by Thomas Kurz
Question:
What resistance exercise, that I can do without a spotter, simulates a bench press? I am trying to develop my upper body. I am an extreme novice and know nothing about weightlifting. I would like to do an exercise that develops my chest. But I don’t like to work out with anyone else because the weightlifters scare me. I don’t need someone pushing me to do something and risk hurting myself. And I don’t want to be humiliated because I have trouble lifting the bar without the weights.
Answer:
The best alternative to a bench press would be a push-up. There is a greater variety of push-ups than of bench presses, so you can surely substitute any kind of bench press with a suitable push-up. But before you begin doing many push-ups and increasing their difficulty, you should make sure you can do them safely. To do so, go through all the tests and exercises shown in the videos listed below. Do every exercise shown in those videos until you have the perfect score on every test. When you do, you will be ready to do push-ups, pull-overs, pull-ups, and other exercises for strengthening the chest and shoulders.
Eventually, if you train well, you may be able to do push-ups like this girl:
Rational strength training is covered in-depth in Stadion books Science of Sports Training and Explosive Power and Jumping Ability for All Sports, and in the video Flexibility Express.
If you have any questions on training you can post them at Stadion’s Sports and Martial Arts Training Discussion Forum
Mr. Kurz,
I followed the exercises of FLEXIBILITY EXPRESS and now I can do a full side split on a good day. But still I can not pass the Psoas Stretch Test (the second from top video in the post above). Which exercises should I focus on? The front lunge that Dr. Steve Hoffman shows is not enough.
Thank you very much
You wrote “I can do a full side split on a good day.” Does that mean you have bad days when you can’t do a full side split? If yes, then you’re training incorrectly. On your “good days” your true potential shows. On your bad days your training errors show.
The Psoas Stretch Test (youtu.be/Uvcyt5hLusw) tests not only trunk stability needed for push-ups but also tightness or length of the hip and thigh muscles that determine hip and leg flexibility.
If you cannot pass the Psoas Stretch Test then it is likely that you have the Lower Crossed Syndrome, i.e., weakness of buttocks and abdomen plus tightness of hip flexors. Doing front lunges is not likely to fix it. Doing front lunges correctly prevents injuries but is not an effective way of fixing posture defects, such as crossed posture syndromes. For fixing crossed posture syndromes follow Dr. Hoffman’s advice at gettoyourcore.com/cps/
Recommended reading:
Injuries, Sports Training, and Posture, Part I
Yes Mr. Kurz , I do have a Lower Crossed Syndrome. My lower back, hamstrings and hip flexors are tight. I followed Dr. Steves exercises but it did not fix my LCPS. I was hoping that once I am able to do a full side split I would have all the flexibility and stability necessary to move perfect. But apparently not. I can squat my bodyweight for a few reps and I can do 500 sit-ups. I am working on deadlifting twice bodyweight (but still far from it). I am struggling to adjust my workout to make me strong enough but not to tired to improve flexibility. I know a lady who never did sports in her life but can do the psoas stretch test easy???
All your advice is greatly appreciated (e.g. I follow Dr. Kwasniewskis diet).
Kind regards
Michael
Some people can correct their posture by themselves and some cannot. Those who cannot should seek help from specialists, who can be found at sites listed in Injuries, Sports Training, and Posture, Part III.
BTW, exercising without correcting posture defects is likely to make those defects worse–think loading a crooked structure.