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by Paul Chek
Why all the fuss over a big bench-press? What
does the sheer amount of weight that someone can
push whilst lying flat on their back have to do
with anything? If you’re sitting with a bunch of
guys and someone strong walks in, it’s common to
hear "I wonder what he can bench?". Or when discussing
sport, the same question comes up, "How much can
so-and-so bench?" When I go to a party and meet
people, you can be as sure as the presence of beer
that someone will ask, "What can you bench?" It
is always great fun to see their reaction when I
tell them "Not much, but I can run 30 meters flat
out with Malu Mainu’u on my back!"
The bench press exercise was never intended to
be a benchmark of man (or woman!) hood. It is an
exercise for improving the size and/or strength
of the chest, anterior deltoids and triceps, nothing
else. In fact, the star player on any team is rarely
the one with the biggest bench press! Unfortunately,
over-emphasis on the bench press often coupled with
poor technique has led to a high incidence of shoulder
injuries in both athletes and non-athletes. Additionally
many people are not anatomically designed to perform
the exercise as it is generally taught in most strength
training texts, Personal Trainer certification courses
and by many strength coaches.
The Problem with Traditional Technique
The bar is lowered until it touches the chest
and then pressed back up to the start position.
Everyone is expected to lower the bar to the chest;
anything less is considered poor form, sub-standard,
and even wimpy by fellow lifters. However, to perform
the exercise under such guidelines requires a greater
range of motion (ROM) than is found in the shoulder
joint of most people – particularly male athletes.
Why is it so important to work within the ROM of
your shoulder joint? Some simple anatomy will help
to explain this.
The movement-restricting factor during a bench
press is not the muscles of the shoulder; it is
the special connective tissue casing around the
shoulder joint called the "joint capsule". This
highly specialized structure is anatomically designed
to not only allow just the right amount of motion
to prevent joint damage, but also contains thousands
of specialized nerve endings called "proprioceptors".
Proprioceptors are special nerve endings that
communicate with the brain to inform it of joint
position and speed of movement, as well as pressure,
tension and pain in and around the joint. Loading
the shoulder and forcing it beyond the functional
ROM limit will stretch the shoulder joint capsule.
In most people this will occur by letting the bench-press
bar travel until it touches the chest.
Additionally, because the bench press is performed
on a flat weight lifting bench, normal movement
of the shoulder blades (scapulae) is disrupted.
This demands that more movement must occur in the
shoulder joint itself. As the bar is loaded with
heavier and heavier weights, the shoulder blades
are pressed into the bench harder and harder, further
disrupting the normal mechanics of the shoulder
girdle joints and overloading the shoulder.
How far should you let the bar
travel when performing a bench press?
To protect the shoulder joint capsule from being
stretched out or injured the exerciser must determine
how far to safely lower the bar. It is essential
that each person determine optimal bench press range
of motion for his or her own shoulders, as each
person is different.
The Bench Press Range of Motion Test.
Place your arm in the bench press position
and allow your arm to lower to its passive end
range of motion. This is the position where
the arm naturally stops without being forced.
At this point you have determined the exact
point at which the shoulder joint capsule becomes
the primary restraint to shoulder ROM.
Once you have identified the end position
of passive shoulder range of motion with the
Bench Press Range of Motion Test, lift the arm
2-3cm to find your optimal bottom position for
the bench press exercise. This creates a small
buffer zone (10º – 15º) which will protect the
joint capsule from overload when the weights
get heavy or when you get tired.
Although many will argue that you must train
through the "full range of motion" to be strong
for sport, this concept is unfounded. It is well
known among Physiotherapists and exercise scientists
that there is approximately a 15º +/- carry-over
of strength developed at any specific joint angle
with strength training. i.e. if you train the shoulder
from 15º to 75º, the strength gained will carryover
from 0º to 90º. This is how sports medicine doctors
improve strength in an injured shoulder or knee
without actually ever moving the joint through the
painful ROM.
What’s so important about training
within your given ROM?
What most trainers, athletes and coaches don’t
seem to respect is the fact that training beyond
the shoulder’s passive barrier with heavy loads
will stretch the shoulder joint capsule. Once stretched,
the joint capsule can no longer stabilize the shoulder
joint with common arm movements such as swimming,
hitting a volley ball or netball, holding power
tools over head or even swinging a hammer. If these
arm movements are repeated without the stability
provided by a functional shoulder joint capsule,
an impingement syndrome develops, resulting in inflammation
and pain in the shoulder joint. Bursitis and rotator
cuff tendonitis commonly develop secondarily. Since
the shoulder joint capsule provides critical information
about arm position, those with a loose joint capsule
often lose their ability to accurately sense joint
position. This will result in a loss of accuracy
in sports requiring precision placement of the arm.
In any sport, your arm rarely ever reaches a
loaded end point in the same position twice in the
same game or event. Because the loads in sport are
both brief in duration and seldom as high as those
encountered during a bench press session, the shoulder
joint capsule can recover from intermittent exposure
to end range loading. For those with insufficient
range of motion to perform the traditional Bench
Press, going to the gym and lowering heavy loads
to your chest with slow speeds of movement, 30-100
repetitions or more per week is like repeatedly
crashing your car into a brick wall at slow speeds
just to prepare for the one day you may actually
have an accident!
What do I do if my shoulders are
trashed and I still want to bench press?
If you have painful shoulders when bench pressing
you may not need to stop. To safely return to bench
pressing, follow these guidelines:
Spend 4-8 weeks performing a rotator cuff
conditioning program. For more information on
rotator cuff training I recommend the book "Seven
Minute Rotator Cuff Solution" by Horrigan and
Robinson.
Begin your return to the bench press from
the floor, not a bench. The floor creates a
range of motion barrier, protecting your shoulder
joint capsules and tendons from excessive stretch.
Always start with dumbbells. Dumbbells allow
your body the needed freedom of motion to find
a new bench press pathway that does not stress
the injured tissues.
Once you have performed 3-4 weeks of floor
bench press, progress from the floor to a slightly
deflated 55-65 cm. Swiss Ball. The Swiss Ball
will allow a slightly greater range of motion
than the floor and will increase stabilizer
activation. A C.H.E.K certified intern can teach
you how to perform many Swiss Ball bench press
variations.
After 3-4 weeks on a deflated Swiss Ball,
progressively inflate your Swiss Ball. The firm
ball will allow slightly more shoulder joint
motion as well as increased shoulder blade motion.
Having performed the above steps, use Range
of Motion Test described above to assure that
you don’t exceed your shoulders safe bench press
range of motion. Progress both volume and intensity
slowly. If your shoulder(s) begin to show signs
of discomfort with the traditional bench press,
revert back to the previous steps in the progression
and avoid the traditional bench press all together!
Paul Chek MSS, HHP, NMT is an internationally
recognized lecturer and consultant. He is the founder
of the Corrective High-performance Exercise Kinesiology
Certification Program. Paul Chek’s Gym Instructor
Video Series is loaded with information on how to
safely and effectively lift weights. For more information
on his seminars, videos, consulting appointments
or products, or to find a C.H.E.K certified intern
in your area, call 1-800-552-8789. Web page:
http://www.paulchekseminars.com/
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