's article you will undoubtedly see an increase in any big lift on the gym floor. If you have been wondering how to improve your bench press and were performing endless assistance exercises such as dumbbell flyes and cable crossovers, you may be surprised to find that the techniques today involve simple things such as grip and reverse warm-up sets. However, each of the methods is proven and very, very effective.
It is important to understand that while you may consider the figure you can bench or squat to be of huge importance, you can still build a great physique without ever notching up a world record of Olympic standards.
Most men are shocked to learn that they could easily be adding 10-20 kilograms to their heaviest sets by ironing out a few common errors made on the bench. These include:
1. Focus on bettering your grip strength.
2. Utilize time-served techniques such as Hulk warm-ups.
3. Negative reps allow you to focus on a portion of the exercise where the biggest strength gains can be obtained from.
Not many people understand the true importance of grip strength when it comes to your big lifts. But make no mistake about it, a good grip makes for a more impressive move. In fact, you are generally doing something wrong if you don't feel your forearms giving way before you legs and back on an exercise such as the deadlift. Given that it is a significantly smaller and less powerful muscle than the others which are involved in the exercise, it is easy to understand why it is usually the first one to go.
Despite the confusion on most guys faces when you ask them what their favorite forearm exercise is, there are a number of exercises which you can do for this relatively small muscle group. Favorites include reverse barbell curls, timed hangs and plate grips.
While it's easy to see the importance of grip strength in pulling motions such as the deadlift, you may be wondering why it is important in things like the bench press. Well, your grip can come into play here to focus on pulling the bar apart as you lift and lower to and from your chest. This is a power lifting technique which is used commonly in underground gyms.
A Hulk warm-up, or reverse warm-up as it is also known, is a great technique which you rarely see in commercial gyms. That's largely due to the fact that it often requires a spotter, but there is nothing stopping you from using this technique if you have a regular training partner who shares the same goals as you. It gets it's name from bodybuilder Lour Ferrigno, who used this technique during the 1970's and went on to play the Hulk in the TV series. It consists of using a slightly heavier weight for your final warm-up set than you plan to use in your working sets. So, if your goal is to squat with 120 kg today, get yourself warmed up and then perform a set with, for example, 140 kg for a few reps with the aid of a spotter. Your body will recruit much more fibers in the muscle due to the unexpected load, suddenly making your upcoming 120 kg lift feel somewhat light.
Providing you use it safely and sparingly, you can increase any big compound lift using this technique.
The final compound improving technique is eccentric reps, or 'negatives' as they are more commonly known. A negative rep involves a spotter or training partner helping you to perform the lifting (concentric) phase of the exercise before leaving you to slowly perform the lowering (eccentric) portion by yourself. Around half the muscle building results in compound lifts are hidden away in the negative portion of the exercise, so it makes sense to focus on this aspect from time to time.
If you don't know how to build muscle today's interview will assist you a lot.
You should use a weight heavier than you would usually use, due to the fact you are only performing half of the repetition on your own.
If you adopt the three techniques in today's article you will undoubtedly see an increase in any big lift on the gym floor. If you have been wondering how to improve your bench press and were performing endless assistance exercises such as dumbbell flyes and cable crossovers, you may be surprised to find that the techniques today involve simple things such as grip and reverse warm-up sets. However, each of the methods is proven and very, very effective.
About the Author:
More information: Top physique coach Russ Howe PTI teaches you how to improve your bench press with these brand new tips. Discover how to build muscle with the great tips on his workout and dieting website today.
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