Not getting stuck on the bench press.
Yes all of us who have been at the gym have gotten stuck on the bench press at some point in time. The story goes as follows you begin with 12 reps on the bench, you then proceed to do 10 reps on your next set, then 8 reps and then that last set. You aim for 6 reps but you only manage 4 or 5. You get stuck under the weight and somebody has to come and save you. Humiliation! And the possibility of severe injury. So you rather skip the exercise out of fear of it happening again. You rather do the seated chest press machine or bench press machine rather than getting stuck again.
Well is there a hack to help with this one? Or is risking getting stuck on the bench on some puny weight (That some only warm up with) even the risk? I will discuss a way or two to pass this burden on yourself by training smart and training carefully yet effective enough to make progress. First off lets look at what a max bench press is or what an 1RM ( 1 Rep Max) is. Let us suppose that you have warmed up thoroughly on the bench press, you have a spotter to help you and you gradually pyramid up in weight and down in reps to an 1RM. So you would maybe do 5 reps, then you would do 3 reps, then another 3 reps, then another 3 reps, then 2 reps, then another 2 reps. Until you gradually reach a 1 rep max or the most weight that you can lift for only one repetition. A 3 rep max refers to the heaviest weight you can do for 3 repetitions. And a 5 rep max means the most weight you can do for 5 reps only.
So we have now looked at the max reps and what they mean. Now knowing your 1 rep max is very important when doing heavy compound barbell lifting. So at some point in time you must get somebody to spot you and you should determine how heavy you can lift for only 1 repetition. Let us say that your 1RM for the bench press is a 100kg or 220lbs. Then using the right percentage for the right amount of reps will be crucial. For instance if you use 85% of your 1RM on the bench, you will most likely not get more than 6 reps with that weight. Or if you use 90% of your 1RM trying 5 reps without the help of a spotter might not be a good idea. So let us see how we can calculate our percentages based on our 1RM ( 1 Rep Max). Let us again take the one rep max scenario of a 1RM on the bench. If you bench press a 100kg then 65% would be 65kg, 75% would be 75kg, 95% would be 95kg. You see where this is going? I used a round number because it works perfectly to demonstrate.
So there is a formula that can be used. To get a percentage one has to divide something into something, then multiply it with a 100. So let us again look at the 100kg scenario or example again. If you do 45% of your one rep max then you will use 45kg. If you divide 45 by a 100 you get 0.45. And if you multiply that with a hundred you get 45. So to back track the equation, if it says 45% you just multiply 0.45 with a 100 and then you will get 45. This formula will work if you have the percentage and the 1RM and want the weight amount. So let us take an example again. You bench press 500lbs for one repetition. And the weight you should use is 78% of your 1RM. You then take 0.78 and multiply it by 500. You then get 390. If you then divide 390 by 500 you get 0.78 which you should multiply with a 100 to get a round number and that would be 78%. So just to be sure you can test if it was calculated correctly by taking the amount you got with the formula and dividing it into your 1RM.
Now let us sum up the formula for you. It is the percentage that is given divided by a 100 and then multiplied by the 1RM weight. So the formula would look something like this P divided by a 100 = Z and then Z must be multiplied with the 1RM weight. P = The percentage and Z the amount if P is divided by a 100. So one more example would be as follows a person benches 400lbs for only 1 rep. What would 75% of that weight be? 75/100 = 0.75. Then 0.75 must be multiplied with 400 and that gives you 300. Another quick way would be to take 3 quarters of 400 which would be 300 because the half of 400 is 200 and the half of that half would be a 100. A 100 plus 200 = 300. So there is also a way to calculate that specific percentage and weight. Now if we have our percentages we can calculate the exact weights that should be used. As a rule of thumb and just to be safe one should not attempt a rep max when doing the bench press since going to close to failure is not safe.
So in most cases the most reps that can be done with 90% of your 1 RM would be 4 reps. For safety sake maybe try 2 reps at most with that percentage. While the most reps you will get with 85% might be 5 reps. So maybe just try 3 reps. To play it safe don't go to near the failure edge. Maybe 1 or 2 short of the max amount. In so doing you will be safe while bench pressing. You can handle optimal weights for max reps and you won't get stuck. You don't need a spotter in that instance. Now to give you a rough idea of what weights can be used I will give you numbers from my own personal experience with training with weights alone. I got 6 reps with a lot of effort with about 75% of my 1RM, 5 reps with about 78% of my 1RM, 4 reps with about 82% of my 1RM, 3 reps with about 85% of my 1RM, 2 reps with about 88% of my 1 RM and if I really pushed very hard with a spotter at hand 3 reps with 90% of my 1RM. For 12 repetitions I would recommend about 65%. Those are the percentages to use to be safe yet still train very hard and make progress.
When training with percentages it is important to note that one cannot get the exact weight for the exact percentage but it should be as close as possible. The smaller the plates that are also available, the better. Those are the ones that will get you as close as possible to the training percentage. Then very important when benching, warm up! Never attempt a rep max without thoroughly warming up first. The muscle needs to get habituated and use to the poundage before attempting a rep max. One can for instance work up with many sets until one gets to a 1RM. Example would be if you can bench press a 140kg or 308lbs for one rep then one would start with 60kg (132lb) for 3 reps, 70kg ( 154lb) for 3 reps, 80kg ( 176lb) for 3 reps, 90kg ( 198lb) for 3 reps, 100kg ( 220lb) for 3 reps, 110kg ( 242lb) for 3 reps, then 120kg ( 264lb) for 2 reps and then 130 kg ( 286lb) for a single and then a single with 140kg ( 308lb). But never attempt a 1RM without a spotter ever! The example given is to illustrate how one can gradually work your way up to a 1RM without doing additional warm up sets.
The percentages can help one to know what weights to use. Whether one does a few warm up sets and then do 5 sets of 3 reps for instance with 80% of your 1RM or just gradually pyramid up in weight starting light and very capable of doing way more than the given amount until one reaches almost failure, percentages are always a good idea. It gives you a good idea of what rather not to attempt. Training solo can be frustrating and worrying since one has to be very careful of using too much weight and getting stuck, yet wonder if there was more in the tank. So here are my tips for solo benchers - Warm up with light weights first then choose a specific percentage and complete the working sets with that given percentage and reps and sets. When ever attempting a max bench press, always ask for a spot or arrange somebody to be near. Stick to the given amount of reps based on the percentage. And do not let your ego get the best of you. Be realistic! Along with the percentages that can be used one can also do additional exercises or assistance exercises that can aid in the lift and make your lift stronger. For instance muscle groups like the pecs, triceps and front deltoids can aid in a bigger bench. So doing heavy front dumbbell raises, pec deck, dumbbell flyes, tricep extensions and close grip presses as well as dips can improve the bench press. The stronger the muscles the more weight that can be lifted.
In the beginning years of my training I was greatly concerned with benching big weights but my ego chased unrealistic amounts of weights that often got me stuck. I didn't really get any useful advice at the gym to make my bench go up yet save me from getting stapled. I intend on sharing my secrets with the reader so that the reader might benefit from my trail and error. O and before I forget given that I give some advice regarding not getting stuck on the bench, never do triceps before you bench press. As a matter of fact don't do any other exercise before benching. You want to be fresh and strong when attempting the bench press and precisely because triceps are so important to your bench press, you do not want them to be tired when starting the bench press. They are very important for that lockout. Don't do triceps a day in advance either. Give the triceps enough chance to heal and be as strong as possible when attempting the bench press.
Comments
Post a Comment