challenge yourself in controlling the bar during the pause.
Dead Bench
The Dead Bench is an exercise shown to me by Josh Bryant.
This is performed by placing the bar 1-2” off the chest sit-
ting on pins in a rack. You will press up from there and this
will build greater starting strength because it eliminates the
stretch reflex. This is a challenging variation and definitely
helped build my bench when I included it. Here is an exam-
ple of how to progress Dead Bench in your program…
Week 1-8x1 at 60% w/ 30 sec rest
Week 2-10x1 at 60% w/ 30 sec rest
Week 3-12x1 at 60% w/ 30 sec rest
Week 4-6x1 at 55% w/ 30 sec rest
Week 5-10x1 at 65% w/ 45 sec rest
Week 6-9x1 at 70% w/ 60 sec rest
Week 7-8x1 at 75% w/ 75 sec rest
Week 8-5x1 at 65% w/ 60 sec rest
Week 9-5x1 at 80% w/ 90 sec rest
Week 10-4x1 at 85% w/ 120 sec rest
Week 11-3x1 at 90% w/ Rest As Needed
Week 12-None
Front/Lateral Raises
Directly training the delts through front and lateral rais-
es are a great option during Hypertrophy Phases to add
muscle mass and can be useful to maintain muscle mass
during lower volume strength and peaking phases. Whether
performed with Dumbbells, Barbells or Plates, these exer-
cises don’t lend themselves well to maximal loading and
should be train primarily in the 8-20 rep range.
Lockout Strength
The lockout of the bench press is largely driven by the
strength of the triceps. One of geared powerlifting’s great-
est contributions to training ideas is their numerous ex-
ercises to improve the bench press lockout, since shirted
bench pressing is so reliant upon tricep strength.
Closegrip Bench
This is the gold standard of tricep development, you can
go heavy and it is highly specific to the bench press. Some
people may suffer from shoulder pain from closegrip
pressing because it will cause them to lose some scapu-
lar retraction when the bar is on their chest, so adding 1-2
boards can be appropriate.
Skullcrushers
Whether performed with a straight bar, EZ curl bar or
dumbbells, the skullcrusher is a great option for overload-
ing the triceps for growth and strength. Elbow pain may
often accompany hard training on this exercise, so feel free
to adjust hand position and arm angle by feel.
Dips
Dips are often a love/hate exercise for those looking to
bench big. Those who love them find great strength devel-
opment and growth through the shoulders and triceps by
performing them. Those who hate them will be plagued
with elbow, shoulder and/or sternum pain from just a few
reps. If Dips feel good for you, then by all means, go for it
and train them hard in the 5-15 rep range.
Other Tricep Work
Training the triceps becomes largely individualized based
on how the lifter’s elbows tolerate the training. There aren’t
necessarily good or bad exercises, but rather exercises that
work for you. Pushdowns, JM Press, Tate Press, Dicks Press
and many others can all be useful, so hit up YouTube and
find some new variations that can work for you.
Mechanical Overload
The other aspect of bench training that usually needs ad-
dressing is the athlete’s ability to handle heavy weights, this
can be from Neural adaptations or confidence. To enhance
