Age?

[dood]

Does age have to do with how fast you gain strength? I am 16 and In gain on bench so slowly. Could it be that my muscles aren't mature enough yet?

 

[PoonRaider]

Your muslces should be fine man. I dunno if you just started benching, but when I did I gained pretty slowly. After about 6 months you'll notice a huge difference. If you want to gain muscle fast through hypertrophy, warm up, then do about 4 sets of 12 reps. That is probably what most people would suggest. Also, eat plenty of protein. To determine how much you need, take your weight and multiply it by .7, thats about how many grams of protein you should eat a day when lifting. On your off days, if you're not exercising, I'd suggest eating a little less protein, just because if you don't use it you pee it out, so it would be a waste.
Don't worry about starting small, we all do. I'm about 2.5 weeks away from 17, and usually I'll warm up, then do 4 sets of 12 x 95#. Always warm up too man. It helps to develope your muscle better than you would if you started cold. Warming up is also crucial because it helps to prevent injury, its a good habit to get into.

 

[dood]

I have been working out for about a year. My max is like 175. But I have been a little inconsistent the past few months. But I don't think that affected it too much. Souldn't I be gaining quicker though?

 

[startsmallgetbig]

do you wnat stronger or bigger? If you want stronger I would suggest looking into the 5x5 workout. I have gained an ass load of strength in the 2.5 months I have been on. Went from doing sets with 115 to 170. And im not a big kid 155 5'10" and maxed out 2 weeks ago with 205x3. Just an option you can try looking into.

 

[Chris52686]

I'm 17 years old and was at a standstill of 245 for almost six months before i changed my routine from 4x8 to around 3x6. I have gained 30 pounds in the bench since september. Post your routine so we can see what your doing wrong. Make sure you are not overtraining. There are a lot of people at my school that bench every other day or even every day, and are wondering why they are not gaining any strength.

 

[super_rice]

my bench started up slowly, until i began to eat properly, sleep properly, and stretch properly/warmup properly. i bench 200 @ 5'8 155lbs 10%, 16yrs

 

[dood]

I do 5*5. I bench once a week.

 

[coolcolj]

You should be making your fastest gains at that age

damn if I had the hormones you guys have...

 

[Tom Treutlein]

You don't wanna know what some of us do with our hormones...

 

[super_rice]

everyone seems to be so toasted after their 5x5... it was very hard when i first started, but i've managed to be able to bench 2 times a week. working great.