How Stupid is My Bench Program?

Training Beginners
1

i used to have a different chest program, bench press and flyes, around six reps. but now all i do is seven sets of bench pressing. i seem to have upped my weight prematurely and benched with that for a while until i admited it was too heavy for me. i dropped twenty pounds, progressed with that then added ten more pounds and i have not made progress since then.

i have been at four reps for a while. i try to lift explosively on every rep and try not to go to failure until the last set which is hard since my reps are so few. when i begin at lockout the weight does not feel that heavy.

i also have not made any progress at all on my chin ups. ever since i did heavy partials and easily added ten pounds i have not made any progress. i do five sets in the low rep range. but recently i did make my chin ups less demanding cns-wise after reading one of the recent articles by Thib.

i went past failure on each set of chin ups and now i dont, it has been two weeks and no rewards from that move so far.
still i have made good progress on my dips, squats, and deadlifts.

2

Whats your entire workout look like, how many days a week do you lift/how much rest do you get? What are your goals?

3

right right. ive got a three day split.
day 1 chins, overhead press, rows, 3sets heavy hammer curls, calves and abs(light). day 2 bench press 7 sets, dips 7x6, overhead tricep press 2x6. day 3 squats 7x5, deadlift 5x5, calves and abs (heavy), 3 sets light bicep curls
then i rest a day or two before i start over. it always feels like a long time.

my goals. i am weak and i want to get as strong as possible. i do some olympic lifts but i hurt my neck again so i should take time off on heavy overhead pressing. my primary goal though is to get to 185 pounds. i gained a decent amount weight when i started at 137 .
i want to start a lightweight program when i reach my bench press goal. which is to add ten more pounds to the bar and bench 7 reps.

4

Eat more?

I dunno, it looks like you’re training with good exercises, good rep ranges, and a well-balanced program. I don’t think anything except time and effort is gonna get you past this plateau.

Rest-pause a couple reps?

5

I would do pyramids if you are trying to focus on strength gains. This will also help you recruit muscle fibers for explosive strength and size.

Your sets should be x8-10, x4-6, x1-2, then go back up again. I have added huge weight increases to my bench by doing this.

6

Can you get plate-mates or come up with some half-pound weights that you can add to bar so you’re able to increase the load in very small incramints?

1 pound isn’t much of an increase.

Also, you’re program doesn’t include any structural balance work. If your rotator cuff muscles are not up to speed the rest of your lifting will suffer.

7 sets of bench pressing isn’t a stupid persay - GVT calls for 10 sets. But it isn’t what you need if you are internally rotated.

7

[quote]eremesu wrote:
i used to have a different chest program, bench press and flyes, around six reps. but now all i do is seven sets of bench pressing. i seem to have upped my weight prematurely and benched with that for a while until i admited it was too heavy for me. i dropped twenty pounds, progressed with that then added ten more pounds and i have not made progress since then.

i have been at four reps for a while. i try to lift explosively on every rep and try not to go to failure until the last set which is hard since my reps are so few. when i begin at lockout the weight does not feel that heavy.

i also have not made any progress at all on my chin ups. ever since i did heavy partials and easily added ten pounds i have not made any progress. i do five sets in the low rep range. but recently i did make my chin ups less demanding cns-wise after reading one of the recent articles by Thib.

i went past failure on each set of chin ups and now i dont, it has been two weeks and no rewards from that move so far.
still i have made good progress on my dips, squats, and deadlifts.[/quote]

what part of the movement gives you the most trouble?

8

Everything you lot said really interests me. i would like more detail into all of it.
i dont know what part of the movement is most troublesome. the bottom technicaly is ones weakest point.

my gyms has got 2.5 plates. when i make any progress i might think of using them. i got four reps on the first set yesterday. i need to get to seven reps to add weight.
i do not see what defecit ive got in my program to be imbalanced. my gym hasnt got a reverse hyper or a ghr thing. with the deadlifts being so new to me i dont think i need one yet.

can anybody explain this pyramiding more to me? and really sell it. it seems like everybody starts with low weight and works their way up but if i change my weight it would always be going down.

