Bench Press Maximum
Athletes and coaches like to use the bench press maximum as a quick, effective way to measure upper body strength.
What's The Point?
For many sports rugby, American Football, track and field upper body strength is essential for effective performance. Using the bench press maximum test enables athletes at all levels to measure their upper body strength. Indeed, in many sports, such as American Football, it is widely used as the standard way to measure an athletes upper body strength.
What Do You Need?
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Olympic bench
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Range of free weights
- Spotter/assistant
How Do You Perform The Test?
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Warm-up thoroughly
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Begin by lifting a weight that you believe is close to your maximum.
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Each time you perform a successful lift, rest for 3-5 minutes
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Increase the weight by 2 to 5 kg for the next lift.
- Continue until the maximum lift is achieved.
What Results You'll See
Upper body strength as assessed by this test is typically measured as a ratio of strength over body weight. With consistent training, most people should be able to bench at least their own body weight. For conditioned athletes, benching 1&1/2 times body weight is considered normal. If you perform this test regularly, you can measure the effectiveness of your strength training.
What's Being Measured Again?
This is the most popular way to measure upper body strength.
