In your opinion what is the best way to approach this test? Start off explosively? Steadily? A combination of both? what has worked best for you guys?
Both with more emphasis towards speed than being steadily. You got infinite energy resources. The faster you lift a weight the lighter it feels and the inverse of course is true. You want control of course but you can only exert yourself for a limited duration.
Another trick: During warm-ups do a few reps above 225. Im not sure how strong you are whether you are a 225x6 guys or maybe 225x30. So I cannot tell you what weight it should be. Last time I maxed out on 225 test I warmed up to 225 of course but then did a double at 275 and a single at 315. [To put in it perspective I could probably do 315 for 8-10 at the time] But you wanna prime that CNS and after you do even a single rep with that heavier weight the lighter one just seems to fly. Again you dont wanna tax anything. I did one rep where I could have done probably 9. But there’s no lactic acide build up from a single or double. But there will be if you do too many reps. Now admittedly if you can only get 6-10 reps with 225 than you probably dont wanna and cannot go much more heavy than 225.
Start off steady and keep repping it out. Do not be too explosive, that is a waste of energy. I break for a couple breaths at 15 reps and 22 reps.
I also overload my bench set before that. I will put 225 on the bar and do it twice, then 275x1 and then 315x1. This helps bring out the muscle fibers that you would not normally use at 225 that you had to use at 315. This also helps with the mental portion because it feels alot lighter.
I also warm up the rotator cuff as well.
I hope this helps.
Thanks guys, very much appreciated. I’m currently at 21 reps, my best being 27 in the past. I’d like to hit 30 some day. I too overload prior to the test, however explode from rep one. Gonna try to conserve energy next time.
Keep up the good work! As saps said, concentrate on speed, but not too explosive. My back used to come off the bench for the first 10 reps but now I just cruise in a way.
If you are trying to conserve energy then why the hell would you work up to a weight that is heavier than what you are testing? That doesnt make any sense. I know the arguement will be, “I’m trying to prep my CNS, brah.” It still doesnt make sense because thats why you warm-up in the first place. You wouldnt run a marathon before you tested your mile, would you?
Anyway, everyone doing this test fails in 35-45 seconds, regardless of amount of reps. If you think I am full of shit, time your attempt next time you go for it. The key to training for a bench test like this is to increase the amount of reps you can get in that amount of time. The easiest way to do it is to get stronger. Also, timed max rep tests work pretty good too.
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
If you are trying to conserve energy then why the hell would you work up to a weight that is heavier than what you are testing? That doesnt make any sense. I know the arguement will be, “I’m trying to prep my CNS, brah.” It still doesnt make sense because thats why you warm-up in the first place. You wouldnt run a marathon before you tested your mile, would you?
Anyway, everyone doing this test fails in 35-45 seconds, regardless of amount of reps. If you think I am full of shit, time your attempt next time you go for it. The key to training for a bench test like this is to increase the amount of reps you can get in that amount of time. The easiest way to do it is to get stronger. Also, timed max rep tests work pretty good too.[/quote]
Your blanket statements to me suggest either lack of experience or lack of education on the subject matter.
You say it does not make sense to “warm up” with a heavier weight than your test weight. Have you tried it both ways? Based on personal experience did you come to your conclusion? Or are you merely conjecturing based on theoretical application of what makes sense to you but that you have also never applied?
I’ve tried it both ways. For me and most who are probably looking at least 15-20 reps at 225, there is a distinct performance advantage to exceed the test weight with a low rep warm up. I probably get 4 more reps using this protocol versus not exceeding 225 in the warm up. Again for someone like myself who was around a 315x8-10 at the time. My warm up would have been as follow. 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x1, 315x1. 225x30 I assure you this 12 total rep warm up is more energy conserving than endless sets and reps at 135-185. No lactic acid build up my way. But Im curious to hear what you advocate?
