My first bench-only powerlifting competition meant I had to learn to arch my back while benching. A setup I had previously regarded as a cheap parlour trick or a “cheat” to lift more pounds, the arch is something I’ve now adopted.

In for a Penny, In for a Pound

First off, it’s the rules. To compete, you have to arch, otherwise the safeties don’t let you get the requisite touching of the bar to your chest before the “press” command.

In the case of my somewhat stiff, 51-year-old back, the bench arch was a bit of a stretch – literally – but I figure you can never have too much t-spine mobility, so why not embrace it?

The Anchor Points Keep You Safe

Note that the rules state that the head, shoulders and glutes must remain in contact with the bench throughout the entire lift, and the feet must remain flat on the floor.

While such an arch would NOT be good – at all – for overhead work, the anchor points keep the back safe during the lift, with force acting horizontally on the body to minimize any spinal shear.

In addition, shoulders staying glued to the bench mean that the scapulae can stay nicely packed in to protect the shoulder joint. In effect, you are setting up somewhat of a decline press.

Feels Good to Me!

Experts can do a much better job than I can of explaining the details of why the bench arch is not only safe for the majority of people, but can actually help improve mechanics of the horizontal push.

All I know is, my back and shoulders feel significantly better during and after benching than they did using my previous flat-back setup style, and now my glutes and hips contribute much more effectively as I lift.

As an added bonus, turns out I am currently the provincial (unequipped) record holder. (That’s it, keep scrolling all the way down to Master’s 2…) While it’s not a huge number, it’s a start, and I’m proud of it after years of not even being able to lift an unloaded bar due to shoulder pain. Contact me if you want to work on either fixing your own shoulder or on getting yourself stronger.