The NFL is one of the world's four major North American football leagues. It has 32 teams divided between the American Football League and National Football League. Each year during spring, the NFL conducts the combine test to check the players' performance. For the NFL Combine, senior players are invited from elite American colleges to display their fitness and strength under controlled conditions so the judges can make fair judgments. Although the players have performed well throughout their college life to enter the football league, the NFL combine is a must to attend.
You have found the right page if you're a football enthusiast and want to enter the league.
The NFL combine involves different strength tests, with bench press being one of them. The purpose of the bench press test is to assess the strength of muscles and stamina of a person. The athlete has to lift a 225 pounds weight as often as possible. The chances of stepping on the football league ground grow for those who lift the weight the most.
Furthermore, the bench press is a workout involving different positions, such as doing the bench press by lying flat, at an incline or decline position, or keeping your hands at less distance while holding the exercise equipment. The equipment needed for this exercise is dumbbells or barbells. Using equipment, you push the weight downwards towards the chest and then lift it upwards by lifting the arms. This workout targets the muscles of the upper part of your body.
The purpose of the bench press is to help players build more muscular bodies. Football players should have a robust upper structure to tackle the attacks they meet in the game. Similarly, having a solid body prevents them from facing severe injuries during the match from opponents or a football hit. It’s the main reason football players go through a lot of training to clear the NFL combine successfully.
If you want to know how long a football player should practice the bench press workout, this article is for you.
Related Article: Strength Training: The Perfect 3 Days Workout Plan for Footballers
3 Week Bench Press Workout
This 3-week long bench press training targets the upper body parts such as the arms, pectorals, and shoulders. It is designed for males who have to appear for the NFL combine test.
Workout Summary
|
Main Goal |
Strength Training |
|
Workout Type |
Full Body |
|
Training Level |
Intermediate |
|
Program Duration |
3 Weeks |
|
Days Per Week |
2 |
|
Time Per Workout |
60-75 Minutes |
|
Equipment Required |
|
|
Target Gender |
Male |
|
Recommended Supplements |
Workout Description
This workout is suitable for those who want to increase their muscle strength. It involves the fitness of upper body parts, and the equipment needed to perform this workout are dumbbells and barbells. This exercise is meant for males belonging to sports such as football.
It’s 2 days a week and a 60-75 minutes workout that you can continue for 3 weeks. This workout is highly effective and gives the best results. Other than that, it’s not only involved in strengthening the muscles, shoulders, and arms, but doing bench presses makes you capable of doing push-ups too.
Supplements
Supplements are much needed during a workout. When doing bench presses, they will help you to recover the tired and torn muscles, provide strength and keep you active. DMoose protein powder, creatine monohydrate, and intra-workout are some of the best supplements you can rely on.
They all have beneficial ingredients that help prevent injury, avoid sleep and boost energy. They help you perform a workout longer and harder without feeling tired. As a result, you’ll see strong muscles, higher stamina, and no soreness from physical activities.
Related Article: Pre-Workout Supplements: What They are and the Health Risks Posed By Them
Workout Details
Workout Routine
- Day 1- Upper body
- Day 2- No workout
- Day 3- No workout
- Day 4- Upper body
- Day 5- No workout
- Day 6- No workout
- Day 7- No workout
Workout plan A: Week 1
The bench press workout in the first week focuses on 5x5 work that you can do 2 days a week.
|
Exercise |
Sets |
Reps |
|
5 |
5 |
|
|
3 |
10 |
|
|
3 |
10 |
|
|
3 |
6-8 |
|
|
3 |
10 |
Workout plan B: Week 2
Week 2 focuses on increasing the number of reps i-e doing 5x8 work on the bench press.
|
Exercise |
Sets |
Reps |
|
5 |
8 |
|
|
3 |
8 |
|
|
3 |
8 |
|
|
3 |
8 |
|
|
3 |
10 |
|
|
3 |
12 |
Workout Plan C: Week 3
Week 3 involves a heavy bench press workout and wrapping it up with a 20 rep set.
|
Exercise |
Sets |
Reps |
|
3 |
3 |
|
|
1 |
20+ |
|
|
3 |
10 |
|
|
3 |
10 |
|
|
3 |
10 |
|
|
3 |
12 |
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Benefits of Bench Press Workout
Here are the benefits of a bench press workout that will make you go for it.
It Makes You Strong
The bench press workout involves the movement of various muscles and joints because it's a compound exercise. It involves the pectoralis section and other muscles, including the shoulder, shoulder joints, biceps, and triceps. Furthermore, the equipment you use affects the person's body differently.
According to a study, those who used dumbbells as compared to barbells in bench press gained more volume and activated their pectoralis major to a good degree. However, barbells proved to be a good choice for activating the shoulder's strength and pectoralis major. The better muscle activation and increased volume offer strength to the person's overall body.
It Increases Muscle Mass
High-intensity workouts like a bench press with high reps lead to an increase in muscle mass. This workout focuses on the upper body parts, with muscles being the major portion to work on. This strength training 3-week program will increase your muscle mass and muscle growth. The more the reps, the higher the workout intensity will be, and the more the lean muscle mass will be.
It Makes Your Bones Strong
With aging, bones become fragile and porous leading to osteoporosis. For this purpose, strength resistance training comes to the rescue. Several resistance training sessions, with bench press being one of them, help strengthen the bones and make them denser. Those involved in a bench press workout are doing the right thing. The stronger the bones, the healthier the life will be.
It Corrects the Muscular Imbalances
At times, certain muscles surrounding the joints are not equal in length. A bench press workout is recommended especially to the athletes to fix this imbalance because they have to be fit. However, bench presses through dumbbells or barbells will work on the muscles, bring them into a proper shape and maintain balance, making the person's muscular movement easy.
Conclusion
This 3 week's training program is amazing and effective for NFL players. It will help them build muscles, increase volume, and strengthen the biceps, triceps, and shoulders. Using barbells and dumbbells, you can make a hard push and make your upper body parts stronger than usual. The role of barbells and dumbbells is crucial in the whole training.
In addition, taking pre-workout supplements will help you remain active throughout the training. The supplements include Intra-workout, protein powder, and creatine monohydrate. They repair the damaged muscles, prevent the sleep effect and offer you energy throughout the workout.
Reading List
Article Sources
- Kuzmits, F. E., & Adams, A. J. (2008). The NFL Combine: Does It Predict Performance in the National Football League? Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 22(6), 1721–1727. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0b013e318185f09d
- Farias, D. de A., Willardson, J. M., Paz, G. A., Bezerra, E. de S., & Miranda, H. (2017). Maximal Strength Performance and Muscle Activation for the Bench Press and Triceps Extension Exercises Adopting Dumbbell, Barbell, and Machine Modalities Over Multiple Sets. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 31(7), 1879–1887. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001651
- Almstedt, H. C., Canepa, J. A., Ramirez, D. A., & Shoepe, T. C. (2011). Changes in Bone Mineral Density in Response to 24 Weeks of Resistance Training in College-Age Men and Women. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 25(4), 1098–1103. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0b013e3181d09e9d
