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[BENCH PRESS] Does this mess up your chest in the long run?

Xeon

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I'm currently doing dumbell bench presses, pressing the same weight as my bodyweight.
All is good, until I came across this pic of Scott Steiner's chest last night:

maxresdefault.jpg


Here's another pic:

hqdefault.jpg


There's this really gross and freaky abnormal gap between his pecs. I googled a bit, and many folks say it's due to tearing the pecs during bench press, and it won't heal.

Has anyone encounter anything like this before? Could benching heavy actually cause this kind of body deformity in the long run?
I'm worried I might end up like that.

Not just him, but some other folks like Kofi as well:

Kofi-Kingston.jpg


Markus Ruhl is another, but his was not as bad as the above 2 guys:

maxresdefault.jpg



Seems like the weight of the bench press is pulling away the pec muscle from the sternum gradually (see how the pec muscles attached to the sternum):

pectoralis-major-muscle.png
 
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Strategery

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It could be the DB bench presses, or it could be steroids, making the muscles grow faster than the bones can support?

I've seen this before as well, and someone (on the internet) made the observation that it is common amongst pro wrestlers (I think).

I'm leaning towards steroid use.
 

Ocean Man

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tearing the pecs

You mention a tear, have you seen a torn bicep or other torn muscles? They don’t look great.

Stay safe, warm up, and be careful with the weight. Most likely they had some terrible tears, many people bench their entire lives without a tear and look normal.

You don’t need to worry. Just lift properly and safely.
 

Charnell

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You have nothing to worry about. Every one of the guys you showed use PEDs, so unless you're looking to leave humanity behind get under the bar and start pushing.

This could be compared to not doing [thing] in business because [fortune 100 company] ran into issues doing it at scale.
 
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luniac

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The real issue with heavy weight lifting are long term wear and tear on your joints.
 

ShamanKing

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You have nothing to worry about. Every one of the guys you showed use PEDs, so unless you're looking to leave humanity behind get under the bar and start pushing.

This could be compared to not doing [thing] in business because [fortune 100 company] ran into issues doing it at scale.


lol that quote tho. RIP Rich P
 

Xeon

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Try looking at pictures of people not using steroids and see if it still bothers you

I've. I'm just wondering if bodybuilding / weight-lifting as a whole will damage the body in the long run.
 

MTF

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Lifting weights is much more harmful for your health than bodyweight exercises so if you want to prioritize your health I'd look into that. There are countless ways to progress in calisthenics without putting as much stress on your body. You'd also get additional benefits in mobility and general function, not just appearance.

A good explanation why weightlifting is more damaging that bodyweight exercises is described in Convict Conditioning:

This damage is done because bodybuilding motions are largely unnatural. In order to place a great deal of emphasis on the muscles, the body is forced to hoist heavy external loads in motions and at angles not usually found in nature. One side-effect of this punishment is a vast amount of stress on vulnerable joints, joints which are forced to endure this horror repetitively over time. The result is soft tissue tears, tendonitis, arthritis and other maladies. The joints become inflamed and scar tissue or even calcifications begin to build up, making the joints weaker and stiffer. Bodybuilding movements primarily target the muscles, which adapt much faster than the joints; this means that the more muscular and advanced a bodybuilder becomes, the worse the problem gets. When performed properly and in sequence, the calisthenics motions in this book will not cause joint problems—on the contrary, they progressively strengthen the joints over an athlete’s lifetime, and actually heal old joint injuries. This beneficial effect occurs for two reasons. The first reason is basic physics; the resistance used is never heavier than the lifter’s own bodyweight. The ridiculous, excessively heavy loads so admired in bodybuilding do not occur. The second reason is down to kinesiology—which is the science of movement. Simply put, the body has evolved over millions of years to be able to move itself, first and foremost; it was never “designed” to lift progressively heavier external loads on a regular basis.
 

Longinus

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I've. I'm just wondering if bodybuilding / weight-lifting as a whole will damage the body in the long run.

On the contrary, it literally fights aging, unless of course you take roids. I strive to do weightlifting for the rest of my life. I lift less weight than when I was younger, but try to focus more on calisthenics.
 
