« Barbell Pushups - Chest Exercise | Home | Dumbbell Lateral Raises »
DB Swiss Ball Bench press - Chest Exercise
By Elliott | April 25, 2008
Main Muscle Worked: Chest
Other Muscles Worked: Triceps, Shoulders
Equipment: Dumbbells, Swissball
Mechanics Type: Compound
Swiss Ball Dumbbell Press
You will need to purchase a heavy-duty Swiss ball for this exercise or hopefully your gym has one, they can usually be found in the Aerobics room. Lie on the Swiss ball with the shoulders and upper torso on the ball and the hips and legs off the ball placing your feet in the same position as if you were on a bench doing presses. Have 2 people simultaneously hand heavy dumbbells to you. Start with the dumbbells at the top, and then lower until the arms touch the ball.
With practice, the lifter can use the ball as a spring-like mechanism to aid in the initial phase of the pressing of dumbbells. This ballistic action will allow heavier weight to be lifted as well as additional reps to be performed. Do 1 set timed for reps with as heavy dumbbells as possible. Time for one set is 1 minute. Get a stopwatch or have your partner watch the clock for you. This repetition method will aid in muscular endurance. Personally, I utilize these in developing my bench program too, along with band work. Don’t jump into these with what you usually use on a flat bench, remember the ball moves around, get used to it first I started with 40-pound dumbbells. Within three weeks you should have graduated to close to max weight. I did 80-pounders for 1 minute 42 reps! Talk about a burn!
Topics: Bench Press Exercises, Bodybuilding Exercises, Chest Exercises, Exercise Database |
Comments
« Barbell Pushups - Chest Exercise | Home | Dumbbell Lateral Raises »