Quote:
Originally Posted by Montecore
There's no big secret to benching -- most of you guys squat 2-3x/wk and bench 1-1.5x/wk -- it's no wonder that your squat is leaps and bounds better. Bench + incline bench + CG bench + dips + other tri work in increasing frequency is what it takes. I went from maxing out at 95 to maxing out at 330 in 2.5 years -- all it takes is only benching lol.
Yeah, that's pretty much it. Congrats on your accomplishment. 95 to 330 is huge.
But for me i've found that using chains and having a deload week really helped with my bench. Finally got the 115s DB up for 8 on incline today. Here is a routine i picked up from someone about a year ago. It really helped me on the bench. Maybe it will work for you, maybe it won't. Sometimes doing something different is worth a try.
TUESDAY: 60% of my current max + bands or chains for 9 sets of 3 with alternating grips. SET 1= competition grip, SET 2= slightly narrow, SET 3= close grip. Repeat through 9 sets. I will increase the % each week. I do 4 week waves and then deload on the 5th week.
SATURDAY: I will pick a variation of the bench and shoot for a new 1RM. I always end my 4 week wave with a raw bench for a new 1RM. 5th week is a deload. I will use bands, Slingshot, reverse bands, or boards as my variations for my max effort day. If I'm not feeling up to doing 95% or higher< I'll pick a weight and do a rep max with it. I always keep my volume with the heavy sets low. In other words I don't do a ton of sets of bench on my max effort days.
DELOADS: When I deload, I will drop the weight considerably and just get a pump going. This keeps my joints healthy and lets me recharge to start my next 4 week wave.
Also, congrats on your progress Aidan and good luck meeting your goals. Nice log you got going on.