Trouble with Bench Press

Bigger Stronger Leaner Beginners
1

Hi all, this may be my first post ever on this site (I usually post on bb.com) anyways

My stats:

16 years old
5’6 (I want to grow a bit more…hopefully weightlifting will help)
142lbs (14% BF)

Lifting stats:

Squats - 150lbs
Deadlift - 180lbs
Bench Press - 120lbs
DB Press - 40lbs each arm

As you can see…I am pretty damn weak w/ my bench press. Do I need to work on my biceps? I have such a hard time bringing it down to my chest, then up. I shake a lot and I feel as if I don’t have a spotter, that the damn thing will fall right on me.

I get really frustrated and unmotivated to do chest workouts since they’re my weakpoint. I also started working out like 1 month ago. I stick mainly to leg workouts but at this point; I seriously need to work on my upperbody. Should I do more push ups? any suggestions would be fine

My workout:

Day 1 Monday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

Day 2 Tuesday

Rest (cardio)

Day 3 Wednesday

Bicep/Tricep/Chest day

DB Press 8x40
Bench 5x120

Day 4 Thursday

Rest

day 5 Friday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

I do 5 sets of 5

My diet is fine, but is my workout routine? :frowning:

2

[quote]jaymackz wrote:
My diet is fine, but is my workout routine? :([/quote]

I have a feeling your diet is not fine, please post it, along with daily calories.

3

[quote]jaymackz wrote:
Hi all, this may be my first post ever on this site (I usually post on bb.com) anyways

My stats:

16 years old
5’6 (I want to grow a bit more…hopefully weightlifting will help)
142lbs (14% BF)

Lifting stats:

Squats - 150lbs
Deadlift - 180lbs
Bench Press - 120lbs
DB Press - 40lbs each arm

As you can see…I am pretty damn weak w/ my bench press. Do I need to work on my biceps? I have such a hard time bringing it down to my chest, then up. I shake a lot and I feel as if I don’t have a spotter, that the damn thing will fall right on me.

I get really frustrated and unmotivated to do chest workouts since they’re my weakpoint. I stick mainly to leg workouts but at this point; I seriously need to work on my upperbody. Should I do more push ups? any suggestions would be fine

My workout:

Day 1 Monday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

Day 2 Tuesday

Rest (cardio)

Day 3 Wednesday

Bicep/Tricep/Chest day

DB Press 8x40
Bench 5x120

Day 4 Thursday

Rest

day 5 Friday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

I do 5 sets of 5

My diet is fine, but is my workout routine? :([/quote]

ok first you say your bench is 120lbs, then you say you do 5x5 for 120lbs. So obviously you can bench more than that if you’re able to do it for 5x5. And if you are able to do 5x5 then aren’t you supposed to go up in weight?

How long have you been working out? When I was 16 I remember having a hell of a time benching 85. I felt like hercules when I was finally able to put a 25 on each side. Anyways, its hard to say your program isn’t giving you good results if we don’t know how long you’ve been on it or what progress you’ve made.

Oh yeah, and weightlifting won’t make you taller. Sorry.

4

What are you doing to build your shoulders and triceps? Add some military press to work both along with some flies for pecs

5

[quote]jaymackz wrote:
Hi all, this may be my first post ever on this site (I usually post on bb.com) anyways

My stats:

16 years old
5’6 (I want to grow a bit more…hopefully weightlifting will help)
142lbs (14% BF)

Lifting stats:

Squats - 150lbs
Deadlift - 180lbs
Bench Press - 120lbs
DB Press - 40lbs each arm

As you can see…I am pretty damn weak w/ my bench press. Do I need to work on my biceps? I have such a hard time bringing it down to my chest, then up. I shake a lot and I feel as if I don’t have a spotter, that the damn thing will fall right on me.

I get really frustrated and unmotivated to do chest workouts since they’re my weakpoint. I stick mainly to leg workouts but at this point; I seriously need to work on my upperbody. Should I do more push ups? any suggestions would be fine

My workout:

Day 1 Monday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

Day 2 Tuesday

Rest (cardio)

Day 3 Wednesday

Bicep/Tricep/Chest day

DB Press 8x40
Bench 5x120

Day 4 Thursday

Rest

day 5 Friday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

I do 5 sets of 5

My diet is fine, but is my workout routine? :([/quote]

Your bench press isn’t that weak compared to your other lifts. You just need time under the bar to bring up your numbers.

I notice that you aren’t doing any pulling movements (other than DL’s). The lats are a huge stabilizer in the the bench press. If they are weak, the bar will shake, and your progress will be limited.

I would certainly add in a chinup/pullup and a rowing motion as well (BOR, DB Row, Seated Row, etc). I’d also start doing some prehab early with some facepulls. Also your serratus anterior could be weak, strengthen that with pushups with a plus, or some other form of scapular stabilization.

There’s more to life than benching. You need to focus on the body as a whole. And as much as I love deadlifts, they aren’t going to do it all for you.

