Lifting Lighter with a Pause Can Work Your Shoulders More
Acute Effect of the “Zero Point” Method on Muscle Thickness and Muscle Damage in Trained Men
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Two ways to do bench press: one uses heavier weight, one uses lighter weight but pauses halfway down. Both do the same total work, but the pause version lets you do more reps and makes your shoulder muscle swell more.
Surprising Findings
Deltoid muscle thickness increased significantly with the lighter, paused method — but chest and arm muscles didn’t.
Everyone assumes bench press is a chest-dominant movement. This shows that small technique changes can completely redistribute muscle recruitment — even in a classic compound lift.
Practical Takeaways
Use the 'zero point' method (50% 1RM + 1s pause at bottom) on bench press 1–2x/week to target shoulders without heavy loads — great for deload weeks or shoulder-focused phases.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Two ways to do bench press: one uses heavier weight, one uses lighter weight but pauses halfway down. Both do the same total work, but the pause version lets you do more reps and makes your shoulder muscle swell more.
Surprising Findings
Deltoid muscle thickness increased significantly with the lighter, paused method — but chest and arm muscles didn’t.
Everyone assumes bench press is a chest-dominant movement. This shows that small technique changes can completely redistribute muscle recruitment — even in a classic compound lift.
Practical Takeaways
Use the 'zero point' method (50% 1RM + 1s pause at bottom) on bench press 1–2x/week to target shoulders without heavy loads — great for deload weeks or shoulder-focused phases.
Publication
Journal
Sports
Year
2023
Authors
T. B. Trindade, R. C. Alves, Nuno Manuel Frade de Sousa, Charles Lopes, Bruno Magalhães de Castro, Thiago S. Rosa, J. Prestes
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Claims (10)
The pause method doesn’t make your muscles more sore the next day or two after your workout than the normal heavy-lift method.
Both workout methods make your muscles equally sore the next day — neither one leaves you feeling more achy than the other.
You can lift almost a third less weight using the pause method, but still do the same total amount of work — and even do more reps and keep your muscles under tension longer.
Adding a one-second pause at the bottom of each bench press doesn’t make your muscles more damaged or sore the next day than lifting heavy without pausing.
When you pause at the bottom of the bench press, your shoulder muscles work harder and swell more than your chest or arms — meaning your body shifts the work to your shoulders.