Thread: is this a good routine?

why bench and then do it again with a wide grip and then again with a narrow grip? Just bench then do something else (incline DBs, decine dbs, etc...)

Need so vertical work on back day (pull ups or pull downs).

How about some SLDLs with your leg day (maybe drop the hack squats and replace them with SLDLs).

Originally Posted by P-funk

why bench and then do it again with a wide grip and then again with a narrow grip? Just bench then do something else (incline DBs, decine dbs, etc...)

Need so vertical work on back day (pull ups or pull downs).

How about some SLDLs with your leg day (maybe drop the hack squats and replace them with SLDLs).

Yeah, plus I think you should have a vertical pressing movement on push day. It's not a push day without some good ol' overhead pressing!

ok, thanks for the feedback. And i wanted to do so much benching, because my main focus right now is to increase my bench press.

Originally Posted by JayBee

ok, thanks for the feedback. And i wanted to do so much benching, because my main focus right now is to increase my bench press.

well, depending on how long you have been training for there are two roads you can take....to get a better bench don't bench (like the westide guys do...but they are veterans with many years of training). If you are relativly new to training then you can still see great results in your bench pressing by working at it with heavy weight (a 5x5 aproach is what most people use. 3x3 is good) and then increasing overal pressing strength of you shoulders with other assistance lifts like overhead presses etc...All that benching wont neccesssarily translate to a bigger bench.

Like I always say to people who want a bigger bench, train like a powerlifter. Why would you train like a bodybuilder if your main focus is increasing a powerlifting lift?

11 sets of bench because of a varied grip? Sorry but thats crazy.

Unless I am hurting, I always bench wide when I call it benching. Maximum legal grip is forefinger at the ring, and I'm tall so it doesn't feel that wide to me. 3-5 sets of that is all I can handle heavy, without it hurting me not helping.

Close grip benching I use a 'power' grip, which is pinky at the ring. Some people only bench this way for awhile (shirted benchers or Glen Chabot) and wont bench wide until near competition. Depending how I feel, 2 or up to 5 sets.

If I feel insane, 1-2 sets of incline work. If you total up the maximum number of sets I'd perform here of 12, that would be pretty damn rare for me. Metal Militia style benching routines (shirted benchers) are high volume and I just couldn't hang with it long term. If you consider yourself a natural for taking abuse (i.e. you weigh 185 but benched 245 your first day in the gym) then give it a shot, otherwise you probably need to pull some volume from your routine IMO.

ya, i think i may end up with something that looks like this on mondays:

bench: 5x8
military press: 3x8
pushdowns: 3x12
shoulder raises: 3x12

does that look better?

i dont do 5x5 because im just now getting used to heavier weights. i will start with say 8 reps on the first set, but when i increase weight on the next set i may get 6 reps, then on the next probably 4 or so etc.

Originally Posted by JayBee

ya, i think i may end up with something that looks like this on mondays:

bench: 5x8
military press: 3x8
pushdowns: 3x12
shoulder raises: 3x12

does that look better?

i dont do 5x5 because im just now getting used to heavier weights. i will start with say 8 reps on the first set, but when i increase weight on the next set i may get 6 reps, then on the next probably 4 or so etc.

Yeah, that looks fine. However, if you really want to add some numbers to that bench press, then it will be beneficial to go heavy when you feel comfortable doing so.

Sometimes when I need inspiration, I pull out a picture of Mudge's Avatar...

Originally Posted by JayBee

ya, i think i may end up with something that looks like this on mondays:

bench: 5x8
military press: 3x8
pushdowns: 3x12
shoulder raises: 3x12

does that look better?

i dont do 5x5 because im just now getting used to heavier weights. i will start with say 8 reps on the first set, but when i increase weight on the next set i may get 6 reps, then on the next probably 4 or so etc.

witha 8 reps per set 5 sets is an pretty high volume of pressing (40 total repetitions). Why do so much? If I am working with 8-12 reps I use 3 sets or no more than 4.