I often get asked for advice on the best techniques for deadlifting and benching, two of the three cornerstones of my training, the third one being squatting. Below is a detailed breakdown of these two movements and how you can improve your own performance in them.

Building a bigger bench

Most people don't take the time to really analyze their bench or study the body enough to learn the physiology of the muscles involved.

There are actually many more muscles involved but I will touch on the main ones.

Triceps: Probably the most important part of the bench is the lockout and where most people fail.
Upper Back: There are many muscles involved but I will summarize by saying if you are not using your lats when you explode out of the bottom you are missing something. I have yet to see a big bencher that didn't have a thick set of lats.

Rotator Cuff Muscles: These muscles stabilize the shoulder.

Pec Major/Minor: Important in horizontal adduction of the humerus. Mostly comes into play during early push off of chest just until triceps take over from front delts; important during initial push off the chest.

How To Improve

Your job is to figure out where you are slowing down and what muscle group is primarily responsible for that part of the action. People that have trained "touch and go" or stop short of the chest are going to need to do accessory exercises to help strengthen the push off of the chest.

My suggestion would be flat dumbells ALL the way until touching the chest. Also decline presses help strengthen more pec, shoulder, and 'front' lat.

Of course, nothing works better than lowering the bar slowly to the chest and using a long pause.
You will find you are weak if you have never done this before but add the other exercises and this portion will strengthen quickly. Also, many bodybuilders bench with their elbows back towards their head and the bar high on the chest. This is not condusive to a big bench.

You want to draw as many big muscles into action as possible. Try lowering your elbows and using more tricep. When I bench, the bar touches under my breast line on my xyphoid process so that I can take advantage of the power of my triceps.Grip width is another subject matter that is very important. This varies from person to person depending on the length of the arm.

In my opinion, you have the most power when your forearm is perpendicular to the floor when the bar is sitting on your chest. You have more leverage if your forearm is directly under the bar and not at an angle.This should be your grip width.

If you are sticking during the transition phase or the middle part of the movement you need to work on explosion off of the chest with as much force as possible. I used to bench in the rack on occasion and set the pins so that we were locked into the center part of the lift and we would pause on the bottom peg and explode until the bar was jammed against the top peg(a few inches short of lockout) and we would hold it for 5-10 seconds, repeating this for several reps. This always seemed to help pick that phase up for me.
If you are sticking about 4-6 inches short of lockout you have weak triceps. You can add chains for resistance, try power bands or, if you don't have access to these tools, try doing lockouts in the power rack.

I set the pegs at the height of the intitial lockout phase and press from that point to full extension. This does wonders for tri strength. Also floor presses (with dumbell or bb) pressing from the point elbows touch the floor to lockout. Also close grip bench on a thick chest pad works too.
Let's not forget wrist strength. Of course, you can always use wrist wraps but if you want stability you really should have strong enough wrists to securely hold the weight in position. It would sure suck to have the weight roll right out of our hands in mid-air onto your chest as I witnessed before.
There are MANY more things I could mention here but this is just the basics to get you all thinking and hopefully on your way to a bigger bench! If you have any questions feel free to leave a message!

Improving your deadlift

The deadlift is a complex exercise to dissect because it almost involves every muscle in the body. I will cover the most important ones below:

The erector spinae or "spinal erectors"

Several groups of muscles that work together. Most of them originate in the lumbar/sacral area and run along the spine to the mid thoracic area. You can almost always find a fat juicy pair of erectors on any good deadlifter (or squatter), and in my opinion, the truest physical sign of power (also the sexiest of muscles if you love a powerful physique!).

The muscles in the gluteal region. Several here but you get the idea.
Hamstrings- back of the leg.
Trapezius- between shoulders/ upper back.
Hip flexors- front of thigh where thigh meets hip.
Forearms and hand flexors- GRIP! if you can't hold the bar you won't be able to pull it off the floor and lock out with it so I would say these are really your most important muscles when it comes down to it. Unless you are a pansy and deadlift with straps like I see some bodybuilders doing.

Pointers and Proper Technique

First, the setup for the lift:

Always start with your feet equally spaced and the bar as close to your legs as possible (remember every inch in distance from your leg adds weight to the bar).
Head and chest should be high and positioned over the bar.
Butt should be low and back should be flat, not rounded.
Grip on conventional should be as close to the outside of your thighs as comfortable; otherwise you are just adding more distance you will have to pull.

NEVER start your pull with your arms bent!! I see this all the time.Keep them locked out. Your arms are merely hooks that hold onto the bar. You lose a lot of power on the initial pull if you start with bent arms and also risk tearing a bicep.

THE MOVEMENT

The pull should start with your heels, glutes, and thighs and your back should be very tight and flat and your head high. I often think about pushing my heels through the floor and feel most of the pull through my hams and glutes until the bar passes my knees. You should always practice pulling off the floor this way too so as the weight increases you will be ready.

You should pull off the floor with as much speed and force as you can generate. The momentum will come in handy when the weight hits your knees.

Once the bar is above the knee I begin the lockout phase by driving my hips into the bar with as much force as I can and sliding the bar literally against my thigh (not out in front of me) by using the force of my glutes and hip flexors while simultaneously driving my head up and back. Strong abs will also be beneficial here to help keep the torso tight and help with the lockout.

SUMO OR CONVENTIONAL?

It doesn't matter if you use sumo or conventional. That depends on your personal preference. The the style that makes you the strongest and most comfortable.
I pull conventional (narrow with hands outside my thigh) because I have a strong lower back and thighs. I also squat narrow which uses almost the same muscles (but in a different way). If you are a wide squatter and rely mostly on hip and groin strength then sumo may be better for you.

TROUBLESHOOTING

If you have a problem with getting the weight off the ground then I suggest lowering the weight a bit and pulling while standing on a 100 lb plate or something about that height . (If pulling conventionally.)
This has always helped me because I have to start my pull from a couple inches even lower and so when I take the plate away the floor doesn't feel quite so bad. Most sumo lifters find the toughest part of the lift is getting the weight off the floor.

On the other hand, if you are able to pull from the floor but die somewhere around the intial phase of your lockout I suggest heavy rack pulls from the knees. High pulls are very helpful here too.
If the weight dies within 4-6 inches of lockout I suggest heavy shrugs and high pulls to build up trapezius and upper back strength.

The erectors are used through out the entire movement.
If you simply cannot hold onto the bar and it slips through your fingers then work on your grip. First, get rid of the straps on back day. The farmers walk with dumbells as heavy as you can manage is an excellent grip and trap exercise and is often overlooked.

Well best of luck to you! if I overlooked anything or u have any questions leave me a message!