When choosing a set of exercises for the press, you need to decide whether classes will be held in the gym or at home.
There is no unequivocal answer where it is better to conduct press training, everyone must make an informed decision for himself, taking into account all the factors:
- The availability of the gym (according to the availability of free time, distance to the gym, cost). This is the first factor that you should pay attention to, because if there is no opportunity to visit the gym, then the choice loses its meaning - training is possible only at home.
- Team or loneliness. For some it is important to have like-minded people around, someone needs competition in order to develop. There is a type of people who prefer solitude and silence, some are just shy. It is important to define a comfortable atmosphere for yourself so that training does not turn into torture.
- Training objectives and scope. If the goal of training is to "dry" the body by 40 kg and pump up to participate in a fitness bikini competition, then it will be very difficult (but not impossible) to implement such trainings at home, a gym and a competent trainer will be a good help along the way. But a healthy harmonious body can be achieved both at home and in the gym.
- Discipline. Not everyone is able to follow a strict schedule and resist distractions at home. Television, phone calls, and simple household chores can wipe out an entire workout. If the breaks between exercises are filled with vanity and everyday activities, if training becomes a spontaneous and unsystematic phenomenon, then a gym membership can be the solution to this problem.
- Equipment and simulators. There is a category of people who like working on simulators much more than just curling up on the mat, for them this is an important psychological factor. And there are those who disdain to work with sports equipment in the gym after other people.
If the decision is made in favor of the gym, then the next step is to choose a rocking chair.
How to choose a gym?
First of all, they pay attention to the convenience of the location and the cost of the subscription, but there are several other important points. The gym must have good ventilation and adequate lighting; the presence of a changing room, shower and toilet will provide minimal comfort. And the most important thing is the simulators. If the goal of training is to pump the press, then the gym must have a bench for the press, a horizontal bar, a block trainer (block frame or traction block on a cable), preferably a gymnastic wheel.
It is worth paying attention to the number of dumbbells and pancakes for the bar - there should be a lot of them, it is good if the weights start from 0.5-1.25 kg, and the step between the weights is small - no more than two kilograms. This will allow you to more evenly regulate the process of increasing the complexity of classes.
Exercises on an incline press bench in the gym
The bench for the press is a convenient and effective trainer, by adjusting the angle of inclination, you can control the complexity of the exercises. It is necessary to take into account the peculiarity of the bench - the back should be in a natural deflection, otherwise there is too much load on the lower back.
- Twisting. Starting position: lie with your back on the bench, fix your feet with rollers, put your hands behind your head. As you exhale, you need to pull your chin up, lifting the shoulder blades, the lower back should not come off the bench, the press should be tense. While inhaling, lower the shoulder blades onto the bench. To complicate things, you can pick up weights in front of you (most often pancakes from the bar are used for this).
- Raises the legs. Starting position: lie with your back on a bench with your feet down. Hands above the head fix the body, the pelvis and lower back should fit snugly against the bench. It is required to raise the legs on the exhale so that the pelvis breaks away from the bench. While inhaling, slowly return your legs to the bench.
- A bike. It is required to raise your legs and perform twisting movements, imitating pedaling.
Exercises for the press on the horizontal bar in the gym
The crossbar is a simple sports equipment, no gym can do without it. With its help, mainly the lower part of the rectus muscle and the oblique abdominal muscles are worked out. When performing exercises on the horizontal bar, you need to make sure that the press works, and not other muscle groups. Another important point is that you don't need to swing the body.
- Corner. Starting position: hanging on the bar. It is required to slowly raise the legs until parallel with the floor, then also slowly lower them. This exercise has a complicated version, in which the feet must be raised to the crossbar. This exercise is one of the most effective for the lower abs.
- Scissors. It is required to raise the legs to parallel with the floor and perform horizontal movements with the legs, imitating the movement of scissors.
- Oblique leg raises. It is required to bend the knees and alternately raise them to the right and left shoulder. This exercise works the oblique abdominal muscles.
Exercises with a gymnastic wheel for the press in the gym
A gymnastic roller is a small simulator, which is a wheel (sometimes two adjacent wheels) with handles on the sides of the axle. The projectile is not for beginners, exercise with it requires some training experience. It will be good if a trainer or other gym goers help you with these exercises for the first time.
- Bends on the knees. Starting position: sitting on your knees on the mat, rest your hands on the roller in front of you. It is required to roll the roller in front of you, and then come back. It is better to start with a small amplitude, gradually bringing the rollout until the body is parallel to the floor. You can sit facing the wall in such a way that the roller, having reached the maximum rollback available to you, rests against the wall. This will prevent you from losing control of the machine and your stomach falling to the floor.
- Full rental standing. Starting position: standing, legs apart shoulder-width apart, body tilted, hands holding the gymnastic wheel. It is required to rest the wheel on the floor and make a full roll until the body is parallel to the floor, and then go back.
- Slanting knee bends. Starting position: sitting on your knees on the mat, rest your hands on the roller to the right of the body. It is required to roll the roller to the right, and then come back. After that, lean on the roller on the right and perform the exercise to the right.
Exercises on the press on simulators
Most gyms have a specialized ab machine that has the advantage of reducing stress on the lower back. Also, the press is worked out on a block simulator (block frame or traction block on a cable).
- Twisting on the block (exercise "prayer") on the press. It is required to take a kneeling position in front of the block trainer and pull the rope with your hands to the level of the face, while tilting the body slightly forward. As you exhale, you need to twist, the elbows should move towards the middle of the thigh.
- "Woodcutter" on the block. Starting position: standing sideways to the block trainer, two hands on top, the right one holds the block, and the left helps. It is required, bending over a little, turn the body in the direction of the left leg and perform a block pull, working with the oblique abdominal muscles.
- Twisting on the simulator. Starting position: legs are fixed with rollers, palms hold handles. It is required on the exhale to twist the upper back, while lifting the legs. It is important to ensure that the press is tense at the same time. On inhalation, return to the starting position.
Exercises for the press with dumbbells in the gym
As a rule, dumbbells are used as weights in classic exercises: twisting, body lifts, “V” boat, etc. However, there are special exercises.
- Side bends with dumbbells. Starting position: standing, legs apart shoulder-width apart, right hand behind the head, left - holding a kettlebell. It is required to bend to the left and straighten. After performing in one direction, change the hand from the dumbbells and perform the exercise on the right side.
- Raises the legs. Starting position: lying on the floor, arms extended up in front of you and holding a dumbbell, legs extended and raised above the floor. It is required to raise the legs alternately to the left of the kettlebell and to the right of the dumbbell, returning to the starting position and making sure that the feet do not touch the floor.