Your analogy of running a marathon before a mile test again is out of place. In fact the reality is quite the opposite. The marathon is the sustained effort event for greater duration than the mile. I mean there is a reason a dragster does a burnout before its race. Still similar to why you see track athletes doing squat jumps before their event. You may not believe in the theory until you put it into practice. Maybe you have an you’re an anomaly, I don’t know.
And to say everyone fails this test between 35-45 again is just inaccurate. The kids who can only manage a few reps are just flat out done in less than half that time. And if you watch the guys who really get reps at the combine and/or of the old footage of NFL guys like Nate Netwon or PLers like Ryan Kennelly the world record holder can rep 225 for 90 seconds.
I fully concur that there is a time and place in training for practicing a timed session. I further assert that warm up is dictated by your overall strength max as well as anticipated rep count at 225. That is, someone with a 275 max, anticipating 8 reps will warm up differently than someone with a 550 max anticipating 40+ reps.
Bottom Line for me is based on real world trials and application. I’ve found the methodology I advocated above to be significantly more effective.
Here’s a nice article on the subject:
[quote]saps wrote:
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
If you are trying to conserve energy then why the hell would you work up to a weight that is heavier than what you are testing? That doesnt make any sense. I know the arguement will be, “I’m trying to prep my CNS, brah.” It still doesnt make sense because thats why you warm-up in the first place. You wouldnt run a marathon before you tested your mile, would you?
Anyway, everyone doing this test fails in 35-45 seconds, regardless of amount of reps. If you think I am full of shit, time your attempt next time you go for it. The key to training for a bench test like this is to increase the amount of reps you can get in that amount of time. The easiest way to do it is to get stronger. Also, timed max rep tests work pretty good too.[/quote]
Your blanket statements to me suggest either lack of experience or lack of education on the subject matter.
You say it does not make sense to “warm up” with a heavier weight than your test weight. Have you tried it both ways? Based on personal experience did you come to your conclusion? Or are you merely conjecturing based on theoretical application of what makes sense to you but that you have also never applied?
I’ve tried it both ways. For me and most who are probably looking at least 15-20 reps at 225, there is a distinct performance advantage to exceed the test weight with a low rep warm up. I probably get 4 more reps using this protocol versus not exceeding 225 in the warm up. Again for someone like myself who was around a 315x8-10 at the time. My warm up would have been as follow. 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x1, 315x1. 225x30 I assure you this 12 total rep warm up is more energy conserving than endless sets and reps at 135-185. No lactic acid build up my way. But Im curious to hear what you advocate?
Your analogy of running a marathon before a mile test again is out of place. In fact the reality is quite the opposite. The marathon is the sustained effort event for greater duration than the mile. I mean there is a reason a dragster does a burnout before its race. Still similar to why you see track athletes doing squat jumps before their event. You may not believe in the theory until you put it into practice. Maybe you have an you’re an anomaly, I don’t know.
And to say everyone fails this test between 35-45 again is just inaccurate. The kids who can only manage a few reps are just flat out done in less than half that time. And if you watch the guys who really get reps at the combine and/or of the old footage of NFL guys like Nate Netwon or PLers like Ryan Kennelly the world record holder can rep 225 for 90 seconds.
I fully concur that there is a time and place in training for practicing a timed session. I further assert that warm up is dictated by your overall strength max as well as anticipated rep count at 225. That is, someone with a 275 max, anticipating 8 reps will warm up differently than someone with a 550 max anticipating 40+ reps.
Bottom Line for me is based on real world trials and application. I’ve found the methodology I advocated above to be significantly more effective.
Here’s a nice article on the subject:
http://www.criticalbench.com/bench-press-combine.htm[/quote]
Whatever works for you. Everyone is different. I only take advice from people who are stronger than me and in real life, not via the internet.
I am just offering my opinion on what has worked for me. I wouldnt know what works for someone shooting for 15-20 reps. Or 50 reps. Or 5 reps. And neither do you. I know what works for me. It is completely individual.
The test is pointless anyway. A 225 bench test only tests how many times you can bench press 225. I bet, and this is conjecture, that 60% of the NFL is under 20 reps.
