Struggling to increase my bench press max
- Thread starter asamkhan
- Start date
asooneyeonig
Well-known member
have you checked your form? here is a great link to show you how to bench.
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are you fast? in other words can you lift explosively. do have a speed day for bench?
maybe you need to stop benching with a straight bar on a flat bench and use some variations. find a variation that you suck at the most. maybe use your weak point in the bench. you could try:
-floor press
-close grip
-incline
-DB
-wide grip
-with bands
-with chains
-board presses
-pin presses
and any combination of those as well.
try putting some mass on weak links and then getting those links stronger with that extra mass. if you are not sure what they are then work your traps, rhomboids, shoulders, and lats.
without knowing more information that is about as precise as i can get.
Invalid Link Removed
are you fast? in other words can you lift explosively. do have a speed day for bench?
maybe you need to stop benching with a straight bar on a flat bench and use some variations. find a variation that you suck at the most. maybe use your weak point in the bench. you could try:
-floor press
-close grip
-incline
-DB
-wide grip
-with bands
-with chains
-board presses
-pin presses
and any combination of those as well.
try putting some mass on weak links and then getting those links stronger with that extra mass. if you are not sure what they are then work your traps, rhomboids, shoulders, and lats.
without knowing more information that is about as precise as i can get.
Mafesto31
Member
I've gotten my bench from 375lbs to 420lbs in a short amount of time by using heavy drop sets working in the 3 rep max zone. Time off or heavy every other week has worked well too. Having a good spotter makes a big difference. Add in high seated rows ( heavy) with a lat bar, elbows up somewhere in your back routine
holysnikey
New member
How are you doing the bench? Free weights, machine, free weights rack? If you are doing free weights and don't have a workout partner you may not be pushing yourself enough. If you are using a machine then switch it up to barbell free weights because it recruits way more muscles.
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Rodja
Board Sponsor
That's not how you train to build a big bench. A big bench incorporates more lats, traps, and triceps than chest.
asooneyeonig
Well-known member
^^^^^^^
Jiigzz
Legend
YEah, that routine just sounds like your trying to build a bigger chest rather than a bigger bench. Chest is only ONE of the muscle groups working during a bench, you want a bigger bench, focus on the other muscles too.
Bigger lats, Tris will do the job. Also remember that the anterior deltiod is recruited during a bench press, but with that in mind, chances are, if technique isnt on the money, you'll be using your anterior deltiod much more than chest (hence the burning sensation in the deltiod as you push upward).
Bigger lats, Tris will do the job. Also remember that the anterior deltiod is recruited during a bench press, but with that in mind, chances are, if technique isnt on the money, you'll be using your anterior deltiod much more than chest (hence the burning sensation in the deltiod as you push upward).
superbeast668
Well-known member
your doing too much bro. you're over training. take a week off. check your form. work your tri's and delts. check something like wendlers 531 or westside or dc training. I started dc a month ago. I was able to push 345 for 4 on flats and 275 for 8 on inclines before i started. getting around 345 for 12 now, i did 360 on a hammer strength machine for 12 the other day and i ran 275 like 18 times on inclines the other day. as weird as it sounds, also work your back. for a big "powerlifter" bench you'll take a bit of the negative into your back. also a powerlifter bench is a little narrower than a bodybuilders chest. when I'm "powerlifted" for sports my grip was fully in the inside knurling on the barbell. now that i've switched to more astethics in my routines i'm outside of the first knurling all the way. I'd recommend watching some videos on youtube of guys doing raw bench for big numbers and it will help depict what i'm trying to talk about.
MM11
Well-known member
Wow did you read my mind? This is good!
Where do you get stuck? Bottom mid or lockout? Have you seen google "so you think you can bench" by Tate. Thats a great starter for making sure your benching correctly.
Also your routine is not an ideal strength routine.
asooneyeonig
Well-known member
one that includes the dynamic effort method, the max effort method, and repetition effort method and forces you to work on your weak links.
for example, you can have 2 bench workouts. a ME and a DE day. you will always do RE work after the DE/ME work.
on ME day you work up to 3 work sets of 1-5 reps. dont just always do 1 rep maxes. the first attempt should be just above 90%. use this as a test to see where you are at that day. the second set should be at or just shy of a PR. the 3rd set should set a new PR. and try not to do just bench. find a variation that you know increases your bench, like close grip of you need to work on triceps, incline if you need more shoulders, floor press of you have issue locking out, paused or wide grip if you are weak off the chest, etc. and cycle these every 3 weeks or less. over time you will have lots of PRs and you will know when you are getting better.
for ME day for about 4 weeks aim for 3-5 rep maxes. take a deload week then spend 2-4 weeks trying 1-2 rep maxes. deload and repeat. over time you may find you can longer or shorter for the 3-5 max phase. you may not even need a deload at the end. but if you do not need a deload on the 1-2 max phase it either wasnt long enough or you did not push near hard enough.
for DE day use 40-80% and do 2-3 reps. matching the above phases, on the 3-5 max phase use lighter percentages and a lot more volume. like 15-20 sets of 2-3 with minimal rest. time yourself to complete all the sets and each time try and beat that time or use more weight with the same time. this is all about explosion and speed. when you cannot go so fast that you are throwing the weight out of your hands then you need to stop. and start off light. each week up the percentages 5-10%. for example on week 1 do 40%, then 45%, 50%, 55%.
then during the 1-2 rep max phase you drop down to 8-12 sets but up the weight used. go 60%, 65%, 70%. you can even add chains or bands. and do the flat bench here. practice the movement on the DE day. learn to grease the groove.
for the RE work, follow the 2 phases from above. the 3-5 and the 1-2 rep max phase. for 3-5 use general strengthening, nothing specific. in other words just get stronger. work overheads, rows, chinups, etc. use higher rep and higher volume so you can increase work capacity as well as size of the muscles.
RE work during the 1-2 rep max phase focus on just your weak link. like if you cannot keep your upper back tight during a 5 rep max day then hit your traps with as many sets of 3-8 as you can. hammer them hard. you can also do a variation of bench, one for example that you really suck at for some sets of 5 or 6 for some hard effort volume after the DE or ME work.
the lifts you will use are unique to you. you have to find them or find someone knowledgeable in strength sports to help you find them. the reps/sets you use are unique to you. you need to find what works for you. and this can change over time as you strengthen the weak links and find new ones.
does this make sense?
mattys4
Well-known member
excellent advice right here
also spend some time watching date tate videos on youtube i was stuck at the same weight for a while on bench tried different routines all types of stuff ended up just being bad technique that was easily corrected.