Boost my bench??

[butrybench555]

My bench press was doing OK but for a few months I feel like I haven't gotten any stronger, my bench hasn't gone up which makes me think I can't get any stronger. Any tips??? Plateau or any chest workout???

 

[breezy11]

My bench press was doing OK but for a few months I feel like I haven't gotten any stronger, my bench hasn't gone up which makes me think I can't get any stronger. Any tips??? Plateau or any chest workout???

It could be a lot of things. How often do you train chest and workout in general? Do you ever change your routine? What's your diet like? Are you gaining,maintaining, or losing weight?

 

[asooneyeonig]

powerlifters have shown for decades that the chest is secondary to strong shoulders and triceps for a big bench. the chest is as important as the lats and traps for pushing a big bench. this IMO is the reason why many people dont ever get a big bench as they only focus on the chest.

can you please post your current workout, and not just for chest but everything. as well as intensities. and post a vid to.

 

[kBrown]

^^^ True.

Focus on developing your triceps and shoulder strength, focusing on workouts that allow a lot of heavy weight.
E.G. Shoulder press, push press, skull crushers, dips.

These are the #1 tools in my arsenal for a big bench

 

[FLAwrestler88]

^^^not exactly accurate, though it may not be as
big of a muscle group such as shoulders and triceps in importance to bench, but lats are huge in bench press, the ability to keep your upper back tight to give your bench a stable platform to perform the movement off of. It is much harder to bench with your back flailed out considering any force your trying to exert on the barbell has no platform to press off of. Remember lats are being contracted slightly when lowering the bar to your chest, so possibly a stronger back could lead to less strength needed to control the bar on the way down, possibly saving more strength for your shoulders, chest and triceps to perform more powerfully with the push

 

[asooneyeonig]

..................skull crushers, dips.

i have been using those 2 as well.

ive also been using floor presses recently. not sure how much they are going to work. i like em so far though. i have been told by a training partner to do what i suck at so it looks like paused wide grip pin presses for me. im going to be using it the next 2 blocks on my program and we shall see. that is the only exercise im doing different then the last 2 blocks.

 

[kBrown]

^^^not exactly accurate, though it may not be as
big of a muscle group such as shoulders and triceps in importance to bench, but lats are huge in bench press, the ability to keep your upper back tight to give your bench a stable platform to perform the movement off of. It is much harder to bench with your back flailed out considering any force your trying to exert on the barbell has no platform to press off of. Remember lats are being contracted slightly when lowering the bar to your chest, so possibly a stronger back could lead to less strength needed to control the bar on the way down, possibly saving more strength for your shoulders, chest and triceps to perform more powerfully with the push

Agreed lats are important.
What is your bench? Mine is 425lbs... I was just letting the man know what I use to work on my bench.

there is 405lbs bench, with minimal arch and I am lacking a firm base (which is important as well).

For a big bench I need to maintain heavy weight on shoulders and triceps, the weaker those two muscle groups get the weaker my bench press gets

 

[FLAwrestler88]

Agreed lats are important.
What is your bench? Mine is 425lbs... I was just letting the man know what I use to work on my bench.

there is 405lbs bench, with minimal arch and I am lacking a firm base (which is important as well).

For a big bench I need to maintain heavy weight on shoulders and triceps, the weaker those two muscle groups get the weaker my bench press gets

Im at 405 now after a broken hand injury set me back in november...

But I wasnt trying to put your points down, your right, shoulders help explode the lift off chest and triceps have to be hella strong to lock out heavy weight. I just wanted to make sure that back isnt neglected, especially if looking for a bigger bench. Lats play a huge role in the eccentric portion of the lift

 

[Rodja]

It's been implied, but you have to start thinking of bench press as a movement and not a muscle. Yes, the chest plays a role, but it is a cog and not the only worker.

 

[FLAwrestler88]

Care to explain??

We were trying to help out with other muscles that he might of been slacking on that could help perform the movement more powerfully and efficiently, i think all of us left out chest on muscles you need to focus a little more on, so i'm interested in what you mean as a "movement"? You referring to how he performs the movement?

-shoulders & traps dug into bench
-back naturally arched (or extreme arch for you powerlifters)
-air in belly
-elbows in line with wrist
-feet into ground

Stuff like that?

 

[Rodja]

Care to explain??