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jon.M

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Tearing your pecs is insanely painful, you would definitely notice it, and the long-term consequences heavily depend on your treatment and individual injury. Besides, the only people I know whom have teared their pecs were pushing the weights quite a bit upwards of 180-220 kg, without taking the time to pause and consider if its such a smart thing. They were raging bulls on the bench, you could say.
 

gryfny

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You have nothing to worry about. Every one of the guys you showed use PEDs, so unless you're looking to leave humanity behind get under the bar and start pushing.

This could be compared to not doing [thing] in business because [fortune 100 company] ran into issues doing it at scale.

This is spot on. Unless you are pressing insane weights without proper form or warmup, you will be fine.
 

Ocean Man

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At the end of the day, when it comes to calisthenics vs bodybuilding, it depends on your goals. It could entirely be another thread about the benefits.

But to answer your question, I think there's been a good number of responses to this thread already. If you're warming up properly, being smart and safe while lifting... you're more than likely to be okay and not have a huge injury like a torn pec. Just watch the weight.

Slow and controlled and something you can manage.
 
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Xeon

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Thanks for all the responses. I guess I've nothing much to fear after all.

Lifting weights is much more harmful for your health than bodyweight exercises so if you want to prioritize your health I'd look into that. There are countless ways to progress in calisthenics without putting as much stress on your body. You'd also get additional benefits in mobility and general function, not just appearance.

Unfortunately, I don't think there's really a good Calisthenic-substitute for stuff like bench press to build thicker bigger chests, unless it's something like wearing a 100-lb weight vest and doing pushups.
 

MTF

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Unfortunately, I don't think there's really a good Calisthenic-substitute for stuff like bench press to build thicker bigger chests, unless it's something like wearing a 100-lb weight vest and doing pushups.

Actually, there are many good alternatives even for the advanced: archer push-ups, one-arm push-ups, ring dips, plyometric push-ups, handstand push-ups. You can also do everything weighted.
 

Kybalion

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I've. I'm just wondering if bodybuilding / weight-lifting as a whole will damage the body in the long run.

Improper form, lack of warm-up and an inadequate amount of weight are really, really dangerous. Asides from that weightlifting is healthy... But geez, it's hella easy to get injured, if you aren't careful.
 

Ocean Man

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Actually, there are many good alternatives even for the advanced: archer push-ups, one-arm push-ups, ring dips, plyometric push-ups, handstand push-ups. You can also do everything weighted.

Push-ups are great. Especially the variations, I really like diamond push-ups. @OP definitely consider adding in push-ups and their variations into your workouts.
 

MattR82

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Improper form, lack of warm-up and an inadequate amount of weight are really, really dangerous. Asides from that weightlifting is healthy... But geez, it's hella easy to get injured, if you aren't careful.
Inadequate?
 
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MattR82

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I meant too much weight...
I thought so. I've only been starting recently and am just focussing on my form. Without a trainer it takes a lot longer.
 

Kybalion

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I thought so. I've only been starting recently and am just focussing on my form. Without a trainer it takes a lot longer.
That's smart, I'd advise asking someone more experienced to check out your form or just take a video of yourself lifting. Most people are really friendly and won't hesitate to help you out. :)

For extra motivation, I'd like to share a little cautionary story to illustrate how important it is to focus on perfecting the form (and not the ego :D)

When I started to lift I always felt like I had to impress other people by using way too much weight, so I didn't give a fu*k about proper form and blew out my back like a baws... Btw I was only 20 when it happened.

I quickly learned that there are these little, gel-like disks in my spine... which can actually pop-out of the vertebrae, which is holding them... And it just so happened that one of the little discs had decided to press on the sciatic nerve and make my life a living hell...

Long story short I was limp for a year and a half...

Since then I am obsessed with holding proper form and I'd advise everyone reading this to do the same to save themselves from injury .
 
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luniac

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Thanks for all the responses. I guess I've nothing much to fear after all.



Unfortunately, I don't think there's really a good Calisthenic-substitute for stuff like bench press to build thicker bigger chests, unless it's something like wearing a 100-lb weight vest and doing pushups.

One arm pushup at 200 pounds weight, is like a 2 arm bench press between 350-400 pounds.
 

BD64

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Thanks for all the responses. I guess I've nothing much to fear after all.



Unfortunately, I don't think there's really a good Calisthenic-substitute for stuff like bench press to build thicker bigger chests, unless it's something like wearing a 100-lb weight vest and doing pushups.

