Bench press grip position?

GayLubeOil · 2015-09-16T17:55:37+00:00

It depends on the length of your arms and your ribcage. Constant muscular tension and dips and flies work the best to grow chest for me.

StillThriving · 2015-09-16T14:39:51+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUcjOIZc80c

pinstrap · 2015-09-16T12:26:15+00:00

Close grip is going to workout your arms (triceps especially) more. Wide grip is going to workout your chest more. I always put my ring finger on those rings on the bar. That's just what I was taught.

throw_em_all · 2015-09-16T14:42:16+00:00

Narrow/shoulder grip makes me uncomfortable, hurts my shoulders and I feel overall weaker, my grip is half to one inch outside the ring.

Also I bench press with powerlifting form, arched back, retracted shoulder blades and leg drive.

RPAlternate42 · 2015-09-16T17:41:32+00:00

Nominal position is forearms perpendicular to the floor at full eccentricity (full negative.) Variation in and out works triceps and chest more, respectively.

radianceofparadise · 2015-09-16T17:54:11+00:00

Narrow grip for tri's and inner chest. Wide grip for outer chest/shoulders. Be careful with wide grip. At heavier weights, it can wreak havoc on your shoulders as you will tend to flare your elbows out to compensate for the grip. I prefer a grip that is slightly wider than my shoulders. I put my pinkies on those rings or just inside those rings.

Ronin11A · 2015-09-16T19:35:07+00:00

such that my forearms are perpendicular to the floor.

At the bottom of the rep? This is correct.

Your bench grip is determined by your personal body mechanics. At the bottom of the rep (with the bar just touching), your forearms should be parallel with each other and perpendicular to the floor. This width will not be the same for all people, because not all people have shoulders that are the same width.

The reason Starting Strength and any trainer worth their salt doesn't recommend an ultra-wide bench grip is simple: it allows your shoulders to internally rotate, placing a shitload of strain on the shoulder ligaments, and causing eventual injury. Instead of externally rotating and staying tight, you're flaring your elbows so you can feel the stretch in your chest. RIP, shoulder ligaments.

The bench is a shit exercise for "working the chest." It's a compound movement best suited to strength/mass.

If you want to specifically isolate your chest, you would do better to hit volume dumbbell and cable flies at various angles (incline, flat, decline).

keepflowingbro · 2015-09-16T19:43:57+00:00

There seems to be some pretty good suggestions here. Overall, weight training allows for experimentation and you get to find what works best for you. Just don't experiment with weights that are too heavy for your current skills.

You can ask or look around the gym and see and ask what is working best for other guys, try out for yourself, and adjust and adapt as needed. After consistently hitting the gym, you will develop wisdom about what is best for your body and your goals.

shurk127 · 2015-09-16T20:53:08+00:00

A wider grip purportedly puts more stress on the upper chest muscles

This is incorrect. A close grip will hit your upper chest, if that is your goal.

Wider/closer grips work different parts of the chest and accessory muscles (triceps mostly) of the compound movement. It is incorrect that a wider grip targets your upper chest.

Wider grip hits your chest as a whole more, making those muscles bear the brunt of the lift. Compare it to the motion of a flye. Conversely too wide of a grip can cause undue stress to your shoulders.

Close grip hits your tris and the upper part of your chest HARD.

Thesegates · 2015-09-16T15:38:03+00:00

For bench, you're working out less of your chest then you would think. You want a bigger chest? Do fly related workouts. As far as bench goes, Google monkey grip and use the two round circles on the bar as a place to position your pinky. If that isn't comfortable, fuck people's opinion. Bench is 1 of the 3 power workouts and it doesn't matter. Whatever is most conducive to your lift.

Hippostalker · 2015-09-16T10:30:13+00:00

This is powerlifting grip you are talking about. Indeed, it puts more emphasis on the chest muscles and less on the triceps and hands.

The purpose of the starting strength book and program is for you to get overall stronger, not to push that extra kg during the powerlifting competition.

So in a nutshell I would advice you to find a comfortable grip width for you and stick with it. Just don't make it too narrow or it will become a triceps exercise.

I use powerlifting grip because I find it comfortable for me and I can lift more that way. A friend of mine uses narrower grip with a distance approximately "one grip from the knurling". Both work.

Dzuari · 2015-09-16T14:11:37+00:00

Which ever one you need to work on.

Want bigger chest? wide grip

want bigger arms? close grip

Title	Bench press grip position?
Author	redpillcynic
Upvotes	5
Comments	20
Date	September 16, 2015 10:20 AM UTC (10 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/askTRP
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/asktrp/comments/3l5l8o/bench_press_grip_position/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/askTRP/bench-press-grip-position.153902 https://theredarchive.com/post/153902

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