The Bench Press: You're Forgetting to Do This - Part 3
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(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 05/27/22)
You’re all set to bench - your grip is pronated, your shoulder blades are pinched back, and you’re driving with your legs, but you’re still forgetting one thing . . .
Jeremiah correctly fixes his gaze at a point on the ceiling.
Find your focal point.
After you’ve unracked the barbell but before starting the first rep, find a point directly above you on the ceiling and stare at that point. You now have created a “sight picture” as you can still see the barbell in your periphery even while staring at the ceiling. You’re going to recreate this picture at the end of each rep, so remind yourself that the bar needs to finish in this exact same position every single time.
Then, simply stare at that focal point during each rep and even between reps - there’s no need to introduce unnecessary variability into your benching by having to re-find the focal point before each rep, so just keep looking at it like you do in the squat (watch the included video).
Having a stationary reference point makes for a more consistent and efficient bar path, and it makes for better balance as well (we don’t watch the bar since it’s a moving reference point).
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.
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Get a Bigger Press TODAY | 3 Tactics to Triage Your Press FAST
/Need to fix your press but not sure where to start? Phil covers three major technical aspects of your press to focus on and evaluate when trying to improve your press.
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Testify Tribune - June 17, 2024
/THIS WEEK'S SUBMISSION
From our video What is a Hang Power Clean? | Olympic Weightlifting Technique (click the title to watch):
adncorotube
Do we hit the bar with the hip on this lift?
Phil
No, in a clean, the bar will brush/contact the thighs. The touch point is roughly the middle of the thigh, but this will vary a little bit based on anthropometry. The snatch is the lift wherein the bar will contact the hips.
adncorotube
Thanks a lot for the explanation.
Phil
You're very welcome.
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ARTICLES & VIDEOS
8 Things Successful Lifters Do Before Benching HEAVY (plus BONUS tip)
What should you take care of before a heavy bench press? We cover 8 simple and effective tips - plus 1 bonus tip - when preparing to bench press heavy. Click here to watch.
What is a Hang Clean? | Olympic Weightlifting Technique
What is a hang clean? How is it different from a power clean, hang power clean, or clean? We cover it all here in this brief article. Click here to read.
Blast from the Past: FIX Your Press | How to Correctly Use the Hips to Press More!
Are you using your hips incorrectly in the press? Is the timing of your throw off? Let's fix it. Click here to watch.
Blast from the Past: The Squat: Are You Making This Mistake?
Is your overextended back ruining your squat? In this article, Phil quickly discusses and demonstrates how to solve this problem. Click here to read.
“GET STRONGER - LIVE BETTER” SHIRTS ARE AVAILABLE!
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WHAT'S COMING UP
Reminder: We will be closed for training on Saturday, June 22, as we are hosting the annual Testify Strongman Summer Showdown that day.
Below are a few of our upcoming events, and you can find out what else is on the calendar by heading to our events page at www.testifysc.com/events.
Testify IronFest VI
July 12, 2024
IronFest is a team-based strength meet wherein the contested lifts will be the squat, press, bench press, and deadlift. Competitors will form teams of 2 lifters/team and perform all 4 lifts; each lifter will perform one upper body lift and one lower body lift, and each lifter will receive 3 attempts for each lift.
Click here to register or for more information.
Deadapalooza! The Annual Testify Deadlift Festival
August 23, 2024
Deadapalooza is a strength meet wherein the only contested lift is - you guessed it - the deadlift. There will be one bar (possibly multiple bars if numbers dictate), and the meet will be conducted in a "rising bar" format, so the weight on the bar only goes up! It's a ton of fun, so come on out!
Click here to register or for more information.
Testify Fall Classic
October 26, 2024
The annual Testify Fall Classic is back, and we invite you to be a part of it! This is a strengthlifting meet, which means the contested lifts will be the squat, press, and deadlift.
Click here to register or for more information.
THIS WEEK’S CONDITIONING
Option 1
“Prowler Base”
1. Load up a manageable weight.
2. Sprint 40m at 85% intensity.
3. Rest until breathing and heart rate slow down. (45 sec – 2 min)
4. Repeat 5-15 times.
Courtesy of “Death by Prowler” (on Starting Strength).
Compare to 2024.04.15.
Option 2
Bike/row:
8 x 30 sec on/2:00 off
Score = least distance covered in any 30 second interval
Compare to 2024.03.25.
Option 3
5-10 rounds:
50 ft yoke carry
50 ft yoke push
100 ft sandbag carry and S.O.B. (sandbag-over-bar)
Perform 1 round every 2-3 minutes.
Compare to 2024.02.26.
Option 4
Row/Tire 10 min ladder:
2 cal row
2 tire flips
4 cal row
4 tire flips
6 cal row
6 tire flips
…
Climb the ladder as high as possible in 10 minutes.
Compare to 2024.02.26.
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better!
What is a Hang Clean? | Olympic Weightlifting Technique
/What is a hang clean? How is it different from a power clean, hang power clean, or clean? As in our clean and power clean articles, let’s break this down simply and quickly, and for a demonstration with explanation, watch the included (and short) video.
Figure 1: the lift starts with the bar hanging in the hands (since “hang” is present).
“Hang” is Present
We begin by examining the words present or not present in the name of the lift.
The word “hang” is present, so the hang clean starts with the barbell hanging in the hands (Figure 1). Usually, the lift will start somewhere around the middle or lower part of the thigh, but you can also start a hang clean from a lower or higher position.
Again - and this is the important part - a hang clean simply starts with the bar hanging in the hands, and thus the lift does not start with the bar resting on the floor.
figure 2: THE LIFT IS RECEIVED IN A FULL DEPTH FRONT SQUAT (SINCE “POWER” AND “SPLIT” ARE NOT PRESENT).
No “Power” or “Split”
The words “power” and “split” are absent, so the lift will not be received in the power position (i.e., a partial depth front squat), nor will it be received in the split position (i.e., with one foot in front of the torso and one foot behind the torso). By default, this means the lift will be received in a full depth front squat (Figure 2).
So . . . What IS a Hang Clean?
Thus, a hang clean is a lift wherein the bar starts hanging in the hands and is then accelerated upward, imparting enough momentum to the bar that the bar continues upward, whereupon it is then racked (AKA “caught” or “received”) in a full depth front squat position before it is then stood up.
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.
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