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Heavy Lifting

snoopy13 Posts: 239 Joined: 2003/11/15	2004/04/19, 04:35 PM I have been doing heavy bench press for about 7 weeks now maxing out every monday at 330lbs. I plan on doing this for one more week and then I want to lighten things up on the bench for a while cause I really wanna just recover a bit and give my body a break for a while. But while I was thinking about this I thought to myself what if when I wanna do my max weight again I cant do it or I become weaker. Anyone have any input on this and how long would be sufficent to go on a recovery or light phase?
hecdarec Posts: 2,457 Joined: 2003/12/16	2004/04/19, 04:36 PM You take a week off you wont get any weaker. -------------- My gym dues are not paid with money.
gatormade Posts: 1,355 Joined: 2003/10/01	2004/04/19, 09:04 PM I change my Max Effort stuff out every 1-3 weeks. I don't always max out on bench. I max out on things that will build my bench. Taking a week off will allow you to grow and get stronger. I take a week every 6-9 weeks depending on how I feel.
bigandrew Posts: 5,146 Joined: 2002/10/21	2004/04/19, 10:53 PM does it really matter if your bench drops by 5 or 10 lbs? I mean whos counting besides you? you plan on competing or somthing? -------------- .......adversity causes some to break, but others to break records! ......minds are not vessles to be filled, but fires to be enlightened ......Confucious once said ,DO NOT play leap frog with a unicorn
snoopy13 Posts: 239 Joined: 2003/11/15	2004/04/20, 07:18 AM Gator, what kind of max effort stuff is good to help build my bench and for when I switch my max effort what would you recommend I do for bench press in terms of weight and reps?
assante74 Posts: 185 Joined: 2001/10/19	2004/04/20, 09:52 AM if you are looking to up your bench look to the muscles that you incorporate when doing the bench press like shoulders and triceps.
gatormade Posts: 1,355 Joined: 2003/10/01	2004/04/20, 02:13 PM It should only matter to the person who is trying to build their bench. It is not about competing with others. Its about competing with yourself to get better every time you go to the gym. I use close grip bench, floor press, speed bench, db bench(flat, incline, decline, incline), pin press, board press, skull crushers, dips, pushdowns, push-ups, plus I train the heck out of upper back so I have something stable to push off of.
snoopy13 Posts: 239 Joined: 2003/11/15	2004/04/20, 03:13 PM So any of these excercises can be used as a max effort? Also Gator, is floor press harder than regular bench press cause i can floor press 325lbs max and bench press 330lbs max? Is that normal?
wrestler125 Posts: 4,619 Joined: 2004/01/27	2004/04/24, 10:24 AM gatormade made an excellent point for determining when to lay off. "I take a week every 6-9 weeks depending on how I feel." I've never taken scheduled breaks, like some plans tell you to take a week off every 10 weeks or every 12 or 6 weeks. Take a week off when you stop gaining on your lifts, because thats usually a good early warning sign of overtraining. Listen to your body, and take a week off at the right time, and you won't get any weaker. If anything, the opposite will happen. I usually try to add 5 pounds a week on all my core lifts (bench, squat, dl, powerclean, box squat, etc), but the week after a week off, i can usually add 5-10 pounds. -------------- "I get up in the morning around six to run for about an hour. Later in the day, I lift with a partner. Following my lifting sessions, I usually do speed and agility drills. Later, I drill all my holds and moves." 'Isnt that lifestyle boring?' "Yes, but the gold medal is very shiny." Ichiguchi Olympic Gold Medalist
gatormade Posts: 1,355 Joined: 2003/10/01	2004/04/25, 01:44 AM If your floor press is about the same of your bench then it is not a weak point for you. Try close grip bench. See how far off that is. I use max effort work to bring up my weak areas on bench. This will constantly change for you as you get stronger. Check out the article section of www.elitefitnesssystems.com There is a great article on there that helps determine what your weak points are for the 3 big lifts. It is not an always an exact science. There is still some guess work and intuition used when putting a plan together. That is why it is so hard for me to design plans for people I have never seen train. It sounds to me that you do not have a sticking point 4 inches above your chest though.
snoopy13 Posts: 239 Joined: 2003/11/15	2004/04/25, 08:27 AM Gator, I have a problem with the close grip bench press. When I used to do it my hands would slip and make them further apart during my set and also one time the bar actually slipped out of my hands and landed on my chest. I cant seem to grip it well cause it always was slipping. Any suggestions? By the way, I still do close grip bench but on a smith machine as a substitute. Is this good or not? Thanks again