The barbell bench press...and yes, I know this is a strange exercise that nobody has ever heard of before...

The crazy thing is...for all the people going it day-in and day-out, the VAST majority of them are doing at least one (or more) MAJOR things completely wrong.

And they're literally leaving POUNDS on the table that the 4 simple tweaks I'm going to show you right now can fix...

So use these tips and don't let that happen to you.

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1. Get Your Grip-Width Right

Where you grip the bar can make or break your bench press before you even do a single rep.

If you grip the bar in too close, you're putting more  stress on the triceps, which limits your pushing power and increases the distance you have to press the bar.

If you grip the bar too wide, you do decrease the distance the bar travels but you can put excessive stress on the shoulder joints.

So what is the best place to grip the bar?

This is best determined with no weight on the bar at all and with somebody watching your form. Lie down and take the bar off the rack and lower the bar to your chest. Have somebody else eyeball your forearms.

At the bottom of the press, your forearms should be perfectly vertical. THAT will give you the greatest pressing power as you won't lose any power inside or outside.

It's the same concept as throwing a punch - if the bones of the arm aren't lined up properly when it connects, you lose a lot of power at impact.


2. Don't Be a "Loose" Breather

When you're doing a heavy press, trunk stabilization is much more important than when you're doing lighter, higher-rep training. You need a strong, solid base to push off of to really move the most weight.

When doing a heavy lift for only a few reps, breathe in deeply on the way down, inflating your chest as much as possible (this has the dual effect of increasing the stability of your trunk AND decreasing the distance the bar must travel, which is a bonus!).

But as you press the bar off your chest don't immediately blow out all your air in one big blow. That will destabilize the chest and weaken the base you're pushing from.

It would be like trying to do a dumbbell press on the Swiss Ball as somebody is letting the air out of it FAST!

So as you start to press the weight, blow your air out through pursed lips.

Basically, pretend you're blowing up a really thick balloon.

You want to keep your breathing muscles in your rib cage absolutely solid as they very slowly force the air out. This keeps your trunk solid and stabilized as you press, which is critical. The moment you lose that stability, you lose the lift.


3. Drive With Your Legs

Leg drive is VERY important to maximizing your bench press strength on maximum lifts. When you set your feet for benching, don't just place them anywhere and let nature take its course.

Set your feet solidly on the ground and bend your knees to about 80 degrees.

Here's why...when you're at the bottom of the bench press, driving with the legs can help you get that weight moving.

You can demonstrate this to yourself by lying on the flat bench and setting your feet on the ground. Now think of how you'd need to set your feet if you wanted to use your feet/legs to slide yourself up the bench.

THAT is what you do when you drive with your legs - you basically try and use your legs to slide yourself up the bench at the moment you begin the press upwards.

Because the weight is holding you down, that driving force transfers into helping push the weight up.

If you're not currrently doing this, it will make a BIG difference in your power out of the bottom immediately. You'll now be benching with your whole body instead of just your chest and arms.


4. Squeeze Your Shoulder Blades Together

This goes back to trunk stability. If you're not consciously and solidly (and aggressively!) squeezing your shoulder blades together when you set yourself up on the bench press, you're instantly putting yourself at a disadvantage.

To do this, lie down on the bench and grab the bar. Lift your body up off the bench then try and touch your shoulder blades together behind your back. Get them pulled in as tight as possible...it should actually be a bit painful in your back because of the force of the contraction.

When you set yourself back down, you'll find you're not only more stable on the bench but your shoulders are in a stronger pressing position. This will also make your torso a little thicker, which means a shorter range of motion, which means you can use more weight!

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Give these 4 technique points a try next time you hit the bench press...I promise you'll notice a BIG difference in your strength on the very first set!

And if you're interested in a training program targeted for increasing bench press FAST, I've got 2 that I recommend very highly.

Critical Bench 2.0 - by Mike Westerdal.

Blast Your Bench - by Lee Hayward

You won't go wrong with either one of these...

Happy benching!