My baseball guys doing some suspended band push ups.  If you have never done these...you got to give them a try!  Quite hard!!!...

As I have discussed in many of my training articles, I think it is very import to train with a wide variety of movements.  Not only does this keep training interesting, but also it keeps the body in the earlier stages of learning and in a constant state of adaptation. 

 

Many times, we just have to think outside the box a little and toy around with tradition.  For instance, I have been dubbed the Push-Up Nazi by many of my athletes.  They question whether I have much of a social life, or if I just sit around thinking up new ways to do old tricks.

Now that the fundamentals of the traditional bench press have been discussed, lets look at some variations. 

 

Traditional Variations

Since everybody that has ever been in a gym has done the traditional flat, decline, and incline bench press exercises, there is really no need give them much discussion.  Rather, I am going to say something that may surprise you.  If you what to have a big bench, do not do these lifts..Big benchers do not bench in its traditional since.  They do utilize its many mutations, but rarely the traditional lifts themselves.  Most big benchers spend more time developing the bench presses supporting cast than the actual lift itself.

Although the bench press has fallen out of favor with many of the newer methods that strength coaches are utilizing, it is still a huge part of the world of strength and conditioning.  For this reason, I feel that it is import to write some articles about it in the hopes of shining some new light on an old favorite.

 

One problem that exists with the bench press is that everybody has been doing it for so long it is taken for granted.  By this, I mean that people do not truly understand the mechanics of the lift.  Most people think that the only technique involved is lying on your back and pushing the bar away from your chest.  If it were that easy, everybody would be benching 2-3 times his or her body weight.

It is kind of like saying, I am a runner, and I have run for many years, I know what I am doing, so I do not need to refine my skills.  However, can you tell me why my hips, knees and back hurt, and why I am not getting any faster.  Do I need to do more running?

Hours upon hours are typically spent on developing the true masterpiece that is the training program.  Typically, great detail is given to every movement housed within the program.  Each lift is carefully chosen to address a certain need.  Every aspect of the intensity and volume is delicately manipulated to place the focus of the training day on the specified target.

 

Great artists have some sort of vision that drives their art.  In their mind, they have a map to guide them through their processes.  Great coaches are no different, they understand the physical demands that are being placed on the athletes body, and they feed from this.  They manipulate the training variables to develop a program that will address all the needs of the given athlete or team.  They know that the finished masterpiece better not only improve the athletes skill, but also decrease their potential for injury.