Would adding another Chest day be beneficial ?

[BabyJayPenn]

My main focus right now is getting some strength to my bench, would adding another day of chest to my workout routine be beneficial? or would it slow down my progress?

My chest day :
Flat Bench 3x8
Incline DB press 3x8
Decline DB press 3x8
Flat Flys 3x8

Thanks in advance

 

[BabyJayPenn]

ttt

 

[_cato_]

If you're interested in strength, lower reps, for example sets of 5, and/or benching twice a week would be better. You almost certainly wouldn't make great progress adding a second day like the one you posted above: too much weekly volume for good strength gains. You don't need a ton of volume for good strength progression. It's more about lifting weights which are heavy for you.

Also, if strength is your main goal, then the type of workout schedule you're currently doing (ie. nuking one body part every time you go to the gym) is not optimal.

 

[bblazer]

You might want to check out Shieko #29. It has you benching 2 days/week every other week.

B-

 

[BabyJayPenn]

If you're interested in strength, lower reps, for example sets of 5, and/or benching twice a week would be better. You almost certainly wouldn't make great progress adding a second day like the one you posted above: too much weekly volume for good strength gains. You don't need a ton of volume for good strength progression. It's more about lifting weights which are heavy for you.

Also, if strength is your main goal, then the type of workout schedule you're currently doing (ie. nuking one body part every time you go to the gym) is not optimal.

Thanks, Yeah if i did do another day of chest I would reduce my chest workout. Can you critque this?
A. +++++ Max Effort Upper Body (Monday) +++++
B. MAX EFFORT LIFT - Work up to a max set of 3-5 reps.
regular barbell bench press

C. SUPPLEMENTAL LIFT - Perform 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps.
decline dumbbell bench press

D. HORIZONTAL ROW - Perform 4 sets of 10-15 reps.
Chest supported rows

E. REAR DELT/UPPER BACK - Perform 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps.
Seated rear delt machine

F. WEIGHTED ABDOMINAL EXERCISE - 3-4 sets of 8-15 reps.
Hanging leg raises


Then for my other Chest day ( or day that includes a chest workout)

++++++ REPETITION UPPER BODY - (Friday) ++++++
A. REPETITION LIFT - Work up to 3 sets of max reps, rest 60 seconds between sets.
Dumbbell benches on incline bench

B. SUPPLEMENTAL LIFT (triceps) - Perform 3-4 sets of 5-10 reps.
Dumbbell triceps extensions (flat

C. VERTICAL PULLING - Perform 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
Lat pulldowns (various bars)

D. MEDIAL DELT or TRAP EXERCISE - Perform 3 sets of 10-15 reps.
Dumbbell shoulder press (seated

E. ELBOW FLEXION EXERCISE - Perform 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
Regular barbell curls

F. ABDOMINAL CIRCUIT TRAINING


This is the WESTSIDE skinny bastards routine, what do you think.

 

[bblazer]

I'm not a westside fan. Louis obviously have produced some great lifters, but the program has never worked for me as well as others. If you want to go with that direction though, and Shieko #29 doesn't interest you, you might want to have a look at the next step in the evolution of Westside, and that is the Wendler 531 Strength Program.

Again, I am all about what works well for me, and what programs (or their variants) have worked for the powerlifting team I coach. I'm not trying to dis Westside.

B-

 

[_cato_]

Joe DeFranco (the guy who wrote the westside for skinny bastards routine) coaches high level high school, college, and pro athletes so presumably he knows his stuff. I personally haven't done the routine, but others have used it successfully. Full discussion of that, if you haven't seen it is at www.defrancostraining.com/articles.html.

I'd encourage you to take a look at those routines bblazer listed (Sheiko and Wendler's 5/3/1), since he also knows his stuff, and possibly explore a 5x5 style routine (check madcow.hostzi.com/table_of_contents_thread.htm). I'd also encourage you to do lower body stuff, if you weren't already planning on it.

Ultimately, all of these routines can work, though some may be better or worse for specific individuals. Personally, I'd choose the one that you feel most comfortable with and most confident that you can stick with for at least ~6-8 weeks or so and run with that. After a few weeks you can see how your progress is and reevaluate.