Ok how far do you go on your bench or what is recommened? I lower it to my chest slowly and explode up. Although there was this big dude in my gym that said I should only go to 90 degrees (at the elbows) and then back up to prevent injury from the rotator cuff (sp). So which one is it?
I go all the way down, have been for years. Havent had any problems yet... thats the way people do it in competitions and stuff. As for where to bring it down to, thats not a sure thing. Some bring it down to the breast plate, some to the nipple line... just find what works good for you.
Make sure your arms are perpendicular to your torso, that is, have them straight out. Touch the bar to your chest if you plan to compete, otherwise, there is a rule of thumb regarding that. Keep your core tight and lower the bar in a controlled manner as far as you can without arching your back. Do it with a light weight first to understand good form. If you are tall, this may be higher than your chest, if you're short, well you can't into your chest so just keep it there. I'm of average height (5'10") and have a fairly large chest, so I touch the bar to it. P.S. in order to protect your rotator cuffs, do some warm up exercises before performing bench presses.
i bench using a fairly narrow grip and i bring the bar to about the bottom of my sternum, keeping my arms tucked. i go all the way down and i am a flat chest mofo and i havent had any shoulder problems. i would recommend doing some rotator cuff exercise though i.e. cuban press, l-flys etc.
Flaring your elbows = bodybuilder bench to recruit more pectoral muscles and increase the rate of shoulder injuries. Keeping your elbows close to your sides = recruiting more triceps and preventing shoulder injury. not touching the bar to your chest = horse shit
The only time it is acceptable to stop at 90 degrees is if you have or are recovering from a shoulder injury. Even then it is temporary......
