do i have to bench to maintain a strong chest?

[biggie51]

Hey there, I was just curious, if I took two weeks off benching and did other chest exercises, like DB press and pec deck and Hammer Strength chest press, would I still be able to do the same weight on the bench or more when I go back to it?

[jino]

I'd just stick to regular bb/db pressing and dips. Machines are not efficient for mass. Either way, taking 2 weeks off benching won't necessarily have a big impact on your bench.

[PROSA]

Originally posted by biggie51
Hey there, I was just curious, if I took two weeks off benching and did other chest exercises, like DB press and pec deck and Hammer Strength chest press, would I still be able to do the same weight on the bench or more when I go back to it?

Two weeks away from benching probably wouldn't make much difference even if you did no weights at all.
In any event, if you did DB bench presses instead of BB bench presses, you'd be fine. DB benches are an excellent exercise.

[hyp3r3xt3nsion]

db pressing is a bench press you know

[iron_on_my_mind]

The bench-press is your bread-and-butter for the chest, in terms of mass-building. Take time off, sure, but don't even try to compare flyes, pec-deck crap, and whatever else to the mighty bench press (bb or db.)

Dips come close, though. But they're only really helpful when combined with bench presses.

I'm all for taking some time off now and then, though.

[scott_donald]

Originally posted by jino
I'd just stick to regular bb/db pressing and dips. Machines are not efficient for mass. Either way, taking 2 weeks off benching won't necessarily have a big impact on your bench.

bump... rests can be a great benefit...