help with benching?

I currently workout with 160 lbs 5 sets of 5 on mondays and fridays. my max (as of today actually) is 210. my goal by June is to reach a 225 one rep max. is there anything else i can do to speeed my process up? i know i should change up my workout every so often, so any suggestions?
 
id rather stay away from supplements..i drink a N.O. Explode powdered drink b4 workouts, but thats it.
 
thanks

Height = 5'8.5"
Weight = 148
Age = 17 - Junior
Bench = 210
Squat = 300
Deadlift = 320

Before I get into the bench stuff, you need to get some whey protein powder. Drink a shake after your workout. It will help you recover and it will do a lot more for you than the NO Xplode you are on right now. I would personally drop the NO Xplode and use the money to buy whey protein powder with it.

There are a lot of things you can do to increase your bench. Negatives (using more weight than you can lift and a spotter and just lower the bar slowly to your chest, having your spot help you get it back up for another negative rep), Chains if you have access to them are good, and you can also put the safety bars up higher, around the sticking point, and do lockouts.

Doing tri work will also help. Weighted Dips, close grip bench, ect.

You could also mix up your workout and try doing some triples and doubles. When I powerlifted in high school, it seemed like almost every workout ended in either 2 or 3 reps.

I am guessing that your goals are purely strength? If you are more concerned about putting on size, I would suggest that you switch over to DB bench. BB hits a lot of front delt, and I feel DB bench hits my chest a lot more. I have also had some pretty good progress since switching over.

3rd place discuss bodybuilding transformation comp.
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit."
-Aristotle

thanks for the advice.

the problem with protein shakes or createne or w/e is that it will probably make me put on weight, something i dont want. i compete at the 148 lb group, and going up in weight wont help. plus, i like my 6 pack too much.

i usually do tri dips with a 35 lb weight on my thighs anyways, usually on wednesdays.

youre right about the purley strength thing. size isnt all that important. u said DB is better, so ill start doing that.

whats the thing about chains? and the negative thing is interesting. ill try that out.

thanks again.

Height = 5'8.5"
Weight = 148
Age = 17 - Junior
Bench = 210
Squat = 300
Deadlift = 320

I am guessing that you are a wrestler? That is cool, one of my really good friends wrestled in high school.

Whey protein won't make you put on a ton of weight, it will just aid in recovery. You should take a shake right after you get done working out to put you back in a positive nitrogen balance so your body will stop breaking down muscle tissue and start to repairing it.

Creatine will cause you to add weight because it will make you retain water. Since you have to meet a certain weight, I wouldn't reccomend that.

If you are worried about losing your abs, I take whey protein powder and I have abs (disregard my avatar it is old). You can buy some whey protein isolate, which is basically just protein with only a few grams of carbs. I use Scivation Chocolate Whey normally and Isopure when I am cutting for a show. I am currently cutting down for a couple of shows in a few weeks and I am drinking 4 shakes of whey isolate a day and am currently 180-183 lbs at a little over 7% body fat. Trust me, it won't make you put on a lot of weight, and the weight you do put on will be muscle anyways which is a good thing.

More muscle mass will help your body burn more calories by itself and burn more calories when you are exercising. This will probably help when cutting weight for a match.

I am not going to force you to take protein powder, I just think that it will help you in your endeavors.

Chains are basically exactly what they sound like. You have two big metal chains attatched to each end of the bar and hanging to the ground. When you lower the weight, the load becomes lighter because links in the chain are hitting the ground taking away from the total load. However, when you lift the weight, the load becomes heavier because chains are coming off of the ground and adding to the total load. Therefore, the load is lightest at the bottom of the rep and heaviest at the top. I am pretty sure you can buy some chains over at apt pro wrist straps. Just do a goodle search, you'll find them.

I think you misunderstood with the DB stuff. I think it is better for hitting chest, which could be beneficial in helping your bb bench max. However, when you go back to BB from DB bench you will probably be a little weaker than before just because the two are slightly different motions. Taking a break from BB could be good. I would give it a shot and see how it works out for you. Worst case senario, it doesn't help increase your strength at all and you are where you started, but I don't really see that happening.

