2009 Studies & Research Blog

Hi everyone,

Carl Juneau here. I’ll let you know more about me in the biography snippet at the end of this post, but hopefully I’ll be a regular contributor to this blog.

To begin I thought I’d review an older research paper on flexibility training and everyone’s favorite exercise: the bench press (1).

In this study, 18 Australian powerlifters (26 years old, 205 lbs, 7 years of training experience, and bench press 1 RM=288 lbs, on average) were divided in two groups. Both performed their usual twice-a-week bench press training sessions, but one of them (the stretching group) added 10 to 15 minutes of stretching of the pectorals and the front shoulder muscle (anterior deltoideus) at the end of every session.

Eight weeks later, the 1 RM of the stretching group improved by 16 lbs (a 5.4 % statistically significant increase), whereas the 1 RM of the control (non stretching) group improved by only 1.5 lbs (a negligible, non statistically significant improvement).

A 5.4 % increase in bench press maximum strength in experienced lifters in such a short (8 weeks) time frame is surprising and would certainly be welcome by most readers of this blog.

A basic chest stretch is illustrated in Complete Chest Training by Richard Choueiri (near the bottom). Another effective stretch I recommend is benching with a light weight (just the bar, for example) slowly and all the way down until the bar touches your chest (if you don’t normally). Two slow sets of 15 repetitions at a 2-down, 2 seconds pause, 2-up tempo with 30 seconds between sets should work for starters. Google chest stretch for more ideas.

Straight Arm Chest Stretch

Two warnings: stretching (especially static stretching) before the workout is a bad idea, since some research indicates that it reduces performances for the remainder of the workout (2). I recommend you stretch at the end of your workouts, just like the lifters of this study.

Also, lifters in the stretch group probably increased their bench press because their chest flexibility improved (13.1 % more range of motion at the shoulder joint, on average). Naturally flexible trainees might not benefit as much from stretching. If you’re already very flexible (skinny people tend to) your time may be better invested in more work sets or just plain rest.

References
1. Wilson GJ et al. Stretch shorten cycle performance enhancement through flexibility training. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1992 Jan;24(1):116-23.
2. Nelson AG et al. Inhibition of maximal voluntary isokinetic torque production following stretching is velocity-specific. J Strength Cond Res. 2001 May; 15(2): 241-6.

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If you’re still reading, chances are, you want to know more about me. I (really) am passionate about weightlifting, and I enjoy reading (mostly on leadership and personal development), studying (currently at the Ph.D in Health Promotion), and spending quality time with friends.

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