Popular strength and conditioning coach Joe DeFranco, the owner of DeFranco’s gyma private facility located in East Rutherford, NJ, has trained martial artists, NFL players and WWE wrestlers and motivated them to push their limits. But in a recent Instagram post, the fitness pro explained why a lack of form could derail any athlete’s progress. When it comes to the mechanics of the close grip bench press, the power to prevent injury lies firmly in the palms of your hands, says the savvy coach. Here’s what you need to know.
“The close grip bench press is an S-Tier, triceps exercise,” DeFranco explained in a demonstration for his 178,000 Instagram followers. “But the way most lifters perform it takes it to the D level, so don’t make this common mistake.”
Avoid this common mistake with triceps-biased bench presses
“Most lifters have an extremely close grip,” DeFranco illustrated, with the insides of his thumbs almost touching on the barbell. “If you think this will put more strain on the triceps. But the only thing a too-tight grip stresses is your wrists and elbows.”
Of course, DeFranco didn’t just find errors in the form. He had the solution to setting your triceps on fire the right way. “This is why I prescribe narrow grip bench presses in my program and not close grip bench presses,” he explained.
How to perform narrow grip bench press to prevent joint stress
“I recommend a grip width where your index fingers are placed on the smooth part of the barbell,” DeFranco showed, with the rest of his fingers in the rougher part. “That is narrow enough to load the triceps without putting excessive strain on your wrists, elbows and shoulders. With this grip you can also load the triceps sufficiently.” This is because you are isolating the triceps muscles instead of recruiting your shoulders and risking injury when moving the load. “Give it a try if you want to build big, strong, horseshoe-like triceps,” DeFranco encouraged. And who wouldn’t want that!?
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