The negatives are good at getting your body used to a heavier load. You are like 30% stronger or something like that on the downward portion of the rep (don't feel like looking up the exact percentage, but you get the idea). I wouldn't do these every workout, but like once a week or once every other week would probably be fine.

-Kyle

3rd place discuss bodybuilding transformation comp.
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit."
-Aristotle

Ohh okay i see what you mean with the protein. I thought it would make me gain weight. Since it wont really, im going to start doing that.

Thanks for clarifying the chains and BB/DB thing. That will definately help me out.
 
Well once again, thanks a ton. This has really helped me out. Happy lifting!

Height = 5'8.5"
Weight = 148
Age = 17 - Junior
Bench = 210
Squat = 300
Deadlift = 320

Don't know if its been mentioned, but you need to work your triceps like crazy! Do dips, hammers, and all the tricep you can get ;) Triceps support your chest on the bench.

Also, doesn't sound realistic, but, if you work out your whole body, you are sure to be stronger EVERYEHERE.

Also, THE VERY worst thing you could do for your chest is to overtrain. I'd train it 1 or 2 times a week, and make sure you hit the whey!

do less reps more weight. between sets rest 2-3 minutes because the last thing you want is fatigue when doing your max.
basic principles of max ot.

as creaOtine said work your supporting muscles triceps and shoulders.

Disaster Pectoralis


do less reps more weight. between sets rest 2-3 minutes because the last thing you want is fatigue when doing your max.
basic principles of max ot.

as creaOtine said work your supporting muscles triceps and shoulders.

And most all strength building programs..Max OT personally didn't work for me, I can't comment to much about it though because my diet wasn't in great shape when I did it..Also don't forget those shoulders, everyone remembers to train chest and tri's but alot of people just forget about the shoulders.

Goals by end of 2009:
Bench 205
Squat 255 ATG
Squat Clean 185

"There is no elevator to success, you must take the stairs."

just randomly pointing out you are statistically VERY similar to me, main difference is im probably about 5 pounds heavier ATM, and about 15-25 pounds heavier on each exercise (and used to be slightly stronger than that)

Good luck!

Wanna increase bench, work out your triceps, they are a major muscle group used when you bench. tricep dips are excellent, and there are other excercises. working your triceps allows to increase your bench a little without actually doing the bench press. I have tried this and it worked for me so hope it works for you :)

gilax13


I currently workout with 160 lbs 5 sets of 5 on mondays and fridays. my max (as of today actually) is 210. my goal by June is to reach a 225 one rep max. is there anything else i can do to speeed my process up? i know i should change up my workout every so often, so any suggestions?
 
id rather stay away from supplements..i drink a N.O. Explode powdered drink b4 workouts, but thats it.
 
thanks

how hard is 160 5x5 for you because with a 210 max i would think you would be able to do more than 160. Try to increase the weight every time you manage to get all 5 reps on each set (although it does depend upon person to person)

my max is 210 and i can do 170 5x5

Supps:Animal Pak, NO shotgun, Whey


Bench 1RM:210
Squat 1RM:300
Deadlift 3RM:375
Arm Size:14.5 IN
Phase:Bulking 
 

my max bench is over 220 and i can bench 140 15 times in a row 2 or 3 sets of it i use no supplements try to eat protein if you can meat pb etc but you oughta use tuna if concerned with weight and to get stronger use more weight less reps

definatly get some whey, im 16 and have been takin whey for a year now. i only took it after my workouts. like GT dude said, i didnt gain any fat and a bit of mucsle theres only 130 cal per servings and like .2 carbs. its all about the BCAA's and protein getting into your muscles. using this stuff i increased my bench progress i'd say about 10 pounds a week until i got to 300. Unfortunatly i platued. But im also 6 "5" 225. but regardless of your physique it will help anyone, that u already know, so good luck using it, you should see some solid gains in proportion to what your using it for.

and if your lookin for a max bench workout this is what i do, it works for me, people prob do it different. i start off at 135x12. 185x10. 225x6. then i add 20 pounds and do it once, ex 245x1 265x1 285x1. 305x1. i do this once a week and do it with my buddy so with him going after me and then me getting ready i'd say its about 2 min rest between each one. the other day i bench i do incline, decline, dumbell flys and presses and some other stuff. hopefully this will help you.. many people have already said it but working those tri's will help alot too.