I'm pretty flexible and have had a lot of shoulder/scapular issues from too much retraction. Everyone says the same thing so I didn't want to deviate from it, but once I relaxed it a little and focussed more on the depression than the retraction, my bench got better and more comfortable with less issues.
First time i tried pull my scapula back and down as hard as posible it was a bit discomfort and i instantly injured my shoulder. Took me 1 year to rehab it to the point i could exercise comfortably. Now im doing the same with scapula retraction but with moderation and listen to my body
when I unrack I keep my shoulders more internally rotated and my wrists straighter to make the unrack easier and getting into position is not hard afterward since I'm also using my lats on the unrack
Any advice on getting tight/knotted romboids from bench? I have a kinda jacked up shoulder so I assume it's from my back having to work to compensate for it?
Yeah, I am having similar issues. My strength is not progressing after my last shoulder surgery and I am immediately losing position off the chest. I think my fear of injuring my shoulder is putting me in a weak position
I would suggest doing some unilateral work. I had a similar issue with my right knee after surgery and squats - pick something you can go through a full range with on one side, sloe to the movement pattern so like flat bench one arm dumbell chest press, and make sure you have no imbalances and try to get everything moving the same from side to side.
My new gym sucks pretty big monkey b@lls, but their one bench press rack is amazing. It scared me the first time I ever used it. I thought the rack was falling apart. Turns out the upright arms that hold the barbell are on a slight pendulum so you can pull the barbell forward towards gour chest, making it a much easier unrack. Once you unrack the bar, the arms rock back to their normal position, making reracking the same as any other bench. So I hit a new PR a few weeks ago on that bench. Then a couple weeks later I want to try for more but am not too confident so I setup in a power rack with safety bars. This meant a normal rom unrack, and omg at first I had trouble unracking. It felt way too heavy so I got up to double check my plate weight. No it was right, I just wasn't used to unracking from the normal position. I pjt some oomph into it and got it unracked, and set a new PR.
I had to stop doing the "shoulders together" cue after IPF introduced the bench depth rule. It was literally pushing my chest so far up that I couldn't hit depth.
Do it anyway. You can sink the bar into your chest until you reach elbow depth. With the bar in your chest you have lots of pressure to hold a comp pause and press more weight.
@@snorlaxcom I experimented with sinking for a while and decided it wasn't stronger for me. The timing is somewhat difficult to get right, and it just feels like it plain increases ROM at the sticking point for me. It tends to work better for bigger lifters, I think.
*your. The only thing you need to worry about is a) over-wrapping the thumb and stretching your nerves, and b) pure overuse because you don't want to be a pussy and use straps for higher reps. If you avoid both of those, it'll still hurt, but it won't be injurious and you'll get more used to it.
I use hook on all my sets. You get used to it pretty quick. Sometimes my thumb feels sore/numb for a bit, but not that long. At the start it can be days
i reeaally struggle with keeping the shoulders back and down. I've simmered it for a while and is it true that to keep this position locked in the whole lift, you have to forego to top range of motion? When i think about it, if i let my pecs and shoulder squeeze all the way to full contraction, they're gonna pull my shoulder forward aswell. And i don't know if it's universal, but trying to then keep the shoulder back, feels fucking awful. But if you just forego the range of motion at the top where you feel the scapula want to move, is that okay?
It's not just ok, it's preferable. But bear in mind it's preferable FOR THE SPORT, not for anything else, including hypertrophy. All you need to do to complete a bench press is straighten your elbows, you don't need to get the bar as high as possible with a scap shrug or using your delts on top of your pecs and triceps. Yes, I think it's probably universal that it feels shitty, and it takes getting used to, but on the other hand, there's no reason not to experiment with it a bit - as above, I have kept the depression and backed off on the retraction a bit and it has helped. You still probably don't want to be pushing the shoulder forward instead of just straightening the elbows if you are training to compete or push the best numbers, though.
@@PinataOblongata yeah true. Important to make the distinction depending on what you're working towards. In my case not looking to compete, but I do feel that my shoulders feel less iffy if i can keep the shoulders back. Thanks for the input :)
Yes, it sucks until it doesn't. I would say keep trying at it for at least 6 months if you really want to get good at it, it will only benefit you in the long run. But I guess this is me assuming you haven't been training with the proper cues for a while. Most likely you are still very tuned to your old habits hence why your shoulders and chest keeps retracting back or folding back. Just remember, you get a better muscle building stimulus during the stretched (eccentric) portion of the movement so having a high chest will help.
Self-unrack gang! We are an unaffiliated consortium cabal of rugged individualists 💪💪
Most unrackers screw it up anyways, unless they are legit powerlifters, so i just do it by myself.
Always with the best and simplest cues. Trying this tomorrow when I bench again
Great timing for the video. I'll try it today in a few minutes!
I'm pretty flexible and have had a lot of shoulder/scapular issues from too much retraction. Everyone says the same thing so I didn't want to deviate from it, but once I relaxed it a little and focussed more on the depression than the retraction, my bench got better and more comfortable with less issues.
