Thank you everyone for attending the Bench Press & Shoulder Pain Workshop last weekend! We packed an hour full of research behind shoulder imaging, testing shoulder mobility, mobility drills, strengthening exercises, and bench press technique. You all were a blast to work with. I hope this recap helps you utilize the things we learned so you can keep your shoulders healthy and press some BIG weight!
MObility Exercises
Perform mobility exercises on “push days” or a couple times per week to stay on top of mobility. If you have tight or painful shoulders, perform these 1-2 times every day.
1 minute to the back of the shoulder blade, 1 minute just inside the shoulder blade.
Technique: Use your lacrosse ball to find sore or tight areas in the back of the shoulder blade, shoulder, and along the thoracic spine. Roll on the area, add shoulder rotations and overhead motions.
2 sets of 10
Technique: Lay on the back, pin shoulders to the ground, raise the hips and place the hands behind the back. SLOWLY lower the hips towards the ground to feel a stretch in the shoulders. If you need more stretch, tuck the hands further in and up on the spine.
10 second hold, 10 reps
Technique: Grip the bar behind you (palms down), set your shoulder blades down and back, sink your hips straight down. If you need more stretch, bring your hands closer. If it bothers your elbows to keep them straight, keep a slight bend in the elbows throughout the movement.
30 second hold, 3 reps
Technique: feed the hand through the band, grip the band, turn your palm up. Rotate away to feel the stretch.
Stability exercises
Perform stability exercises 2-3 times per week to keep the shoulders strong and healthy.
20 reps of each movement
Technique: Keeping the arms straight, perform all 20 reps of one movement before moving on to the next: start with extension – palms down, then move to extension – palms up, and finish with the Prone T with the thumbs towards the sky. Squeeze the middle and lower shoulder blade area with each rep.
*Tip: This is a great shoulder warmup on a heavy bench press day as it primes all the muscles responsible for stability in the bottom of the bench press.
2 sets of 10 repetitions
Technique: The most important rule to follow during this exercise is to keep punching towards the sky throughout the entire movement. You can also perform partial movements throughout this exercise to work problem areas, or to get some good work at certain angles.
3 sets, 5 reps of each
Perform 5 reps of flexion, then 5 reps of horizontal abduction, then 5 reps of external rotation. rest for up to a minute of needed between sets.
Technique: Keep these slow and controlled. Use a weight that is challenging but that you can perform all 5 reps with each movement.
bench press technique
Grip: Just outside shoulder width. Center of palms in line with wrists. Thumb around the bar.
Stance: Like a squat stance – shins vertical, screw feet into ground, drive knees out, flat foot contact.
Braced Extension: Arch the back to set shoulders down and back, brace the core, set hips down on the bench
Lift off: Try to bend the bar with your hands
Lower: Lower the weight to your chest keeping the elbows between 30-45 degrees from the body. Forearms stay as vertical as possible (hands stay over elbows).
Press: Return to start position creating the upside down “J” pattern
I hope this serves as a useful tool that you can reference to improve shoulder strength and mobility, and to improve your bench press technique so you can perform even better in the gym and throughout life. Please reach out with any questions about the workshop!
I’m your local movement expert! I help active people get back to the activities that they love, and I teach them how to take care of their bodies long term. If you have any pain or limitations, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to help you!
Tim Brown, DPT
Ascend Performance Therapy
Phone: 417-569-5086
Email: Tim.Brown@AscendPerformanceTherapy.com
Ascend Performance Therapy 