6 Stronger Bench Exercises
by Todd Bumgardner, MS -

Most benchers exhibit 1 of 4 problems. Here are 6 innovative fixes, including chaos bench-presses and dead-start upper-body box jumps.

Livespill Chaos

AZTweakerHunter: @bulk and @Dan thank you both!

mertdawg: And I will flip the trap bar upright and carry it like a suitcase.

mertdawg: I also like to do unilateral heavy dumbell deadlifts for the obliques.

mertdawg: I have come up with a new variation for Zerchers. Maybe someone else figured it out 10 years ago who knows? Anyway, I put a 6" PVC sleeve around the bar to increase the lever length. Also I put a rolled up towel around the back of my neck and over the shoulders and then I can grab the towel ends in front of me so that I can hold on to basically an unlimited weight.

Pantherhare: Honest question to the anti-flexion crowd: do you know of anyone who makes a living off the appearance of their abs (bodybuilders, physique models, etc) that rely only on isometric exercises? As for Koch, like others, I remember him flogging the hell out of his ab bench on Ironman. I even recall an article from him claiming that spot reduction was possible through the use of his ab bench.

Dan Blewett: @AZT - the rowing I leave in are usually low-rowing variations - chest supported or low cable are two examples. High levels of tension through the joint is what we try to eliminate for about a month, then slowly re-introduce. We'll also hit forearm extensors a little harder. This is probably a topic for another article as a few of you have suggested.

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Todd Bumgardner is a co-founder of Beyond Strength Performance. Todd holds an MS degree in exercise science from the California University of Pennsylvania, and is a graduate of Lycoming College (PA), where he played football and served as a strength and conditioning coach. Bumgardner is certified as Performance Enhancement Specialist (PES) through the National Academy of Sports Medicine. He's a competitive powerlifter, and presently pursuing additional graduate studies in nutrition.