Try to hit each lift twice per week right now. If you can spare an extra day, bump it up to 4 days per week. There’s an infinite number of ways to split it up.

You could try:
M/Th - Squat/Bench/Shoulders
T/Fr - Deadlift/Chins/Rows

or 3 Days:
M - Squat/Deadlift/Bench/Shoulders
W - Bench/Chins/Squat/Rows
F - Deadlift/Rows/Shoulders/Chins

Or you could split it into alternating upper and lower days. Bottom line is you need balance in your plan.

Not to complicate things, but at some point you may want to add in some unilateral leg work as well (stepup, lunges, single leg squat, etc).

6

[quote]rsg wrote:
jaymackz wrote:
My diet is fine, but is my workout routine? :frowning:

I have a feeling your diet is not fine, please post it, along with daily calories.[/quote]

I also have this feeling, I doubt at 16 you have a diet that is just fine. Biggest mistake made by newbies has to do with their nutrition. Whats your daily amount of protein, fat, and carbs in grams per day. If you cannot provide this information right off the bat then you are clueless and doomed to failure.

7

When I started lifting I kept a foodlog. I found a balance of food that brought me to where I needed to be with caloric intake. I stopped doing it because I thought I had it down and I recently did a quick week log to see if I HAD got it down and I was way off. Eating the right amount of food and the right type of food is not something that becomes habitual overnight. But if you keep a log and eat right it honestly is half the battle. Lifting like a mofo is the other half. Deadlift seems kinda meek for your weight are you doing conventional or straightleg or what?

8

I agree with the rest check you diet and You need to Row work the muscle you cant see. that and well you just need to work on everything your whole body Your bench is not off from the rest of you. Nail a solid diet and training and be consistent for a few years and It will all start to come together

phill

9

[quote]jaymackz wrote:
Hi all, this may be my first post ever on this site (I usually post on bb.com) anyways

My stats:

16 years old
5’6 (I want to grow a bit more…hopefully weightlifting will help)
142lbs (14% BF)

Lifting stats:

Squats - 150lbs
Deadlift - 180lbs
Bench Press - 120lbs
DB Press - 40lbs each arm

As you can see…I am pretty damn weak w/ my bench press. Do I need to work on my biceps? I have such a hard time bringing it down to my chest, then up. I shake a lot and I feel as if I don’t have a spotter, that the damn thing will fall right on me.

I get really frustrated and unmotivated to do chest workouts since they’re my weakpoint. I stick mainly to leg workouts but at this point; I seriously need to work on my upperbody. Should I do more push ups? any suggestions would be fine

My workout:

Day 1 Monday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

Day 2 Tuesday

Rest (cardio)

Day 3 Wednesday

Bicep/Tricep/Chest day

DB Press 8x40
Bench 5x120

Day 4 Thursday

Rest

day 5 Friday

Squats - 5x150
Deadlift - 5x180
Benchpress - 5x120

I do 5 sets of 5

My diet is fine, but is my workout routine? :([/quote]

What a truly bizarre post. I guess this is what the other site does to people…

Yes, you need to work more on your biceps. At 142 lbs., you need to work more on your biceps, triceps, shoulders, quads, hamstrings…you get the picture.

Also, for your DB and BB presses, are these both flat presses? If so, only do one of these per workout. Add decline and incline presses. Forget push-ups, as these are not mass builders.

Having a combination squat & deadlift day twice a week is overkill. Do one squat day and one seperate deadlift day each week.

You have no supplementary lifts. Add these in. The Big 3 is not a full program. Read, eat and sleep some more.

10

Thank you for all the posts/suggestions…I will post my diet when I come back from my workout, Sorry if I am a “noob” …I apologize. (I just started working out so cut me some slack)

11

Nevermind, I decided to just post my diet right now

1)Breakfast 7:30: Oatmeal, banana, protein shake, 2 glasses of milk, and water, and 1 Multi vitamin pill.

2)Lunch 11:30: Usually 4 sandwich’s (100% Whole Wheat) with a lot of meat (Honey Ham or Lean turkey) or something like whole wheat pasta with chicken breast, But sometimes, I forget to pack lunch and have to eat the crappy lunches my school makes or eat some fast food, ie. Wendys or chinese food etc. I keep it to a minimum though (Once or Twice a week)

3)After lunch: I take 1 vitamin B complex vitamin, and drink water.

3)Snack: I eat almonds during class or other peanuts… and drink water

4)Come home from school 3:30: Usually 3 pieces of chicken with brown rice and some veggies with water. Or 2-3 steaks with potatoes and brocolli.

5)Pre-Workout 5:00: I don’t use creatine yet, so usually i just take 16oz of water/milk and 2-3 scoops of weigh (I use BSN True Mass…but I plan on getting some new protein) I sometimes also take something called EndoRush by BSN…which gives me better pumps when I lift. Then I bring a big bottle of water with me to the gym.

