Bench pressing is a staple in most fitness enthusiasts’ exercise programs. It’s likely that your first experience in the gym was a chest day, and ever since that, you’ve continually chased the feeling of your first chest pump. For that reason, along with its association with bodybuilding greats and its place in power lifting competitions, the barbell bench press will never go extinct. Nor should it; it’s a great way to put on size and gain strength in your upper body. But, before embarking on any bench pressing journey, you need to consider your risk:reward ratio and ensure that you’ve bullet proofed your shoulders to handle the demands of barbell benching.