As you\u2019ll have probably noticed, there are a number of different variations to the bench press. The angles utilised most frequently include incline, decline and flat. As well as this, the bench press can be performed with either a barbell, or dumbbells.<\/p>\n
This article will explain the benefits of each variation, and help you to gain an understanding as to which variations you\u2019ll benefit from incorporating into your training routine in order to improve your chest!<\/p>\n
The chest is made up of two main muscles, the pectoralis minor and pectoralis major.
\nBoth of these muscles are required in order for you to perform a bench-pressing movement, however the angle at which you perform the exercise at will determine exactly how much involvement is required by each muscle.<\/p>\n
Your pec-minor is most made use of when pressing at an inclined angle. Most people believe a 45\u00b0 angle is required for the best activation of the pec-minor, however an angle this inclined will put most of the emphasis on the anterior deltoid. Instead, you should adjust the height of your bench to 30\u00b0 when performing an incline bench press.<\/p>\n
Sometimes you may not be able to adjust the angle of your bench press, particularly if it\u2019s a barbell bench press. In this case, first practice the movement and determine whether you feel your shoulders taking over the movement too much. Ensure you keep your scapular retracted throughout the press and you have a strong form (see below for form explanation).<\/p>\n
The dumbbell variation of this movement is a fantastic alternative when it comes to targeting the pec-minor, and you should definitely consider this over the barbell variation if you\u2019re looking to improve your upper chest.<\/p>\n
Your mid-to-lower chest is made up mostly by the pec-major. Both the flat variation and the decline variation of this movement work well to target the bulk of your chest effectively.<\/p>\n
Using a flat bench-press will enable you to improve your actual bench-press strength; so, if you have ambitions of powerlifting and want to kill two birds with one stone and increase the size as well as strength of your chest, you\u2019ll definitely want to incorporate the flat barbell bench-press into your routine. The flat variations (both dumbbell and barbell) do a great job at activating your whole chest, however the barbell variation will allow you to lift more weight in a controlled manner.<\/p>\n
Finally, the decline bench-press. This movement typically requires more involvement from the triceps, and due to the movements\u2019 similarity to a chest\/triceps dip, most people find they can lift more weight on the decline bench-press compared to flat. As well as this, the decline bench-press targets the pec-major incredibly due to the direction in which the muscle fibres run from the origin at the sternum to join the humerus at the insertion. A barbell is most suitable for this movement; although you\u2019ll likely be able to decline dumbbell press more than flat\/incline, it\u2019s likely your triceps will take more of the load during this exercise, and so if you want to make sure you\u2019re targeting your chest optimally, you should opt for the barbell variation and ensure a full range of motion on each repetition. A decline position of 30\u00b0 is most suitable to ensure you\u2019re able to let the bar travel in a straight line from your lower chest to lockout (see form explanation below).<\/p>\n
Ideally, a combination of the incline dumbbell bench press, and decline or flat barbell bench press would work best, depending on your goals. It’s vital that you ensure your benches are adjusted to the correct heights, in order to make sure you\u2019re targeting the correct muscles effectively.
\nFor the best all-round results you should accompany these pressing movements with some accessory exercises such as the cable fly and the chest press\/incline chest press.<\/p>\n
Make sure you use a variety of angles in your chest workout rather than sticking to just one movement. You should also utilise both dumbbells and barbells for optimal results. Adjust the heights of your benches to suit your build and ensure you\u2019re performing each exercise with accurate and efficient form.<\/p>\n
Looking to learn more? We believe that every person, with support, has the right to transform their lives through fitness. That’s why we’ve put together hundreds of articles with expert advice, all to help you on your fitness journey. Here’s some more articles around deadlifts and other leg-related movements.<\/p>\n
Romanian deadlift vs deadlift<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 How to increase your deadlift<\/a> As you’ll have probably noticed, there are a number of different variations to the bench press. The angles utilised most frequently include incline, decline and flat. As well as this,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":20457,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1975],"tags":[68,105,1687,1791],"class_list":["post-15170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fitnesstraining","tag-bench","tag-bench-press","tag-chest","tag-chest-exercise"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15170"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15170\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23663,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15170\/revisions\/23663"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20457"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bulk.com\/uk\/the-core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\nDeadlift muscles worked<\/a>
\nBench press muscles worked<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"