Stuck on a plateau

[JosephGrey]

So about 2 months ago I finally broke 200 for my bench press, not much to some, but awesome for me. Since then I haven't been able to push 225. My most recent max was 215x3 (well, 2 assisted to 3). Any tips on how to break this plateau and reach my goal of 225? 8 weeks should have been plenty of time to reach it, so what can get me over the edge? Any insight or advice is greatly appreciated

 

[Nickespo89]

It isn't easy for anyone to give advice going off of how much you have lifted in the past. If you are wanting training advice or opinions. Let us know what you have been doing up to the plateau.

 

[Nickespo89]

Also, a change in diet can increase or decrease exerted strength.

 

[JosephGrey]

A basic chest day for me consists of Chest/Arms. Bench press- dumbbell curls- incline press- hammer curls- army press- cable triceps pull down and lower cable crossovers. That's a general idea of that training day for me.

 

[booneman77]

adding 25lb (which would be over 10% of your previous max) in 8 weeks would be remarkable. if you could continue that pce you'd be a world record holder in a year...

Two things:
1) I think you need to lower your expectations a bit. like I said, 25lb to a 200lb lift is a huge jump in a few weeks. People that have been training for awhile would be happy to add that in months not weeks. It gets exponentially harder to add weight as you get stronger. Where someone might add 50% to all their lifts in the first year, they might be lucky to add 25% the next.

2) For many, as mentioned above, an increase in cals seems to be an almost universal way to add to pressing strength, particularly bench. Personally, I bench way more and really only make progress when Im gaining weight. I can up my squat and dead in a cut, but not bench.

FWIW, its also seems like if you can hit 215 for 3, 225x1 shouldn't be an issue?

 

[JosephGrey]

Thank you for the response, I've only been training intensely for about a year now. So when it is presented in that manner, I can see why it would take longer. I'm looking into options for higher calories but from a nutritious source, something besides potatoes, rice, and chicken. Ha.

And yes, I haven't been able to make it passed 215, I've tried, and it wasn't pretty.

 

[LAH813]

Instead of trying 225. Try 220

Something that helped me push past my bench plateau was varying rep ranges as well as alternating close grip bench with regular.
So one day I would do flat bench at like 85% my 1RM for 5x5 then the next bench day I'd do close grip for 95% my 1RM for 10 sets of 3. Then next time do 65% my 1RM for 8 sets of 8.
That helped me.
Another thing that helped me was working chest and back together. My bench never took off until I started doing heavy ass barbell rows. And doing them on the same day really gets the GH flowing.

 

[JosephGrey]

Thanks for the advice. Will definitely give a shot. And it's honestly been a hot minute since I've done dedicated rows.

 

[booneman77]

Thank you for the response, I've only been training intensely for about a year now. So when it is presented in that manner, I can see why it would take longer. I'm looking into options for higher calories but from a nutritious source, something besides potatoes, rice, and chicken. Ha.

And yes, I haven't been able to make it passed 215, I've tried, and it wasn't pretty.

give us a run down of your current diet... should be very easy to add quality cals (and not boring crap ha)

 

[JosephGrey]

Very basic tbh. Outside of work it's usually sausage of some sort, easy and quick to cook. Usually with rice or a salad. For work lunch it's usually chx breast (4-6 oz) with rice or lean lunch meat with whole grain bread if I'm feeling lazy, ha. On training days recently I've been having Chipotle after a session. A burrito with white rice, chx, hot sauce, sour cream and cheese. So I could most definitely do better, just not sure how else to "kick it up a notch" Ha. For snacks it's usually almonds, oranges, peanuts or extra sharp cheddar.

 

[booneman77]

Very basic tbh. Outside of work it's usually sausage of some sort, easy and quick to cook. Usually with rice or a salad. For work lunch it's usually chx breast (4-6 oz) with rice or lean lunch meat with whole grain bread if I'm feeling lazy, ha. On training days recently I've been having Chipotle after a session. A burrito with white rice, chx, hot sauce, sour cream and cheese. So I could most definitely do better, just not sure how else to "kick it up a notch" Ha. For snacks it's usually almonds, oranges, peanuts or extra sharp cheddar.

nothing you listed there is "bad"... just because it has some fat, doesn't make it bad or unhealthy. fat is your friend when adding cals.

nuts and nut butters, cheeses, etc have lots of healthy fats. olive/coconut and other oils are great too for adding to shakes and cooking (great flavor too).

for meals, simply choose either bigger portions of what you like, or slightly fattier cuts of meat (thigs insteaad of breasts for example).

for salads, add things like eggs, nuts, meats, etc to add some cals.

If all else fails, throw a couple extra protein shakes into the day, or an extra scoop into any you already have. Easiest cals are the ones you drink.

 

[JosephGrey]

Thank you for sharing the knowledge, it's greatly appreciated. I'll be sure to put it to use

 

[LAH813]

nothing you listed there is "bad"... just because it has some fat, doesn't make it bad or unhealthy. fat is your friend when adding cals.

nuts and nut butters, cheeses, etc have lots of healthy fats. olive/coconut and other oils are great too for adding to shakes and cooking (great flavor too).

for meals, simply choose either bigger portions of what you like, or slightly fattier cuts of meat (thigs insteaad of breasts for example).

for salads, add things like eggs, nuts, meats, etc to add some cals.

