[wrasslin116]

Ok I need serious help with this as the title says lol. Before track season I was benching 185 5x at 138 or so pounds then during track I had no access to a real bench and was having to use 35 lb dumbells for benching which obviously didn't help. So now I'm weighing 130 and struggling with 145 5x which is extremely embarassing and no matter what I do the weight won't go up, if anything it goes down. My workout is 1 week I do 5x5 next week 10,8,6,2 next week 5x3 then back to the beginning. Any advice?

[bkoguy07]

make a better workout i do this 2 times a week

5x5 on bench (220)
3x10 lying flat on bench with dumbells(75)
3x10 incline dumbell(65)
3x10 decline dumbell(65)
3x10 dumbell flies(25)
3x10 cable cross overs

and you have to work your back and triceps shoulders, etc, to get a real strong increase in bench or else your goin to be unproportional and injuries will occur... so i say start a 5 day split full body workout but if you dont ahve the much time go to a 3 day but yeah... thats just my chest workout.

[Rodja]

That is not the way to increase a bench press; it is going to lead to serious overtraining. Check out this article to increase not only you BP, but also overall strength and mass.http://www.defrancostraining.com/art...s_westside.htm

[bkoguy07]

It increased my bp 50 lbs in 3 months... then agian i had never taken weightliftin seriously... and that is also a good program

[wrasslin116]

Alright I'll look into that, thanks for the help the whole bp thing was really starting to get me mad lol.

[CryingEmo]

Originally Posted by bkoguy07

make a better workout i do this 2 times a week

5x5 on bench (220)
3x10 lying flat on bench with dumbells(75)
3x10 incline dumbell(65)
3x10 decline dumbell(65)
3x10 dumbell flies(25)
3x10 cable cross overs

and you have to work your back and triceps shoulders, etc, to get a real strong increase in bench or else your goin to be unproportional and injuries will occur... so i say start a 5 day split full body workout but if you dont ahve the much time go to a 3 day but yeah... thats just my chest workout.

Good lord that's like 20 sets... I do like 3-4 sets max.

[UHCougar05]

12 Steps to a Bigger Bench by Dave Tate

This might help.

[EasyEJL]

Originally Posted by UHCougar05

12 Steps to a Bigger Bench by Dave Tate

This might help.

Have you tried that one? looks really interesting

[UHCougar05]

Originally Posted by EasyEJL

Have you tried that one? looks really interesting

I've used the principles from the article and they do seem to help. I only do one bench session a week though, to lessen the wear and tear on my shoulders. Also, I tend to press back towards the rack rather than straight up and down, but this is to mimic my technique in my shirt.

[EasyEJL]

I refuse to even admit how little I bench, thats how much it depresses me. I may try and see how I can work out that method given what equipment my gym has

[donk]

Originally Posted by Rodja

That is not the way to increase a bench press; it is going to lead to serious overtraining. Check out this article to increase not only you BP, but also overall strength and mass.http://www.defrancostraining.com/art...s_westside.htm

That article is about best as it gets for beginning Powerlifting. Always remember more is not better.

Originally Posted by bkoguy07
make a better workout i do this 2 times a week

5x5 on bench (220)
3x10 lying flat on bench with dumbells(75)
3x10 incline dumbell(65)
3x10 decline dumbell(65)
3x10 dumbell flies(25)
3x10 cable cross overs


If you follow a routine like that you would get weaker and be seriously overtrained within a few weeks.

[smoundzou]

I've usually found that when someone is suffering on bench, it's usually due to a weakness somewhere else.. Shoulders, Back, Tri's etc..

If you're wanting to increase strength, it might be a good idea to stick with a bar and lay off the DB's for a while.. DB's are great but not the best thing for actually increasing Stength..

I would Highly recommend reconstructing your entire routine and primarily focus on compounds..

Squats, deads, Flat Bench, Hang clean & press, Rows..
Like I said before, lack of bench isn't usually due to weak pecs, it's due to weak delts and Tri's..

Try doing this for several weeks and I'll bet you're bench will start moving up in numbers..

Monday:
Squat: 4X6-8
Flat Bench: 4X6-8
CG Bench: 4X8-10
Hang Clean & Press 4X6-8
Rows 4X6-8

Wednesday:
Deads 4X6-8---------at the top of each rep, do a double shrug
Flat Bench: 4X6-8
Incline Bench: 4X6-8
Arnolds: 4x6-8
CG Bench: 4X8-10

Friday:
Squats 4X6-8
Flat Bench: 4X6-8
OH Press: 4X6-8
Rows: 4X6-8
CG Bench 4X8-10

If you feel the need you can throw in a few sets of isolations for your lats, bi's and tri's but it's not at all necessary
Don't go to failure, work around fiishing at 85% of your max for the speciffic reps.. Work with constant weight.."no bumping up each set" increase slightly, 2.5-5lbs each training session..
Not a very glamorous routine but I guarantee if you do it for 6 weeks you'll see some great results on your lifts..

