The bench press is everybody’s favorite exercise in the gym. When you first start lifting weights, the first thing you do is bench press. The reason for that is because the perception about the bench press is that it makes you look better. The bench press is the most important thing for your appearance. This is not exactly true. One thing it does do is it makes things change very quickly. It makes your appearance of a muscular shoulders and chest happen very quickly. But the bench press is not as simple an exercise as you want it to be. The bench press is a movement that starts at the floor and ends at the bar. Even though you’re laying on a bench, your lower body is involved in the bench press because of the brace that must occur between your shoulders pinned to the bench and your feet pinned to the floor. That stable bridge between the floor and your shoulders is the foundation of the movement pattern. You can’t bench as much weight with your feet up on the bench, for example, as you can with your feet on the floor locked in place, setting tension against your spine, your hips and your knees. So, the bench press is a little bit more complicated than it looks like it is. So, today we’re going to show you how to get in position on the bench, and what to do with your feet, your butt, your hips, your back, your legs and all the stuff that contributes to a big heavy bench press. We’re going through the correct setup for the bench press according to Mark Rippetoe and Starting Strength methodology. Establishing a stable connection between the floor and your shoulders is essential for using your whole body and getting the best training effect.
