Female benching

[5kgLifter]

Okay guys, an odd but serious question: due to guys having somewhat flatter chests and such, how would you advise a female on the placement of the barbell when doing bench press, powerlifting style.

Are we talking, ribcage, below bust, or nipple line, etc??










No laughing!!! Okay, laugh away!

[Fazc]

During my first ever PL Meet in about 2002 I think it was, I was at a little venue just outside of London. It was a small Meet and this older lady sort of took me under her wing. It was nice of her she could tell I was nervous.

Anyway! She had the most amazing bench press form! In fact it was so amazing I felt naughty for even watching! She was a fairly short lady, quite porky and was rather large up top. She had a fantastic arch on the bench, the arch was unique in that it pointed her chest directly up toward the ceiling, like cannons they were! So her Bench stroke was so, so small due to her benching to her nipples. It was almost just a lockout.

I found the whole thing fascinating!

[5kgLifter]

Thanks Fazc, that helps a lot. Though, I don't think I'll be quite so cannon-like

[BendtheBar]

My best advice Babs is to more the elbows out no more than 45 degrees from the body, and then to position the hands over the elbows. This is a good starter width and will show you about where to drop the bar.

[Soldier]

When my wife benches, the bar usually touches between the nipple line and the bottom of her breasts. For her, between those two spots is the sweet spot. She has a really good arch, and even with average/slightly larger than average breasts her rib cage is almost as high as her breasts are.

I'd say if you're using gear than the bottom of the breast would be a good starting point.