Form
A barbell bench press starting position has the weight lifter lying on a bench, with the shoulder blades pinched together to create a stable, solid base for the press, also used in powerlifting to reduce the range of motion. The lifter keeps his feet flat on the ground or at end of the bench, with the buttocks always in contact with the bench. Powerlifters will arch their back to provide greater stability and to reduce their range of motion allowing them to move more weight. Different grip widths can be used to increase or decrease the range of motion and place more or less emphasis on particular muscles. The movement begins by lifting the bar off the uprights and lowering it until the bar is motionless on the chest before being pressed under control to the start position. After the desired number of repetitions, the weight lifter returns the bar to the uprights. Because the load on the bar above the chest can be heavy, a spotting partner increases the safety of the movement.
Read more about this topic: Bench Press
Famous quotes containing the word form:
“Language disguises the thought; so that from the external form of the clothes one cannot infer the form of the thought they clothe, because the external form of the clothes is constructed with quite another object than to let the form of the body be recognized.”
—Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951)
“Thir dread commander: he above the rest
In shape and gesture proudly eminent
Stood like a Towr; his form had yet not lost
All her Original brightness, nor appear’d
Less than Arch Angel ruind, and th’ excess
Of Glory obscur’d: As when the Sun new ris’n
Looks through the Horizontal misty Air
Shorn of his Beams, or from behind the Moon
In dim Eclips disastrous twilight sheds
On half the Nations, and with fear of change
Perplexes Monarchs.”
—John Milton (1608–1674)
“Touch me not.”
—Bible: New Testament Jesus, in John, 20:17.
Spoken to Mary Magdalene, after Jesus has risen from the dead and made himself known to her. The words are best known in the Latin form in which they appear in the Vulgate: Noli me tangere.