shoulder?

BeyondAdaptation · 03-08-2007, 01:46 AM

im wondering what shoulder exercises would be best to help my bench increase as fast as possible. im not usually one to go to the gym and bench the whole time but someone recently challenged me to see who can get to 225 lbs the quickest. i am currently at 175 for 1 rep and he is at 185 for 3 reps. i took the bet because who really cares if im not as big as him? if anything it will motivate me even more. tris are pretty straight forward but i know some shoulder exercises will help more than others. any advice? thanks guys.

**davtown** · 03-08-2007, 02:26 AM

If you're not already doing rotator cuff exercises, I highly recommend them. They will definitely help out your pressing strength. Put simply, if you can't stabilize the weight, how are you going to lift it? They should also be done for safety reasons.

Here is a good article in regards to rotator cuff training - why to do it and how to do it. Testosterone Nation - Cracking the Rotator Cuff Conundrum

Here's an excerpt from the article in regards to strength.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric Cressey

Strength: Let's put it this way: if you have the stabilizers of a Girl Scout, do you think you're going to be able to handle manly loads on your mass building exercises? Personally, I'd much rather be pressing a Buick than pushing boxes of cookies!

Weak external rotators of the humerus are limiting factors to development of internal rotator size and strength, as the body won't allow progress to continue in the presence of an imbalance which could lead to injury. We all know the pecs, lats, and delts have outstanding growth potential, but few recognize that this potential can't be fully realized unless the external rotators are up to par.

It's not uncommon to see an individual break through a bench, row, pull-up, or Olympic lift sticking point just by incorporating direct external rotator training. Likewise, a little attention to supraspinatus training can yield equally favorable results in overhead pressing and lateral raise strength.

If you're not interested in all the scientific oriented info in that article, just skip down to the part where it says "The Plan".

**DJSTARER** · 03-08-2007, 02:38 AM

close grip incline BB bench

**romanaz** · 03-08-2007, 03:11 AM

I think I'll add in some r/c work and see if it helps.. might be my weak link, I never thought of that.

for shoulders, I like to split it up between front/side/rear delts.

front delts I would hit with incline bb or incline close grip bb press's, and front plate raises.

side with side raises, and rear with bb/db rows.

enjoy!

**Trick D** · 03-08-2007, 03:40 AM

Of course heavy shoulder presses, I would suggest doing them on a day at least 2 days from your last bench press day. I have always had shoulder problems, so I focused on rear delts and shoulder presses and some type of lateral raises. Some frontals too. Rotator cuffs are always forgot about too. I would post your chest workouts to see if you are maximizing them too, and your triceps

**DarkFalcon** · 03-08-2007, 07:41 AM

Shoulder's aren't really where you need to focus for solid bench. Your front delt's could use some work but overall lat's and tri's are the big helpers. This is a must read.... http://www.ironmass.com/exercises/13...-training.html

**romanaz** · 03-08-2007, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkFalcon

Shoulder's aren't really where you need to focus for solid bench. Your front delt's could use some work but overall lat's and tri's are the big helpers. This is a must read.... http://www.ironmass.com/exercises/13...-training.html

depending on his form, shoulders ARE an important part. Probably more so then his chest. But, if you don't bench right for lats, they don't get used efficiently, or so I'm told.

note : listen to w/e keith says

BeyondAdaptation · 03-09-2007, 02:22 AM

thanks. i havent had time yet to read the articles you posted or research any of the things you suggested but i should have time this weekend. about what darkfalcon said, i know that shoulders are not the most important part to getting my bench higher but i was curious as to what excercises would be most beneficial since that is my current goal. i figure if im doing shoulders anyway might as well get the most out of it. i will post my chest days and and any other questions i have once i have time and do some reading. i went up another 10 lbs tonight too so im getting closer. that $20 is mine. oh yeah, and the bragging rights

**bubba g** · 03-09-2007, 02:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeyondAdaptation

thanks. i havent had time yet to read the articles you posted or research any of the things you suggested but i should have time this weekend. about what darkfalcon said, i know that shoulders are not the most important part to getting my bench higher but i was curious as to what excercises would be most beneficial since that is my current goal. i figure if im doing shoulders anyway might as well get the most out of it. i will post my chest days and and any other questions i have once i have time and do some reading. i went up another 10 lbs tonight too so im getting closer. that $20 is mine. oh yeah, and the bragging rights

You definatly want to do low rep bench for training... I use 3 reps for strength... a lot of warmups, then I go for the 3 reps... one working set works great for me... as far as strength goes..

example.. you add weight ofcoarse every set...
1 set x 10 reps
1 set 5 reps
1 set 3 reps .....Not your working weight
1 more for 3 reps... Not your working weight
then do your work set for 3 reps... make sure it is heavy enough that you can only get 3.

Partials are also a great way to add strength...

