10 Functional Athlete Alternatives

To the Barbell Bench Press

By Jim Carpentier, CSCS

When your workout plans include Barbell Bench Presses and time is limited, patience is understandably tested when all benches are occupied.    That’s a common scenario especially in crowded gyms with athletes and non-athletes doing the ever-popular chest-building exercise.

Fret no longer!  This article provides 10 substitute exercises for Bench Presses that not only blast pectoral muscles, but also boost sports performance-enhancing upper and lower body strength, core strength, size, power, endurance, flexibility, and balance!

Equipment

• One moderately-heavy medicine ball (70-80% RM)
• Two lighter dumbbells (dbs) (50-60% RM)
• Parallel Dip Bars
• Weight belt (with chain attachment for adding plates of varying poundage)
• Plates (e.g. 10, 25, 35, 45 lbs. for doing Weighted Dips)
• Water bottle
• Timer (optional)
• Exercise mat (optional)

Guidelines

• Hydrate before, during and after workouts.
• Do an upper and lower body dynamic warm-up (e.g. Lunges/Arm Circles).
• Finish with cool-down upper and lower body static stretches for greater range of motion and flexibility.
• Sets/Reps: 3×10
• Rest between sets: 30-60 seconds
• Perform exercises on non-consecutive days for adequate recovery.
• Choose five of the 10 listed exercises per workout.

Exercises

Med Ball Side Lunges & Press-Outs

This combo movement is particularly optimal for basketball passing and shooting, football blocking, pushing off in wrestling, and checking in ice hockey.  Assume an athletic stance and hold the ball close to your chest.  Lunge laterally right and simultaneously explosively press the ball outward.  Return to start position and repeat nine more reps.  Without rest, do 10 left Side Lunges and Ball Press-Outs.

Explosive Push-Ups & Either Squat Thrusts or 40-Yard Sprints

Assume a Push-Up position and explosively press up with your hands leaving the floor or mat between the 10 reps.  Immediately follow with either 10 Squat Thrusts or sprinting 40 yards.  This combo not only builds upper and lower body power, but also has sports-enhancing application especially when having to quickly rise from a prone position and chase after an opponent on the ice, court, or field.

Supine One-Arm DB Presses

Lay on your back with the knees bent and your feet on the floor or mat.  Hold one db with either a neutral or prone grip close to your chest.  Keep your free hand and arm extended at shoulder level on the floor throughout the set.  Press the db over your chest and slowly lower.  After 10 reps, immediately switch and repeat with the dumbbell in your other hand.  Advanced version:  Do the one-arm Presses with one foot airborne to also engage core stability.

Weighted Dips

Attach a weight belt with plates and lean slightly forward during the Parallel Bar Dips to effectively target pectoral, shoulder, back, and arm muscles.  Descend slowly, pause at the bottom, and quickly press up to start position for this old-school upper body size-builder.

Supine or Standing Ball Throws/Catches

Supine version: Lay on your back with your knees bent and your feet on the floor/mat.  Hold the med ball close to your chest.  Explosively throw it upward, catch it, slowly lower it back to the chest and repeat nine more times. Standing version:  Assume an athletic stance facing a wall (standing a few feet away).  Hold the ball close to your chest and throw it against the wall, catch and repeat for 10 reps.  For both versions, lift one foot off the floor while throwing and catching the ball to improve balance.

Inchworms and Push-Ups

This combo movement simultaneously promotes upper and lower body flexibility and upper body size and strength.  Assume a Push-Up position.  Perform a Push-Up and walk your hands as close to your feet as possible.  Pause, and then walk your hands to start position.  Repeat nine more times.  Immediately do a Push-Up and next walk your feet towards your hands.  Return to Push-Up position and repeat nine more times.

Standing Flys and Press-Outs

This combo effectively taxes pectoral muscles by supersetting an isolation and pre-exhausting chest-targeting movement (flys) for 10 reps immediately followed with 10 compound chest, shoulder and arm-building Press-Outs.  Begin in an athletic stance holding the dbs with neutral grips slightly spread apart and your arms slightly bent (away from your chest at chest level).  Slowly bring the dbs laterally wider apart, pause, and return to start position and squeeze the pectoral muscles (as if hugging a tree trunk or Swiss ball).  After nine more reps, immediately explosively press the dbs outward at chest level with either a prone or neutral grip, pause, and slowly return them close to your chest and repeat nine more reps.  Another sports-functional combination for simulating football tackling (Flys) and blocking (Press-Outs) and wrestling maneuvers such as pinning, holding down, or pushing away an opponent.

Med Ball Push-Ups and Multi-Directional Ball Roll-Outs

Good for building upper body size, power, flexibility, and core strength, begin with both hands atop the ball in a Push-Up position.  Slowly lower and explosively push up 10 times.  Immediately go on your knees and roll the ball forward and then diagonally (left and right) totaling 10 reps in each direction while contracting your abdominal muscles.

Staggered Push-Ups

This challenging exercise targets pectoral muscles from different angles.  From the Push-Up position with your hands shoulder-width part, place your right hand slightly ahead of the other (beyond your head).  Do one Push-Up.  Advance forward with your feet and your left hand ahead of the right hand and do another Push-Up.  Continue moving forward and alternating hand position with Push-Ups totaling 10 reps (be sure you have a clear path with sufficient space while going forward).

Lateral Walks on All Fours

This exercise effectively measures upper and lower body muscular endurance.  Assume a Push-Up position and use a timer or count 60 seconds while walking laterally to the right with your hands and feet (make sure you have ample space away from objects).  Then immediately walk sideways to the left with the hands and feet for 60 seconds.  Rest, hydrate and repeat twice more.

Jim Carpentier, CSCS, is a certified strength and conditioning specialist, New Jersey-licensed massage therapist, and a health and fitness writer.  He currently serves as Associate Health and Wellness Director at the Greater Morristown YMCA in Cedar Knolls, N.J.