bench press grip

[sadikafid1]

Hi guys , I'm tall nearly 188 cm , my friend told me that i should hit the bench press with the wide grip not the medium grip , but what should i do the wide or the medium and what's the different btw them ?

[mpiwi14]

Your height doesn't matter what grip you use. Wide grip works more of your outer chest. But it can put more stress on your shoulders. Work around with the different grips and find out what you're most comfortable with.

[Sir_Malak]

Whatever you do tuck those elbows in and drive. Save your shoulders.

Good luck!

[GymFreak25]

I use pinkie finger on the outer rings of the bar, works well for me. But generally you want your forearms to be perpendicular to the floor when on the bottom portion of the lift.

[kevin1174]

i have long arms and find a closer grip to be most comfortable

[Venomus250]

I usually put my middle finger on the ring. I tried going narrow and hits my triceps more and outer i started having shoulder pain. So for me e.g. middle finger on ring works well.

[gbnpc]

Use whatever grip is most comfortable for you, regardless of your height. For me, I ust a more narrow grip, keeping my elboys tucked in my sides due to a tear in my right shoulder that hinders me from pressing with a wide grip.

[Marly21]

I find when i have my elbows tucked i can't generate enough power and my forearms are getting worked more than my chest? Any suggestions?

[JLGBUK]

I recently started benching with my middle fingers on the ring. This seems to help me use my chest as the prime mover rather than my delts/ triceps. Maybe due to more upper back tightness/ scapular stability from the wider grip?

[kennycroxdale]

Hi guys , I'm tall nearly 188 cm , my friend told me that i should hit the bench press with the wide grip not the medium grip , but what should i do the wide or the medium and what's the different btw them ?

Grip Position

The same muscles are worked in the bench press no matter what your grip.

However, the muscle involvement changes dependent on your grip position.

Ice Cream

Think the bench press like ice cream.

The grip position is similar to the flavor of the ice cream.

Let say a narrow position is vanilla, medium is chocolate and wide is strawberry.

It is still ice cream but just a different flavor.

Changes in exercises are more effective than in loading schemes to improve muscle strength.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24832974

Research based on anecdotal information has demonstrated that one of the keys to increasing strength and muscle mass is to change exercises.

The research showed two method to be the most effective.

1) Constant Intensity-Varied Exercise

2) Varied Intensity-Varied Exercise

Varied exercise is the common denominator and should be built into a good training program for the bench press, squats, etc.

Kenny Croxdale

[doughnut91]

I find when i have my elbows tucked i can't generate enough power and my forearms are getting worked more than my chest? Any suggestions?

Depends how far you're tucking your elbows in. Ideally they should be at roughly 45 degrees to your torso. Your forearms will work to an extent, as you have to grip the bar tightly, but if they're getting really fatigued then something is wrong with your technique.

[kennycroxdale]

Whatever you do tuck those elbows in and drive. Save your shoulders.

Good luck!

Reverse Grip Bench Press

This is a great exercise that minimizes the stress on the shoulders.

Mastering The Reverse-Grip Bench Press
http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_...ip_bench_press

This is a great article on it.

Pec Activation
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/vide...-the-chest.htm

The Reverse Grip has been show to activate the upper pec more than an Incline Press.

Kenny Croxdale

[RedSox1990]

I do slightly more than shoulder width on a regular bench, middle finger on the outer rings that the bar at my gym has. What I did notice is that people do Close Grip Bench Press with a grip that is insanely close grip when all you need is something like this (anything close than this really doesn't make sense to me):

[Marly21]

Depends how far you're tucking your elbows in. Ideally they should be at roughly 45 degrees to your torso. Your forearms will work to an extent, as you have to grip the bar tightly, but if they're getting really fatigued then something is wrong with your technique.

Cheers matey, think I may have over exaggerated it and tried to keep them stuck to my sides, will try around 45 degrees

[Will96]

I go from close to wide making sure I hit form the inside out