Beyond the chest
■The bench is all about your pecs,
right? Wrong. “It requires a lot of
pushing power, which means that
to join the big boys you’ll need a
strong upper back too,” says
Wright. “Make sure you control
yourshoulderbladesbykeeping
them fixed on the bench. This
tensionwillkeepyouinastable
position on your big lifts and stop
youmovingaround.Ifyou’veever
seen a powerlifter bench they use
this to the extreme, lifting their
hipsclearoffthebenchand
planting their feet, squeezing their
muscles tight from their shoulder
blades all the way down their back
to the floor.”Be single-minded
■Ifyouhavestrongchestmuscles
butyou’reweakinyourshoulder
stabilisers, you’ll struggle to lift a
seriousamountofweightonthe
benchpress.Tomaintaingood
shoulder joint health and give
yourselfthebestchanceofgoing
big, try this assistance exercise. “A
great variation for bench press is
the single-arm dumbbell press,”
says Wright. “It requires immense
shoulder control as well as a
strong core to stay balanced. If
you think you might have one
side stronger than the other then
throw this in once a week and
your imbalances will soon become
a thing of the past.”Useyourbody
■Being able to control your own
bodyweight is often a great way
oflayingthekindoffoundations
that will allow you to lift some
significant weight when you use
external resistance, such as a
barbell. “The best assistance
exercise for bench press would be
dips or a close-grip pressing
exercise that works the same
muscles in a slightly different
movement pattern,” says Wright.
“Once you can perform ten
controlled bodyweight reps start to
addsomeweighteitherwithabelt
or by holding a dumbbell between
your feet.”62 MEN’S FITNESS APRIL 2017
PERFECT FORM
Start with your arms
locked and the bar
above your chest. Press
your shoulders into the
bench, plant your feet
on the floor and squeeze
your glutes. Bend your
elbows to lower the
weight to your chest,
then press back up to
the start.01.Bench press
TARGE T SCHEST, TRICEPS, FRONT SHOULDERS
Ifyouwanttobuildan
impressive upper torso
then the bench press is
king.“Atrifectaofpecs,
shoulders and triceps
makes this compound
pushing movement,
alongwiththedeadlift
andsquat,oneofthe
true tests of strength,”
says Wright. “This lift
also allows you to load
up your triceps with
more weight than you
could lift on assistance
exercises such as dips
or press-downs.”
“Make sure you
control your
shoulder blades by
keepingthemfixed
on the bench.”