Is the Bench Press Exercise King of Upper-Body Muscle-Building?
Muscle hypertrophy response across four muscles involved in the bench press exercise.
This study investigates the muscle hypertrophy response in four muscles involved in the bench press exercise over a 10-week training intervention.
Key Points
Methods
Participants: 24 healthy males (13 in the resistance training group, 11 in the control group)
Training Protocol:
Duration: 10 weeks
Frequency: 3 times per week
Intensity: 50-55% of 1RM
Sets: 3-4
Repetitions: 12
Time under tension: 36 seconds per set
Rest between sets: 3 minutes
Measurements: Muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) assessed via magnetic resonance imaging
Results
The resistance training group showed significant increases in CSA for all measured muscles compared to the control group (P ≤ 0.019).
Within the resistance training group:
All muscles demonstrated greater CSA increases compared to the medial deltoid (P ≤ 0.016).
The pectoralis major showed larger CSA increases than the pectoralis minor and triceps brachii (P ≤ 0.030).
The hypertrophic response varied among the muscles involved in the bench press exercise.
Conclusion
The 10-week bench press resistance training program effectively increased muscle size in the pectoralis major, pectoralis minor, anterior deltoid, and triceps brachii. However, the magnitude of hypertrophy differed among these muscles, with the pectoralis major showing the most pronounced growth.