As far as a 225 test that lasts 90 seconds, please post a video.
I thought I read somewhere that Jim Wendler talked about the 225 rep test and he pointed out that it’s really stupid, when you’re repping 225, to perform each rep as if it’s anymore than 225. It makes sense to me…if you’re going for explosive, you’re treating the weight like it’s more than it is, you’re expending more energy than you need to on each rep, and you’re gonna wear yourself out early.
I also read (some article on here, go find it yourself) that most people get all the reps they’re going to in about 45 seconds, so I’d just pick a steady pace that allows you to get your goal inside of that time frame. So if you’re shooting for 15, do them at a 1 rep/3 sec pace. Just my $.02.
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
[quote]saps wrote:
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
If you are trying to conserve energy then why the hell would you work up to a weight that is heavier than what you are testing? That doesnt make any sense. I know the arguement will be, “I’m trying to prep my CNS, brah.” It still doesnt make sense because thats why you warm-up in the first place. You wouldnt run a marathon before you tested your mile, would you?
Anyway, everyone doing this test fails in 35-45 seconds, regardless of amount of reps. If you think I am full of shit, time your attempt next time you go for it. The key to training for a bench test like this is to increase the amount of reps you can get in that amount of time. The easiest way to do it is to get stronger. Also, timed max rep tests work pretty good too.[/quote]
Your blanket statements to me suggest either lack of experience or lack of education on the subject matter.
You say it does not make sense to “warm up” with a heavier weight than your test weight. Have you tried it both ways? Based on personal experience did you come to your conclusion? Or are you merely conjecturing based on theoretical application of what makes sense to you but that you have also never applied?
I’ve tried it both ways. For me and most who are probably looking at least 15-20 reps at 225, there is a distinct performance advantage to exceed the test weight with a low rep warm up. I probably get 4 more reps using this protocol versus not exceeding 225 in the warm up. Again for someone like myself who was around a 315x8-10 at the time. My warm up would have been as follow. 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x1, 315x1. 225x30 I assure you this 12 total rep warm up is more energy conserving than endless sets and reps at 135-185. No lactic acid build up my way. But Im curious to hear what you advocate?
Your analogy of running a marathon before a mile test again is out of place. In fact the reality is quite the opposite. The marathon is the sustained effort event for greater duration than the mile. I mean there is a reason a dragster does a burnout before its race. Still similar to why you see track athletes doing squat jumps before their event. You may not believe in the theory until you put it into practice. Maybe you have an you’re an anomaly, I don’t know.
And to say everyone fails this test between 35-45 again is just inaccurate. The kids who can only manage a few reps are just flat out done in less than half that time. And if you watch the guys who really get reps at the combine and/or of the old footage of NFL guys like Nate Netwon or PLers like Ryan Kennelly the world record holder can rep 225 for 90 seconds.
I fully concur that there is a time and place in training for practicing a timed session. I further assert that warm up is dictated by your overall strength max as well as anticipated rep count at 225. That is, someone with a 275 max, anticipating 8 reps will warm up differently than someone with a 550 max anticipating 40+ reps.
Bottom Line for me is based on real world trials and application. I’ve found the methodology I advocated above to be significantly more effective.
Here’s a nice article on the subject:
http://www.criticalbench.com/bench-press-combine.htm[/quote]
Whatever works for you. Everyone is different. I only take advice from people who are stronger than me and in real life, not via the internet.
I am just offering my opinion on what has worked for me. I wouldnt know what works for someone shooting for 15-20 reps. Or 50 reps. Or 5 reps. And neither do you. I know what works for me. It is completely individual.
The test is pointless anyway. A 225 bench test only tests how many times you can bench press 225. I bet, and this is conjecture, that 60% of the NFL is under 20 reps.
As far as a 225 test that lasts 90 seconds, please post a video.[/quote]
Most players in the combine were over 20 reps. These are rookies needless to say, not even nfl players yet. So I will be disagreeing with your statement.