Same minus the flexible part
Forever over depressed
First time i tried pull my scapula back and down as hard as posible it was a bit discomfort and i instantly injured my shoulder. Took me 1 year to rehab it to the point i could exercise comfortably. Now im doing the same with scapula retraction but with moderation and listen to my body
I do the same, but i think about flaring the elbows a bit instead of shrugging, so that my elbows become parallel with the bar during the unrack
This topic was mentioned in the last FCF. Maybe make a video about getting long as possible in the deadlift and go more in depth into that.
when I unrack I keep my shoulders more internally rotated and my wrists straighter to make the unrack easier and getting into position is not hard afterward since I'm also using my lats on the unrack
I think my bench as a ”wedge” Sean Noriega made a really good video on powerlifting now, im way more effective now
100-120kg with just that
Any advice on getting tight/knotted romboids from bench? I have a kinda jacked up shoulder so I assume it's from my back having to work to compensate for it?
thanks
You're welcome!
Yeah, I am having similar issues. My strength is not progressing after my last shoulder surgery and I am immediately losing position off the chest. I think my fear of injuring my shoulder is putting me in a weak position
I would suggest doing some unilateral work. I had a similar issue with my right knee after surgery and squats - pick something you can go through a full range with on one side, sloe to the movement pattern so like flat bench one arm dumbell chest press, and make sure you have no imbalances and try to get everything moving the same from side to side.
I already have a lot of depression but my bench still sucks. Oh not what you meant?
My new gym sucks pretty big monkey b@lls, but their one bench press rack is amazing. It scared me the first time I ever used it. I thought the rack was falling apart. Turns out the upright arms that hold the barbell are on a slight pendulum so you can pull the barbell forward towards gour chest, making it a much easier unrack. Once you unrack the bar, the arms rock back to their normal position, making reracking the same as any other bench.
So I hit a new PR a few weeks ago on that bench. Then a couple weeks later I want to try for more but am not too confident so I setup in a power rack with safety bars. This meant a normal rom unrack, and omg at first I had trouble unracking. It felt way too heavy so I got up to double check my plate weight. No it was right, I just wasn't used to unracking from the normal position. I pjt some oomph into it and got it unracked, and set a new PR.
I had to stop doing the "shoulders together" cue after IPF introduced the bench depth rule. It was literally pushing my chest so far up that I couldn't hit depth.
Do it anyway. You can sink the bar into your chest until you reach elbow depth. With the bar in your chest you have lots of pressure to hold a comp pause and press more weight.
@@snorlaxcom I experimented with sinking for a while and decided it wasn't stronger for me. The timing is somewhat difficult to get right, and it just feels like it plain increases ROM at the sticking point for me. It tends to work better for bigger lifters, I think.
Let's gooo also are the chances of fucking you thumb with a hook grip? higher with heavy weight or do you need to train you thumb to make it stronger?
*your. The only thing you need to worry about is a) over-wrapping the thumb and stretching your nerves, and b) pure overuse because you don't want to be a pussy and use straps for higher reps. If you avoid both of those, it'll still hurt, but it won't be injurious and you'll get more used to it.
I use hook on all my sets. You get used to it pretty quick. Sometimes my thumb feels sore/numb for a bit, but not that long. At the start it can be days
I struggling closing my hand completely when doinf wide grip. My finger tips almost only pinching the bar and I can only squeeze very little 🤔
You are probably going to wide then my friend.
i reeaally struggle with keeping the shoulders back and down. I've simmered it for a while and is it true that to keep this position locked in the whole lift, you have to forego to top range of motion? When i think about it, if i let my pecs and shoulder squeeze all the way to full contraction, they're gonna pull my shoulder forward aswell. And i don't know if it's universal, but trying to then keep the shoulder back, feels fucking awful. But if you just forego the range of motion at the top where you feel the scapula want to move, is that okay?
It's not just ok, it's preferable. But bear in mind it's preferable FOR THE SPORT, not for anything else, including hypertrophy. All you need to do to complete a bench press is straighten your elbows, you don't need to get the bar as high as possible with a scap shrug or using your delts on top of your pecs and triceps. Yes, I think it's probably universal that it feels shitty, and it takes getting used to, but on the other hand, there's no reason not to experiment with it a bit - as above, I have kept the depression and backed off on the retraction a bit and it has helped. You still probably don't want to be pushing the shoulder forward instead of just straightening the elbows if you are training to compete or push the best numbers, though.
@@PinataOblongata yeah true. Important to make the distinction depending on what you're working towards. In my case not looking to compete, but I do feel that my shoulders feel less iffy if i can keep the shoulders back. Thanks for the input :)
Yes, it sucks until it doesn't. I would say keep trying at it for at least 6 months if you really want to get good at it, it will only benefit you in the long run. But I guess this is me assuming you haven't been training with the proper cues for a while. Most likely you are still very tuned to your old habits hence why your shoulders and chest keeps retracting back or folding back. Just remember, you get a better muscle building stimulus during the stretched (eccentric) portion of the movement so having a high chest will help.
Many many years, what is he 30, 35, lol.
1st