What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench Press

[ronki23]

Yo, I've been following Rippetoes pretty solidly for 6 weeks and this week, did a couple of workouts to see how much my 1RM is

First of all, a couple of weeks ago, I benched 2x 35lb dumbbells for the first time for 6 reps and was on top of the world considering my best before that was 2x30lbs or 70lb bar for 4 reps. Note that I only got back into lifting in April and stopped last November.

When I tried doing MILITARY Presses, I could only do 70lbs for 4 reps! Now I can do it for 6; on Seated Presses I can do 40lbs per arm for 6 reps but only managed 75lb barbell for 4 reps :/ On the Smith Machine I can do over 100lbs but I thought Smith Machine Presses are only 10% easier-in theory it should be 90lbs?

Last year (September) my max Bench Press was 2x50lbs for 4 reps. Now, I can do 2x50 for 6 reps on INCLINE! On the Smith Machine Presses I could do approx 130lbs for 3 reps; now I can do that on Smith Machine INCLINE Presses.
What frustrates me regarding the Benching is that my INCLINE BARBELL Press wouldn't budge when I did 120lbs yet Smith Machine Presses are supposed to be 15% harder- I should in theory be doing over 150lbs. I could only do 100lbs for reps on the BARBELL


^I thought Barbell exercises are meant to be easier? Note that I hardly did barbell work on Rippeotes- I did dumbbell and Smith Machine but still added weight per workout (I have no spotter)
^^I assume this means that I overdeveloped my stabilisers/didn't work the target muscles enough

 

[shibs]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

You really confused me with too much information.. I think you're thinking that your BB incline press should be easier than your smith incline BB press? If that's it, you're wrong. Smith machines are far easier than regular BB. I'd drop the smith machines right off the bat, I hate em though. Regular BB is the way to go.

 

[JDid23]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

Relax bro- don't get so caught up in the little details, you're just starting out... It really should mean nothing to you at this point. Keep working out and doing your thing and eating and your lifts will go up in time. Consistency is key as well; what is your current routine?

 

[ronki23]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

You really confused me with too much information.. I think you're thinking that your BB incline press should be easier than your smith incline BB press? If that's it, you're wrong. Smith machines are far easier than regular BB. I'd drop the smith machines right off the bat, I hate em though. Regular BB is the way to go.

Back in the old days, Smith Machine Presses were harder for me and even Muscle and Fitness wrote that Bench Pressing can only be done with 14-15% less weight since the fixed path of the bar makes it heavier to lift

But atm/ever since I was working with Smith Machine/dumbbells, my barbell presses were weaker than their dumbbell equivalent even though that should'nt be the case

 

[JDid23]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

Back in the old days, Smith Machine Presses were harder for me and even Muscle and Fitness wrote that Bench Pressing can only be done with 14-15% less weight since the fixed path of the bar makes it heavier to lift

But atm/ever since I was working with Smith Machine/dumbbells, my barbell presses were weaker than their dumbbell equivalent even though that should'nt be the case

don't look into ratios... focus exclusively on barbell bench or dumbbell bench, same goes for military. then, focus on progression for that exercise- fuck the ratio

 

[shibs]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

Back in the old days, Smith Machine Presses were harder for me and even Muscle and Fitness wrote that Bench Pressing can only be done with 14-15% less weight since the fixed path of the bar makes it heavier to lift

But atm/ever since I was working with Smith Machine/dumbbells, my barbell presses were weaker than their dumbbell equivalent even though that should'nt be the case

You said it yourself.. Ever since you started the smith mach, your bb lifts got weaker. so... fuck the smith machine. trust me it'll be one of the best pieces of advice you'll get on here. And it's going to be a lot harder to improve your BB bench press if you're only using DBs for it. I mean, it will in time get better but not as fast as it would take to just use the BB. My opinion is i only use dumbells for things i can't do with a bar.. ie flys

 

[ronki23]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

You said it yourself.. Ever since you started the smith mach, your bb lifts got weaker. so... fuck the smith machine. trust me it'll be one of the best pieces of advice you'll get on here. And it's going to be a lot harder to improve your BB bench press if you're only using DBs for it. I mean, it will in time get better but not as fast as it would take to just use the BB. My opinion is i only use dumbells for things i can't do with a bar.. ie flys

no-they didn't get weaker; they just didn't progress as much. But it's strange-if Smith Machine is meant to be harder, surely I should be doing barbell work with 15% more weight? I mean,if my dumbbell pressing has improved/is higher than barbell presses, then why are my barbell presses stalling? Generally, you can lift more with a bar than with dumbbells,even if you train predominantly with dumbbells

 

[ramnares]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

There's no way that the Smith machine lift is more difficult than dumbbell/barbell. The Smith machine supports the weight for you meaning you don't have to recruit as many muscles for things as simple as balancing the weight. Also the Smith machine is much more restrictive in the movement it allows which tends to lead to injury. You should definitely look into moving away from the SM and using freeweights almost exclusively, at least early on.

 

[ExtraMile]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

who cares when your this new to lifting just build up your strength on one or the other (or both)!

 

[shibs]

Re: What does it mean if your DUMBBELL Bench/Overhead Press>BARBELL Overhead/Bench P

No...

Don't even start on the smith machine, because if you get into this which i'm assuming you are if you're on this, you're going to have to move to freeweights some time. Theres no reason to start on a smith machine or to EVER use them. Throw it away, don't start out and develop bad habits from the beginning.

Do this.. try to put on a weight you can get 9 or 10 times on BB bench, then move to the smith machine and use the same weight and see how many times you can lift it. The next day when you're fresh preferably.

The reason your DB's are progressing past your BB? My guess is that you have been training on BB for a long time, and the muscle is getting tougher and more resistant to you're lifting. The DB is new, so your muscles are more susceptible to being damaged while working out. How long have you been training consecutively? If its around 7 or 8 weeks I'd take atleast a week off of lifting anything at all and then come back. I guarentee your BB press will improve, and you will be able to pass your plateu.

get off the smith machine!