Q – What exercises will help my thoracic extension for bench and deadlift?
A – Thoracic extension is vital in all the powerlifts, but certainly no lift suffers more than the bench when there is restricted movement in this area. People talk often of arching on the bench press, but too few understand that the arch (extension) should come from the upper and mid thoracic, and not from the lower back. The problem with when people over arch the lower back is that when you maximise the extension in the lower back you cause the upper back to round. So what we are looking for on the bench setup is a fairly neutral lumbar spine to enable maximum thoracic extension and an upper back arch. Whilst many simply approach this with just stretching and arching over a roller (which are both valid and should be incorporated into a warm up) , if you want to get the strongest, tightest and most consistent setup on bench, you not only need to try and build your flexibility and mobility, you need to build the strength to hold yourself in these positions.
Here’s a list of exercises which you can use to build your strength in thoracic extension…
- Cobra Exercise (arms extended overhead)
- Prone Cobra on Bench with added head harness.
- Prone Thoracic Extension Over a Swiss Ball (hands behind the head)
- Prone Y Raises on Swiss Ball
- Halbert Raises
- Hugged Slam Ball Thoracic Extensions on 45º Back Extension or GHR.
- SS Bar Thoracic Extensions
- Seated Round/Arch Barbell Good Mornings
- Head Harness Neck Extensions
- Isometric Banded Neck Extensions
These exercises will of course also help you get your chest up on your deadlift setup as well.
If you’d like some demo videos of these exercises please let me know and I will put some up on the instagram page.
