We have all heard the body mechanics argument for why someone is good or great at a certain lift. It usually goes something like this: “Yeah, you got a good bench…those short arms help immensely.” Or “Yeah, nice deadlift his long arms make him built to pull.” These little statements are meant to protect the ego and have the simultaneous effect of downgrading the other individual’s accomplishment.



As a lifter with short arms I hear the short arm reason as to why I am a good bencher quite often… but truth is, my short arms have very little to do with why I am a descent bencher. I am an okay bencher because I love it, I train and train and train, and I have been consistently lifting and training for 13 years and I am STILL learning.



People are usually good at something because they put years of effort into increasing their performance, despite the setbacks. We all progress at a certain rate, face certain obstacles and have different starting points all of which are parts of what makes each person’s journey unique.



I decided to give a little timeline of my workout history, a glimpse into how “easy” my bench press journey was.



2003-2005 Free weights – Never benched 315

2005-2009 Machine weight training

2009-Summer 2012 College parties and Curls for the Girls. Lots of benching… LOTS the bro spots and chest bounces were on point!

Summer 2012 I began PL Training

March 2013 425lbs Bench Press SPF Ironman Pro/AM

December 2013 415lbs RPS Winter Warfare

April 2014 450lbs RPS Push Pull presented by River City Barbell

June 2014 470lbs LexenXtreme Summer Slam

December 2014 480lbs Lexen XXX

February 2015 two distal bicep tears and surgeries

December 2015 470lbs SPF Presented by Sweat Shop

That is a lot of years of pressing and I still haven’t broken into the 500lbs+ which to me are the great benchers. 13 years of benching…

My squat and deadlift are still works in progress. 3 years in and I still suck. Guess what? It might take me another 10 years…but descent numbers will happen.

There are many variables in performance: mechanics, training style, genetic predisposition, sports background, labor background, general athleticism, diet, supplementation, lifestyle, environment, etc.



Next time you are crying about “short arms” “long arms” or some other advantage a lifter has ask yourself one question: How many fucking years have you put in? How dedicated are you? What obstacles have you faced? Shutup and train don’t make excuses about your arms, your chest, your shoulders, your back, and your biceps.



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