Bench press form check

[Pramod Reddy]

Here is a video of my bench from today - 140lbs, 3rd set - Bench press 140lbs, 3rd set - YouTube

I started SS as a complete beginner in September, 2016 and gained about 35lbs of body weight in the process. Squat, deadlift, press are going up a decent pace.
But I always had trouble with my bench. As you can see in the video, my arms shake when I unrack the bar and at the end of every rep. The weight isn't heavy for a rep,
but it is almost at my limit just to unrack and hold on to. Had to reset bench once because of this - the bar feels very unstable and I am not at all confident that I can unrack the weight.
For reference, my press is at 107.5 and feels easy. No shoulder issues of any kind or prior injuries - just new to benching. I feel silly asking this question, as bench looks like it
should be the easiest lift to master.

Read the SS book, watched Rip's DVD/youtube videos, went through Jordan's Gripping Matters article and tried endlessly to diagnose what is going on.
Entire frame is as tight as possible(including grip) and my upper back/shoulder blades are glued to the bench. Please see if I am doing something obviously wrong.

Thanks!

[Tobias Sjösten]

Nice ones! It does look light for you, even with the shaking arms.

Some SS Coach will probably have better feedback for you but here's mine:

- Maybe it's just the angle but always lock out completely before moving the bar from and to the rack. Less chance of killing yourself transporting the bar with straight elbows.

- It doesn't actually look like your shoulder blades are glued to the bench. Retract your shoulders and don't let them fly up along with the bar.

- You could probably engage your lats more, to create a stronger base to press from. Make a more active bridge and think of it as if you're trying to bend the bar into an upside-down U.

- I think you should hit your chest a little further down to make it easier on your shoulders in the long run.

Hope that's useful!