I failed at the 315!

[CobraUTAH]

I fucking failed! I'm so pissed and depressed. What the hell can I do? I got the 290 with no problem and was like shit that was easy as hell what's 25 more pounds it's nothing and I tried and got just below halfway and stalled. It really bummed me out. I feel that I should maybe try for 300 or 305 first and then go for 315 because I missed it by the smallest possible margin. I'm going to try and max again next week, but should I try for the 315 again or should I take smaller bites and get 305 first? Either way I'm keeping after it until I reach my goal of 315 for 1RM. After that I can finally diet.


As for being weak as hell at bench for my size I truly am. Bench has long been my weakest lift and always will be. At 6'3" with long arms I have a long way to move the weight. I've always been jealous of the shorter guys for the weight they can lift on bench. I've got a buddy that's about 5'9" and 220, he can do 405 and it really pisses me off. He isn't anywhere near as strong as I am in anything else, but his bench power is unreal.

 

[bigstve12]

last time i maxed, got 300 with ease.....then like you i was like f#@ it, lets get 315....just barely missed it. That was about a month or two ago....i was so pissed im waiting to max again untill i know 315 will be a joke....gonna shoot for like 335.

dont worry about the long arms bro, keep up the intensity, you'll get where you want to be before you know it

 

[Synpax]

You seem to be frustrated based on comparing yourself to the success of others.

Boxers fight based on very narrow weight classes. Maybe 5 lbs variances within each class. This disadvantages boxers who are tall or those with overly developed leg muscles. Yet because boxers define success as defeating another individual, individual differences within weight classes must be overlooked.

Weightlifting, however, is a purely individual pursuit. You and your body are completely unique, with completely unique potentials. Your long arms, your height, your body weight, your body type (ectomorph, etc) are fully unique and your only competition is with what you did yesterday because there is no pure comparison with anyone else, unless you have an identical twin.

I am aware that there are powerlifting and body building competitions, and respect those who do well in them. But to be disappointed because another can lift more than me is irrational, because the circumstances that individual faces and the priorities he has are completely unique and different from my own. Conversly, it is similarly irrational to take pride in being able to lift more than someone else.

You can rationally be frustrated and take pride in what you yourself do and what you are capable of and what you have done in the past. Going from 290 to 315 is a big jump. If I were a betting man I would have bet against you lifting it.

The only thing you are justified in being frustrated about is being overly ambitious in increasing your max. I would have gone with a nice round 300.

 

[CobraUTAH]

Thanks for the encouragement but do you think I should try for the 305 first and then the following week go for the 315, or should I just try again next week to get the 315? I feel that after failing yesterday that there is little chance that I'll be any better off in a week. I did a few other reps with 275 after failing but that's it I don't see how I could get stronger at it without really getting a solid workout in. I don't know if I should go back to 5x3 for two more weeks and then see what happens or just keep forcing maxes for the next couple weeks.

 

[Synpax]

My word of mouth, common sense knowledge, is that it is ideal to only try maxing once a month due to the taxation on your CNS.

Please seek confirmation from a more knowledgable source.

 

[PL_Beast]

heres a pice of advice,
u wanna hit 315, the way i did it , was since i couldnt move heavier weight, i decided to go lower, ever heard of the saying , IF U WANNA MOVE FORWARD SOMETIMES U HAVE TO TAKE TWO STEPS BACK ...so i did just that heres a comparison, if u can lift 225 10x 4 sets then u can lift 315 once. So for a month or more concentrate on hitting 225 10 reps 4 sets ..then on the next bench day get enough sleep , and good food, and try it ....it worked for me .
To figure out ur max bench try this .....whatever weight u can do for 6 reps unassisted multiply by 1.25.... use a calculator...
so lets assume that u can bench 250 6 times unassisted multiply that by 1.25....250x1.25=312.5 and that would be ur 1 time max
try it it worked for me

 

[bigstve12]

yeah buddy, i wouldnt try another max in a week. I think you should make a plan to attack 315 in a month or so...work your way up...just my opinion

 

[Olsen Twins Banger]

go for 305 if you want to increase your max from 290

you new max would be 305 however if you want 315 than it doesnt really matter if you can get 305..so then just focus on getting stronger

 

[bignate73]

where are you getting stuck?

ps...dont max next week.

