Need help with my bench press

[watevrpal]

I am 38-215lb and in the army and have been working out off and on for some time now. Mainly for the past decade or so I have been concentrating on increasing my number pushups with me being in the army and all. Now I am concentrating on my bench press.

I am looking for some advice on a program that will give me the most gains in my bench press. Right now my max bench is around 230. I am looking to join the 300 club. any ideas?

 

[drsketch]

You hitting flat bench, incline bench, flat & incline flies and dips every chest day every week?

You taking in enough food to support the present muscle and grow new muscle?

You taking any supps? bcaas? creatine?

Is 230 your working weight or are you hitting that for 1?

Are you also doing proper routines for triceps and shoulders? These are your secondary muscles in the bench press.

 

[watevrpal]

here is my current routine I have been on it for a month.

chest- flat bench,incline bench, bi's

legs- leg press, calve raises, chin ups, tricep pulldowns and dips.

I do each routine above twice a week. my sets are usually 4-5 with low reps maybe 5 or so.

after each workout I run 3 miles.

 

[drsketch]

No squats, mil press, deadlifts.. Bro it looks like you need a whole new routine. The best looking body is the builder who equally works every body part.

 

[Scotsman]

Could you list out your exact routine? Like sets, reps, and weight splits.

Need some of this info to tell you what might help you out. Also what does your diet look like?

Cheers,
Scotsman

 

[watevrpal]

here is my exact routine
mon- 4x4 flat bench, incline bench 4x5, curls 7x8 run 3miles
tue- tricep pulldowns 4x8, dips 5x8, leg press 5x8 calve raise 5x10 run 2 miles
wed run 4 miles
thur repeat mon
fri repeat tue

I try to stick to low reps heavy weights.

on My diet I just cut out all the bad food ie fast food. I try to stick to good foods like sandwhiches and alot of water low carbs. I am also taking creatine and multivitamin and drinking 2 protein shakes a day.

Also i am more concerned with strength and not size. I am going for power

 

[Scotsman]

A big part of your problem is you are neglecting a good part of your body with that workout. Back for instance needs a lot of work and will dramatically increase overall strength and helps a ton with bench at the bottom. You also need to work your shoulders. I can work something up for you but here is a general idea of what I think would help you.

Monday: Chest
Flat bench 5,4,3,2,1 rep scheme
Incline bench 3x5
Rear delt flyes 3x8
Heavy ab work (I do 4 sets of 8 reps with increasing weight)

Tuesday: Deadlift/back day
Deadlift 3x5
Bent over rows 3x8 (Increase weight on each set)
Seated rows 3x8 (Increase weight on each set)
Heavy pull downs 3x8 (Increase weight on each set)

Wednesday:
Heavy cardio day

Thursday: Shoulders/Tris
Overhead presses 3x5 (Increase weight on each set)
Close grip bench 3x5 (Increase weight on each set)
Lateral raises 4x6 (Increase weight on each set)
Front Raises (Increase weight on each set)
Tricep pushdowns 3x8 (Increase weight on each set)

Friday: Squats/Abs
Squats 3x5
Light abs 4x10

All sets listed are the working sets. Warm-up as you think necessary. Start eating heavy proteins like red meat if you can. Sandwiches are great for lunch but dinner needs to be a good mix of meat/veg/carbs/fruit. Take a high quality protein drink within 30min of working out you should also take your creatine at this time. Spread your meals out so you are eating every 2-3 hours.

There are three keys to getting bigger and stronger:
Eat big
Lift big
Sleep well.

Cheers,
Scotsman

 

[fisttotheface]

^^ good advice right there

 

[seagrave]

Follow Scots advice for a few months and see if your poundages don't increase. I think that is a good program to start addressing the weak links in your bench and will keep you from overtraining.

 

[watevrpal]

Sounds good I am going to try it and keep everybody posted. thanks