Ok, so anybody that has read through the physical fitness thread knows that benching is not my best lift. I've never had that much pecs/arm strength (I think because my main form of exercise when I was growing up - rockclimbing and running - work your legs and back rather than chest and arms), and even though I've gotten stronger, it's not getting to where I want it to.

For the record, I weigh 150lbs atm, can squat at least 300lbs, powerclean 225lbs, and bench around 185lbs. Three weeks ago or so, I'd gotten my bench up to where I completed 5x4 at 155lbs, but then I got sick and missed two days of school. I just now got over being sick, but it seems that my bench keeps getting worse and worse. Whereas two weeks ago I did 4x8 at 140lbs and nearly 5x4 at 160lbs, I couldn't even finish 4x8 at 135lbs and only got the second set of five at 155lbs.

Anyways, my point is that I would like to bring my bench up. A lot. To at least 205lbs. I know it's possible, I have friends around my weight that bench that much and more (though I squat more than them :D), but it just feels so out of reach right now. Bleh.

Also, for the record, my deltoids aren't that amazingly strong. I always feel weak when we're doing upright military presses or whatever and everybody is doing ~100lbs where I'm stuck at about 75lbs for 4x8.

Help would be appreciated.


ps, if you have any problems with lifting or want to improve at something, this is now the thread to post it in.

It's not my strongsuit either so I'm not really in a position to give advice but over the past few months I've gained close to 10kg on my bench press and the only thing I done differently over that time period was added isometric press ups to my routine. It's a fantastic exercise and you can do it pretty much anywhere.

Just have a stopwatch handy, and go into a press up position. Do a press up, but when you're in the final phase of lowering your body to the floor stop there and hold it. You should look like the middle dude on this image (although hopefully your nose isn't quite so big).



Now hold that for about 60 seconds (or more if you're comfortable!). It's a truly brutal calisthenic. After about 90 seconds the circulation to your arms starts to weaken and it gets to a stage where you're holding yourself up on willpower alone.

Just try to start doing them more often - it worked for me!

(also, everybody reading this should go and try them right now!)

if you want to increase your strength on bench press then your going to have to hit heavy weights with 4-6 reps you may need a spotter with you when doing this

do you do incline bench press that will train your upper pecs

rotator cuff exercises can increase your bench press aswell

this is convenient as i have been working on increasing my bench over the last month...

i would suggest almost exactly what gamer has said above. HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY WEIGHTS. I mean the next morning i want your chest and arms to be sore, heavy.
So do bench (with a spotter) so that you can only do it 4-6 times. Also throw in decline dumbell press as it works the part of your chest that is more important for benching, as well as your triceps. If your feeling up for a challenge throw in some incline dumbell press or some pushups afterwards as well. Have some protein shakes after your workout and your set.

Ive been doing this for the past 3 weeks and my bench has increased dramatically. At the start i was doing sets of 155 8 times and max was 205. Now, only 3 weeks later in doing 175 8 times and can bench 225. For reference I am 6 feet 162 pounds.

creatine is good product to use it provides strength and helps you recover faster
but you must drink alot of water when on creatine

It's not easy I can say that much. The best advice I can say is have a spotter. You have someone who can help you out, point out what you can do to improve plus you got someone when momentum starts to slow down. There are a lot of things you can do but a spotter is something that should help

Lee, I tried that out and it made me sore after 55 seconds :(

How many of those do you do in a set, and how many sets?

k hi guys i thought i would ask this here haha

right now, i weigh 132 and rep 180 -- while i know this is nothing to be ashamed of, i have been stuck at 180 for about 3 months. i read somewhere that genes affect lifting, and if so, my parents are 5'4'' and 5'0'', so i'm really not very happy with that... can anyone confirm that / give me a way to break my platteau?

deload to like 60% of your work weight with the same number of reps and build it back up if you haven't done that already obviously. or gain some bodyweight, i'm guessing from your post you're short but you could always get bigger

190cm tall 70-75kg weight, going for a rowers build, so should I keep doing high reps - lower weight to tone fast and bulk slow, or swap? i've toned and can lift alot easier and do higher reps, but i'm not really bulking.

ty