Aug 2, 2017A Pressing Problem
For many years, the bench press has been considered the universal measure of upper body strength in nearly every sport. However, this popular exercise may not necessarily be the best tool for athletes because it neglects shoulder flexibility and even bears the risk of injury.
In an article on All Access Coaching, football coach and weight training teacher Rick Stewart argues that your athletes shouldn’t be training like most other people in the gym, and the bench press is a perfect example of an exercise that epitomizes this distinction. This activity might be intriguing to your players because it makes them look good, but it’s actually a waste of time in terms of improving their overall skill and technique.
According to Stewart, the bench press is a horizontal push, where the athlete is purely pressing weight away from or her chest on a flat surface. Therefore, it doesn’t translate to in-game movements in most sports, which often require dynamic motions involving the scapula. Your athletes will rarely press straight forward from one angle, so the bench press is ineffective in attacking the chest and shoulders in a realistic manner.
This exercise is also overrated because, if they are performing it properly, athletes are taught to use a wide grip. But, this type of technique is unrealistic on the field, as a football lineman blocking or a basketball player fighting for position under the rim, for example, both employ narrow grips.
Furthermore, Stewart says that most athletes perform movements that require flexibility, yet the bench press locks up your shoulder blades to use as a stable base. For instance, a quarterback or a baseball pitcher doesn’t throw a ball with a fixed shoulder. Instead, your athletes should be engaging in activities that encourage mobility.
Performance specialist Dr. T.J. Allan agrees and describes the risks associated with the bench press for basketball players in a blog for USAB. Ultimately, there is no positive correlation between the bench press at the NBA combine and performance on the court.
And worse than being useless, bench pressing can also be detrimental. Too much bench pressing can lead to shoulder problems due to the internal rotation of these muscles when an athlete’s elbows flare outward during the press. This injury risk can increase if you don’t introduce an even ratio of pulling and pushing exercises for your athletes. In addition, basketball players with long arms may struggle with the bench press since they have a farther distance to travel until the bar hits their chest.
Eric Cressey, president and co-founder of Cressey Sports Performance, reiterates this concern for baseball players, especially pitchers, in this article. Throwing a baseball relies on scapular movement, so you need to train this motion heavily in your athletes, but the bench press removes almost all flexibility in the shoulder. The muscle mass gained in the upper body from this exercise can also translate to the restriction of shoulder and scapular movement on the field.
Therefore, instead of using the bench press in your workouts, introduce alternatives. Stewart suggests standing presses, dumbbell incline bench press, dips, and a variety of pushups.
Standing presses can include a military press with dumbbells in the standing position, push presses, or squat presses with the bar. Stewart offers the incline bench to satisfy athletes if they still have a strong desire for some type of bench press. This variation better simulates the path of a pass or block and trains the upper chest, triceps, and shoulders. Dips are terrific for simulating the dynamic shoulder movement that is required of your athletes in most sports.
Lastly, a variety of pushups can be achieved by first changing the position of the hands with standard, diamond, wide, alternate, and military styles. From this starting point, you can introduce uneven planes of movement by placing one hand on bumper plates or kettle bells. The angle can also be changed by utilizing decline pushups and hand stands. Finally, explosion training can be incorporated by adding clapping, in and outs, or around the clock pushups.
