Bench press technique.. Elbows tucked or flared out? which is better?

[samakaballer]

I have been benching for a year and a half just about and have been benching with my elbows pretty much flared out, due to people telling me it will put more stress on my chest rather then my triceps or something... I tried to bench with my elbows tucked and I was a lot weaker but maybe I just need to get used to it for a few weeks and i'll be just as strong using that technique... What do you guys think??? I'm having a hard time making gains on bench and maybe changing up the technique will help...

[wallyworld34]

45 degree man, not flared , not pinned to your sides.

[samakaballer]

o alright, i almost do a 45 degree angle. i just dont "tuck" my elbows in.. I was reading to tuck elbows and touch the bar on upper abs almost and bench up in a straight line, i touch my lower /mid chest when bench pressing, and i notice that nfl players do bench with their elbows tucked in.. ehh idk, i'll just try touching the bar lower a tad lower then my chest next time see how that works...

[Chesticles2]

If you do what you always do, you'll get what you always get
-Ronnie Coleman


Try new things, CG Bench is the best tricep exercise for mass and I have no clue why you havent ever tried it...because it should be your starting tri exercise the next time you step foot into the gym to train.
The bar allows many places to put your hands and direct your elbows, so try new ways. I go just inside the power rings and i find i get the most power from this position. I can bench super heavy with my hands close as well, but that might be from my pratise as well. I wouldnt suggest elbows by your side unless doing tris, but if you want to pre exhaust your chest first then hit close grip bench as a superset, the tris will allow you to use more weight. Ppl train to similar these days, so train how it works for you and use the gym in new ways that you might think are ****ed up and unusual, because they most likely arnt.

[gymcandykid]

I flared them and tweaked my shoulder then went on youtube and found out i had been benching wrong... i was flarin my elbows out to far... you want about a 45 degree.

[Bostongeorge617]

You were told right, flaring your elbows do place more of the emphasis on the chest than if you tucked them. But it also places more stress on the shoulders from what I have read/heard. This doesn't bother most people, myself included, so I can't vouch for that. If you are having a hard time developing your pecs, it seems contrary to take emphasis away from chest. I would agree that something needs to change within your program to get you growing again, but I'm doubtful that changing from flare to tuck is going to have a major impact.

[XXX666]

tucked. the shoulder joint makes arcs, tucking your shoulder allows the shoulder to rotate, hence is why you have a rotator cuff that holds the shoulder in place. flaring the elbow only removes stress away from the torso and places that stress on the delts and triceps; the further away your elbow is from your torso the more the chest is removed from the movement.

the pec has two functions, to push the hands away from the body and to move the hand across the torso. the bench press is not a movement that stretches the pec, it is a contraction and midrange motion.

you can NEVER isolate the chest with a bench press because it is a compound movement; the best you can do is mimic a natural movement and squeeze the hell out of your pecs as you press.

[400Lb Gorilla]

tucked. the shoulder joint makes arcs, tucking your shoulder allows the shoulder to rotate, hence is why you have a rotator cuff that holds the shoulder in place. flaring the elbow only removes stress away from the torso and places that stress on the delts and triceps; the further away your elbow is from your torso the more the chest is removed from the movement.

the pec has two functions, to push the hands away from the body and to move the hand across the torso. the bench press is not a movement that stretches the pec, it is a contraction and midrange motion.

you can NEVER isolate the chest with a bench press because it is a compound movement; the best you can do is mimic a natural movement and squeeze the hell out of your pecs as you press.

you still got the link to the thread you started about proper bench technique? that was a good start but cant find it with search(forgot the name and theres alot of chest threads) good advice

[jensen]

45 degree man, not flared , not pinned to your sides.

this

[RealMenDeadLift]

Enough to not make it a tricep movement, not so much that you tear your rotator cuffs.

[samakaballer]

thanks guys. I might try the close grip bench press, i used to do it once in a while... I'm going to do close grip bench on my regular bench days because in my routine right now i do chest and triceps on the same day, so my triceps will be a bit fatigued by the time i do close grip but that doesn't matter i dont think..

[XXX666]

you still got the link to the thread you started about proper bench technique? that was a good start but cant find it with search(forgot the name and theres alot of chest threads) good advice

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=116435491

i need to update it.....................

[samakaballer]

Holy crap 45 deg angle feels greAt!!!

[samakaballer]

I felt way more power with the 45 degree angle today, and i touched below my chest kinda uppder abdomen i think i was using textbook form. wtf, i've been at a stall for so long on bench this is all i needed to do i think... 2 bad im dieting so my bench might not get as great as it could, but ordered no shotgun and synthesize so maybe i'll get some nice gains.

[TheWaterBoy8]

I am a noob and always benched with my elbows flared... then I found out I was doing it wrong. So then I put my elbows at 45degrees and seemed to be quite a bit weaker... I do close grip bench and all but I'm just wondering is it normal to lose strength if I have just switched from flared to 45degrees? It was kinda disheartening to know I've corrected my form and it's made me weaker...

[Mrpb]

Yes that's quite common. Before your shoulders were helping out massively. Now you are pressing with the pecs.

[ZoranM]

I am a noob and always benched with my elbows flared... then I found out I was doing it wrong.

What? Says who?

[TheWaterBoy8]

What? Says who?

Well everyone seems to say its right to bench with elbow 45 degrees? **** I don't know what to believe

[Ironface]

Well everyone seems to say its right to bench with elbow 45 degrees? **** I don't know what to believe

First off, you shouldn't have necro bumped this 4-year-old thread.

Second, I'd strongly advise you to keep your elbows tucked assuming you don't want to cause a rotator cuff injury.