Anyone compete doing bench only?

dewgirl321

I just signed up for my first competition, and i'll be doing bench only, raw. I can't do heavy squats and deads due to multiple surgeries on my left leg.

Anyone else doing bench only? What program / schedule do you follow for your chest and other muscle group workouts?

ChrisLindsay9

I'm not sure I can recommend a bench program, but I will give you this bit of advice. When you're preparing for the meet, you will want to definitely practice with a pause at the bottom (barbell touching your chest). And make sure it's a long pause. Like 2 seconds.

I trained with someone acting as a judge and giving me the "press command" for my first competition a few weeks ago ... but when it came to the competition, I had a judge who was slow on the press command and it felt like the barbell was on my chest for a good couple of seconds.

The advice I received about determining my opener, was to pick a weight you can do for three reps when everything is going wrong. I would add "pick a weight that you can do that's been sitting on your chest for 5 seconds for a couple of reps" heh!

Good luck on the competition! Let us know how you do.

juliewatkin

I haven't done a bench only meet because I hate bench and see it only as a lift you lie down for between squats and deadlift

However, I have done a smolov junior for bench cycle twice with good results.

I will second ChrisLindsay on practice your pause. I'm a ref and we aren't looking for just a pause, it must be motionless on your chest (IPF rules). If the bar is touching but moving around and wobbling, you won't get a press command. Stay tight.

dewgirl321

Thanks for the feedback! The pause is definitely my struggle right now, so I'm definitely focusing on improving that!

Thor2020

I love the bench and practiced with a pause for a long time. A couple of things:

On your 1 RM with a pause, slow the motion coming down....prevents momentum buildup I suppose...regardless it seemed to work for me.

Do "burst" reps....I'm not sure what else to call them, but I would put the bar on my chest...let it sit for a second or two....then BURST that rep as hard as I could....I'd do about 5 reps like that, so make sure it's a weight you can handle.

Finally, try doing the bench press on the floor...I saw a youtube video of this and tried it in my routine.....it concentrates the power on the triceps for your bench press in the upward motion.

I'll stop there, because I could go on and on and on, on this topic.

Thanks for the feedback! The pause is definitely my struggle right now, so I'm definitely focusing on improving that!