Originally Posted by wrasslin116

Ok I need serious help with this as the title says lol. Before track season I was benching 185 5x at 138 or so pounds then during track I had no access to a real bench and was having to use 35 lb dumbells for benching which obviously didn't help. So now I'm weighing 130 and struggling with 145 5x which is extremely embarassing and no matter what I do the weight won't go up, if anything it goes down. My workout is 1 week I do 5x5 next week 10,8,6,2 next week 5x3 then back to the beginning. Any advice?

[EasyEJL]

Originally Posted by smoundzou

I've usually found that when someone is suffering on bench, it's usually due to a weakness somewhere else.. Shoulders, Tri's etc..

If you're wanting to increase strength, it might be a good idea to stick with a bar and lay off the DB's for a while.. DB's are great but not the best thing for actually increasing weight..

I would Highly recommend reconstructing your entire routine and primarily focus on compounds..

Squats, deads, Flat Bench, Hang clean & press, Rows..
Like I said before, lack of bench isn't usually due to weak pecs, it's due to weak delts and Tri's..

Try doing this for several weeks and I'll bet you're bench will start moving up in numbers..

Monday:
Squat: 4X8
Flat Bench: 4X8-10
CG Bench: 4X8-10
Hang Clean & Press 4X8
Rows 4X8-10

Wednesday:
Deads 4X8
Flat Bench: 4X8-10
Incline Bench: 4X8-10
Arnolds: 4x8-10
CG Bench: 4X10

Friday:
Squats 4X8
Flat Bench: 4X10
OH Press: 4X10
Rows: 4X10
CG Bench 4X10

Don't go to failure, work around fiishing at 85% of your max for the speciffic reps.. Not a very glamorous routine but I think it will get your numbers up..

I think doing flat bench every training day would only lead to overtraining, not to numbers going up. One rest day isn't enough to heal up inbetween.

[smoundzou]

I think over-training is probably the most abused word used.. If the trainee were doing 4 or 5 pec exercises per working day 3 X's per week and pushing heavy loads.. then CNS Fatigue , over-training could become a factor..

And the routine is not based around working the pecs, it's meant to focus each muscle group with compounds.. Like I mentioned before, A weak bench is usally due to other muscles..Primarily Delts and Tri's not entirely the pec..

Consider that on the touchest day for chest the routine only calls for 8 sets, 4 sets flat and 4 sets incline.. and the other two days, only 4 sets.. I hardly think over-training is going to become a facotor.. The entire routine works the pecs 16 sets per week broken down into 3 training days.. IMO.. muscles do not have to fully recover , Key Word(s) FULLY RECOVER" before they can be trained again.. I know some people live and die by this but there is no scientic studies to back this up.. some of the worlds most recognized strenght training coaches recommend 3 day full body routines..

That's the worse thing I hate about these forums.. it' only takes one person making a comment like yours to discourage someone from doing a solid routine that is proven to gain both strength and mass without the aid of Pharmaceuticals.... Keep in mind this advice isn't being given to a pro BBer but a beginning lifter.. low level intermediate at best..

do a little research on how split routines evolved into bodybuilding....

Originally Posted by EasyEJL

I think doing flat bench every training day would only lead to overtraining, not to numbers going up. One rest day isn't enough to heal up inbetween.

[EasyEJL]

Originally Posted by smoundzou

I think over-training is probably the most abused word used.. If the trainee were doing 4 or 5 pec exercises per working day 3 X's per week and pushing heavy loads.. then CNS Fatigue , over-training could become a factor..

And the routine is not based around working the pecs, it's meant to focus each muscle group with compounds.. Like I mentioned before, A weak bench is usally due to other muscles..Primarily Delts and Tri's not entirely the pec..

Consider that on the touchest day for chest the routine only calls for 8 sets, 4 sets flat and 4 sets incline.. and the other two days, only 4 sets.. I hardly think over-training is going to become a facotor.. The entire routine works the pecs 16 sets per week broken down into 3 training days.. IMO.. muscles do not have to fully recover , Key Word(s) FULLY RECOVER" before they can be trained again.. I know some people live and die by this but there is no scientic studies to back this up.. some of the worlds most recognized strenght training coaches recommend 3 day full body routines..

That's the worse thing I hate about these forums.. it' only takes one person making a comment like yours to discourage someone from doing a solid routine that is proven to gain both strength and mass without the aid of Pharmaceuticals.... Keep in mind this advice isn't being given to a pro BBer but a beginning lifter.. low level intermediate at best..

do a little research on how split routines evolved into bodybuilding....

I agree that the split of full body works well, but I think that doing 4 sets each of flat bench a