Bench-less Ways to Build a Powerful Chest
I will admit that I’m guilty of becoming obsessed with the bench press. It was always the first exercise I wanted to do because in my mind it was a good barometer of my progress within my fitness plan. What I didn’t know was that it really had little affect on my performance in sports, which was part of the reason I was working out. Recently, I’ve discovered that there are other ways to build definition and strength in your pectorals that will be both aesthetically satisfying (if done correctly) and beneficial to your athletic lifestyle.
MensHealth.com recently outlined 5 new ways to build powerful pectorals. The key is combining rarely used movements with a Swiss ball — the ball allows you to use all of your muscles when performing the exercise, which is similiar to what your body has to do when playing sports.
Tip: If you still need to get your “bench fix” then follow the exercises above with one set on the bench. Lift 30-50 percent of your max for 20-25 reps. It will give your pectorals a good “pump” and help create better endurance for your other chest exercises.
4 comments
Yes many people believe they need to use the bench press and that it is the most important, for good reason it works.
But the problem is many don’t try other chest exercises. They will not make as much progress because they don’t stimulate there chest in a new way.
Swiss ball is great for core muscles by the way which will cause you to be able to lift more.
Since I train alone I rarely go for the bench press. Instead I use the dumbbell press and its variations (incline, decline etc) because if my muscles suddenly give in mid-way through the exercise I can just drop the dumbbells as opposed to dropping a heavy bar on my chest. I also do dumbbell flyes and occasionally use the chest machines.
I don’t know if this is a much better approach than sticking with just the bench press but there is a greater range of motion when using dumbbells.
The bench press is still very important for overall strength and power in sports. I do agree though that you shouldn’t totally focus on it for overall sports fitness. I would also suggest you focus on military presses to build stronger shoulders for increasing overall sports fitness.
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