Why are you interested in bench pressing? All women I've worked out want bigger boobs and bigger butt, rightfully so. But I would recommend something entirely different.
Yeah i'm going to see if this keeps up. Will keep you guys up to date on my progress. I regret not taken any picture of myself before i started working out. My arm was small and my stomach was sticking out looking like bart simpsons. Mind over matter folks
just like anywhere else on fitness... so much misinformation in this thread. then again everyone is different so whatever works for you.
Nobody even knows what really works these days. Lot of the junk studies is probably done by supplement companies. YOU MUST EAT 300GRAMS OF PROTEIN OR NO MUSCLE FOR U! Then there's the person who does all variations of barbell, dumbbell, and machine bench 3x a week. NO PAIN NO GAIN! FEEL THE BURN!
I did get a DEXA scan done at Houston MRI (www.houstonmri.com) to get an accurate body fat percentage. 21%. ugh. haha.
How long have you been stuck at 55, if at all? Sometimes it's all about patience with progression. You may need to shrink your weight range. I'm assuming you start at 55 and eventually get to 90lbs to max out? That's almost double the weight, which is a large range to work with. Try concentrating on 55-65 range and increase your reps in that area, Then move on to 65-75, and so on. Basically you want to "master" that weight. If you can get 8 reps with good form that's enough. A simple design for one exercise is something like this: DB bench press 55lbs 8 x 8 x 8 If you get all 8 with good form, move on to 60. If 60 will be a challenge, then you may initially only do 60lbs 8 x 6 x 5 , but then next week shoot for 8/7/6, then 8/8/7, and when you get to 8/8/8 move on to the next 5 pounds. Once you get higher, like say, 75-80 lbs, a 100 lb max should be feasible, since the weight range has shrunk. You can also try: -working on your weak points of the lift by holding or slowing the weight at the weaker spots, especially the lowering (eccentric) phase. -push ups..they work your serratus anterior better/differently than benching. This muscle is important for scapular stability and protraction, both important to benching. Finally, make sure youre working the opposite muscles, mainly the back region, just as much, to keep good balance, which is also necessary to get a good range of motion when you bench.
Never said anything was wrong with it. You are just going to have to change some things up to progress.
Nice work man. From reading your routine in that thread, are you saying you do the same exact exercises 5 days a week? Seems like that would kill your muscles ability to recover, but hey if it works .
A methodical schedule along with eating well and resting well is about what you need. This is the kind of schedule that I've been following. Pick a light weight, one that you can comfortably lift at this point. You'll do 4 sets, twice a week (Monday & Thursday for example). Two sets are warm up sets and two sets are work sets. Your 1st warm up set should be about 1/4 weight of your work set and your 2nd warm up set should be about 1/2 the weight of your work set. The first week do all 4 sets for 6 reps. (the number of reps you start with can vary according to your goals but I would recommend not starting with less than 3 reps and not more than 8 reps, generally higher weight and lower reps builds strength but also leads to higher injury risks in lifting) The second week do all 4 sets for 7 reps. The third week do all 4 sets for 8 reps. The fourth week do all 4 sets for 9 reps. The fifth week do all 4 sets for 10 reps. If by the end of the fifth week you've been able to complete all of your sets and reps, increase the weight 10% and start the cycle over with the increase in weight If you have not been able to complete your sets and reps, do the cycle once more. You should rest no more than 1 minute between sets. If you follow that kind of methodical schedule and eat/rest well then you will increase your bench.
I think that is a solid way of approaching this. Also, I would make it a point to incorporate many different exercises that target the same muscles, but challenge you in a different way like: flat & incline dumbell presses & flies on an exercise ball standing (or balancing on one foot) one arm cable presses & flies push ups using a bosu ball/off an exercise ball These exercises all work your core as well which is really a key to improving overall strength & conditioning.
Thanks, guys! RV6, you hit the nail on the head. The lowering part is the hardest part for me! Sometimes, I shortchange myself and don't think I can do it. I recently went up to 55lb from 45lb. I guess, patience will be the key. I don't do bench presses every week. I change my work out every 3-4 weeks to prevent boredom. Incline benches, cable and etc. I need to work on my back more. For some reason, I dislike working out my back. Weird, I know. I obviously need to work on my upper body strength. I only can do at least 5 pushups (non girly style).
Yeah, your look great man, nice results!I know what you mean about taking pictures before working out LOL. Ill post my results in a moment and let me know what you think.
Unfortunately, changing up your workout like that isn't always great for a specific goal. It's like playing tennis to get in shape for basketball. You'll get some cardio benefit, but not specific enough for basketball. "Principle of specificity" http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/glossary/g/Specificity_def.htm I think we all hate working out our weaker areas, much tougher :grin:
This was about a year ago, my high body fat was a result of my failed attempt at dirty bulking(ate wayyy too many calories over maintenance;mostly from cheeseburgers.) You can see all the stretch marks that appeared on my skin from gaining weight so dramatically. Spoiler I don't really have an exact time frame for any of these photos but i think this was after about 3 weeks. Spoiler After a little under two months... My abs finally started to become visible! Spoiler This was after about three months and i had started a mini bulking phase. I don't know if you can tell but i gained a tiny bit more definition. Spoiler Spoiler That was all in 4 months time that i dropped all the weight. I weighed at a little over 200 lbs and my current weight is 161 at 6"0. This is what i currently look like. Im think I'm under weight for my height so I'm trying to cleanly bulk up to 180. I know i still need to get rid of layers of fat on my stomach plus add definition to my lower chest, but besides that what else do you guys think i need to work on. Your advice would be greatly appreciated. Does anyone else have any body transformations they'd like to share, be it either getting from being skinny to big and strong or big to leaning down. Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler All these pics were after a long workout with a good pump.
got em COACH & Rodman23, I approve of the pics. At least, nobody can say "Pics or GTFO!" Yeah, you have a point! :/ So you're saying to keep doing the bench press until I meet my goal? What I mean is keep it in my chest workout until I master the goal.
