Right, I’ve literally just come from the gym and I’m frustrated about the progress of my chest. Ever since I started uni I have not added a significant amount of mass/strength to my chest and it’s pissing me the hell off, here’s a quick run down of what’s been happening:
September 2010-
I start uni, can dumbbell press 110 x 8
December 2010-
Can only dumbbell press 110 x 6
Today -
Can STILL only dumbbell press 110 x 6
What worked in the past-
I have long limbs therefore doing barbell bench presses meant pain in my shoulders, if I tried to lower my upper arm any lower than parallel to the ground I’d get shoulder pain. On consultation with a bodybuilder at my previous gym he suggested dumping the BB bench and subbing it for the following routine (modified with my input):
1)DB bench, no lock out and not going beyond parallel [between 8-12 reps]
2)BB incline, pause at the bottom. [6-8 reps]
3)Hammer strength flat bench, not maximal weight, only working on mind-muscle connection
4)Hammer strength incline bench, not maximal weight, only working on mind-muscle connection
This shit WORKED. Then I went to uni…
What DOESN’T work now-
The uni dumbbells only go up to 110lbs vs my old gym which went up to 140lbs. I thought “pfff… I’ll need a new main exercise for chest now”… but I could never hit 110lbs for 10 reps here.
I tried switching my routine up many times, I currently employ this (as of 3 weeks ago):
1)Floor Pin press [1-3 reps]
2)Dumbbell Press [8-10 reps]
3)Machine flat press [8-10 reps]
And SOMEHOW MY FLOOR PRESS WENT DOWN TODAY!
So, here are the problems I think I need to address with the help of T-Nation:
- If my arms go below parallel, I get pain - can this be fixed, or should I just NOT go below parallel?
- Is this possibly a mental block, since the 110lbs are the heaviest dumbbells in my current gym?
- Are there any activation exercises or mind-muscle tricks I can employ?
- Can you just outright suggest a new rep scheme or magical protocol that will get my chest bigger and stronger?
Before you ask me, diet is not a problem. All my other lifts are going up, now despite the fact that I’m currently recomping, I’ve had this same problem when I was bulking [I was gaining mass but not on my chest]. Here was my diet yesterday [this is my recomping diet]:
Breakfast: 2 Chicken breasts + cous cous
Lunch: Chicken stuffed pita (a good amount of chicken) + piece of chicken
After workout: 2 scoops whey + milk
Dinner: Steak and coleslaw
Dinner two: 2 Chicken breast + coleslaw
Dinner three: 9 chicken strips
…so as you can imagine when I was bulking there was more food than this and yet, my chest didn’t improve.
Understand, I’m a poor uni student, and in comparison to the other people around my I eat like a king. I don’t believe diet is the problem, unless someone can chime in and tell me that my eating habits are the cause…
Help?