bench press elbow form argument... (help)

[blacklabel9698]

So ive been at this bb thing for about 9 months now... i feel like im learning alot.... i also consider myself to be somewhat of a form stickler... so the other day i was working with a guy that i work with now and again at the gym... we were benching so i did my first set then it came time for his.. so he lays down relaxed nothing is tight.... then proceeds to bench but when he does he keeps his elbows flared out all the way.. so i tell him "im no professional but what seemed to help me was tucking in my elbows a bit" so he does this and tells me he likes it better... Well the next week he comes up to me and accuses me of telling how to do the exercise wrong and that the way i told him is the absolute worst thing for your shoulders... so i send the kid the dave tate video and another video supporting my beliefs... So he comes up to me yesterday and says that he doesn't believe the videos i sent him are the correct way of doing the bench press... any way i don't know enough to support my beliefs in how to bench correctly in an argument so what do you think... an i doing it right??

Cliffs:
work out with a guy that goes to same gym
Correct his form
he bitches me out telling me i told him the wrong way to do the exercise and its going to get him hurt..
Please tell me your opinion on elbow position on the bench press

[bradlehman]

I don't see how you could possibly get a good stretch at the bottom and get the ideal arc movement on the way up if your elbows are flared all the way out the whole time.

[blacklabel9698]

that was my point exactly but more so your SHOULDERS i mean befor i knew correct form my shoulders hurt and poped from benching... so know im doing it right...this guy just seems to not beleive me in the slightest... i mean when it really comes down to it ill still be lifting when his arm is in a sling but i would like to have good reasoning for doing it the way i do other than thats how the video told me to.

[dvldog4c]

I'll be perfectly blunt, I've tried the Dave Tate form and it almost wrecked my shoulders, elbows and wrists all at once, with LIGHT weight. Why are free weights so much better for your joints and muscles than smiths? Because they don't constrict your body's natural movement, so why would you force your body to move unnaturally by forcing your elbows to be tucked in?

I bench with my elbows flared all the way out, perpendicular to my body as it takes all the strain off of them. I guess that some people do have a problem with their shoulders when they do this, but I don't. I am able to concentrate 100% on my chest and feel no exhaustion in shoulders at all.

What's more is, when I tried what I saw in those Dave Tate videos, I felt my tricpes doing most of the work trying to push the weight back up. Maybe it's a matter of getting used to it, but I much prefer the "leaf spring" approach to benching (I suppose that analogy applies more to close grip bench presses, but you get the idea).

I think a lot has to do with how long your upper arms are. According to that Dave Tate video, you need to keep the bar inline with your elbows. My problem is that if I do that, the bar is WELL below my chest, and creates an incredibly awkward moment of force that obliterates my shoulders. In order for me to keep the bar over my chest and gravitationally centered such that it can actually be pushed back up, my elbows and wrists are way out of alignment, thus the feeling of needing to use my triceps.

[blacklabel9698]

I'll be perfectly blunt, I've tried the Dave Tate form and it almost wrecked my shoulders, elbows and wrists all at once, with LIGHT weight. Why are free weights so much better for your joints and muscles than smiths? Because they don't constrict your body's natural movement, so why would you force your body to move unnaturally by forcing your elbows to be tucked in?

I bench with my elbows flared all the way out, perpendicular to my body as it takes all the strain off of them. I guess that some people do have a problem with their shoulders when they do this, but I don't. I am able to concentrate 100% on my chest and feel no exhaustion in shoulders at all.

What's more is, when I tried what I saw in those Dave Tate videos, I felt my tricpes doing most of the work trying to push the weight back up. Maybe it's a matter of getting used to it, but I much prefer the "leaf spring" approach to benching (I suppose that analogy applies more to close grip bench presses, but you get the idea).

But when you bench like that all the weight gets put onto the shoulders... no>?

[Mr.Pooperton]

i wouldnt waste my time trying to help some random moron at the gym.

ask him where he heard benching with elbows tucked is bad for your shoulders

[blacklabel9698]

i wouldnt waste my time trying to help some random moron at the gym.

ask him where he heard benching with elbows tucked is bad for your shoulders

I did.. he told me one of the other dudes in the gym... ( who has more experience than me) so basically i look like the ass hole... im not really bothered to much by it but i would just like a leg to stand on when people come at me to correct my form...and if im wrong i want to fix it so im doing things right...

[mkit8971]

Keep the elbows tucked. Screwed up my right shoulder from flaring out. Some people will argue solely because they haven't gotten hurt and/or can't do the same amount of weight keeping proper form with elbows tucked. Might hurt their ego.

[blacklabel9698]

well yea i think he got mad because when i corrected it he couldnt lift his 2 plates anymore.... but all in all after about 2 weeks of me correcting my form i was pushing through my plateau!

[dvldog4c]

But when you bench like that all the weight gets put onto the shoulders... no>?

Far less than when I keep my elbows tucked. For me, keeping my elbows tucked puts a massive moment of force on them that doesn't exist when I let my elbows flare.

[musicianman]

You're right, he's wrong.

Flared elbows CAN have a use in putting more stress onto your shoulders and "outer" chest, but it will lead to eventual injury for most people at one point or another (when the weight gets heavy).

Personally, I'll do wide-grip bench pressing if I want to work my outer chest and anterior delts.

[Beachman]

Umm... why don't you lift however its comfortable for you and don't worry about how someone else lifts. You can argue with him forever and he might never change.

Good luck!

[nixter]

I vote tucked. Much easier on the shoulders. We're not even talking about a major tuck, just a little. Yes, you may not be able to push quite as much weight at first it'll come. If you want stretch then do flys or pec dec. I actually attribute most of my chest size to heavy pec dec. Great stretch and lot's of TUT.

[Rasputin4]

I used to bench moderate grip and it would hit my delts, my elbows were tucked. I switched to wide grip and it still hits my delts, but it also hit my chest better than moderate grip with elbows tucked. I actually had to lower the weight about ten or fifteen pounds when I made this switch, which I attribute to the fact that my pecs have always been my weakest muscle and it placed more emphasis on them. I was able to bridge this gap extremely quickly. I think part of it probably has to do with build. I have some long arms, I'm 6'2" and have a 6'5" armspan. What I would suggest in any case, though, is to focus on pinching the shoulder blades together during the movement, this takes some stress of the shoulders and places it on the chest.

[DevBum]

How tucked in are you guys talking about?

bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/barbell-bench-press-medium-grip

[hamrogers]

I find that I have much more pushing power with my elbows close to my trunk. If you were going to stand up and push a large object you would not flare your elbows out and lean into you. You would naturally put your elbows behind your wrists and push forward.