 

[anabolicmd]

I fucking failed! I'm so pissed and depressed. What the hell can I do? I got the 290 with no problem and was like shit that was easy as hell what's 25 more pounds it's nothing and I tried and got just below halfway and stalled. It really bummed me out. I feel that I should maybe try for 300 or 305 first and then go for 315 because I missed it by the smallest possible margin. I'm going to try and max again next week, but should I try for the 315 again or should I take smaller bites and get 305 first? Either way I'm keeping after it until I reach my goal of 315 for 1RM. After that I can finally diet.

Bro, dont get down on yourself. Yes 25 lbs is too big a jump when you are at or near your max weight range. You should definitely go up in smaller steps, thats what those itty bitty 2.5 lb plates are for, lol. But more importantly, dont sweat the missed lifts, just learn from it and apply your knowledge next time. Try repping around your max range, like 285 for two, 290 for 2, 295 for ? see where Im going? Baby steps to big weights bro.

 

[WalkingBeast]

Id definately keep maxing for a while, aslong as its not taking a visible toll on your overall strength. I get alot stronger when I max consistently. Everyone's different though. Id reccomend attempting your max in 5lb jumps, maybe 10lbs if your feeling real powerful. Try going for 300 first, then if you hit that, raise it up accordingly. Even if I feel I have extra strength, often Ill only go up 5lbs on bench, so I dont waste an attempt and fail the weight. Unless Im sure I can get it. Youll hit 315 soon. Just dont try to rush it too much.

 

[JOKER47]

I would work the weakness rather than just try to get 315 again.

2/3 board presses, rack presses or floor presses might help strengthen the area you got stuck.

 

[super_rice]

personally, i'd drop the weight down a bit below your previous max and rep that like there's no tomorrow. then go back and make the 315 pay!!!!

 

[SAGAT]

where did you fail? at the bottom? this could be important to know in order to bring your bench up.

 

[from zero]

Don't get down on yourself bro.

You did not fail if you did not give up. Remember that.

 

[DeanersWeiner]

Try this, this is a little trick i use to move my max benches up right away. I found that if I did a buch of warmup sets anywhere near the weight of my max bench it would really tax my strength and energy levels for my 1 big lift. So I said screw it Im usin all my strength and energy up on the 2-3-4 warmup sets to get my 1 big lift off. So I started thinkin what execise could I use to warmup every possible area for chest, tris, and sholders so I will not injure myself for my 1 big lift. "Push Ups" ! I did just 2-3 sets of deep pushups to get the blood flowing and body warmed up and then bam I went for my max bench right away and would get it off no problem everytime.

Though this might sound crazy it worked for me. Give her a try bro cant hurt to try somethin new!

Good Luck!

 

[Fast Twitch Fiber]

A 25 pound jump over your previous best is way too much! Stick with 5-10 lb. jumps.

 

[anabolicmd]

Hey Cobra, check this out:

"Arguably, the single best upper body plyometric exercise simulating the bench press is the "power drop". The power drop involves having a training partner drop a medicine ball to you while you are on the floor lying on your back. You catch the medicine ball and immediately propel it as explosively as possible straight up to the ceiling. Your training partner then catches the medicine ball before it falls back to you. Your training partner then drops the medicine ball down to you for the second repetition of the set. It is suggested that power drops be performed for 5 sets of 2-5 reps. Complete recovery should be taken between sets.

It is critical that you focus on the quality of the movement. Power drops need to be performed as explosively as possible. After catching the medicine ball, you should eccentrically decelerate the ball to just above the chest. Once the medicine ball reaches the chest, you should as quickly as possible, concentrically thrust the ball straight towards the ceiling. It is important to minimize the time between the eccentric decelerating of the medicine ball and the explosive concentric "sending it through the roof" phase. By converting the eccentric contraction into the concentric contraction as quickly as possible (minimizing the amortization phase), greater explosiveness is elicited by the involved muscles. Think of the medicine ball as a "hot potato". Once the medicine ball is eccentrically lowered to the chest, you want to get rid of the "hot potato" as fast as possible before it burns your hands."

link:

http://www.strengthcats.com/plyobenchpress.htm