Thread: a great bench press increasing routine

i've been following this routine for about the past 3 months. i've gone from a max of around 298, to now being able to bench 325 lbs for 5 reps, with no spot. today i did the routine for month six, and i completed each rep with the reccomended weight. next week i plan to try the 345 for 3 reps....i don't even think it will take me the whole 12 months to get 405 either...this is awesome, you should try it out.

Below is a suggested cycle routine to bench press over 400 pounds in 12 months - without the use of drugs. A prerequisite to using this routine is a bench press of at least 285 pounds for 3 repetitions or over 300 pounds for a single RM.


Month Weight - Reps
1 285 - 3, 245 - 5, 205 - 8, 165 - 10
2 285 - 5, 245 - 7, 205 - 10
3 305 - 3, 265 - 5, 225 - 8, 185 - 10
4 305 - 5, 265 - 7, 225 - 10
5 325 - 3, 285 - 5, 245 - 8, 205 - 10
6 325 - 5, 285 - 7, 245 - 10
7 345 - 3, 305 - 5, 265 - 8, 225 - 10
8 345 - 5, 305 - 7, 265 - 10
9 365 - 3, 325 - 5, 285 - 8, 245 - 10
10 365 - 5, 325 - 7, 285 - 10
11 385 - 3, 345 - 5, 305 - 8, 265 - 10
12 405 = 1 rep max

Do not increase the amount of weight lifted each time you begin bench press. The following routine above suggests using the same amount of weight for two successive sessions until reaching 5 repetitions (a two rep increase in bench every 3 weeks). Only when you can bench press your first set for 5 repetitions increase the weight for the next training session. This "planned and systematized" routine invariably shows an increase of only 20 pounds in bench press every two months but note the "warm-down" (last set) strength increase!

so you do 4 sets? dropping the weight each set and increasing reps? Are you doing all these sets to failiure?