Massive Bench Press: The Countdown Bench Press Workout

Bench Press Countdown Workout

This is a bench press workout that my training partner and I used prior to the 2008 British Bench Press Championships where I weighed 225kg gross. This was my biggest bench in the rough and I proved to myself that my training principles worked.

The training consists of four workouts in a ten day period. The individual sessions alternate as follows:

  1. Heavy bench press and assist.
  2. Heavy squat and fast deadlift.
  3. Bench and assist speed press.
  4. Quick squat and heavy deadlift.

The 10 day cycle is a mini cycle of workouts within a larger cycle lasting 30 days and this larger cycle is part of an even larger cycle lasting 90 days. Once in the 30-day period, a maximum 1-rep single press was attempted to calculate progress. Each 30-day cycle focuses on a specific bank support team, for example bands or chains. Before starting this training program, my training partner and I did a bench with our 1 rep max so we could calculate weight percentages. My 1 rep max was 195kg. We train three days a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Shoulders were trained hard and heavy on speed day.

The trainings are as follows:

Notes:

  • Under the weight of the column, I have written the% of my 1 rep max only for the flat bench. This figure is approximate and is rounded to the nearest 5 or 10 kilogram jump.
  • On days not mentioned, for example Wednesday of the first 10 day cycle, I am training squats and deadlifts.
  • All close grip presses are lowered to 3 plank height.
  • On heavy bench day I always do close grip presses as well.
  • Warm up properly before exercise, including warming up in specific exercise.
  • All workouts are done only with wristbands.

First cycle of 30 days

Monday Flat bench press 5 sets 5 reps at 160 kg (80%) Friday Speed ​​bench press 8 sets 3 reps at 100 kg (50%) Wednesday Flat bench press 8 sets 3 reps at 175 kg (90%) Monday Rapid bench press 12 sets 2 reps at 100 kg (50%) Friday Flat bench press 3 sets 1rep @ 200kg MAX. Wednesday Rapid bench press 12 sets 2 reps at 100 kg (50%)

On the heavy bench training day, I do 2 chest assist exercises and 3 triceps assist exercises. The exercises are from the following lists, but the list is not exhaustive and other exercises can be added:

Bank assistance Incline Press Decline Press Flat, Incline, Decline Flyes Pec Dec Flye Floor Press

Triceps assist Close Grip Press Skull Crushers / Kettlebell / Barbell Triceps Pressdown Dips Grating Locks

This cycle now repeats for the second 30 day cycle only now instead of just pressing BANDS. I used medium blue woody bands that add approximately 20kg to the weight of the bar at the top of the movement, meaning that an ’empty’ bar now weighed 40kg. My 1 rep max had now increased to 200kg so now all calculations need to be done at this new weight, however due to the introduction of the bands I reduced the barbell weight by 10kg! Bands were used for both speed days and heavy days.

At the end of the second 30-day cycle, we again tested our 1 rep max bench to calculate what barbell weight we needed for our third and final cycle. My 1 rep max had increased to 205kg and I was feeling very strong and happy to have broken the 200kg barrier.

The third cycle repeated the previous two only in place of the bands we introduced. CHAINS. To each side of the bar I added 17.5 kg of chain weight, which means that an ’empty’ bar now weighs 55 kg. My 1 rep max had now increased to 205kg, so I had to recalculate my training percentages to account for this. Chains were used for both speed and heavy days.

Finally, at the end of this cycle I tried my 1 rep max again and managed to bench 210kg. The most he had achieved without using specialized equipment. Obviously I was delighted with the result and both my training partner and I have never felt stronger. Now I completely rested for 2 weeks, not training even once during this period. Then on Saturday, I competed in the British Championships and weighed 225kg on the bench, which surprised me as it was 15kg above my previous best record, showing how important rest and nutrition is within a workout routine.

Conclution Belts and chains seem confusing and are often difficult to control, but persistence can pay off big. The explosive power of the chest is greatly increased and takes you through previous friction points. Training only ‘heavy’ once every 10 days allowed the muscles to fully recover and I felt refreshed for each workout. Speed ​​training further increased explosive power and allowed me to bench press faster even on heavy days.

For more information on Bench Press, Bench Press Tips, Bench Press Videos, and Bench Press Workouts, visit my website at www.increasebenchpressnow.com.

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