We were trying to help out with other muscles that he might of been slacking on that could help perform the movement more powerfully and efficiently, i think all of us left out chest on muscles you need to focus a little more on, so i'm interested in what you mean as a "movement"? You referring to how he performs the movement?

-shoulders & traps dug into bench
-back naturally arched (or extreme arch for you powerlifters)
-air in belly
-elbows in line with wrist
-feet into ground

Stuff like that?

The bench press is a full-body movement incorporating nearly every muscle in the body. Technique is obviously the most important aspect and is highly neglected, but it's usually a waste of time since most people their technique is fine. We have no idea where his sticking point is so any suggestion is basically a shot in the dark and exercises are chosen to compliment the bench training. There are general rules (e.g. heavy lat and tricep work), but beyond that is specialized to the weakness of the lifter.

 

[Massari]

My bench press was doing OK but for a few months I feel like I haven't gotten any stronger, my bench hasn't gone up which makes me think I can't get any stronger. Any tips??? Plateau or any chest workout???

I agree with everything that has been said but the bench is as stated a movement however with repetition of this movement you will build the muscle necessary to to lift greater weight... Just talking from experience the only times my bench Increases is when my diet is in point. Also working with lower repetitions of higher weight until you find it easy, just max your bench get a spot and push for 4... As long as your struggling your working hard... My two cents anyway

 

[bmftisftw]

have you tried explosive accessory movements like dead benching (benching from a dead stop) , tricep roll backs? doing concepts to the likes of west side barbell (heavy day/light and explosive day). Just a few thoughts ;p

 

[Jiigzz]

To effectively bench press you need first and foremost a strong pec major (the prime mover during horizontal flexion) and a strong anterior deltiod (and second to those are the triceps), so focus on building overall strength on these three muscles to maximise the bench. To make then bench even more powerful, work out the muscles on your back just as hard as you work out the chest.

 

[Torobestia]

have you tried explosive accessory movements like dead benching (benching from a dead stop) , tricep roll backs? doing concepts to the likes of west side barbell (heavy day/light and explosive day). Just a few thoughts ;p

I knew there was something missing on my bench days - pause presses. Those things are amazing for developing bench strength for me. Thanks for reminding me of them, I'll throw them back in my routine! And tomorrow is bench day, so just in time!

 

[bmftisftw]

I knew there was something missing on my bench days - pause presses. Those things are amazing for developing bench strength for me. Thanks for reminding me of them, I'll throw them back in my routine! And tomorrow is bench day, so just in time!

I also think close grip bench works pretty good too to build the triceps up to handle more weight. those are all just some things people have been helping me out with. Other things that will help your bench press is having a spot on diet, how you set up to perform your bench press, and the press itself.

 

[bmftisftw]

To effectively bench press you need first and foremost a strong pec major (the prime mover during horizontal flexion) and a strong anterior deltiod (and second to those are the triceps), so focus on building overall strength on these three muscles to maximise the bench. To make then bench even more powerful, work out the muscles on your back just as hard as you work out the chest.

great info!!

 

[oli]

maybe try some Dynamic Effort work

try around 40-50% of ur 1 rep max and do sets of 2 for about 6-10 sets

 

[Iron Warrior]

powerlifters have shown for decades that the chest is secondary to strong shoulders and triceps for a big bench. the chest is as important as the lats and traps for pushing a big bench. this IMO is the reason why many people dont ever get a big bench as they only focus on the chest.

can you please post your current workout, and not just for chest but everything. as well as intensities. and post a vid to.

Gotta agree with this advice. If you don't focus on other muscle groups that enhance the bench press then you're missing the boat. You work may muscle groups while benching, it's not just a matter of bringing up your chest because delts and tri's play a big role.

 

[Trank406]

Go to failure in every set but choose the weight that will to do this and get your rep range. So start the 8 rep cycle with the weight you are comfortable with. Do both sets with that weight for 8 reps and in a set you will increase the weight by 5 pounds for the same set next week. Otherwise keep the weight the same and try to rep out next week. This lets your body tell you when and how fast you need to progess.
And definitely like said asooneyeonig said lack of strength in one muscle group because usually when you hit failure in the bench press it's due to one or more weak area. So gradually strengthen the weak spot and you'll see your bench go up in no time!