If all else fails, throw a couple extra protein shakes into the day, or an extra scoop into any you already have. Easiest cals are the ones you drink.

Only thing I would add is avocado. Helps add fats and keeps you full.

 

[R1balla]

Sound advice has been given. Some things that I'm about to say may have been stated already, but I don't want to leave anything out that works for me. Here we go.

First off, congrats on the progress! Weight training will have its ups and downs. Usually, when I'm at a plateau, I first look at my diet. If I'm lean bulking, I add maybe 250 calories to my diet per day and go from there. If I'm straight up bulking, I'll add 500 and that usually does it.

Second, I try to change up my routine. Whether it's minor tweaks or an all out routine change. That includes changing what days I hit certain groups.

Let's say my normal routine is this:

Monday- chest/tri
Tuesday- back/bi
Wednesday - legs
Thursday - off
Friday - shoulders
Saturday - hit anything I feel lacking in

I will change it to something like this

Monday - chest/back
Tuesday - legs
Wednesday - arms
Thursday - off
Friday - chest-back
Saturday - shoulders

That's just an example. I can decide to do push/pull for a few weeks or focus on supersets/drop sets, high volume vs low volume (think 5x5) or my favorite - DC training.

It sounds like you are focused on getting your bench up. This is what I would do
1) eat a little bit more
2) hit chest 2-3x a week with low volume

OR

2) hit chest the same amount but do things like heavy incline instead of heavy flat and the rest do dumbells and machines

3) go high rep and focus on form for a couple of weeks on flat bench.

Your body may be stressed from all the heavy lifting / low reps on bench so it may be smart to get away from that so find another way to work the muscle. It won't happen over night but stick with it and you will be repping 225 in no time.

 

[GAINZFORDAYZ]

Not sure if anyone touched upon this but along with diet and training you should revisit your form.

Not sure how experienced you are but most people don't actually bench with proper form. Most people only activate only a small portion of their chest and back muscles due to poor form. People generally bench with their elbows out rather then in, which leverages your shoulder and arms rather then your more powerful chest and back muscles. Improving your form to utilize your chest and back by keeping the elbows in, proper arch, foot drive, and bar set up will help you lift more weight. Personally my bench has suffered due largely to poor form, and it is hard to break bad habits.

A long with learning better form I personally found that using dumbbells and hammer machines to focus on the development of the chest to be very beneficial. Also focusing on developing the back with bent over rows to be critical in improving the bench press.

 

[Dustin07]

No disrespect is intended, and I congratulate you on your PR!

However, I haven't seen any reference to actual "training". I see arms/chest day with a bunch of movements thrown in, but no discussion on frequency, or rep patterns. Even your warm up could be detrimental to your game depending on what's going on.

The easiest way to get your training focused and productive is SS (Starting Strength). Learn the 5's and stick to it for a couple months until you plateau. When are are actually sticking to a strict program and still you fail, then we mix up the programming, dig deeper into nutrition, sleep/recovery, training frequency etc.

A lot of extra volume can be fun and hypertrophic, but isn't always beneficial to general strength development. Reference "big but boring" 5/3/1 for further understanding on that.

 

[ryane87]

You could go through a progression program where you aren't maxing frequently but you are training in a range that will allow you to get up to a new max. Maybe start with 5x5s with your new max (215 if it was clean) and go from there. You could also try benching in a power rack and setting the safeties up high. OVER your max and bench that in a partial range of motion. When you try 225 again, it should feel lighter. Sometimes mental tricks are helpful.

 

[Dustin07]

http://startingstrength.com/get-started/programs

 

[EMPIREMIND]

So about 2 months ago I finally broke 200 for my bench press, not much to some, but awesome for me. Since then I haven't been able to push 225. My most recent max was 215x3 (well, 2 assisted to 3). Any tips on how to break this plateau and reach my goal of 225? 8 weeks should have been plenty of time to reach it, so what can get me over the edge? Any insight or advice is greatly appreciated

Well in my experience there are two things that always work. One is eating to grow. So you need to eat more, which will make you stronger and all your lifts will go up. Since it's basically just about summer, this might not be appealing to start forcing food and put on some body fat, but it's a no fail way to get bigger and stronger.

Training wise the rule should always be for progress forward everytime you hit that bench. In the form of reps or added weight. If you hit bench, do better than the last time. If you can't get better, you may need more time in-between bench sessions. Also keep your weight at 200 and try to add reps there. Even dropping to 190, but always get more reps or weight , EVERY SESSION. if you don't , your not recovering right and not getting stronger. Point blank.

Also consider doing a different chest exercise like weighted dips or incline db presses and do the same. Get stronger in those every session. When you come back to bench you will be stronger. Don't keep hanging your head against a wall hoping it will fall down, go around it.

 

[R1balla]

I hardly ever see anybody talk about reverse grip bench for pec development. That's prob my favorite chest/tricep exercise.

