It sounds contradictory, but sometimes the best way to improve your bench press is to stop benching for a few weeks.
There are several reasons for this. We can't wait to get under that bar and bench press, but unfortunately the bench can really take its toll on your joints. Inflammation of the shoulders and elbows from benching too often is common. Once you get hit with shoulder or elbow pain, you're going to be set back for weeks, if not months.
The easiest way to deal with this? Don't let it happen in the first place. Rotate your barbell bench press with some time off. Do a 4-8 week block of no-bar benching. You can still do other things like the floor press, block press, and dumbbell press, but just take a break from your standard barbell bench press and let your joints and nervous system recover.
You're only as strong as your weakest link. You can have strong pecs and triceps, but you'll have problems if your mobility sucks. You can have monstrous triceps, but if your rotator cuff is weak you're an injury waiting to happen. It's important to pay attention to the small stuff – the stuff that we should be doing but we generally don't do. Put aside ten minutes and add in the following:
Just ten minutes will help you get stronger, move better, and reduce chance of injury in the long run. Do it.
You need a strong upper back to have a strong bench. Here's a simple rule: For every pressing exercise you do, you have to do two pulling exercises.
Most of the top bench pressers have monstrous upper backs for a reason. You need to have balance, and they have it. If your upper back doesn't match your front, you'll fall short of your strength goals and you'll get injured at some point. Spend a lot of time focusing on upper back work and pulling exercises. Here are some of the most effective ones:
Pick 2-4 of these pulling exercises and rotate them every training block.
We sometimes forget about doing explosive-type exercises. They're very beneficial and can rapidly improve your bench press. The most effective ones include:
Here are two programs that incorporate all the above. The first program gives you a break from standard bench pressing and focuses more on dumbbell work and hitting your upper back a bit more. Once you run this program for 6 weeks, follow it up with program two, which focuses on the barbell bench press.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | ||
| A1 | Scap Push-Up | 3 | 12 | |
| A2 | Face Pull | 3 | 12 | |
| A3 | Plyo Push-Up | 3 | 6 | |
| B1 | Flat Dumbbell Press (neutral grip) | 5 | 8 | |
| B2 | One-Arm Dumbbell Row | 5 | 12 | |
| C1 | Incline Dumbbell Flye | 5 | 10 | |
| C2 | T's, Y's, W's | 5 | 15 | |
| D | Seated Row | 5 | 8 | |
| E | Triceps Pushdown | 5 | 20 | |
| F | Overhead Carry Variation | |||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | |
| A1 | Scap Push-Up | 3 | 12 |
| A2 | Face Pull (high to low) | 3 | 12 |
| A3 | Plyo Med Ball Toss | 3 | 8 |
| A4 | Bottoms-Up Kettlebell Carry | 3 | 15 yd./arm |
| B1 | Flat Barbell Bench Press (75%) | 5 | 5 |
| B2 | Horizontal Barbell Row | 5 | 12 |
| C1 | Floor Press | 5 | 5 |
| C2 | Pull-Up | 5 | 5 |
| D | Seated-Row (close grip) | 5 | 8 |
| E | Shoulder Complex | 8 front, 8 side, 8 rear | |
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