If you want to add weight to your bench press, you'll need to
incorporate exercises to build upper body strength into your weight
training workout.
When you're doing bench presses, the easiest way to fail to make progress or to hurt yourself is to do the wrong exercise. The best bench pressers choose the right exercises. They use very specific exercises common to most benchers. The trick is in how they do it.
How the Pros Do It
The best bench pressers incorporate supporting exercises in their weight training workouts that build and strengthen their upper torso. They rely on basic exercises for triceps and shoulders to build power, even though the pecs are the target muscles for bench presses. Go figure.
The important weight training workout exercises that will help you add weight to your bench press are the close grip bench press and the front shoulder press. Give yourself plenty of recovery time between sessions. Bench pressing even twice a week will doom you to failure. Bench press one time, and work on only one body part, per week if you really want to add weight to your weight training workout.
Focus on Upper Torso Strength
At first, focus your efforts on getting stronger in your upper torso. Don't do isolation exercises or anything else. Just focus your weight training workout on these three: bench press, close grip bench press, and front shoulder press. Do the bench press first, then the shoulder press, and then close grip. Take at least one day's rest between each weight training workout, and take at least three days' rest before you cycle back to the bench press. After three months, take a week or two off. You won't get the results you want if you try to go at it full time. You need to work in cycles.
When you pick up your weight training workout again, do front shoulder presses first. You should be well-rested and prepared to work with additional weight. To avoid wasting your effort, your reps shouldn't exceed eight. When you start getting stronger at the supporting exercises, you'll also be stronger on your bench press.
Try this Progression
Try this weight training workout progression with the front shoulder press. Warm up with 1 set of 20 reps at 30% of your max. Then do one set of 8 reps at 45%. Follow with one set of 8 reps at 60% and then one set of six reps at 70%. End with one set of six reps at 80%. The last two sets are your power-builders. When you can get to eight reps on the last set, you're ready to move on to 10% more weight.
That's when you start the whole cycle again. At the new weight, start with one set of 8 reps at 45% of your new max. Once you've got this progression going, you'll see clear results from your weight training workout. The cycle will be the same for the close grip presses, except you'll start with about five pounds less than you did for the front shoulder press.
After a few months of this weight training workout routine, you'll find you can handle more weight on your bench presses. You'll be stronger and healthier too! Just remember that the important part of adding weight to your bench press is to build strength in your whole upper torso.
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When you're doing bench presses, the easiest way to fail to make progress or to hurt yourself is to do the wrong exercise. The best bench pressers choose the right exercises. They use very specific exercises common to most benchers. The trick is in how they do it.
How the Pros Do It
The best bench pressers incorporate supporting exercises in their weight training workouts that build and strengthen their upper torso. They rely on basic exercises for triceps and shoulders to build power, even though the pecs are the target muscles for bench presses. Go figure.
The important weight training workout exercises that will help you add weight to your bench press are the close grip bench press and the front shoulder press. Give yourself plenty of recovery time between sessions. Bench pressing even twice a week will doom you to failure. Bench press one time, and work on only one body part, per week if you really want to add weight to your weight training workout.
Focus on Upper Torso Strength
At first, focus your efforts on getting stronger in your upper torso. Don't do isolation exercises or anything else. Just focus your weight training workout on these three: bench press, close grip bench press, and front shoulder press. Do the bench press first, then the shoulder press, and then close grip. Take at least one day's rest between each weight training workout, and take at least three days' rest before you cycle back to the bench press. After three months, take a week or two off. You won't get the results you want if you try to go at it full time. You need to work in cycles.
When you pick up your weight training workout again, do front shoulder presses first. You should be well-rested and prepared to work with additional weight. To avoid wasting your effort, your reps shouldn't exceed eight. When you start getting stronger at the supporting exercises, you'll also be stronger on your bench press.
Try this Progression
Try this weight training workout progression with the front shoulder press. Warm up with 1 set of 20 reps at 30% of your max. Then do one set of 8 reps at 45%. Follow with one set of 8 reps at 60% and then one set of six reps at 70%. End with one set of six reps at 80%. The last two sets are your power-builders. When you can get to eight reps on the last set, you're ready to move on to 10% more weight.
That's when you start the whole cycle again. At the new weight, start with one set of 8 reps at 45% of your new max. Once you've got this progression going, you'll see clear results from your weight training workout. The cycle will be the same for the close grip presses, except you'll start with about five pounds less than you did for the front shoulder press.
After a few months of this weight training workout routine, you'll find you can handle more weight on your bench presses. You'll be stronger and healthier too! Just remember that the important part of adding weight to your bench press is to build strength in your whole upper torso.