People have already mentioned pushups. There are also dips - which are incredibly good for chest development and can be infinitely loaded up with a weight belt. Hop on the parallel bars and do these properly, you'll feel it the next day for sure.

When it comes to advanced calisthenics/gymnastics, show me a single person who can do something like an iron cross but doesn't have an extremely solid overall upper body.
 
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Kjbinatl

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A good explanation why weightlifting is more damaging that bodyweight exercises is described in Convict Conditioning:

Thanks for the reference.

One note though - I would argue that we naturally experience scenarios dealing with twice our body weight. Carrying family or tribe members, or fighting. This would effectively sanction lifting up to one's own bodyweight, but not going much further than that, while staying with the principle the author makes about natural limitations.
 

Process

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No one really knows.

It seems to happen to pros who were training heavily for decades. Some see it as a tear from too many wide grip bench presses at extreme weight.

Others believe it is genetics. It could be that their testosterone is lowering and muscle mass is wasting away. Or it could be they no longer take steroids.

Either way no one really knows for sure.
 

Kruiser

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Actually, there are many good alternatives even for the advanced: archer push-ups, one-arm push-ups, ring dips, plyometric push-ups, handstand push-ups. You can also do everything weighted.

Why not just lift weights then?
 
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MTF

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Why not just lift weights then?

Because doing any of these exercises weighted is the most advanced level; this is not something you would do for years starting as a beginner with bad form. Even when you reach this level (and most would look and be super strong already before being able to perform, for example, one-arm pushups), you won't be putting hundreds of pounds of stress on your joints.

In comparison, when lifting weights, such as bench press, you do it every day in a way that's not natural or healthy in the long term. And you're also losing additional muscle development and mobility improvements that bodyweight exercises offer, including better stabilization (compare the activation of your abs and shoulders when doing pushups and when doing bench presses), improved range of motion, etc.

But to each his own. When I lifted weights I felt slow, inflexible, and often exhausted or injured. With calisthenics, I feel like I'm getting a holistic workout without the risks of overloading my body. I also don't care for the swollen look without the performance, endurance, and health behind it, which is what I often see in bodybuilders. Your experience and priorities might be different, though, and I'm not arguing that bodybuilding is the devil.
 

TTG SS

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Because doing any of these exercises weighted is the most advanced level; this is not something you would do for years starting as a beginner with bad form. Even when you reach this level (and most would look and be super strong already before being able to perform, for example, one-arm pushups), you won't be putting hundreds of pounds of stress on your joints.

In comparison, when lifting weights, such as bench press, you do it every day in a way that's not natural or healthy in the long term. And you're also losing additional muscle development and mobility improvements that bodyweight exercises offer, including better stabilization (compare the activation of your abs and shoulders when doing pushups and when doing bench presses), improved range of motion, etc.

But to each his own. When I lifted weights I felt slow, inflexible, and often exhausted or injured. With calisthenics, I feel like I'm getting a holistic workout without the risks of overloading my body. I also don't care for the swollen look without the performance, endurance, and health behind it, which is what I often see in bodybuilders. Your experience and priorities might be different, though, and I'm not arguing that bodybuilding is the devil.


If you start off with weights as a beginner with proper guidance (i.e a halfway decent program and proper form) you're going to get a lot better results than just doing bodyweight.


Also, you're not losing any mobility by lifting weights. You're also using significantly more core strength doing compound lifts (bench press, squat, deadlift, military press) than any type of body weight. Range of motion is literally a non-factor if you're doing any mobility work at all.

I've been lifting for almost 8 years with high intensity and I have never gotten injured before. Weightlifting is actually extremely low risk in terms of injury. Sure I've tweaked things here and there but nothing a few days of rest couldn't heal. Injury in the gym is usually doing something you shouldn't be...

Your thoughts on performance, endurance and health regarding weightlifting are completely inaccurate with all due respect... Don't you think there is a reason professional athletes focus heavily on lifting? If a player did not weight train they would virtually not be competitive, especially in the more physical sports.

I think every human being on earth should be lifting some type of weights at least several times a week for optimal health

EDIT: Hoping this didn't come off as aggressive after re-reading it. Not my intended tone :)
 
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