A fascinating study was recently published, revealing that one simple tip could help boost your bench press performance! The study involved 20 participants who performed the bench press under three different conditions: 1) listening to self-selected music, 2) listening to stimulating music, and 3) listening to no music at all. In each condition, the subjects completed three sets of eight repetitions at 75% of their 1RM.

A recent study conducted by renowned Irish physiotherapist and PhD researcher Lauren Guilfoyle has revealed significant insights regarding injury trends in Irish youth rugby. Spanning four years and encompassing 50 teams, the study analysed 11,000 hours of match play involving over 15,000 youth rugby players, leading to notable findings concerning injuries resulting from rugby tackles.

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The researchers measured both the average and peak power of the participants’ bench press across these conditions. They also assessed each participant’s Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) using the Borg Scale and their arousal level using the Felt Arousal Scale (FAS).

• Visualisation – Athletes mentally rehearse success, picturing themselves performing skills perfectly. This helps reduce nerves and improve muscle memory.
• Gratitude practice – Focusing on what’s going well, rather than dwelling solely on setbacks, fosters resilience and perspective.
• Mindfulness and breathing techniques – Staying present reduces anxiety and prevents the mind from wandering into self-doubt or future worries.

The findings indicated that listening to music significantly improved power output during the bench press compared to bench pressing without music. Interestingly, self-selected music led to higher levels of psychophysical activation compared to the stimulating music condition.