[quote]Curls4Girls wrote:
If I did not have a tendo I would literally go until a grinder from hell or a miss. I usually only re-attempt a miss 2 times, and then if still didnt get it that day drop to 90-95 for a few reps. I do not feel you can take a weight, miss it 7 times and hit it the 8th like the Bulgarians were able to do, this is the biggest difference from Oly to PL imo.
Do you have an email? I would be interested in discussing how you modify the method for your training and the pm system here does not work real well.
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I agree completely regarding Oly to PL, but I don’t like to grind as much…makes recovery hard on me.
I do have an email–I just sent you it via PM and hope the Mods let it through. If you don’t get it in a day or so we’ll figure out something to trade them somehow, since I hate to give it out on a public forum.
[quote]Fletch1986 wrote:
Any love for floor presses? They do an ok job for me if I pause them a long time at the bottom. It’s a tiny bit higher than a one board for me and with an arch that might be close to my regular bench. It used to be a more like a two board for me, but I managed to beef up my upper back over enough time to reduce the ROM.
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no. At one point I used floor presses exclusively for about 2 months. Started at 5 x 2, and progressed to 5 x 4 and then upped the weight 10%. I lost my reversal completely when I went back to regular benches.
[quote]Antman517 wrote:
One of my favorite things to help the lower end of my bench is extremely heavy band tension. I rarely use more than 135 on the bar. I begin with a light band. On my Forza, I hook the band over the end of the bar, under the lower bench support beam (approx. under my shoulder blades), then over the other end of the bar.
With each set I will decrease the reps and add another mini band in the same fashion. I’ve done singles with a light + 6 or 8 minis. This forces you to remain very tight through the whole movement as well as requiring serious explosion off the chest. If you don’t get the bar moving, you won’t be able to lock it out. My best raw bench was 485 at 220 and this exercise was used 2-3 times a month in my training cycle.[/quote]
Ditto. I love this method for a 3 weeks at the end of a twelve week cycle – basically it’s a circa max type workout. There is no way I could do it 2-3 times EVERY month though - I’m just not genitcally gifted to survive it but a 485# bench suggests you are - I’m jealous… I’m using it now with the same set up minus A LOT of those bands LOL. VERY helpful withing firing through sticking points…
If you’re using a westside method use upper body plyos to increase explosiveness. This will in turn help with your off the chest strength. Give this article a read CAT, Plyo, and Board Presses. Recruitment of more motor units via the stretch reflex. This was my main issue and still is. This helps big time. Good luck man
Just thought I would give you an update on my progress based on the suggestions I got. It’s only been a month, but I have been able to put 15 lbs back on my bench, getting it back to my previous best of 285! It’s been a month, and my body weight has only increased by 2 pounds (my previous max was when I was 20 lbs heavier).
What worked:
1: paused reps! I love these. I switch between 3 or 5 second pauses then explode off the chest. This was recommended by several people and I can see why. This really helped for that drive off the chest, and helping my body understand what “staying tight” is supposed to feel like.
Adjusting my grip 1 inch closer. My grip was too wide. My first week my strength went down, then the last two weeks it really came back. The wide grip gave me too much of an unstable base. I think I thought the decreased ROM made it easier, but the stability nullified that. Also, this explains my weak triceps and strong shoulders!
Increased frequency. I do a third day with just the bar, 95, 115 and 135 working on form and staying tight. Then a lot of stretching and recovery work.
I think I’m on track now. I need to eat more to support my training to see where I can take this.
W.e your max for the day is. Whether it be 5 3 2 or 1 rep maxes doesnt matter.Take 90 percent of that and pause bench it for 3x3. Then take 70 percent and closegrip it for 2 all out sets racking the last one you can grind out on each set. I’m nearing 365 on my bench using this method.
I was in a similar situation when i was stuck at 275
What i did was start with 205 and do 2 second paused sets for 3 sets of 3 after my main bench set.
Also at the time i was doing 3x10 incline press and weighted dips.
You could also use the bar that has the bend in it if you have one i think its called a cambridge bar ? Make sure you use maybe 75-80 of your 1rm and let it go the whole way down. Good luck