“not even nfl players yet”
How do actual NFL veterans get on at the 225 rep test?
Man, I’m glad proper footy doesn’t have such arbitrary tests.
[quote]KingMike wrote:
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
[quote]saps wrote:
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
If you are trying to conserve energy then why the hell would you work up to a weight that is heavier than what you are testing? That doesnt make any sense. I know the arguement will be, “I’m trying to prep my CNS, brah.” It still doesnt make sense because thats why you warm-up in the first place. You wouldnt run a marathon before you tested your mile, would you?
Anyway, everyone doing this test fails in 35-45 seconds, regardless of amount of reps. If you think I am full of shit, time your attempt next time you go for it. The key to training for a bench test like this is to increase the amount of reps you can get in that amount of time. The easiest way to do it is to get stronger. Also, timed max rep tests work pretty good too.[/quote]
Your blanket statements to me suggest either lack of experience or lack of education on the subject matter.
You say it does not make sense to “warm up” with a heavier weight than your test weight. Have you tried it both ways? Based on personal experience did you come to your conclusion? Or are you merely conjecturing based on theoretical application of what makes sense to you but that you have also never applied?
I’ve tried it both ways. For me and most who are probably looking at least 15-20 reps at 225, there is a distinct performance advantage to exceed the test weight with a low rep warm up. I probably get 4 more reps using this protocol versus not exceeding 225 in the warm up. Again for someone like myself who was around a 315x8-10 at the time. My warm up would have been as follow. 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x1, 315x1. 225x30 I assure you this 12 total rep warm up is more energy conserving than endless sets and reps at 135-185. No lactic acid build up my way. But Im curious to hear what you advocate?
Your analogy of running a marathon before a mile test again is out of place. In fact the reality is quite the opposite. The marathon is the sustained effort event for greater duration than the mile. I mean there is a reason a dragster does a burnout before its race. Still similar to why you see track athletes doing squat jumps before their event. You may not believe in the theory until you put it into practice. Maybe you have an you’re an anomaly, I don’t know.
And to say everyone fails this test between 35-45 again is just inaccurate. The kids who can only manage a few reps are just flat out done in less than half that time. And if you watch the guys who really get reps at the combine and/or of the old footage of NFL guys like Nate Netwon or PLers like Ryan Kennelly the world record holder can rep 225 for 90 seconds.
I fully concur that there is a time and place in training for practicing a timed session. I further assert that warm up is dictated by your overall strength max as well as anticipated rep count at 225. That is, someone with a 275 max, anticipating 8 reps will warm up differently than someone with a 550 max anticipating 40+ reps.
Bottom Line for me is based on real world trials and application. I’ve found the methodology I advocated above to be significantly more effective.
Here’s a nice article on the subject:
http://www.criticalbench.com/bench-press-combine.htm[/quote]
Whatever works for you. Everyone is different. I only take advice from people who are stronger than me and in real life, not via the internet.
I am just offering my opinion on what has worked for me. I wouldnt know what works for someone shooting for 15-20 reps. Or 50 reps. Or 5 reps. And neither do you. I know what works for me. It is completely individual.
The test is pointless anyway. A 225 bench test only tests how many times you can bench press 225. I bet, and this is conjecture, that 60% of the NFL is under 20 reps.
As far as a 225 test that lasts 90 seconds, please post a video.[/quote]
Most players in the combine were over 20 reps. These are rookies needless to say, not even nfl players yet. So I will be disagreeing with your statement.
This has zero representation for the rest of the NFL. Lets say all of these guys got drafted. Ok, now they make up 1% of the NFL.
These guys werent doing anything even remotely close to football specific work getting ready for the combine. They worked on improving these specific drills. If the bench press test had any bearing on whether or not football players were any good, they wouldnt need to bench press to get more reps… they would just need to play more football.
