Bench press: 1st negative difficulty

[IanR1205]

I seem to have difficulty with my first negative when bench pressing. After I come back up I can finish the remaining reps at a normal speed but that first rep feels like it's going to crush me. Just the negative really, once it's down I can get it back up normally.

Any thoughts why this happens?

[flyfisher4life1]

Same happens to me, first reps feels heavy then it gets easy. But then of course the last reps are actually heavy lol.

[davisj3537]

I think it most likely a mental thing. Going into the set with a different mindset might be a beneficial thing for you. You should be "pulling" the bar down instead of letting the weight come to you. This will increase tightness and overall stability.

You might also feel more confident with the negative if you did a few sets of negatives with heavier weights than you normally use. I normally don't advise doing heavy negatives, but it may be exactly what you need.

[The1whoBreaksU]

I seem to have difficulty with my first negative when bench pressing. After I come back up I can finish the remaining reps at a normal speed but that first rep feels like it's going to crush me. Just the negative really, once it's down I can get it back up normally.

Any thoughts why this happens?

Check your form and make sure you're tight. Watch your elbows, keep em' tucked!