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Why feeling bench press in shoulders, not chest? The bench press is a top exercise pectoral workouts that gymgoers consistently do to gain muscle for themselves.

And it should be practised first in the training session to ensure that the fatigue of a particular muscle group will not affect them. Limit this exercise.

In addition, practising the proper technique will also help increase the effectiveness of the training. Among the pectoral exercises, the bench press is the most popular exercise used by gymers and the essential activity for developing strength in your upper body.

Why Feeling Bench Press in shoulders, not chest?

  1. Wrong technique
  2. You don’t bench Press with correct technique by starts from preparation: the fact that you do bench press only increases shoulder muscles without increasing chest muscles, mainly due to incorrect technique can’t feel chest muscles when bench press as well as: 
  3. poor nutrition
  4. and rest time.

Bench Press is an excellent exercise to build your chest, but it has little or no effect if you do it wrong. Therefore, in this article, let’s examine some factors: bench press only increases shoulder muscle but not chest muscle.

1. Wrong technique

This is the most common cause many people suffer from, practising the wrong movements: Wrong amplitude, breathing, posture, time of pressure on muscles.

Doing the correct action is not just about lowering and lifting weights. You need to pay attention to your exercise technique: form, range of movement, time to raise and lower the weight, or how to hold the weight correctly.

2. Bench Press with correct technique starts from preparation:

To maximize the effectiveness of the chest press exercise with the bar, you need to focus on each up and down weight in each set. If you compare Barbell Bench Press and Deadlift activity, you will find that pushing the chest is much simpler. However, you should take the time to pay attention to the preparation of movements before practising.

Here are the steps that you should check before you start bench press:

  • Back position: Head, upper back and buttocks should be fixed on a chair; a straight lower back will not be suitable for this exercise. You should keep a small amount of free space in the lower back with the chair.
  • Arm Position: Nowadays, there is quite a bit of advice on the Internet about grip width when doing Barbell Bench Press. However, you can hold it wide or narrow to create stimulation on the chest; keep the elbows from deviating too far from the body. In general, using a wide grip so that the forearm is vertical and perpendicular to the floor when lowering the weight, with the elbow lower than the shoulder, will reduce the risk of injury.
  • Leg position: Place your feet so that your knees form a 90-degree angle with the floor when lying in a chair. This will allow you to generate support when lifting the bar.
  • Bar Path: Keeping the bar straight will impact the shoulders and elbows more. Raise the bar with a curve similar to how you would place the bar on the rig. When lowering the weight, follow the opposite angle; this is a natural shoulder movement and will limit the risk of shoulder pain.
  • Shoulder position: Always put your shoulders back when lying down; you can push your chest up before lying down. This will help you not to lock your shoulders when lifting weights to the highest position.

Steps to perform Bench Press: 

  • Step 1: Start the exercise on a flat bench with your legs on the floor.
  • Step 2: Hold the bar with both hands at a shoulder-width distance or a little more than shoulder width so that the bar is held in the palm and arm, wrists straight.
  •  Step 3: Slowly lift the bar off the rack, so the arms are straight but not locked. If you’re starting, you can get help from a trainer to ensure the weights don’t fall.
  •  Step 4: Take a deep breath, slowly bring the barbell over your shoulder, and lock the joint in this position.
  •  Step 5: Inhale deeply and lower the barbell so that the elbow is slightly 70 – 75 degrees from the body and the forearm is vertical.
  • Step 6: Try to lower the weight towards the chest position until it almost touches or lightly touches the chest. In this position, hold for about 1 second.
  • Step 7: Once the arms are fully extended, and the elbows are locked in the top position, exhale and push the dumbbells from the chest to the shoulders back to the beginning position.
  •  Step 8: To finish the exercise, return the dumbbell to the rack by bending your elbow to lower the bar to an upright position.

Why Am I Feeling Bench Press In My Shoulders, Not Chest (Explained)

Today, with the development of technology, it is easy to find exercise instructions on the Internet.

However, it is a fact that not everyone knows that there is no standard technique that applies to everyone.

In particular, for the exercise lying on the chest with the bar, the flexibility of the shoulder joint will significantly affect the bar’s path.

You cannot apply the same technique to a 20-year-old man and a 50-year-old man.