The entire combine is bullshit. This wasnt even the point of the thread… oh well. Let’s start a new arguement on the internet…
If you think lactic acid build up has something to do with fatigue, then youre retarded.
[quote]KingMike wrote:
Most players in the combine were over 20 reps. These are rookies needless to say, not even nfl players yet. So I will be disagreeing with your statement.
I think that’s top performers
Why do they list hand size? I only casually follow the sport.
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
[quote]saps wrote:
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
If you are trying to conserve energy then why the hell would you work up to a weight that is heavier than what you are testing? That doesnt make any sense. I know the arguement will be, “I’m trying to prep my CNS, brah.” It still doesnt make sense because thats why you warm-up in the first place. You wouldnt run a marathon before you tested your mile, would you?
Anyway, everyone doing this test fails in 35-45 seconds, regardless of amount of reps. If you think I am full of shit, time your attempt next time you go for it. The key to training for a bench test like this is to increase the amount of reps you can get in that amount of time. The easiest way to do it is to get stronger. Also, timed max rep tests work pretty good too.[/quote]
Your blanket statements to me suggest either lack of experience or lack of education on the subject matter.
You say it does not make sense to “warm up” with a heavier weight than your test weight. Have you tried it both ways? Based on personal experience did you come to your conclusion? Or are you merely conjecturing based on theoretical application of what makes sense to you but that you have also never applied?
I’ve tried it both ways. For me and most who are probably looking at least 15-20 reps at 225, there is a distinct performance advantage to exceed the test weight with a low rep warm up. I probably get 4 more reps using this protocol versus not exceeding 225 in the warm up. Again for someone like myself who was around a 315x8-10 at the time. My warm up would have been as follow. 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x1, 315x1. 225x30 I assure you this 12 total rep warm up is more energy conserving than endless sets and reps at 135-185. No lactic acid build up my way. But Im curious to hear what you advocate?
Your analogy of running a marathon before a mile test again is out of place. In fact the reality is quite the opposite. The marathon is the sustained effort event for greater duration than the mile. I mean there is a reason a dragster does a burnout before its race. Still similar to why you see track athletes doing squat jumps before their event. You may not believe in the theory until you put it into practice. Maybe you have an you’re an anomaly, I don’t know.
And to say everyone fails this test between 35-45 again is just inaccurate. The kids who can only manage a few reps are just flat out done in less than half that time. And if you watch the guys who really get reps at the combine and/or of the old footage of NFL guys like Nate Netwon or PLers like Ryan Kennelly the world record holder can rep 225 for 90 seconds.
I fully concur that there is a time and place in training for practicing a timed session. I further assert that warm up is dictated by your overall strength max as well as anticipated rep count at 225. That is, someone with a 275 max, anticipating 8 reps will warm up differently than someone with a 550 max anticipating 40+ reps.
Bottom Line for me is based on real world trials and application. I’ve found the methodology I advocated above to be significantly more effective.
Here’s a nice article on the subject:
http://www.criticalbench.com/bench-press-combine.htm[/quote]
Whatever works for you. Everyone is different. I only take advice from people who are stronger than me and in real life, not via the internet.
I am just offering my opinion on what has worked for me. I wouldnt know what works for someone shooting for 15-20 reps. Or 50 reps. Or 5 reps. And neither do you. I know what works for me. It is completely individual.
The test is pointless anyway. A 225 bench test only tests how many times you can bench press 225. I bet, and this is conjecture, that 60% of the NFL is under 20 reps.
As far as a 225 test that lasts 90 seconds, please post a video.[/quote]
You are difficult to understand. If its truly just whatever works for you and everyone is different why offer advice at all? Further why issue blanket statements that apply to everyone?
It is a close minded attitude to assert one only take advice from people stronger than themself. Andy Bolton takes advice on his dead, just as Kennelly does on his bench. Tiger has a coach as Rafael Nadal. I will ask again since you failed to respond previously what is your personalized and individually method of warm up for the 225 rep test? Those weaker than you can probably benefit from your insight and wisdom.