most effective way to improve RAW bench press.

[cal]

Not a powerlifter, but doing for challenge/something new. Id like to get a 405 raw bench press with a good pause, lets hear some good training ideas. Don't want to do anything designed for shirted bench pressers.

my normal routine is bench press 3x8-10, ..incline db press, db flye, wt. dips. i have always been good at wt. dips but never was a natural bench presser.

i also usually do close grips on another day. one thing that ive noticed very recently and have read in powerlifting usa articles with ed coan and kirk karwoskit is that heavy sets with good form NOT to failure seems to result in more strength and with better form. I do seem to hit a wall after just a few weeks of failure training...

thanks.

 

[Big_O]

well ive done 480 in the 242's...no its not that good considering my squat was well into the 700's and my dead was 685...

Try the 7's-5's and 3' method with adding weight every week...in a 12 week cycle
Lets say your best set of 7's is 300 you get to max set right away...dont waste your time with reps and sets....135 a couple of sets 10 12 for warm up...now the next set go right to 225 for 7....now the next set you should have a leasta 4 minute rest...now the next set 265 for an easy 7 it should be even close to failure...rest another 4-5 minutes....now this is your major set....bang hit 300 for 7 with absolutely strict form no bouncing...now your done on the bench..
The next week add 15 lbs to your major set now you'll be doing 315 for 7 and the same the next week even if you only add 5,10 lbs on you reps of 7 you've made good gains...4 weeks of 7's....4 weeks of 5's and the last 4 sets of 3's...your saving everything for your max set...that 1 magical set is what you strive for....your bench will go up....then later in the week do your inclines,dips cambered bar really helped me...dont forget close grips...i do mine with the e-z curl bar its easier on the wrists....

Everything is done and saved for that 1 set a week......and adding 5,10,15 lbs on that set....eat like a pig...and i mean eat calories and carbs are your best friend...dont bother with eating clean...try not to eat sugars to much....shakes in the 1000,1600 calorie range...eat eat...and dont forget your anadrol.....tren if you like it also....
Good Luck...and Ed Coan is a great lifter..

 

[swervedriver]

Hey bro, Big O is right... Here is what I did to get my bench up (455 at a 230 lbs bodyweight) and it worked and is very similar to what Big O is talking about... Figure out what you can do for a good set of 5 reps... Maybe around 320 or so and start there... You want to do 3 sets of 5 reps with good warmup sets before hand... If you complete all the reps then next week you will add 5 lbs and do the same thing... You continue moving up by 5 lbs every week until you can no longer complete the 3 sets of 5. When you hit your plateau start using elbow wraps and move forward again... Before you know it your bench will go up tremendously...I could do around 475 with wraps... I started out with a max of around 330 or so and before I knew it I was repping 405. I was doing this with all of my exercises especially closegrips... You will find that it works very well... Like Big O said increase your food intake! That will be key...

 

[cal]

thanks for the advice...

i have made the mistake of trainng like a bber and worrying too much about failure and not good clean sets with lower reps.



i was also using way too short rest periods. gonna use 4-5 min. between sets till...i get to 405.

 

[Pekkerwood]

Better Bench

IN the last 20 years due to injury, slothfullness, and other reasons have gone from 180-240 pound bench to a 380-420 pound bench 4 or more times. I have done it with supplements and without.

Things that worked:

1) Heavy negatives with about 40 or 50 pounds more than you can bench. Fight the weight lowering it down, have a friend lift it back up and do 5 set reps. These work better than anything I've done, but I do them mainly as I plateau. Never failed to put me past the sticking point.

2) Wait at least 3 full minutes between all work sets so muscle recovers to the point its going to recover.

3. I dropped my set level to below 5 rep sets and did 8 or so sets, some with 2 or three reps.

Pekkerwood

It never took me longer than 7 or 8 months to go back up to 380-400 ish and I am 6'2" with pretty long arms.

 

[manboy270]

Those of those other techiques sound great. Something I've really focused on is pushing from my elbows instead of the hands-give that a shot. I also keep my arms/elbows about 45 degress to my torso-this helped alot(used to have them perpendicular to torso).

 

[cal]

Manboy i use the same style. much easier on my joints and seems to spread the stress over the major muscle groups.

my triceps are ver dominant and i can close grip nearly waht i can bench...and it just feels more natural...

any use chains/bands etc...

 

[swervedriver]

Cal, I have a couple of buddies at my gym that use chains and bands... They all train Westside strictly for powerlifting purposes... Trust me they work! I am not sure if you know much about Louie Simmons or Westside, but if not it is definitely something to look into... My bros all love it and have made incredible gains doing their workouts... I have one friend who is doing around 510 at a 195lbs bodyweight without a shirt... Damn impressive!!! Here is the link if you wanna check it out... www.westside-barbell.com

 

[cal]

Swerve,

Yeah i have tried WSB, while some of it seems helpful (like idea of bar speed and not going to failure on flat bench) other stuff i have not found helpful one bit, like the DE day...the percent seem awfully low and the Speed never seems to transfer to a regular raw bench for me.

i have recently found that not going to failure and training with speed to be more helpful and going to failure to be counterproductive for sure, i just felt guilty not going to failure all the time.

WSB stuff for deadlifting seems awful, they do not seem to have very good deadlifters considering...

 

[bellicose]

#1 gain weight
#2 get a better arch
#3 do other ME exercises other than bench press(floor press,heavy dips, overheads)


Negatives are bad news, so is speed bench, bands and chains are ok but great benchers have risen while never having used them. Ed Coan never used them, neither did Kirk.

Be careful who you listen to, bench is a genetic lift. You got it or you don't, many are born with the ability to bench and blame stupid ass things(negatives) for their success.


I train with 2 600lb benchers and have been coached by bill crawford himself on many occasions. I have the worst bench genes and have fought my way to a 380 raw and 450 shirted bench. So far the only thing i can say definitely improved my bench is gaining weight.

 

[cal]

Bellicose,

All good points and something I have to agree based on my experience. I personally got better results from doing periodized traditional powerlifting cycles...but have gotten away from that and just done more "bbing" type lifting which has really prevented my strength from increasing,

i used to have coan and karwoski training tapes, and some book with mike mcdonald, and doug young...and have to agree with you...

mike mcdonald was really amazing, there was pic of him doing or getting ready for touch and go bench press with 620 at like 215 or so I believe, he had scrawny arms as well for such a bench press

 

[swervedriver]

Cal,

I totally agree with ya on some of the WSB stuff... I personally do not use their methods because I train for bodybuilding not powerlifting... I have seen my buddies make incredible gains using their stuff, but like bellicose said, either you are genetically gifted in the bench or you're not... That is about as simple as one could put it... There is one guy who comes in at night and weighs around 155 or so and throws around 405... Not a big guy at all, and doesn't look like he could bench his bodyweight... However, I will say this, negatives are NOT the answer!! They will get your ass hurt!! Just sift through what we all have said and give it a try... Sets of 5 really worked for me... It might not work for you... Who knows until you try... Another thing, EAT!! The more you weigh, the more weight you can push... Hope all goes well!! Keep us posted bro!