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Simplifying the bench press
Article written by Ben Tatar, ben_tatar@hotmail.com
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to get their bench max up is training with
lots of sets and reps! Strength gains come very easy, and so do personal records, as long as you
keep the reps down and weight up while attacking your weak points on the bench press. I remember
when I was younger; I thought I knew everything about Big Benching. Many people including myself
have discovered that doing lots of reps and sets and eating clean will help you attain size and
definition which will impress some women, (they all have their own style) but you won't get strong.
You will only be able to dream of what it would be like to move a big weight.
I can't speak for everyone, but I didn't really like having a barrel chest, big triceps
and having a weak bench press. That's when I decided to do some research on the Internet,
which convinced me to perform sets of 3 reps fast with a weight half that of my max. I thought
my bench would go up like magic because I was getting some speed strength (I was wrong). How
can you get strong just repping 135 or doing 135 for 8 sets of 3 reps fast? If you do that, you
won't have the tendon strength or any power at all to move a big weight. I think that many articles
on the Internet confuse beginners because they talk about hundreds of different kinds of training
styles and methods and equipment such as chains, bands, board presses, floor presses, power racks,
force reps etc. I think they are interesting because you have a personal record in each bench press
area. They are very good training techniques to use accordingly to target your weak points, but people
must remember that Training Hard is what gets you strong.
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It's not specifically what you do but rather how much intensity you put into it! (Form is still very important.)
You can train using any program you want but if you stay in a comfort zone, you won't get strong no matter what
program you are using. Benching big weights is mostly in your head. The mind is way stronger than the body.
Your mind decides how hard you train and this mental factor is one of the BIGGEST determinants of how far
you can go. You can't fear a weight. You need to crush it and have the mind ready to go to the next level,
and than to the next, and than to the next. Each time you progress you will get to a scarier and scarier
level...Some guys can rack lockout around 900 lbs, so trust me you can you can amaze yourself. You will
understand it when you keep going heavier and realize that you're still progressing. It feels great
to see progress. 