I wrote this in 2012, sent it to owners, players, head coaches, media people, insurance agents and of course it fell on deaf ears. Here is an update, and for all those that have read this and didn't heed it, blame yourself. I must try again again because your destroying your athletes and having college and high school programs do the same. Here is a quick update and confirmation of everything I have presented in 2012. The NFL, for all the money they throw around these guys have not a clue! The story that prompted me to update this piece is after the 2012 piece, a confirmation of the truth.
The Absurdity of the Bench Press in Football
Whose idea was it to include the most damaging and injury prone exercise as a prerequisite test to get into the NFL? The above statement alone should raise red flags and set off alarms in every player, coach, GM, owner and fan. Yet the exercise has become such myth that it escapes the scrutiny of the ones who utilize it most often and also suffer the consequences for their blind faith in this exercise. I can go on disparaging strength and conditioning coaches, athletic trainers and sports doctors who should know better. Instead of offending a lot of people lets try to move forward, examine and fix this travesty, because its not only destroying the shoulder joints and pectoral muscles of NFL athletes, but also collegiate, high school and even younger athletes, who mimic the pros trying to obtain a higher level of performance. Lets start examining why this horrible trend started and the flawed logic behind it.
The Absurdity of the Bench Press in Football
Whose idea was it to include the most damaging and injury prone exercise as a prerequisite test to get into the NFL? The above statement alone should raise red flags and set off alarms in every player, coach, GM, owner and fan. Yet the exercise has become such myth that it escapes the scrutiny of the ones who utilize it most often and also suffer the consequences for their blind faith in this exercise. I can go on disparaging strength and conditioning coaches, athletic trainers and sports doctors who should know better. Instead of offending a lot of people lets try to move forward, examine and fix this travesty, because its not only destroying the shoulder joints and pectoral muscles of NFL athletes, but also collegiate, high school and even younger athletes, who mimic the pros trying to obtain a higher level of performance. Lets start examining why this horrible trend started and the flawed logic behind it.
Sometime ago a weight training movement achieved an almost
mythical status and became the layman’s barometer of a persons strength. That
exercise of course is the bench press.
Gyms across the country paid worship to
this exercise by placing its importance above all else. “How much do you
bench?” became all that really mattered.
Football players and athletes frequent gyms-so do coaches. They adopt
the gym logic. Reading this you are probably also guilty of worshipping this
false idol. We all were, so the powers that are in the NFL can be given a
reprieve for initially using the
bench as a test. Yet to continue after the huge injury increase in anterior
shoulders, pec tears and even injuries during benching, is unacceptable, cost prohibitive and plain dumb.
As a consequence of
gym logic, some football or strength and conditioning coach decided to use this
as a measure to determine who would be strong on the field. They wrongfully reasoned
that if this was the true test of a mans’ strength, than to maximize the bench
would maximize the players dominance on the field.
Lets examine why this
premise is not only flawed, but
unnecessarily harmful, and the worst kind of harmful.
Gym strength vs
football strength- the bench press is a fixed, stable, supported exercise
where the lifter is able to set up, adjust grip perfectly, using a perfectly
balanced barbell, performed at a pre planned and rhythmic tempo. The combine bench press has duration much
longer than that of the average football play, measuring muscular endurance
rather than true strength. As any exercise physiologist will tell you.
Who in their right
mind would compare that to what goes on in the trenches of a football field!?
Maybe someone watched the lineman at point of impact and what stood out was the
horizontal pushing motion with the arms, completely ignoring the incredible leg
drive, the back strength required, or strength of their core. If the goal is to
measure pushing strength, then there are many improvements that can be made on
the exercise and the testing procedure. Dumbells for instance would be better
choice or even standing sled pushes would provide a better indication of on
field, practical strength. MMA has a much stronger case for using the bench
for these purposes. You will eventually find yourself on your back having to
press a weight horizontally from your torso with your back being supported (floor).
When there is millions of dollars, future success and
time invested in an individual player, you would think that there would
have been someone who made this connection. As a trainer with over 20 years
experience I do not have ANY clients do flat barbell bench press for risk of
injury. They get hurt, they can’t train and I don’t get paid. Any trainer or
gym rat with similar experience will tell you the same.
Even with the
high incidence of injuries caused by the bench press, professional trainers,
exercise physiologists, phd’s blame the injuries on bad technique or fail to make
the connection between the bench and the plague of pec tears in the NFL. (http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ycn-10186507)
The proof is there, the flat bench press is a bad exercise. It’s amazing how
none have made the connection. Many players are injured on the bench press
itself, a fact that should scare the hell out of most coaches, GMs, fans and
owners. I’m flabbergasted it’s been allowed to go on for so long.
Biomechanics nightmare
Without getting
too technical the pectoral muscle cannot even halfway contract when the bars
touching the chest or just above it. You see a bencher drop the bar under
control then the weights descent accelerates an inch or two above the chest an
inch or two before its hits the chest. All of the pressure from the weight is
transferred to the shoulder capsule which slowly deteriorates over time.(For a
video on this check https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmgXWHZeS-8)
The stretched position causes tearing in the pec,
diminishing the integrity of the muscle over time if its not allowed to heal. This leads to a weak shoulder and pectoral
muscle which shows up in the form of anterior shoulder pain and partially or fully
torn pecs. A partial tear in the pec can
turn into full ones in a game real easily- as seen by the rash of pec
injuries in sports today(LINK), even basketball.( http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7455838/kwame-brown-golden-state-warriors-three-months-chest-injury
Very telling is Van Gundy’s quote,” "Those are strange (injuries) in
basketball. You just don't see that. Those are football and weightlifting
injuries," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said before his team faced the
Warriors. "You see a lot of defensive linemen, offensive linemen and
weightlifters get those injuries. The time I've been in the league, I can't
remember another guy with a torn pec, it's a strange injury for our
league.")
