https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKgSIFBjBpc&t=5s
As many of you may or may not know, I officially made it to the 100’s club on my bench press. It was tough but I feel so good knowing that I finally can bench 100 pounds! 😀 Hopefully within the next 3 to 6 months, I will be benching 10 or 15 pounds more. Nonetheless, I wanted to go over the proper form in performing a bench press. Many of you don’t think about form when doing it, but it is very important you perform this exercise correctly because you can injure yourself. I also recommend people have spotters, unlike myself in this video (which I should have used a spotter just in case) but I took a chance and it worked out but don’t take chances, because it could hurt you. Hopefully I will have the chance to hear all of you share your PR accomplishments in the bench press!
How to perform the bench press:
- Utilize a flat bench (lie back on it). Using a medium width grip on the barbell, lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with arms locked (starting position)
- While breathing in , lower the bar slowly to your middle chest
- Take a brief pause, push the bar back to the starting position while breathing out. Use your chest muscles when pushing the bar up, lock the arms and contract the chest – hold the bar for a second at the top and then come down slowly again
- repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions
- When finished, place the bar back in the rack
What muscles are affected?
- Chest
- Front shoulders
- lats
- triceps
For beginners, I recommend using a spotter and even more intermediate and advanced athletes, it is good to have spotter when lifting a new PR or unsure amount of weight. There are many different variations of the bench press and the hand placement – which I will go over in a future post. The important thing is, to use your chest muscles when pushing up, put less strain on the arms and really contract those muscles. If you don’t have a spotter, using a smith machine for beginners is another good idea… until you are more comfortable on the barbell or until you have a proper spotter. Everyone knows this is a fundamental exercise, where it develops upper body strength. If you have experienced previous injuries or conditions – please consult your doctor before performing this exercise.
- What is your bench press max?
- How many reps are you lifting for your max?
Fitness WonderWoman ,
Shay-lon xo
Be the best version of you 
Hey well done on the PR and reaching 100lbs. A couple of other things to optimise technique and reduce the risk of injury are; forearms perpendicular to the ground/a straight vertical line from elbow to wrist throughout (reduces force on the elbow), keep elbows tucked in, try to bend the bar (this will keep you tight and allow a smooth bar path)
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Thankyou for adding that extra word of advice for my readers! appreciate it
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No problem. Hope it helps someone
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I am sure it will 😀
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Congratulations on the PR!
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Thank you Adam 😀
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