Of bench press and a shoulder problem

I was at the GNC-Optimum Nutrition event today which was held at the The Curve at Mutiara Damansara. During the Q&As session with the pros, some audiences asked about the bench press and how should they perform it to avoid feeling the pain in the shoulder that they are currently experiencing. They also added that they had paid visits to chiropractors in hopes to remedy the problem but to no avail.

I've experienced a similar problem before, and the pain originated from somewhere between the neck, shoulders and traps. Massaging was of no help as it was really hard to pin-point where the pain was felt - it was somewhere 'deep', close to the neck, shoulders and traps.

Awhile later, I figured out what my problem was. It is a normal sight to see individuals bench at a position where the bar is behind/in lined with one's forehead (prior to lift-off while lying on the bench). At a lighter weight, there wasn't any problem with that lift-off position but when I started benching heavier, a sharp pain was felt during that same lift-off position. When I realized the problem, I started to slid my head further up the bench, getting the bar closer to parallel to the chests while leaving some room at the same time so that I wouldn't hit the bar rests (the thingies which the bar rests on when it's stationary) on the way up of the movement.

Here's what I think, that what causes the sharp pain in the first lift-off position I mentioned is the weight of the bar that places great stress on the neck and shoulders since it was lifted off behind/in lined with the forehead, and that the shoulders were primarily used during lift-off instead of having the chests to aid in the movement. When you bring the bar closer to the chests, well, obviously you start lifting off with the help from your chests and that takes off loads of pressure off your neck and shoulders. It's that simple.

If you experience similar problems, don't take my word for it - go ahead and give that lift-off position a try and see if it helps to alleviate your shoulder/neck problems during the bench press. If it does, don't forget to come back and thank me :P

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ps. do note that I started feeling the pain at a heavier weight while lifting off at a position with the bar behind/in lined my forehead, and not from other pre-existing conditions. If you've had shoulder/neck problems prior to this, consult a chiropractor

pps. much thanks to GNC and Optimum Nutrition for providing us with a goodie bag full of awesome-ness