Bending the Hanger
If you bend a hanger
once it wont break, maybe not even on the 5, 20th or 50th
time. But its going to break. The same is happening to shoulder joints and pec
muscles across weight rooms around the world, just head to any power lifting
gym and ask around about injuries, go to any bench press contest and look at
the contestants, you wouldn’t call them athletic or even functional looking. Now
because of the NFL combine tests, athletes are doing set after set of this
exercise two to three times a week! With all you know now about the bench
press, do you think that this might have a detrimental effect on an athlete
Overuse and
Unnecessary Mileage
The worse part of
all is that 99.9% of all football resistance training programs over-train their
athletes. (That another travesty and story) Imagine which exercise their
getting over-trained on the most? It starts sometimes as young as junior high,
oftentimes voluntarily, trying to emulate the pros. The NFL will correct this
mistake soon or inevitably look back ashamed for how many youthful shoulders it
ruined, for millions of dollars of playing time it lost and for careers
shortened or never started. For a league whose wear and tear on its athletes is
legend, this is inexcusable.
If your kids are in sports they are getting their shoulders
damaged from 9th grade on, if you have been around a gym or worked
out on the bench this will ring true, lets hope the NFL gets some of this truth.
Not enough? How about this list of players who suffered pec
tears in major sports programs
Phil Taylor-
Cleveland browns (just recovered)
Chris Norman (MSU
team captain, hurt while benching! 2012)
Johnny Troutman (As
a Bolt fan I this injury inspired this piece 2012)
Jared Crick (Neb. 2012 )
Bryan Orakbo (Redskins stud linebacker)
Loaf Tutupo (Another stud linebacker injured on bench!
2012)
Elvis Dumerville 9
Dqwell Jackson
Josh Mauga
Matt Patchum (LSU)
Jackson Jeffcoat
(Texas )
Rodger Saffold
(Rams 2011 While benching!)
Kwame Brown (non-contact, basketball) see link
Mario Williams
Steve smith 2010
NYG
Odwyer Bucs (While
benching!)
Darryl Tapp
Eagles 2011
Jyles Tucker 2010
Chargers
Scott Fujita 2011
Michael Orr 2010
Kevin Booth NYG
Lineman 2010
That was 2012, here is the update August, 2015
The Minnesota Vikings have had a rash of pec tears, these fucking experts can seem to figure out the obvious. Look at this: Bykowski, a backup on the offensive line, is the fifth Vikings player to suffer a pectoral injury in the past year. When training camp opened at the end of July, coach Mike Zimmer said the team was trying to examine why so many players have suffered the same injury.
That was 2012, here is the update August, 2015
The Minnesota Vikings have had a rash of pec tears, these fucking experts can seem to figure out the obvious. Look at this: Bykowski, a backup on the offensive line, is the fifth Vikings player to suffer a pectoral injury in the past year. When training camp opened at the end of July, coach Mike Zimmer said the team was trying to examine why so many players have suffered the same injury.
“It’s a combination of things, really,” Zimmer said on Thursday. “It’s dehydrated muscles. It’s getting in the position. Sometimes it’s over-strengthening. Sometimes it’s fatigue. Still, we’re calling around to every expert that we can find and keep digging.”
Maybe it's the brand new strength and conditioning program you have just implemented? Designed by the bench press loving old school coach? NOOO, that must be a coincidence. "Over strengthening?" no such fucking thing. Dehydration? A professional team cannot keep their players hydrated? Fatigue? Fuck yea, from set after set of bench press and I can't say for sure but I bet it's more than once a week, which is exponentially more dangerous. Then while researching I find this:
Pectoral Tears Prompt Vikings' Workout Changes
I was thinking, "Finally some common sense! A team is finally going to address how fucked up bench pressing is and do something about it! Then I read the article and see:
''We're going to work on strengthening the rotator cuffs much more than we have," he said. "We're going to warm up better than we have. So we've addressed that. Always, when you get more than one type of injury, and especially pectoral, it's more of an unusual injury, you have to figure it out."
WHAT THE FUCK MINNESOTA!!! Somebody please get this essay into the proper hands!!
How about these two statements confirming what I have said about the bench and then think to yourself, why is this still a test in the combine?!
Junior Gallette injured himself WHILE BENCHING, here is how he adjusted.
" Galette was so upset with how he was injured, he’s gone away from the bench press with a full bar. He uses dumbbells now."
Sounds like something I said in 2012 huh?
"He also mentioned that the Redskins place a block on the chest of the bencher so the bar does not descend all the way to the chest, theoretically protecting a player from the sort of pectoral tear that befell Galette".
So the Redskins realize the exercise is dangerous, but instead of replacing it they put a block on your chest. At least they doing something. If I had time I'm sure I could compile a huge list of pec tears again. I'm afraid no one will listens why bother. Ill send another update out in a couple of years, until then-dumbells people!
