Too slow progress in BP

B

bobpit

New Member
How can I increase my BenchPress PR?

In the last 6 months I have great progress in strength (but not size) in most of the exercises I do. But the LEAST progress happens with BenchPress. Maybe because it is he exercise that I did the most in my life (including pushups).

I started working with deep squats in May 2007. So the progress there can be due to newby gains. Before that I was doing half squats (way above parallel).

My DL progress accelerated the last 10 months. Maybe because of the SQ progress. The chalk I use since Dec 2007 may have helped too.

DB and BB standing military press is going up all the time. A year ago I was doing sitting DB and BB military press.

Pendlay rows go up too, but this is also a new exercise for me.

Since May 2007, I interchange HST and 5x5. So maybe the 5x5 helped increase my strength. I did an HST cycle (15s and 10s only) before Christmas. Had 2 weeks SD and started another one now. My strength is way up. But the smallest progress is with BP.

routine A:
Squat (bellow parallel)
BenchPress
Pendlay Rows
BB Military Press standing
BB Curl (back to wall)
Tri French Ext

routine B:
DeadLift
Dips+weight
Chinups+weight
DB Military Press (neutral grip)
Preecher DB Curl
Tri Cable Ext

Sometimes I skip the isos.

My current weight is 83-83,5 kgrs. I am 42 years old. I am not gaining much weight. Which means I may not be eating enough. BUT, I see my belly and weight slightly increasing, which means to me that I DO eat enough.

One problem I see with my routine, I usually go to the gym at 22:00. So I do not have time to eat many meals after that, before I sleep. Plus I am overexcited and cannot sleep before 02:00-03:00. So night sleep is not enough for me, although I sleep a couple of hours in the afternoons. I have good pre and post wo protein shakes.

More or less, this is how I look, although the pics are form August 2006. I am just a lot stronger now: http://mazema.com/gym/photogaleryAugust2006.html

My PRs are at my signature, bellow. The 15s and 10s are very recent (I am just finishing my 10s now). The 5s are from past cycles.

One more detail? Today I did SQ 10x90 kgr which was very tiring. Then I did 2 sets of 9x78 kgrs in BP. Both of them were to failure. The 2nd set was actually easier from the first one. How can that be? If my 9RM is 78 kgrs, there is no way I could have done that 2nd set.

Anybody can make sense out of this puzzle? How to increase my BP?
 
If I had to put it in less words:

My strength goes up. But my BP increases too slow. And I gain no size. While I think I eat enough so that my weight (and belly) slightly increases.
 
I often find that the exercise directly after squats/deadlifts, when lifting heavy, suffers from the massive energy drain of the full or near full body exercise, especially if the next exercise requires core stability. I often find the second set of my next exercise feels easier than the first. I am guessing this is due to more recovery time after the squat/deadlift. I noticed my standing BB OHP was suffering. I would be unable to complete 1 rep of my 5RM if I attempted the lift too soon after squat/deadlift.

I would suggest that you put the exercise you care the least about directly after the squat/deadlift. Either that or give yourself more recovery time after the squat/deadlift.
 
skipping 5's is probably not going to help you set new personal records.

what did your last 5x5 look like?  were you setting new records?

I'm guessing you workout 3x a week, alternating that a/b routine?

what technique do you use when benching (elbows flared or tucked)?

anecdotally:  I've had good success improving BB bench #'s by giving them a rest and spending a cycle doing DB bench instead.
 
Bench progress is pretty much always slower (in terms of kgs added to the lift) than the other two, as its net potential is lower. Are the gains similar in terms of %?

But if you want to increase bench, then focus more on bench and less on squat and deadlift. Which means to put the movement first occasionally, rather than second.
 
I am not skipping 5s with this HST. I am about the start 5s next week.

The last 5x5? I stalled on BP, had to backup on it and then it improved a little.

I use elbows flared.

My BP did not improve for about a year. I see some progress in the last 3 months though. Which is still less in % compared to DL.

I keep making PRs in SQ and DL.

2 months ago my 10RM in BP was 73 kgrs. In this cycle I managed to do 15x70 kgr. So I estimated my 10RM would be 82 kgr. I adjusted and set 82 kgr for the 6th wo and 78 kgr for the 5th wo. But I did only 9 reps (9x78 kgr) in the 5th wo of 10s in BP, which would be a new PR. This is what pissed me off.

Since I did 2 sets of 9x78, I might just be exhausted from the SQ. Maybe if I put BP first, the DL will not suffer that much. I may do this next cycle.

Thank you guys.
 
So your old PR was 73k x10 and now its 78k x9.  WTF are you complaining about?  You essentially added 5kgs to your bench in two months.  Now imagine doing that for 12 months straight, thats 30kgs on your bench.
You should be happy.
 
You're probably hovering close to your genetic allowances too, age a factor, the sleep definitely a problem, and stop doing BB'er flares if you want strength and bigger lifts. The thread on correct exersizes has a great post (from Fausto I think) with BP instructions. Some things take relearning, like the back arch I don't have much of.
Westside of course has a proven track record. Here's a lead-in link:
http://www.wannabebig.com/article.php?articleid=46
and one from big Dave Tate:
http://www.iherve.com/fitness/bench_press.html
 
Addressing your weight problem, it is most likely the makeup of your diet that is off. Looking at your pic I would guess that you are heavy into carbs. Perhaps try a limited or no carb diet to get rid of the excess fat, esp. around the obliques. I have always found it more rewarding to build onto a lean body rather than bulk up too much and then cut. Obviously, if you want to go this route, you need to lean down which will sacrifice some of your strength. I'm not sure if your ultimate goal is aesthetics or strength. You cannot be optimal at both simultaneously.

Training at 10:00 at night is far from ideal if it interupts your ability to get to sleep. Have you tried Melatonin? Also, if you have a couple of hours to sleep in the afternoon, can you workout then instead of at night?
 
On Feb 1st 2005, my BP 1RM was 110 kgr. This was a different gym, with different weights. But I doubt if I can lift that much now. I don't think I am that weak and close to my genetic potential.

Although I seemed to increase my lift the last 3 months, previous to this, I had 0 progress for about 1 year.

I don't eat bread. I eat oats for breakfast. Honey, molasses, carob syrup in the wo drinks. I am careful with carbos but I do not avoid them. I eat very healthy. Anybody interested can check my diet in http://mazema.com/gym/logs/diet.xls A typical wo day is Nov 6th 2006.

The way I look on the pics (% fat) is satisfactory to me.

Thank you guys.
 
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