9

[quote]eremesu wrote:
everything you lot said really interests me. i would like more detail into all of it.
i dont know what part of the movement is most troublesome. the bottom technicaly is ones weakest point.

my gyms has got 2.5 plates. when i make any progress i might think of using them. i got four reps on the first set yesterday. i need to get to seven reps to add weight.

i do not see what defecit ive got in my program to be imbalanced. my gym hasnt got a reverse hyper or a ghr thing. with the deadlifts being so new to me i dont think i need one yet.

can anybody explain this pyramiding more to me? and really sell it. it seems like everybody starts with low weight and works their way up but if i change my weight it would always be going down.
[/quote]

It is a good starting place that you have the 2.5ers available. Being that the bottom part of your movement is the sticking point you might try adding some lat work in and really be sure you form and set-up are “spot-on” As Pat pointed out maintaining structural balance between your lifts will greatly improve performance as well as cut down on potential for injury. That being said here are some things that might help:

The external rotators of the shoulder (infraspinatus and teres minor) and the rhomboids are antagonistic to the prime movers of shoulder girdle muscles of the bench press. These muscles are the serratus anterior, pectoralis, coracobrachialis and anterior deltoids.

If you stretch the external rotators and rhomboids statically before the bench press, they will be temporarily weaker. This will potentiate the force of the agonist muscles. From experience, you should gain a minimum of 2% on your bench press from that trick alone.
Cross fiber friction on the tendons on the primer movers will also increase strength.

Place the tip of your index and middle fingers on the origin of the pectoral muscles of the medial aspect of the sternum. Move the fingers rapidly perpendicular to the tendinous surface. Start from the top and work you way down. Repeat the process on the insertion of the tendon in front of the shoulder.

You will experience some discomfort while doing the technique, but the reward will exceed the discomfort.

At the sticking point, exert pressure on the bench by pushing down with your neck extensors.
In order to lift the highest load for your test, the back of your head should be making contact with the bench’s upholstery. In fact, you should be pressing it into the bench.

Pressing your head on the bench as in doing a neck extension will increase your strength as you push the bar away from you by creating a neural response that facilitates the muscles used in the bench press.

The stretching trick and the cross-fiber friction will work best if done within 10 minutes of doing your first attempt. Furthermore, the stretching and the cross-fiber work best if done with the help of a partner.

Those are some of the things I was taught that have helped me (obviously a heavy influence from Charles Poliquin -the Greatest Coach Alive IMHO)

Finally, if you are able to make an appointment with a PICP coach in your area and have them test your structural balance this could save you some serious wheel spinning. Good luck and keep us posted.

10

Pyramid :

6sets total

Ex : 1x7 with 50, 1x5 with 60, 1x3 with 70, 1x7 with 50, 1x5 with 60, 1x3 with 70

Week after, if gains are optimal
1x7 with 60, 1x5 with 70, 1x3 with 80, 1x7 with 60, 1x5 with 70, 1x3 with 80

I’d either do a
7-5-3 or a 10-7-5

11

What I use is I start on 50%1rm and then make 5 intervals in weight to my 3rm over 5 sets, then drop 10% and go to failure (if it is isolation).
Or I change excercises instead of the drop set (if it is compound).

E.g. (if accentuating quads)
Legpress 1x5x50%, 1x5x60%, 1x5x70%, 1x5x80%, 1x3x90%
Front squat 3xfailure maybe 70%1rm

You could do that with bench , and then drop to tricep extention.

12

I’ve got a serious question about volume. with pyramiding, it is rather like westside, were one hits their 3rm(or 1rm) about once, while i do rather near my max for seven straight sets. somebody has to be wrong

13

[quote]eremesu wrote:
ive got a serious question about volume. with pyramiding, it is rather like westside, were one hits their 3rm(or 1rm) about once, while i do rather near my max for seven straight sets. somebody has to be wrong[/quote]

I don’t understand what you are asking, can you rephrase please.

14

Pyramiding is alot like westside were they work up to their 3rm or 1rm, but they only use such a high weight for a brief time. but i use my 3rm for seven straight sets. with both goals being strength the volume is very different