|
Sbaker34
|
 |
« on: November 16, 2011, 04:00:30 PM » |
|
This is a long and complicated question, and hopefully someone who went though this can weigh in.
I am 156lbs, 17, 5'11, ATG Squat 240, deadlift 300+, and only bench 175-180, Now this may just be normal, but my bench usually stalls very easy and for long periods, while my lesser trained movements and those where I CAN"T push myself, often grow easy.
Keep in mind, I lack a power rack and I only have 300lbs of plates, so combined with 95 degree humid summers I really can't push hard on squats, and often, as due to laziness as due to heat and safety I go light/don't do squats. But I can still come back from breaks and add as much or more more weight to the bar then when I left it. So I am not close to my limit on squats yet at all.
My bench, I own a cap barbell, started working out 9 months ago, within a few months hit a plateu at 115 for 5x5, Took me 3-4 months, I finally went down to 105 and switched to 8 reps, worked back up to 115 5x8, went back to 5x5, got up to 135 3x5, past that I got to 150 3x5 with linear or near linear progress, hit another wall, couldn't even get 5 sets even over 3 workouts with the same weight.
Around 135 3x5, I switched my grip up a little, where before I had my hands in the middle of the cap barbell rings, I switched to where my pinkies are on the rings because I felt I had very strong triceps and could bench more that way, now where I am at now I feel it in my triceps a lot more then chest, my chest will be sore the next day, but in between sets its my triceps that are aching and feeling taxed, my chest never feels worked hard, and only pumped during very high reps. Especially on later sets my triceps and shoulders feel like they do most of it
Today I switched to a wide grip where my index finger was on the ring, and actually it felt a LOT easier up until the 12th rep of 115 where my right tricep just randomly couldn't do anymore. Keep in mind this was after failing a set, no idea how I would do fresh.
In addition I remember I seemed to make better progress when I did CGBP or dips. I really wondered if perhaps my chest was still making gains, but my triceps got overtaken
HOWEVER, I don't have a large chest, that could be due to benching more with my triceps, though I only have 13 inch arms, but I remember being in a sears and seeing a random 30ish guy a chest fly on a machine, when I went over to do the same, I had as much trouble as he had doing it, and while he was in the sports section he didn't really look like a big fitness guy.
I would really like to get a bigger chest, and am very curious what I should do, should I switch to a wider grip, hopefully so I work my chest more. Or should I just take another deload, and just bench higher reps, adding weight when I can, even if its only once every month or two?
|