 

[ryane87]

I hardly ever see anybody talk about reverse grip bench for pec development. That's prob my favorite chest/tricep exercise.

I have come back to it again, much to the happiness of my upper chest.

Edit: I think mostly because it's awkward and uncomfortable. Most people try it and it's too weird. The only thing I hate is unracking the bar when it starts to get heavy. haha

 

[Tank999]

Hi rep squats. Yeah, I said it. Squat to build your chest strength. Don't believe me? Do the research....that's what they did before "enhanced" athletes.
20 reps. 1 set. Once a week. Must add some weight every week. Must finish set no matter what. Eat protein. Guaranteed you break your plateau.

 

[R1balla]

Hi rep squats. Yeah, I said it. Squat to build your chest strength. Don't believe me? Do the research....that's what they did before "enhanced" athletes.
20 reps. 1 set. Once a week. Must add some weight every week. Must finish set no matter what. Eat protein. Guaranteed you break your plateau.

I do high rep squats but I def do more volume than that lol

 

[VO2Maxima]

FWIW, its also seems like if you can hit 215 for 3, 225x1 shouldn't be an issue?

Maybe...sometimes people who aren't good at hitting a heavy single will be able to rep out a weight close to their max. Especially when someone is less skilled at a given movement (which I'm assuming OP falls into this category since he's only been lifting for a year). Also there's the possibility of a form issue. If there's any loss in tightness or bouncing off his chest, then he'll really have trouble hitting a heavy single.

OP, can you post a video? Technique tweaks (if necessary) are the fastest and easiest way to put weight on your bench (or any lift).

 

[Tank999]

I do high rep squats but I def do more volume than that lol

The point to the 20 rep squat program was if you could even THINK about another set you weren't working hard enough. More isn't always better.

 

[R1balla]

The point to the 20 rep squat program was if you could even THINK about another set you weren't working hard enough. More isn't always better.

I understand that. My point is, even with a similar protocol like DC training, you hit it more than once a week.

 

[PaulBlack]

I think the point Tank is making, and I might agree is, the HIT Dr Ken style 20 rep squats, are most likely only needed 1x per week. (and that is all I wanted to do them.) I did not look forward to these especially as they got heavier week after week. They got quite brutal. As Ken would say, you have to keep screwing your head down tighter to get thru these W/O's.
Now, I know guys might add in a 2nd light W/O for say recovery, (#135 2x10) and then do some pulling ie: deadlifts. But to do 20 rep squats in the HIT fashion 2x per, is probably not needed. I was usually crippled for a few days not being able to go up stairs real easy or bend over to get a pencil at work. 4 or so days later, I could get in my deads.
And yes, to grow, eating enough or a calorie surplus.

As far as OP's BP (?), what is you "exact routine" for say the cycle and how do/did you approach your heavy and or work sets?

 

[ericos_bob]

20 rep squats once a week will cause severe doms because the frequency is low. I ran this protocol in the past and switched to training E4D as opposed to once a week adding weight every other workout. The doms left quick smart. That's the main problem I have with once a week protocols. Having a deload day would be another option for those who can't recover training 20 rep squats 2xweek but going too light may not stave off doms.

 

[Tank999]

20 rep squats once a week will cause severe doms because the frequency is low. I ran this protocol in the past and switched to training E4D as opposed to once a week adding weight every other workout. The doms left quick smart. That's the main problem I have with once a week protocols. Having a deload day would be another option for those who can't recover training 20 rep squats 2xweek but going too light may not stave off doms.

Is this a scientific observation or from personal experience? I ran 20 rep squats once a week for about a year and there was nothing delayed about the soreness....it was almost immediate. But with solid nutrition, a hot shower, and some rest....it was no issue.

 

[PaulBlack]

20 rep squats once a week will cause severe doms because the frequency is low. I ran this protocol in the past and switched to training E4D as opposed to once a week adding weight every other workout. The doms left quick smart. That's the main problem I have with once a week protocols. Having a deload day would be another option for those who can't recover training 20 rep squats 2xweek but going too light may not stave off doms.

I mostly agree with ya there guy and I see your points. I would get DOMS, but it would vary, especially if I really went to the wall. However. I did do very light (maybe #135 2 x10-12 as I said, or even a medium set of 5-8 before deads) recovery work and that helped a great deal. I really did not feel the need to do them that hard 2x per week, since talking myself into doing them once per week ala Dr Ken style was enough. I would have probably hit a wall sooner and not been able to drag out the cycle as long. And, most of all, I very much still wanted to get in my heavy pulling for the week. I was/am not built for squatting anyway, so some of the work with 20 reppers eventually came in handy with deads as well as trap bar deads.

 

[ericos_bob]

Is this a scientific observation or from personal experience? I ran 20 rep squats once a week for about a year and there was nothing delayed about the soreness....it was almost immediate. But with solid nutrition, a hot shower, and some rest....it was no issue.

Fair enough and I'm speaking from personal experience. At the extreme end I've met many who can make the connection with having had an extended break from training and then jumping in too heavy, too soon only to wind up unable to move well for a week. It can be a funny situation (for onlookers) It's going to be different for everybody ofcourse.