Bench press for jumpers

    Posted In: Polls

        • Participant
          saltojump5 on November 2, 2006 at 1:13 am #12341

          Hey guys and gals. I'll let the bench press question get hashed out here. Please add a few comments as to your line of thinking. Should bench press/other pressing variants be used in jumpers' training as a tool for improving performance? I'm particularly thinking of pressing as a primary exercise like squats/olys/etc, which will see max strength development. I'm not thinking so much of pressing movements in general strength work/circuits.

        • Participant
          utfootball4 on November 2, 2006 at 1:45 am #58416

          I think there are a couple of reasons to keep it in. don't worry about non-functional hypertrophy. If you are lifting less than 6 reps and keeping the majority of your sets in the 3 rep range, it is unlikely that you will expereience any significant hypertrophy.

          the fact that benching is non-specific to sprinting is an advantage in the competition and peaking periods because it means that you can keep doing this lift at a high intensity to get CNS activation while not negatively impacting the prime movers for sprinting. I believe Charlie has said that bench presses are the exercise that you can do closest to a major competition. If you don't train bench press, it is unlikely that you will be able to generate the CNS stimulation by throwing it in at the end (not to mention the DOMS you would get with such an approach!)

        • Participant
          utfootball4 on November 2, 2006 at 1:49 am #58417

          "In fact, it has been my experience, repeated many times, that, at the very last stages, the Bench Press directly benefits the final performance a few days later. There are discussions of this effect on the site and in the Vanc 2004 DVD". CF

        • Participant
          saltojump5 on November 2, 2006 at 2:17 am #58418

          Hypertrophy really isn't a worry, b/c I know how to avoid that. Just looking for positive effects/transfer to sprinting/jumping. What you've eluded to sounds plausible. 

        • Keymaster
          Mike Young on November 2, 2006 at 6:15 am #58419

          While I think it's a great exercise I think it's far more replaceable than the squat. If you told me I had to take a guy from 50 to 54 feet and I had to cut out either the squat (or lunges, or step-ups, etc) or the bench press I wouldn't even think twice.

          ELITETRACK Founder

        • Participant
          utfootball4 on November 2, 2006 at 6:21 am #58420

          While I think it's a great exercise I think it's far more replaceable than the squat. If you told me I had to take a guy from 50 to 54 feet and I had to cut out either the squat (or lunges, or step-ups, etc) or the bench press I wouldn't even think twice.

          well come on thats easy, but if you bp it wont hamper ur performance. of course you would always pc and sq before bp.

        • Keymaster
          Mike Young on November 2, 2006 at 6:29 am #58421

          You're right it won't hamper performance but the point I was trying to make is that it's just a tool that's nice to have and by no means should be considered essential.

          ELITETRACK Founder

        • Participant
          thenextbestthing on November 2, 2006 at 9:38 am #58422

          in the tj isnt the movement of your arms critical to your performance? so wouldnt bench press do quite a bit of help?

        • Participant
          flight05 on November 2, 2006 at 11:02 am #58423

          weight training is not specific movement training. ur training fibers and muscles. bench press is just an added cns stress

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