Change your Grip for Better Bench Gains

Doing this exercise will boost your bench press almost immediately by using a neutral grip on a pair of dumbbells. If you’re really smart about the way you lift, you should already know that you don’t bench press with your arms straight 90 degrees out from your sides. The way smart lifters go about bench pressing is they actually keep their elbows as close to their sides while descending during benching. By tucking in your elbows 4-6 inches away from your sides, you’ll be able to get more power and also decrease the chances of you injuring your shoulder. Using the neutral grip technique for about nine to twelve weeks will help you physically and mentally in getting comfortable about tucking your elbows in.

1) First thing’s first. Grab a pair of dumbbells and lie flat on the bench. While laying down, arch your lower back while squeezing your shoulder blades into the bench at the same time. With your palms facing each other in a neutral grip, position the weight at the sides of your chest.

2) Next, while keeping your wrists in the exact position, begin your exercise by pressing the weights straight overhead.

Why does this exercise help increase your bench? Well to put it bluntly, rather than having your palms pointed towards your feet and keeping them facing towards each other will help you naturally keep your elbows close to your sides. It’s only a matter of time until you start to automatically do this while bench pressing. By doing this exercise, it allows you lift heavy weight while taking excess heavy pressure on your shoulders thus increasing your mechanical advantage on the exercise.

This exercise also helps build your overall upper body. It works the chest, the triceps, the forearms, the shoulders, biceps, and deltoids. If you’re stuck on a bench plateau, this exercise will help you put extra pounds on the bench and get passed your plateau. You can apply the same concept to other exercises as well. If you’re stuck and haven’t been making gains in a while, change up your workout routine.