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Bench Press With Weight Releasers - Chest Exercise

By Elliott | April 24, 2008

Primary Muscle: Chest

Secondary Muscles: Triceps

Equipment Needed: Power Rack, Barbell, Weight releasers

Mechanics Type: Compound

Exercise Description: A few years ago, Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell Club wrote an article about using de-loading weight releasers for a special max effort method we were using for the box squat. I’ve spent the past year trying to find a way to use this same method with the bench press.

It’s taken a year because this method is so demanding on your system that it can’t be used very often. It was also a complicated process (complete with a couple of injuries) finding the right loading parameters. What I’ve found is this: what works for the squat doesn’t always work for the bench press. So I had to start from scratch. I’ve also found that the only way to determine the correct parameters is to get under the bar and find out what works best.

This loading process turned out to involve weight releasers, bands, chains, and barbell weight.

A weight releaser

I’ll discuss the reasons why in just a minute. First, let me discuss what we’re trying to achieve. The goal is to get the weight at the top of the movement over 100% of your best shirt max, then, as you lower the bar, begin the de-loading process. Once the bar hits your chest you’ll then lose the chain weight as well as the weight on the weight releasers. As you press the bar back up, the bands will “reload.”

Confused? I can see why. This is how I felt at first. Here’s the main thing: We all know the power eccentric training can have on strength development, but at what expense? You see, with negatives you don’t accommodate for the strength curve.

Let’s say you can bench press 400 pounds. You decide to do eccentric training. Many of us have been taught to do this by overloading the barbell and then lowering it slowly. First off, while you may have over 100% of your max at the top, this 100% represents your max strength of the entire lift, not what you can lift at the bottom. It may be 100% at the top, but what is it at the bottom of the lift?

We all know you’re stronger at the top, so the weight at your weakest point can be too much, which can lead to injuries. We also know that for eccentric strength to be effective it needs to be done at a normal to fast speed, not slow. This is the reason for plyometrics in the first place.

Now, even if you use weight releasers to overload the movement, the same is still true. With weight releasers you can add extra weight to the barbell that’ll then pop off at the bottom of the movement, thus allowing you to press the bar back to the top.

So we now know you need to have some bands for the fast eccentric as well as extra loading at the top. We also know to press the bar back up, thus taking advantage of the explosive reactive strength we need to lose much of the bar weight. Finally, we need to find a way to de-load the eccentric to accommodate for the strength curve. This can be done by placing the chains on the weight releasers so they de-load on the way down and then pop off with the weight that’s on the releaser.

In summary, you have a set weight on the barbell with band tension. Then you add weight releasers to the bar that have a combination of straight weight and chains. Now you have a max top weight, a de-loaded weight, a weight at pop-off (when the bar is on your chest after weight releasers has been popped off), and the re-loaded weight at the top.

Now you can see the hell I had to go through to get this right. After several tries I feel we finally figured out how to make this work. Here are the percentages we’ve found to be effective. These are based on your best raw bench press max:

Band tensions — 80 pounds at top. This is one double mini-band, around 40 pounds at bottom. This is good for all strength levels for this method.

Barbell weight — 50%

Weight on weight releaser — 20% total. 10% for each side.

The chains will be added as you work up.

The set/rep scheme works like this: Begin with the band on the barbell and slowly work up making sure to get an adequate warm-up. Work up to 50% on the barbell with straight weight. Yes, the 50% includes the weight of the barbell, but not the tension of the bands. Three reps per set is what I’d recommend as you work up.

After you reach 50% for your first set of 3 reps, you’ll add the weight releasers with 10% plate weight per side for one set of one rep. Now you’ll begin to add one chain per weight releaser for each additional set. See picture above to see how they’re placed on the weight releaser. Basically, we have a large carabineer hook in the middle of all the chains we sell. This hook fits over the weight releaser so there’s an even de-load on each side.

Hint: It’s very helpful to use one or two big spin-lock collars on the weight releaser before you place the chains. This keeps the chains at a higher level off the floor allowing for a better de-load. If you don’t have a set of these, then you can use a ton of 10’s, 5’s and 2.5 pound plates for your plate weight. This will accomplish the same thing.

With each additional set, add one more chain per side for one rep per set. Don’t try to lower the barbell slowly. Let the bar fall as you would a normal bench press set. It really doesn’t need to be faster or slower than this.

As you work up you should feel like this is an ass-load of weight at the top while holding the barbell, then as you break your elbows you’ll begin to feel the de-load. If you set the weight releasers up correctly they’ll pop off right above your chest (better yet, on your chest).

Hint: Set these up before you warm-up. When the bar hits your chest and the weight releaser pops off you’ll feel the weight release and a huge surge of explosive strength. This is another reason for the band tension. You need something to slow the bar down on the way up or you’ll toss the bar through the roof! Seriously, you need to have the tension so you don’t get hurt with the explosive force you’ll be developing.

When all is said and done, you’ll hit some huge numbers. First, the total weight at the top may end up being around 140% of your raw max. (Very close to many of your bench shirt maxes. My goal was to get this top holding weight as close to my shirt max as I could.) The weight at your chest before drop-off will be around 80-85% of your raw max. After drop-off this will drop to around 55-60%. The reloaded weight at the end of the press will finish up around 70% of your best raw max. You may have to play around with the percentages to get it to work right for you, but this at least gives you a great place to start.

So what will this do for you? First, it’ll help build a strong start. You have to be able to hold and control the weight at the top of the press. For me, this is everything. Most missed lifts I see happen because the start got messed up.

Second, it’ll teach you to lower heavy weight under control. This is also key for making sure you hit your chest (or belly) in the correct place during a max lift. Third, if you think about it, this is also how a great bench shirt will work. It’ll feel heavier at the top, then the shirt begins to take the weight. At the chest you get an explosive start and then have to push through the top.

Finally, it’ll build incredible reactive and explosive strength.

Training Mistakes:

• Using too much band tension. Start with the double mini. If you think you need more, move up slowly.

• Using too much weight releaser weight. This causes the eccentric weight before drop-off to be too high and can lead to overuse injuries at the bottom part of the movement.

• Dropping the bar too slow. Keep the speed the same as normal bench press speed.

• Not holding the bar at the top. This is both for the start and finish. Take advantage of the added training effect of the huge top weight at the start and hold the bar for one or two seconds. I like to hold mine for a three count.

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