How important is it to have a bench press as part of programming? Currently I do these twice a week: loaded Bulgarian split squat, sumo/conventional deadlift, loaded and bodyweight pullups, overhead press and a dumbbell or bar bench press or cable press. I also do prone Ys, external rotations, trap shrugs as a warm up and for the shoulders.
I think bench press has been tweaking my shoulder - it never feels quite right and I haven’t been able to load it very much. Is there any harm in skipping the bench press and maybe doing dips instead?
Thanks for any thoughts or opinions on this!
-Fred
If your training goals are simply to stay active, general health, etc. (i.e., not specific powerlifting-related goals), then it is not important for any unique reason. If you wanted to try any substitutions, you could consider things like dumbbell bench/incline bench pressing, push-ups (or deficit/weighted push-ups), machine chest presses, etc. But you could train all of those movements you’ve listed and do just fine.
1 Like
Thank you for the feedback! Dumbbell bench feels pretty good and hasn’t given me any issues and pushups are generally okay. Barbell bench and seated cable press appear to be a problem - unless I’m wrong and it’s the total load I need to lower. I don’t believe the load is high, but I definitely understand it can be tough figuring where RPE 8 is.