When it comes to the bench press, the technique of arching your back has become a somewhat controversial topic depending on who you talk to. Some people will say that it’s cheating, and others will tell you that you need to have a bigger arch to bench heavier weight. Determining the best technique for your bench press depends on your goals for the lift and your training.
In this article, we’ll discuss the reasons for benching with and without an arch and why you might want to decrease or increase the range of motion of your bench press.
There are many benefits to benching with an arch including:
Improving your stability on the bench
Helping you create and maintain more tension
Getting more out of your leg drive
Helping keep your chest up
Improving your shoulder position throughout the lift
Reducing the range of motion of the bar during for competitive purposes
IMPROVED STABILITY:
In general, you want to have a strong and stable base of support when you’re lifting. This keeps you balanced and enables you to stabilize the barbell better while supporting it in your hands. Arching places more of your upper traps on the bench instead of lying flat with your entire back in contact with the bench. This position allows you to press the top of your shoulders into the bench harder and create a more stable base of support.
CREATE & MAINTAIN TENSION:
When you arch, you’re setting up with your shoulders closer to your hips and shortening the muscles throughout your back. This shortening creates tension throughout your back before you even begin the lift. Starting the bench press in a tight position will help you stay tight as you move the bar and resist unwanted change in your body position during the lift. It will also contribute to your stability on the bench.
LEG DRIVE:
If you haven’t already read our article on leg drive, go check it out! Leg drive is a significant component of the bench press, and is most effective when you set up with an arch and keep your entire body tight. During leg drive, you should drive in such a direction as though you’re trying to slide your body up the top of the bench, but your body shouldn’t move. Leg drive will help you press your upper traps into the bench harder and reach your chest up higher like we mentioned previously. This transfers more force to your upper body and significantly increases your stability on the bench, and tension throughout your body, during the bench press. AND you’ll be able to drive your legs harder if you’re driving against the resistance of your upper traps pushing into the bench (rather than lying flat and driving against the friction of your back flat against the bench).
KEEPING YOUR CHEST UP:
Maintaining your position as you bring the bar down to your chest is essential for staying tight throughout the lift. If your chest drops, or the bar sinks into your chest, you’re losing tension and allowing some of the weight to transfer to your chest. This loss of tension and weight transfer can change how things go when it comes time to press the bar up. When you set up with an arch, you’re starting with your chest higher and can create more tension in this position, helping you continue reaching your chest up and maintaining this position as you bring the bar down. It will also set you up to keep the weight of the bar in your hands without letting it sink into your chest. If this is something you’re struggling with, check out part 1 of our 3-part bench press series, where we talk about this more.
SHOULDER POSITION DURING THE LIFT:
Of course, we want to bench heavier weight, but we also want to move well and stay healthy doing it! The position of your torso and your use of leg drive will influence your shoulder position and mechanics during the lift. Benching with an arch can help you pull your shoulders back and down more in your starting position keeping your shoulders in that position during the lift. This will help keep your shoulders from moving out of position as you bring the bar down thus reducing your risk of injury. This also set you up for efficient shoulder motion during the bench press.
REDUCE RANGE OF MOTION:
Shortening the range of motion might be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about benching with an arch. With your back arched, your chest is higher and closer to the bar. So yes, you won’t have to move the weight as far and it’ll take less work to move the bar a shorter distance. That being said, arch height will vary depending on the person so “arching” doesn’t necessarily imply having a huge arch and minimal range of motion. Any size arch will reduce the range of motion compared to benching flat, even when the arch isn’t extreme. If your goal is to bench more weight (whether you’re a competitive powerlifter or not), reducing the range of motion can be very beneficial. Combine this with staying tight and stable, driving your legs, reaching your chest up, and improving your shoulder position- and you can see how arching has the potential to help you safely bench heavier weight.
But if you’re reducing the range of motion and changing your technique to help you bench press more weight, couldn’t that be considered cheating?
NO!
Benching with an arch isn’t cheating. Using safe and efficient technique to help you lift more weight isn’t cheating. That’s powerlifting and barbell strength training!
If you’re a powerlifter following the technical rules of performance for your federation, you’re not cheating.
Even if you have a big arch and you bench more with a higher arch than a flatter arch, you’re not cheating.
If you don’t compete in powerlifting, but your goal is to lift heavier weight, you can also bench with an arch without feeling like you’re cheating.
There’s nothing wrong with benching with an arch so long as you’re doing it properly and it’s in line with your goals for your training. You can also read our free guide about healthy barbell training here.
There are also benefits to benching without an arch or less of an arch:
Increase strength through a greater range of motion
Place more emphasis on the upper body musculature
Allow you to bench press in the presence of back or hip pain as well as during pregnancy
If your goal is to focus on hypertrophy, then you’d benefit from moving the bar through a larger range of motion. It’s still beneficial to pull your shoulders back and down (creating a small arch) when you’re benching with your back flat to help you stay tight and improve your shoulder mechanics during the lift.
Competitive powerlifters and barbell athletes looking to increase strength and bench more weight can also benefit from training the bench press through a greater range of motion. Moving the bar a greater distance will fill the gaps in your training and increase strength outside the range of your competition bench press. A flat back bench press is a good supplemental exercise to add to a competitive powerlifter’s program who benches with a very high arch in competition. Even if you can’t bench as much without an arch, strengthening through a larger range of motion can help you bench more with one.
Benching without an arch or with a smaller arch isn’t the only way to strengthen through a greater range of motion and emphasize the upper body musculature.
Here are some supplemental lifts that you can include in your bench press program to accomplish this in addition to benching without an arch:
Close/closer grip bench press
Feet up bench press
Tempo
Long pause
CLOSE/CLOSER GRIP BENCH PRESS:
A close grip bench press will increase the distance you need to move the bar as you bring it down to your chest. Close grip doesn’t have to be the typical very close grip we often think of when we think of a close grip bench press. Narrowing your grip any distance from your competition grip will increase your range of motion. You can do this with or without an arch- even if you’re still arching, you’ll increase your range of motion if you’re using a narrower grip.
FEET-UP BENCH PRESS:
A feet-up bench press will place more emphasis on your upper body musculature since you won’t have the advantage of using leg drive with your feet on the bench. This type of bench press will be more challenging even if you’re arching and using your competition grip. You can combine this with reducing your arch or narrowing your grip to increase the range of motion with your feet up.
TEMPO BENCH PRESS:
A tempo bench will increase your time under tension, regardless of the tempo that you use. Moving the bar slower than you usually would is challenging, but it can be beneficial for your main bench press. Tempo exercises are also great for working on maintaining tension throughout the lift. Of course, you can make this more challenging by using less of an arch or narrowing your grip.
LONG PAUSE BENCH PRESS:
Whether it’s a 2-count or a 3-count pause, pausing longer with the bar at your chest will make the lift harder. For competitive powerlifters who have to wait for a “press” command in competition, training a longer pause can help prepare you for this. It’s just another way to make the lift more challenging and improve your ability to maintain tension with the bar at your chest. Training a longer pause can also be combined with any of the other variations listed above to increase the range of motion and emphasize your upper body musculature.
If you’re planning to add one of these supplemental bench press exercises to your program, I recommend changing one or two aspects of the lift at a time instead of changing everything at once. Work on perfecting your technique and maintaining tension as you implement a new exercise before adding another layer of complexity to it.
There’s not just one right way to bench press, though there are some general principles you should follow to reduce your risk of injury and improve efficiency regardless of how you perform the lift. It all comes down to your goals for your training. If your bench press technique is safe, efficient, and helps you reach your goals, then you’re probably doing it right.
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