One of the most important pieces of progressive resistance equipment is the adjustable weight bench. The flat bench press is the undisputed King of upper body exercises. Pecs, front delts, triceps, even lats (resisting the lowering) are maximally stimulated by flat benching. The 45-degree incline press has long been regarded as the finest upper pec developer. Don’t forget curls done seated and using the various inclined angles. Seated overhead pressing is made more stable when back-braced. Don’t forget dumbbell flat flyes, incline flyes and the overlooked, underappreciated seated dumbbell lateral raises. The adjustable bench is likely the most used piece of equipment in the gym - other than barbells and dumbbells.

About the Author
As an athlete Marty Gallagher is a national and world champion in Olympic lifting and powerlifting. He was a world champion team coach in 1991 and coached Black's Gym to five national team titles. He's also coached some of the strongest men on the planet including Kirk Karwoski when he completed his world record 1,003 lb. squat. Today he teaches the US Secret Service and Tier 1 Spec Ops on how to maximize their strength in minimal time. As a writer since 1978 he’s written for Powerlifting USA, Milo, Flex Magazine, Muscle & Fitness, Prime Fitness, Washington Post, Dragon Door and now IRON COMPANY. He’s also the author of numerous books including Purposeful Primitive, Strong Medicine, Ed Coan’s book “Coan, The Man, the Myth, the Method" and numerous others. Read the Marty Gallagher biography here.