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bench: feet up

Chub

Chub

Well-known member
I've seen a couple people do it now. While benching they'll put there feet up at the end of the bench. Whats the point in this? Does it make it harder as you have to balance more or something? ta :think:
 
I usually see older guys doing it, 35-40+. Maybe its something that used to be popular. Kinda like:
 

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lol!
 
It's not very safe as you do not have a stable base. No difference in muscle activation though.
 
the reason you keep your feet on the ground is so the pressure from the weight distributes evenly from your hands all the way down to your feet. by keeping your feet up, that pressure will distribute but stop at your lower back/spine. not the best place for pressure.

i made this argument with my old kinesiology professor and he explained it to me. made sense. plus his entire thesis for his masters was based on how pressure distributes throughout the body.so i couldn't argue back =P
 
I've always thought/been taught to push through your feet
 
I do it for warm ups sometime or when i'm using a light weight. It's too easy to lose balance with the feet up, so any heavy lifts would be dangerous.
 
they might have a bad back and just want to keep it strait, when i had back pain i felt better if i raised my legs, but then its hard to keep balance at times
 
Kids on my power lifting team put there feet up on bench during power chest workouts, they say it keeps their hips planted on the bench and not in the sky. keeps there ass down, and helps stay strict. I don't know seems stupid and dangerous to me.
 
I am surprised your PL'ing team would make that claim. It completely alters your center of gravity, and negates the ability to drive through the feet on a heavy bench.
 
reminds me of thumbless grip benching popularized in my high school by the meathead jocks (the majority were meatheads). one time, the bar slipped out of one of the kid's hands while he was benching 245. lol not a good day for him

i've always been advised to use a wide foot stance to help increase stability. putting the weight on your heels and feet flat helps immensely as well.
 
purebred said:
reminds me of thumbless grip benching popularized in my high school by the meathead jocks (the majority were meatheads). one time, the bar slipped out of one of the kid's hands while he was benching 245. lol not a good day for him

i've always been advised to use a wide foot stance to help increase stability. putting the weight on your heels and feet flat helps immensely as well.
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Oh, I just saw a video of some guy trying to put up some serious weight with a grip like that. The bar freakin crushed him. Wish I knew were the link was.
 
Here it is. Guess it wasn't serious serious weight, but still enough to fuk a person up.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSJCDcAKShA"]YouTube - Bench Press accident[/ame]
 
It looks like 2 plates and a 35.

I dunno how fuk'd up he got, but I'm sure he did none the less.
 
that hurts just watching.... he must have gotten pretty fuk'd up, that bar went down hard and low on his chest... ouch... ouch
 
i dunno. he looks big enough to just hold the weight. its not hard to hold the weight there... unless something just gave out?
 
ryaroberts said:
i dunno. he looks big enough to just hold the weight. its not hard to hold the weight there... unless something just gave out?
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If you are referring to how the bar dropped, it's because of his grip. His thumbs aren't wrapped around the bar and it slips off his palms. If you are referring to him being able to hold the weight on his chest, I'm sure it would have broke his sternum or other bone structure. If you can break bones doing CPR (and you almost always do) that amount of weight dropping certainly would also.
 
i saw the same vid in slow motion, and your right he lost his grip. it happened so fast i thought he just couldnt handle the weight.
 
The feet up position is used to keep from doing that stupid arch that so many people use to get weight up, It forces you to use strict form. To each their own

:bruce3:
 
I scared my dog when I yelled 'OH!!' watching that video. Thumbless benching is scary I watch guys in the gym do it all the time. It seems to be the thing to do by older, bigger guys.

Feet up benching is only safe with light weight and when you want to concentrate on your chest only. A lot of people look at me funny when I tell them the bench press is a full body exercise and try to contradict me.
 
MoTiV said:
I scared my dog when I yelled 'OH!!' watching that video. Thumbless benching is scary I watch guys in the gym do it all the time. It seems to be the thing to do by older, bigger guys.

Feet up benching is only safe with light weight and when you want to concentrate on your chest only. A lot of people look at me funny when I tell them the bench press is a full body exercise and try to contradict me.
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Exactly, push through the floor.
 
Fastone said:
The feet up position is used to keep from doing that stupid arch that so many people use to get weight up, It forces you to use strict form. To each their own
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positioning one's feet correctly helps prevent extreme arching of the back. the feet up position is not only far less effective ways above and beyond preventing extreme back arching but is poor bench press technique.

i'm all for letting people do whatever they want (to each his/her own) as long as they've been accurately informed and properly advised but what's right is right and what's wrong is wrong. if one's goals in training the bench press corresponds with the majority of other lifter's (i.e. to build muscle & strength) then it would be in one's best interest to bench press with proper technique (i.e. feet flat on the ground, driving from the heel and lower leg perpendicular to the floor).

with regards to the BP accident- if the spotter is a PT, he's not only an idiot but i would think he'd be liable to getting sued pretty nasty, no? let's not be misled by the fact that there were weights added on to the weight of the bar itself. the bar alone can do some serious damage: weights will just increase the amount of damage lol
 
i hate seeing that feet on the bench crap.

pushing thru the floor is good if you are just trying to get alot of weight up there but doesnt it negate some of the work being done by the chest? I would think its good for PL but not for focusing on the pecs.
 
futurepilot said:
I usually see older guys doing it, 35-40+. Maybe its something that used to be popular. Kinda like:
Click to expand...

Yes, this use to be popular and I think the though was it isolated the chest more. Far from true. It just takes an important mechanism out of the lift and that is support from the synergistic muscles being use to balance you on the bench. You get far more muscle recruitment putting you feet on the floor not to mention being much safer.
 
Like I said to each their own, I have over the years witnessed many folks who have accomplished more in the sport than anyone on this board use this technique successfully and It has been beneficial for me personally.

:bruce3:
 
Putting your feet down when benching with a BB or DB is the same as any other exercise: you use your feet to anchor your self, and maintain a proper base while certain muscles iniciate a lift. By liftiing one's feet in the air, or bending the knee (with feet on bench) the muscles have to work harder to control/ balance the weight. I do flys this way.

BTW Arnold did them this way too.:thumbsup:


Watch the knees:
Invalid Link Removed
 
I do both thumbs around and feet up. For me I have a bad back and putting my feet in the air take alot of back pressure off. i feel it also puts more emphasis on the chest. I don't power lift, i just lift for building of the muscles. I been lifting this way for 20 years and it feels good to me. I also have weak wrist and the only way for me to comfortably bench or any pressing movement is with thumbs over. It just works for me. I do this benching over 3 plates comfortably. Just me.
 
CopyCat said:
Here it is. Guess it wasn't serious serious weight, but still enough to fuk a person up.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSJCDcAKShA"]YouTube - Bench Press accident[/ame]
Click to expand...

i used to be totally against the suicide or false grip. then i watched this vid and started to use it more. i know it exclusively on my overheads and i have watched it go up near to my bench weight. still havent done it with the bench press though. kinda chicken still.

Invalid Link Removed
 
If you want to build your core, do some planks. If you want to work your upper body then put your feet on the floor, to stabilize your entire body. The strongest, and biggest people on earth powerlifters, and bodybuilders bench with there feet on the floor. Plus when you press your feet into the ground while pressing there are several advantages, solid base, your recruit more muscle fibers using your entire body, and you wont roll off the bench if the bar comes uneven.
 
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