Bench press advantage, long vs short arms?

[SCcobra4me]

Who has the advantage? Those with long arms or those with shorter arms, I'm having a debate unfortunately with one who can bench press a Buick (550lb to be exact) and he says it doesn't matter, it's all about Force.

I showed him the following article and he said it was ridiculous...

Physics behind 6ft 3 benching vs 5ft 8 guy benching - Bodybuilding.com Forums

 

[98 Saleen Cobra]

I've always thought that shorter people have less travel so it's easier..

 

[WireEater]

I always figured taller people had more mass/muscle so it made it easier..

 

[98 Saleen Cobra]

I always figured taller people had more mass/muscle so it made it easier..

Maybe it doesn't matter?? I have no clue lol..

I just use my excuse as to why all the shorter guys lift so much ahahahaha.. Probably just lying to myself

 

[massmustang02]

I view it as the taller guy has a larger muscle area to spread the weight over so theoretically he can handle more weight.

I view it as the snowshoe theory. Try to walk over snow with regular shoes, you go straight through. Spread that same weight over a larger area(snowshoes) and you are able to walk on top of the snow.


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[BreBar21]

Uhhhh...it's definitely not that simple. You can't boil down strength to arm length. It's impossible to make a definitive statement one way or the other.

 

[Svtkidd23]

Short arm less travel

 

[massmustang02]

Uhhhh...it's definitely not that simple. You can't boil down strength to arm length. It's impossible to make a definitive statement one way or the other.

I agree. I think it's completely individual to each person. Some people are stronger in certain lifts than others and I think it pertains to mental and physical ability as well as genetics.


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[xtremeskime21]

I think part of it is how far the weight has to move. So arm length plus chest circumference play a big part.

 

[65stangvert]

It is an advantage to have shorter limbs due to the mechanical disadvantage if long limbs. Try holding a 20lb weight in you hand straight with a straight arm. Then try it again holding the weight in the krook of your elbow. It is not quit this simple as fast twitch muscle % plays a major role, but strictly answering ops question, short lever gives greater advantage. Travel of weight plays no role. Degree is Sports Medicine here as a reference. Sorry for long answer...:banghead:

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[SCcobra4me]

I tried telling him Force is just one variable, distance should obviously one as well. Then asked him if it takes the same amount of power/force/work to move 300 lbs 2 feet or 4 feet?

 

[TheCPE]

Work = Change in Energy

Work = Force x Distance

Force in the case of bench pressing is simply the weight. Pounds, is a unit of force.

The distance is of course the measure of how far the bar with weights is traveling during the exercise. Thus, the further the bar of weights travels the greater the distance.

Therefore, the work done with the same weight is MORE when the distance of travel is further. The amount of energy required is also MORE since the distance of applied force is greater.

:shrug:

 

[NasteeNate]

I say short arm, I'm 5'7 but have long legs/arms and benching takes so much travel that it made my chest fully developed because it was that much harder for me. I had more time under tension using hypertrophy rep ranges. There are a lot of varibables, but in a nut shell short arm people can get stronger fast IMO just from less range of motion. I could be wrong but thats how I see it.

 

[TheCPE]

Travel of weight plays no role.

That is wrong. It is simply physics and simple kinematic equations. The distance of travel of the weights obviously matters.

 

[65stangvert]

Very similar to cars. It takes no addition hp or tq to go 100 ft or 1000 ft at a constant speed, although it does burn more fuel. The variable does come into effect if you take the same car and run larger or smaller radius tire. That is the same as longer or shorter arms. One loses mechanical advantage the further the object goes from the axis. Obviously assuming all other factors are identical.
But, with the longer lever and the same speed of motion at the axis the object is moving at a greater rate as a matter if geometry, so while not great for lifting heavy, great for pitchers and QB's.

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[TheCPE]

Very similar to cars. It takes no addition hp or tq to go 100 ft or 1000 ft at a constant speed, although it does burn more fuel.

This is in no way analogous to bench pressing. When you bench press you are applying a net positive force to a weight to move it parallel to an opposing force (gravity). A car rolling (assuming frictionless surface) is moving perpendicular to any opposing force.

The variable does come into effect if you take the same car and run larger or smaller radius tire. That is the same as longer or shorter arms. One loses mechanical advantage the further the object goes from the axis. Obviously assuming all other factors are identical.
But, with the longer lever and the same speed of motion at the axis the object is moving at a greater rate as a matter if geometry, so while not great for lifting heavy, great for pitchers and QB's.

:??:

 

[hb712]

In my competitive experience, the guys with shorter arms, especially if they had big bellies too, always had better lifts. You're moving the weight a shorter distance, that's all there is to it.

 

[Granelli31]

Have you ever seen someone with really long arms who is very strong for their size...no. Look at power-lifters, they are pretty proportionate. I don't think the lanky body type is preferred at all for feats of strength. Wide receivers have very long arms and aren't generally that strong, they are athletic, but not in pure strength.

There are probably some genetic things that come into play, look at how big a chimps arms are, not much bigger than a big man if any bigger, but they are massively stronger than us lb for lb. Isn't that simply because of where the ligaments/muscles attach to the forearm and the general ratio's at work? Just like a hyena's bit force compared to say a large dog. The hyena's head isn't much bigger if any than a very large dog, however because of the way the muscles are layed out, the leverage is much greater.

 

[Jack Burton]

I'm 5'6" and have benched in the 400's. never met many taller people doing it. I could also do 315 for sets of 15. Never ran into taller people that could match me. That's just my experience, as I'm sure there are tall guys that do it, it's just not as common


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[01cobravortech]

uhhhh...it's definitely not that simple. You can't boil down strength to arm length. It's impossible to make a definitive statement one way or the other.

+1