Military Bench???

[Tblock1]

So I was wondering, has anyone trying doing military bench presses?

Here's some vids:
YouTube - Military bench press 8* 100kg = 220.5 Pounds
YouTube - sotilaspenkki 180 kg - military benchpress

I just tried them for the first time today with a pause like in the second video. My last tested bench max was 255x1 a few months ago with no pause, and I got 235x1 today paused military bench pretty easily.

So what I am trying to find out is if you have done military bench press what is your pr military bench press compared to your regular bench? I am trying to see how much leg drive plays into most people's benching.

 

[Twenty4/7]

i do them a lot. a powerlifter i used to workout with did these a lot. he could do a set of 10 with 315 with pausing and breathing out at the bottom lol. he would do these with 405 and made it look like he was warming up with plates.

 

[ExtraMile]

No but I used to do a burn out set of bench after my 3-5 rep set with feet on the bench, so it took out all the hip drive. That just looks awkward though, seen a few people do it at the gym but never tryed it myself...

 

[oso0960]

lol I've always wondered what they were called. I've seen people in the gym do them also but never done them myself. I personally think that getting hip drive makes it a better exercise though because you can manage more weight from staying tighter which also allows more muscles to get involved which = better gains as long as your ROM is similar .

I would also like to see how much hip drive helps.

 

[Twenty4/7]

its shocking how weak you will feel when you try it.

 

[SouthernLord]

Good exercise if you are looking to get injured. Keep your feet on the ground. If you do want any leg drive in your press kick your feet out in front of you and don't push with them.

 

[lookinfit75]

Good exercise if you are looking to get injured. Keep your feet on the ground. If you do want any leg drive in your press kick your feet out in front of you and don't push with them.

+100000
If your feet aren't on the ground your have no balance or reinforcement which will eventually lead you to topple over and not only fuck yourself up but probably some innocent bi standard. If you want to mess yourself go ahead but don't do something that can potential hurt others in the process.

 

[JDid23]

i am going to give a different opinion. I know i am not nearly as knowledgeable as guys like SL, but please tell me if this makes sense.

When you do a conventional bench press, you're activating more muscles. You are going out of your way to arch your back, and pushing through your knees, which will activate your back a lot more.

However, when you put your feet on the bench and you don't arch your back as much, you don't get the same amount of force you get when you push through your heels, which would transfer the load more to your chest. Yes, you wouldn't be able to use as much weight as you would with a conventional bench press, but you would stimulate your chest more.


Again, please tell me if this is an inaccurate analysis of putting your feet up during bench. When i thought about this the other day it kind of made sense to me.

 

[bblazer]

I have said this before, and I am not name dropping or bragging. I seriously train with what some may call some of the strongest men in the world (I am below pussy level in their presence). You see them on ESPN all the time, and on various PLing comps. NONE of them do this. Is is a torn pec or blown rotator cuff waiting for a place to happen. You are not isolating anything. Instead, you are destabilizing everything. This is a recipe for disaster.

B-

 

[lookinfit75]

i am going to give a different opinion. I know i am not nearly as knowledgeable as guys like SL, but please tell me if this makes sense.

When you do a conventional bench press, you're activating more muscles. You are going out of your way to arch your back, and pushing through your knees, which will activate your back a lot more.

However, when you put your feet on the bench and you don't arch your back as much, you don't get the same amount of force you get when you push through your heels, which would transfer the load more to your chest. Yes, you wouldn't be able to use as much weight as you would with a conventional bench press, but you would stimulate your chest more.


Again, please tell me if this is an inaccurate analysis of putting your feet up during bench. When i thought about this the other day it kind of made sense to me.

There is no way you can fully exercise your chest in this manner. There is no support for the movement which in turn doesn't allow you to fully activate the muscle and like BBlazer said, due to said instability you WILL hurt yourself. If you are worried about your back arch (which you shouldn't because arching your back activates your back muscles - another set of stabilizing muscle which you need for maximal effort) then counter act your body's natural actions (which I wouldn't do) and lay flat on the bench.