EXECUTION
- Assume a stable back lying position on a bench press station. Your head, shoulders and buttocks should rest on the bench and there should be a slight arch in the lumbar spine.
- The barbell should be racked at an accessible height and positioned so that it is directly above your head.
- Grip the bar with a pronated grip, i.e., palms facing away and with the hands narrower than shoulder-width apart. The exact positioning depends upon your ability to balance the weights and the type of bar used.
- Press the bar upward to release it and then support the bar on locked arms directly above your neck. This is the beginning position.
- When you are ready, inhale slightly more than usual and hold your breath as you lower the bar to the mid-chest. As you come close to touching the chest, reverse directions and press the bar back upward.
- Exhale as you pass the most difficult portion of the up phase and lock the elbows to pause momentarily in the up position.
- The elbows should remain pointed forward during the assent and descent.
- Repeat at a moderate rate of speed.
WORKOUT TIPS
Be sure that the weights are well balanced on the bar and that your grip is equally spaced from the middle of the bar. This is needed to assume as narrow a grip as possible. If an E-Z curl type bar is available, grip the bar using the slightly pronated grip (inbetween neutral and pronated) position to more easily balance the weights.
To utilize the energy developed in the down eccentric phase (the muscles create elastic energy in the eccentric contraction) do not stop in the bottom position. Use this energy to push the weights back up by making a quick change in direction when the bar is close to the body.
Stopping in the bottom position dissipates the built-up energy and you must use extra force to get the barbell moving back up. This can be done, but it will require greater strength to overcome the resistance. As a result, you may not be able to do as many repetitions. Since the close grip bench press is used mainly for triceps involvement, stopping at the bottom position is a detriment to their development as only the pectorals are stressed in the initial up phase.
Inhaling and holding your breath during the exertion phase is very important for
- overcoming the resistance,
- spinal stability, and
- safe execution.
When you hold your breath, you create up to 20% greater force and the intrathoracic pressure helps to keep the spine in a safe position. It creates an effective base from which the chest and shoulder muscles can contract and as a result, have a stronger contraction of the triceps.
Do not arch your back to help push the barbell upward. Doing this does not provide for great development of the muscles involved and may even be dangerous to the spine. The arching of the back typically occurs at the beginning of the phase when you use too much weight. This forces you to seek involvement of more muscles from the legs, hip and back. Since the arched position raises the chest, you use more of the lower pectoral muscles (mainly when you use the E-Z bar and the elbows flair outward), which in many bodybuilders are stronger than the upper pectorals.
Bouncing the weight off the chest to help get it started upward is not recommended. Doing this can severely injure the sternum and ribs and should be avoided. In addition, by bouncing the barbell you do not use the muscles to move the weight upward and thus, do not get the muscle development called for in the bottom position.
Position yourself on the bench so that the barbell is directly above your head or lower face. When you extend the arms and take the barbell off the rack, it will then be positioned directly over your neck. Since the bar follows a slightly curved pathway when you lower it, it will come to the middle of your chest and then return to this position above the neck. If a bench press station is not available have your spotter assist you in gripping the bar and when you are finishing your set.
MAJOR MUSCLES INVOLVED
The muscles of the shoulder joint, shoulder girdle, and elbow joint are involved in the close grip bench press. In the shoulder joint, the anterior deltoid and upper portion of the pectoralis major muscles are in action. The anterior deltoid covers the front of the shoulder while the upper portion of the pectoralis major covers the entire upper chest. In the shoulder girdle, the upper and lower trapezius and serratus anterior muscles are involved. The trapezius is a large muscle covering the middle upper back. It runs from the base of the neck out to both scapula and down to the last thoracic vertebrae. The serratus interior lies on the outer surface of the ribs at the sides (just below the armpit) and is covered by the scapula at the rear and the pectoralis major in front. In the elbow joint, the triceps brachii, a large muscle which covers the entire backside of the arm, is the only major muscle involved. It has three sections: the lateral, medial and long heads. All three heads run into a common tendon which inserts on the ulna bone in the forearm. Only the long head crosses both the elbow and shoulder joints.
MUSCLE/JOINT ACTIONS
In the shoulder joint there is flexion in which the upper arms are raised upward in a vertical plane. In the shoulder girdle there is upward rotation of the scapula in which the left scapula rotates clockwise and the right counterclockwise when viewed from the rear. The arm and scapula actions in the initial part of the up phase greatly stress the upper pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, upper and lower trapezius and serratus anterior. As the bar approaches the mid-point of the up phase and higher, the triceps contracts more strongly and finishes the upward movement. For full shortening of the triceps, it is important that you lock out the elbows at the end of the movement.
SPORTS USES
This exercise is used most often in bodybuilding for development of the triceps muscle. However, it also plays an important role for greater development of the upper pectoralis major and anterior deltoid. The combination of shoulder joint flexion, scapula upward rotation, and elbow joint extension is very important in all forward and upward reaching and pushing actions when the elbows are in close or pointed forward. Thus, it is important in the sport of weightlifting (jerk from the chest), in powerlifting, as an assistive exercise, in boxing when executing jabs, and in the martial arts in execution of certain punches. These actions are also important for gymnasts when executing push-offs in free exercise movements and when working on the bars, and for football players when pushing or hitting with the arms and in blocking. It also plays a roll in some sports such as basketball when executing overhead shots and in some overhead hitting and throwing actions in other sports.