Bigger Stronger Leaner

Tip: The Kettlebell Bench Press

This floor press variation can correct faulty motor patterns, build your pecs and triceps, and even fix your achy shoulders. Check it out.

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When it comes to pain-free shoulder stability when bench pressing, sometimes locking into a range of motion and position can be challenging. But using the right tools can fix this problem.

There's a reason many smart sports rehab pros are gravitating toward kettlebells for movement remediation and training: the shape and loading that you can get from this tool is exactly what many athletes need in order to recruit stabilization.

When you've grasped the kettlebell and positioned it over the shoulder in a pressing position, the hand and wrist are forced to grip and stabilize the augmented load that sits on the back of the wrist. This simple position helps initiate the irradiation effect signaling synergistic tension through muscular and fascial planes all the way up the kinetic chain into the shoulder girdle and directly into the core. By focusing on a max grip, this becomes a neuromuscular reeducation tool for faulty motor patterns.

Adding a small amount of rotation during this press can be a powerful mechanism for proper movement mechanics. Starting at the bottom of the lift with the upper arms in contact with the ground, the hands should be in a somewhat neutral position. As you press up, the hands can rotate internally into a pronated grip at the top.

This small tweak in the movement will be key to pressing pain-free and transferring the stability, torque, and tension you learned to generate back into the barbell bench press when you're ready.

Yeah, that's right. If you load this exercise appropriately, you won't be stuck on the floor forever. Just give it long enough to fix your movement, let your body heal, and live to fight another Monday on the bench.