**romanaz** · 03-09-2007, 03:39 AM

I use 1 rep for strength :-D

**Succio** · 03-09-2007, 04:34 AM

shoulders are more important than lats and chest in the bench

try doing push presses, theyve helped me increase my bench

**bubba g** · 03-09-2007, 04:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by romanaz

I use 1 rep for strength :-D

I hope you're kidding...lol

**romanaz** · 03-09-2007, 01:19 PM

if you want to increase your 1RM, do 1 rep!

If you want to increase 3RM, do 3 reps

**Trick D** · 03-09-2007, 04:39 PM

Not quite Roman... I wish that was the truth, but in actuality, if you are doing 1 rep to increase your 1 rep you are just killing your body. Your one rep max is the maximum strength your body has to produce one rep. if you are doing 1 rep all the time, you are killing your 1 rep max. Now I do agree that lowering the number of reps can do good for your 1 rep max, in actuality I never ever believe anyone should go below 3. And really 3 doesn't give you much of a pump anyway (I know you aren't trying to increase mass, but still gotta have that blow flow).

**Ikaika** · 03-09-2007, 06:26 PM

Dude bloodflow happens when you warm up...hence the name. Lol.

I like Bubba's style, except I'd tend more towards doing 2 or 3 sets of 3.

**romanaz** · 03-09-2007, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trick D

Not quite Roman... I wish that was the truth, but in actuality, if you are doing 1 rep to increase your 1 rep you are just killing your body. Your one rep max is the maximum strength your body has to produce one rep. if you are doing 1 rep all the time, you are killing your 1 rep max. Now I do agree that lowering the number of reps can do good for your 1 rep max, in actuality I never ever believe anyone should go below 3. And really 3 doesn't give you much of a pump anyway (I know you aren't trying to increase mass, but still gotta have that blow flow).

could explain why my bench sucks

lol

03-08-2007, 01:46 AM	#1
BeyondAdaptation Amateur Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: NH Posts: 63 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 5	shoulder? im wondering what shoulder exercises would be best to help my bench increase as fast as possible. im not usually one to go to the gym and bench the whole time but someone recently challenged me to see who can get to 225 lbs the quickest. i am currently at 175 for 1 rep and he is at 185 for 3 reps. i took the bet because who really cares if im not as big as him? if anything it will motivate me even more. tris are pretty straight forward but i know some shoulder exercises will help more than others. any advice? thanks guys. __________________ --------------- 142 lbs Bench: 215 Deadlift: 305 Squat: 225/ Dips: 5+50lbs

03-08-2007, 02:38 AM	#3
DJSTARER eating more folate... Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: State College, PA Posts: 3,979 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 113	close grip incline BB bench __________________ My philosophies on training: "Extreme training yields extreme results" "Just because you can, does not mean you should" "The best program is the one you are not doing" Penn State Powerlifting-181 lb weightclass PGA Professional of America Current Stats: 474 Squat 601 Deadlift 320 Bench Goals for next training cycle: 500lbs squat and a total over 1400 in competition

03-09-2007, 02:22 AM	#8
BeyondAdaptation Amateur Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: NH Posts: 63 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 5	thanks. i havent had time yet to read the articles you posted or research any of the things you suggested but i should have time this weekend. about what darkfalcon said, i know that shoulders are not the most important part to getting my bench higher but i was curious as to what excercises would be most beneficial since that is my current goal. i figure if im doing shoulders anyway might as well get the most out of it. i will post my chest days and and any other questions i have once i have time and do some reading. i went up another 10 lbs tonight too so im getting closer. that $20 is mine. oh yeah, and the bragging rights __________________ --------------- 142 lbs Bench: 215 Deadlift: 305 Squat: 225/ Dips: 5+50lbs

03-09-2007, 04:34 AM	#11
Succio IronMass Sponsor Join Date: May 2006 Location: beastville Posts: 1,938 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 95	shoulders are more important than lats and chest in the bench try doing push presses, theyve helped me increase my bench __________________ SUPPLEMENTS.NET REP

03-09-2007, 06:26 PM	#15
Ikaika resident degen Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 3,795 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 214	Dude bloodflow happens when you warm up...hence the name. Lol. I like Bubba's style, except I'd tend more towards doing 2 or 3 sets of 3. __________________ No supplement can make up for the lack of a strong work ethic.

03-08-2007, 07:41 AM	#6
DarkFalcon I've got a RAGING clue! Join Date: May 2005 Location: dnyc99's cleaning staff Posts: 12,526 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 309	Shoulder's aren't really where you need to focus for solid bench. Your front delt's could use some work but overall lat's and tri's are the big helpers. This is a must read.... http://www.ironmass.com/exercises/13...-training.html

03-09-2007, 07:04 PM	#17
davtown OM NOM NOM NOM Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: San Francisco Posts: 2,348 Recipes: 0 Rep Power: 128