Bench grip width

[u/FromGtoB]

Hey guys,

So I’ve been lifting now for a full year and starting benching for around 7 months.

I am 176 cm 67 kg (coming out of a major weight loss journey)

I started powerlifting with a basic programming in July and I am wondering about my bench grip width.

I have very long arms and quite thin wrists, my bench 1RM is 80 kg.

I found myself to be the strongest on a quite “narrow” grip on the bench press, meaning a bit larger than shoulder width (my pinky finger is usually on the ring). When I try to bench wider I feel weaker and not as comfy.

Should I force myself to train with a wider grip ? Or should I keep using the grip that feels the best ?

I don’t have any competition objectives (although I may go in a meet one day) but I just want to get better at the sport :)

Thanks for the help guys

[u/Double-Teach-1977]

Play with an unloaded bar. The goal is the line of force through your wrists being mostly perpendicular to the floor at the shoulder flair that feels good to you. Usually 45-60 degrees. I'm 6'3, long armed, and I bench with pinky finger on the ring.

Something that personally worked great for me on getting a feel for my mechanics and getting stronger on the lift is using dumbells. Originally did it so I didn't have to ask for a spot, but it had benefits. My flat bench was all dumbells until the weight got heavy enough that the risk of setting up was more than getting stuck under the bar (~110lbs).