6)Dinner 8:00: Usually I come home immediately and eat something like Steak with potatoes or 3 pieces of chicken and brown rice with potatoes and gravy along with some veggies, a whey shake, and water.

7)After my dinner: I have 2 cans of tuna and make a tuna sandwich with whole wheat bread and some salad along the side. I drink 2 cups of milk.

7)Snack: Usually almonds or some other snack with a lot of healthy fats

8)Before bed 10:00: take some ZMA, eat some cottage cheese, 2 scoops of Casein Whey Powder in water or milk, 1 Multi vitamin pill and 3 pills of fish oil.

Here are my macros… (approx)

Cals Fat Carb Protein
3044 90 203 338

I make sure I eat every 2 to 3 hours and I drink a lot of water… I hope my diet isn’t so bad… (I’m bulking)

12

get another snack in between breakfast and lunch if you can. and about your bench, if you don’t have a spotter, ask someone? or just know that if you fail you get crushed, means don’t fail, you HAVE to get the bar up.

13

Do you honestly expect us to believe that you put together a diet like that, eat it, lift, and have such suckwad lifts?

You are fucking kidding me.

Either the diet is a lie, or the whole damn premise of this thread is a lie.

14

[quote]mkelly wrote:
get another snack in between breakfast and lunch if you can. and about your bench, if you don’t have a spotter, ask someone? or just know that if you fail you get crushed, means don’t fail, you HAVE to get the bar up.[/quote]

Ah…well, you see…I am a small fish in a big pond. I am totally intimidated and gun-shy when it comes to asking others for favors, as they will see it as a waste of time. Yes my confidence may not be that high…but I guess it wouldn’t be so bad asking someone for a spot… Damn i’m not good with strangers lol.

Oh and yah…i’ll probably add in a snack in between breakfast/lunch. Maybe some trail mix or something like that.

15

[quote]SkyzykS wrote:
Do you honestly expect us to believe that you put together a diet like that, eat it, lift, and have such suckwad lifts?

You are fucking kidding me.

Either the diet is a lie, or the whole damn premise of this thread is a lie.

[/quote]

I can manage to eat that much, I just started lifting (maybe that’s why my lifts suck) and my diet is fine. I’m just a weak skinny 140lber…trying to bulk.

16

[quote]jaymackz wrote:
mkelly wrote:
get another snack in between breakfast and lunch if you can. and about your bench, if you don’t have a spotter, ask someone? or just know that if you fail you get crushed, means don’t fail, you HAVE to get the bar up.

Ah…well, you see…I am a small fish in a big pond. I am totally intimidated and gun-shy when it comes to asking others for favors, as they will see it as a waste of time. Yes my confidence may not be that high…but I guess it wouldn’t be so bad asking someone for a spot… Damn i’m not good with strangers lol.

Oh and yah…i’ll probably add in a snack in between breakfast/lunch. Maybe some trail mix or something like that. [/quote]

Bro if you ask youll find many of the ppl whove been in this a long time are the best ppl in the world they know better top hand out advice / help in days age but if you ask and have general interest you wont find more willing and better people

Phill

17

How many grams of protein are you getting a day? If you do not know, COUNT it and post it. Don’t include incomplete protein sources from vegetables breads or nuts. Use a scale if you need to to weight your meats This information is more important than if you eat nuts as a snack. I think you might not be getting enough. These are the words an IFBB pro told me and it did a lot of good. I eat 350 to 375 grams a day when I’m bigger I eat even more.

Also I wouldn’t take ZMA with any dairy protein at night. The calcium in the dairy interferes with the up take of the magnesium in the ZMA. You should know ZMA won’t do anything if your not eating enough protein

18

[quote]jaymackz wrote:
SkyzykS wrote:
Do you honestly expect us to believe that you put together a diet like that, eat it, lift, and have such suckwad lifts?

You are fucking kidding me.

Either the diet is a lie, or the whole damn premise of this thread is a lie.

I can manage to eat that much, I just started lifting (maybe that’s why my lifts suck) and my diet is fine. I’m just a weak skinny 140lber…trying to bulk.[/quote]

How long have you been at this? In that time, how much weight have you gained? How have your lifts progressed?

I would bet you’re doing okay. Your lifts look to be about the right ratios, just not high enough :wink:

Definitely follow the advice of the guys above, and add some rowing and pullups. I would also add some high pulls, face pulls, etc…

19

All the big guys started out lifting light. They understand the need for a spot and probably get spotted on their own lifts. They don’t see it as a waste of time, but rather a favor to someone else. Go for it.

20

[quote]Mr. Clean & Jerk wrote:
All the big guys started out lifting light. They understand the need for a spot and probably get spotted on their own lifts. They don’t see it as a waste of time, but rather a favor to someone else. Go for it.[/quote]

heh…I didn’t ask a huge guy for a spot today, rather someone who’s a bit bigger then me…maybe 160lb? anyways…I ended up benching 130lbs today…I still struggle, but from now on I will ask for a spot, and I will log every workout I do on a memo pad or something anyways thanks for all the advice…