Trying to find out why some people are given the opportunity to make a high "arch" and significantly bend over in the chest area, I again turned to anatomy and learned about three types of chest structure: asthenic, normosthenic and hypersthenic chest (see photo). I don't see any point in writing about the normosthenic type separately, since this is not one of the extremes of the chest structure and it doesn't have any interesting features, even from the name. He has everything in the middle: the length and width of the chest, the direction of the ribs, etc. Depending on the length of the chest of each type, the location, attachment and direction of the ribs, we can assume the functional capabilities of the athlete in the bench press.
The asthenic type has a narrow and flat shape, the largest length relative to other types (the ribs end very low on the abdominal cavity), obliquely directed downwards ribs and large gaps between their fastenings, which explains the elongation of this type of chest. Other very important features that are inherent in this type of chest: short and lowered clavicles (immediately understood as narrow shoulders) and strongly protruding shoulder blades. It is obvious that this type of chest is mainly possessed by women and thin tall men. In practice, we see that the above people most often show the most outstanding ability to "arch", that is, increased flexibility and the ability to bend in the most convenient place for the bench press of the chest. Perhaps this circumstance is due to the large gaps and the direction of the edges, which allow you to make quite large kinks in the very spaces between the edges and nothing prevents this. The angle of attachment of the ribs to the sternum also contributes to the "arch", since the ribs are more vertically directed, and, therefore, do not interfere with the mobility of the chest in the sagittal plane.
Also, the fact of protruding shoulder blades may indicate their higher mobility relative to other types (I assume that since they strongly protrude outward, they can also be strongly tucked in, since the space for their free movement is greater), which we also observe in practice - girls and lean mens can reduce them deeper than others, and therefore shorten the amplitude of the bar movement even more and achieve a more vertical trajectory. Of course, all this is possible with an unspoiled posture and optimally developed back muscles. This type can be attributed to the highest "arch" of bench pressers, but with the most poorly developed muscles of the shoulder girdle, which explains the attempts to win the coveted kilograms in the bench press with the help of a bridge, because such people simply do not have another opportunity to press a lot. Therefore, I do not understand the exclamations of "experts" who actively promote the abolition of the "arch" in the technical rules, since in their opinion "this is not a bench press, this is some kind of gymnastics and acrobatics, there is no power here and nothing can be done without a arch". Well, in General, Yes, they can't, just like you can't sit down much without a good technique, and even more so pull. Only here the concept of technology, first of all, implies a search for the best options for each individual athlete, based on its anatomical features. For some reason, there is no talk about the ability of athletes to spread their legs wide and spread their knees in a squat, although this is also an anatomical advantage. No one scolds Tyson for his "Pick-a-Boo" style, no one charges Bolt for his long legs and African ancestry, no one wonders why Yao Ming doesn't jump as high as the rest of the basketball players.
What should I advise owners of asthenic chest type? To prevent logical error "survivors" (in Wikipedia you can find information as "survivor bias" to understand what I'm talking about), I must say that it is accented to develop a "arch" to the people makes no sense. Only in General terms, because they won't have any problems with the bridge anyway. But what you should pay attention to is the development of the shoulder girdle muscles. General and special exercises in large volumes and with high complexity of execution will help to increase the result, because you will not be satisfied with one "arch". In the press – the arms and shoulders should be strong, and the eyes should burn fire!)
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