Therefore, the correct chest thrust technique does not stop at theories such as full range of motion, inhaling and exhaling…

It would be beneficial if you mentioned the impact on muscles when changing traditional techniques, for example, the width of the handle on the bar and the path of the bar.

Don’t be afraid to switch to find the proper technique for you; only you can understand your own body.

Can’t feel chest muscles when bench press

This is one of the leading causes of underdeveloped pectoral muscles. When doing weightlifting, feelings are essential because you can’t feel the muscles moving, which means the exercise is not eating power and won’t grow.

In chest presses, most people quickly feel another muscle, which is the muscle shoulders, but we’re doing chest exercises right, so if we feel only shoulder muscle, it’s wrong.

To fix it, change your goal a bit; instead of the weight, change it to Feel it first by lowering it and doing it slowly to feel it.

  • If there is someone to practice with, ask if touching your chest area will cause it to be tight or not.
  • If you practice alone, use your arms to squeeze your chest hard; imagine you’re pressing your chest. The barbell wants to break

Another trick used by athletes is called Pre Lift Isometrics. The way to practice is also relatively

as simple as the following : 

  • After performing 1 set of weightlifting, during rest, stretch your arms forward and squeeze your palms 
  • For 15 to 30 seconds, apply as much pressure as you can on your hands. Then continue the exercise.

This will help you focus on the pectoral muscle group you are working on, and you should also pay attention to doing Isometrics depending on your weight.

Three notes for chest exercises Bench Press.

Men’s Health Fitness Director Ebenezer Samuel shared some tips on how to get the correct posture for chest exercises, helping you avoid bad habits that affect your body: 

 Your Feet on the Floor 

A lot of people frequently ignore this movement.; you must put your feet flat on the floor first and then start lying on the bench.

Some people often lie instead and then put their feet on the floor, which is the completely wrong move of the chest press exercise.

Lower body activity is crucial in chest presses, especially when you combine them with weights or barbells. Take a moment to develop a good habit now.

Besides, if you want to own a firmer coast, this is also the impact to help you do it. Always use soft muscles to help the muscles become tight with your body. All this will help you have a more thorough and active preparation for adequate exercise.

Why The Bench Press Isn’t Growing Your Chest 👇🏿👇🏿

 Attention to storm and back 

This is very important for your next pectoral steps. Shoulder injuries often occur because the practitioner has improperly positioned shoulders, damaging muscles and joints.

Once you have prepared the correct pectoral posture, When bringing it up to the shoulders, lower down to the bench (try to keep your shoulders close to the chair while doing), squeeze your abs, squeeze and lift your mid back.

And when you lower the weight to your chest, continue to hold the same position. To make it easier to visualize, imagine the upper body position when you are doing the sitting movement pulling the weight closer to your chest muscles.

 Notice the position of the elbow 

FINAL NOTE: Never raise your elbows parallel to your shoulder when exercising on a bench. Keep them at a 45-degree angle, slightly below the shoulders. This will help protect the rotator cuff muscles from unnecessary injury.

3. Not rest enough

Bench press requires a lot of energy. For this reason, profound and sufficient sleep each day is essential. If you don’t get enough sleep, about 8 hours/day, the fast twitch muscles in the chest area will be challenging to recover effectively after heavy exercises.

Muscles recover and grow while you sleep, not during practice. Activity only breaks down muscle tissue to help muscles grow bigger and stronger.

4. Nutrition is not good enough.

Nutritional content plays a vital role if you want to have bigger and stronger breasts. To gain weight and muscle, you need to add about 300-500 calories per day in addition to the daily content through the diet and the best muscle-building foods for today’s bodybuilders.

For example, if you need to maintain weight and eat enough 3000 calories, you need to add 300-500 to become 3300-3500 calories/day.

You need a perfect pectoral training plan, but if you don’t eat enough, it’s all a waste. In addition, protein content is also essential to help chest muscles develop effectively.

Only about 20-30% of the calories come from protein. Make sure to get protein from nutrient-rich food sources such as beef, egg whites, and skinless chicken breast.

Final thought 

The bench press does not increase chest muscles but only shoulder muscles, mainly because your technique is incorrect. Additionally, you must pay attention to the most cutting-edge sleep and food practices.

Related Article: 

Why Does My Bench Press Feel Weak? (Explained)

 

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