Strength Testing, Bench Press.

ForecasterJason wrote: »

I'm doubtful that I can do 6-8 reps at the next weight. That's the issue with 10 pound increments. As it is, 10 reps is a struggle at the weight I'm using (I can't push the bar with the same amount of speed as my first few reps). And even if I can do 6-8 reps at the next weight, I'm concerned about the safety of doing so given how much closer it would put me to my max.

You have a mental block.
Believe me way I say I have been there. Putting the weight on the bar that previously tore my pec. I know that feeling. Until you use progressive overload and change something you might be stalled for even longer.

ForecasterJason wrote: »

I think it was explained to me in some other thread that beginner programs that focus on 5 reps per set have the lifter starting at a much lower percent of 1 rep max. Although I've done a total of 18 workouts in 10-11 weeks in which I've benched pressed on my machine, I'm clearly still in a beginner stage. I didn't think I was ready to be benching consistently at 85-88% of my max. Using a 1 rep calculator, based on the 10 reps I can do at a particular weight, at the next weight I would barely get to 5 reps, and perhaps just 4.

There are a lot of beginner programs and you will be on one for several months, not just weeks, so find one that is geared towards your goals. First you need to figure out what you want to accomplish then find something that fits those goals. 3 sets of 10 reps could be a good workout if it meets your goals if you want to a beginner builder program, but it could be a horrible workout if you are looking for strength. So you need to first look at what you want then you can find a program that fits that.

I also think that you need to get off of you machine and get to your gym. Just benching on a machine isn't doing you much good and if you are doing nothing but benching this is just wrong on so many levels. You need to start looking at assistance exercises for your chest plus, shoulder, back, arm, and leg exercises as well. Not sure if bench is all you are doing but it's all I've heard you mention and that is just a very bad way to go unless you want to give yourself a huge muscle imbalance.

ForecasterJason wrote: »

I was aiming for strength and mass, so I was thinking 8-14 reps for most of my lifts would be good. I'm also doing lat pulldowns, leg presses, and leg curls on my machine. With the set of free weights I have (which are too light for doing most compound lifts), I do bicep curls after doing my upper body lifts.
The other issue with doing a program using my machine is that there are a limited number of compound exercises I can do. There are a few other exercises for chest and arms, but there's not much more than that. I think I actually "discovered" that I can do standing rows for my back/rear shoulders, which I don't think is actually considered an exercise on the machine.

If you want strength then lower your reps and raise your weight. Mass will take longer but building a good strength foundation will help when you look to improve that in the future. I would certainly re-evaluate your program since you aren't getting the gains you would expect from a novice.

Some of the numbers in this group are crazy!! Impressive stuff.

ForecasterJason wrote: »

Ok. One thing I'm wondering about is my calorie intake. While I am trying to gain, it looks like over the past several weeks I've basically been maintaining. Am I correct that building muscle automatically means an increase in strength? I know muscle and strength are not always correlated, but it was my understanding that if one is building muscle, strength is also increasing. So if I can get my calorie intake into a surplus, training in the rep range I'm doing should then increase my strength, right?

Muscle size and strength are related, yes. The larger the muscle the better the mechanical advantage plus you have more contractile power so you have more potential to move heavier objects. Neural coordination is also important and you will not be able to max your muscle gains until you've maximized your neural gains -- this is why novices to gain so much strength so quickly.

Eating in a surplus will allow you to gain muscle, and some fat, and will improve strength and building strength will help build muscle, and so it goes. The keys are that you need to train hard enough to force your muscles to grow (stimulus), you need to eat sufficient calories with enough protein and micros to allow for protein synthesis (fuel), and you need to get sufficient rest (recovery).

Serah87 wrote: »

I am 20 pounds away from bench pressing my BW.

Nice, keep up the good work!

Bw roughly 182lbs
Can bench about 8 clean reps of 264lbs no spotter...

redfisher1974 wrote: »

Well 2 weeks ago I Hit my BW (185) for 10 reps and today I hit 280lb for one rep. So thats 1.513 x BW. On my way back to my PR of 300lbs, I am however 50lbs lighter now then when I hit 300lbs years ago.

Great work, you are well on your way back to 300.