I just started going back to the gym recently and noticed a lot of people who were bench pressing were only coming down 1/2 way instead of coming all the way down the the chest and back up again. Wondering if there is any advantage to doing it this way instead of a full press?
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Bench Press
- Thread starter jorken
- Start date
SinfulWeeper
Diamond Member
Man... that sounds like a lot of work. About the most laborious excercise I do are the 12oz. curls.
SinfulWeeper
Diamond Member
It usually is pm that magically ends very early in am.
I know I must be getting stronger though. The more I do, the lighter they get.
I know I must be getting stronger though. The more I do, the lighter they get.
imprezawrxwagon
Banned
I do not believe so
With bench press, at one point it is mostly arms that are working, and at other, it is mainly the chest
so, by going halfway, one ould concentrate the effort on the wanted muscle group
HarryAngel
Senior member
Less strain on the shoulders BUT it's the full motion range that counts nothing else.
You should do the full range of motion which means all the way to the chest. Don't put on more weights and bounce it off your chest either. The partial press is difficult because you are changing the direction of the weight in mid-air. I agree with Yellowfiero that you should use that if you plateau at a certain weight
some people are weaker in the top portion of their bench & do these in addition to full range-of-motion.
another common variations are:
rack bench - bar rests on safety rack anywhere from 2" above chest to nearly arms length. this way you start with concentric motion and finish with eccentric.
board press - stack some small boards on your chest & lower bar to them.
By not going all the way down, it does introduce some difficulty in that you have to change the direction of the weight without any bouncing help from popping the bar off your chest. However, going all the way to your chest in a slow, controlled manner and putting the bar back up WITHOUT bouncing is much, much harder than stopping a few inches (or feet, from the sound of these guys 😉) above your chest.
As for what muscle groups are being worked, your arms work harder at the top of the rep and your chest works harder at the bottom, i.e. when the bar is close to your chest. There is something to be said, however, for not going all the way to your chest because that can cause your chest to stretch more than it wants and could result in muscle soreness, joint pain, or even a torn muscle. You don't want any of those things, trust me.
Probably the best thing to do is go down as far as you comfortably can with a light weight, say an inch or two above your chest, then add heavy weight and start repping.
As for what muscle groups are being worked, your arms work harder at the top of the rep and your chest works harder at the bottom, i.e. when the bar is close to your chest. There is something to be said, however, for not going all the way to your chest because that can cause your chest to stretch more than it wants and could result in muscle soreness, joint pain, or even a torn muscle. You don't want any of those things, trust me.
Probably the best thing to do is go down as far as you comfortably can with a light weight, say an inch or two above your chest, then add heavy weight and start repping.
Parrotheader
Diamond Member
That's what I was thinking. I've seen a lot of people doing it halfway, but with MUCH ligher weight since they wanted to work the tricep. Seems a rather stupid way to work the tricep though given all the other possible exercises you can do in a gym.
SludgeFactory
Platinum Member
Yeah, you can put more weight on the bar that way. It's ego!
Most of the people doing 1/2 reps would look at you cross-eyed if you started talking about "partials" with them. Partials, negatives, chains, etc., all are legitmate elements of a training program, but most of the assclowns in the gym are just cheating on the exercise, because they're caught up in how other people perceive them. You also see this with squats, people who load up the bar and then proceed to do "power curtsies". A competition bench press is a smooth, controlled lift, with a pause at the chest.
It's a stupid trap to fall into, because if you can't handle the weight for the complete range of motion, the chances of you getting out of control when you try to reverse the partial rep and then injuring yourself are increased, not to mention joint stresses are increased. Free weights aren't dangerous unless you're an idiot.
You probably just need to change up your routine a little to make gains. Let me ask, do you do bench press as the very first thing you do every time you do your chest? If you answer yes then do incline first, or use the machine or dumbells first. If you have tried changing up your routine and are still stuck try more weight and "shock" your muscles. One time I asked a guy this question and said I was stuck on a certain weight, he said "have you actually tried more?". I thought for a minute and was like, "No, it just felt heavy enough so I never tried." I put 5-10 lbs more on, sure enough pushed that sum'bitch right up.
Anyone know how to do bench press and incline press so your shoulder joints don't feel like they are falling apart, not to mention my elbow.
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