Progression rant

[katy89]

Man, I’ve been getting so frustrated, stuck on the exact same bench numbers for almost 2 months. In a calorie surplus. With intent to progressively overload.
My numbers have been 85kg for 8-7-6 and with a good rest I still couldn’t break that. Told myself after this session I will drop weight or take a break from the movement. All of a sudden this morning I hit the same weight for 9-8-8 (wouldve gone another rep on last set with a spotter).
I get why a lot of people quit the gym. Non linear progression fucks with you, but man when it hits, the dope is unreal.

Rant over.

 

[trinitas1198]

@katy89 I’m about to blow your mind brotha, try doing…drum roll…90 kg.

This is how you get stronger, you test weights you’ve never touched or used for working sets.

The thing is, sometimes that’s what you have to do.

 

[ktkossakoski]

@trinitas1198 This is great advice.

I would up the weight by 5-10lbs and often do 3-4 reps less... but when I went back to the original goal weight, it was easier.

At some point if you're trying to check the boxes of a 3 set rep scheme or whatever and you're just falling short by a couple of reps on the last set... you know in your head you can lift more weight, so it's almost a waste of time to just hang in that zone for too long. Up the weight and see what you can do, then go back to it! Bet you check it off that time.

 

[ineedadvice101]

@trinitas1198 But what if your form instantly goes to shit when you attempt that?

 

[jcreigns]

@ineedadvice101 Practice more weight that is farther from failure. Training to failure is something you do when you can fail with good form.

Also doing 5s around failure probably isnt the smartest thing.

 

[yaeer1942]

@jcreigns

Also doing 5s around failure probably isnt the smartest thing.

wdym by 5s ? you mean like 5th rep being your failure rep is not a good idea ?

 

[jcreigns]

@yaeer1942 Yes. Heavy compounds usually cause a lot of fatigue close to failure when you get stronger. This is probably fine for bench press, but for squats and deadlifts this is just going to train support more musculatur at lower reps.

 

[trinitas1198]

@ineedadvice101 Why would your form go to shit?

If you can perfectly execute 8 reps with 185kg, you can do 190kg perfectly with the same form. The number of reps you do is irrelevant, the form is most important in preserving.

 

[cole001]

@katy89 Have you thought about taking a quick deload? It's a great help for getting through plateaus + a nice mental break.

 

[frustratedhusband]

@katy89 https://preview.redd.it/5ynncpfu2a3...bp&s=75f904d9dab7f52f4765717fc6e2ad7d15cae5a3

 

[anotherstruggler]

@frustratedhusband This is exactly what I was going to type.

 

[singingmichelle74]

@frustratedhusband This should be a stickied comment at the top of the sub, or put in the wiki.

 

[frustratedhusband]

@singingmichelle74 Yeah it would answer almost all deload questions.

 

[peacehopejoylove1987]

@katy89 Sorry, are you trying to build muscle or get stronger on bench? If your goal is to build muscle, try a different movement like a machine press or do smith bench. It’s happened where I plateaued on a movement, dropped it, then came back to it and was stronger

 

[katy89]

@peacehopejoylove1987 Build muscle is definitely the main goal. I do flat bench, incline db bench twice a week. These two exercises have really worked well for me and I’d say chest is a stronger point for me now. I work out from home so I’m using what I have access to (rack, cables, bench).
I will be incorporating chest fly as another poster suggested.

 

[alex17791]

@katy89 You have a rack at home but no safety pins? Because you said you could have got another rep with a spotter. Just buy some safety pins. They are under $100 and you don't have to worry about failing to get that last rep.

 

[purpleflower2]

@alex17791 what's safety pins?

 

[alex17791]

@purpleflower2 They are the things that catch the barbell to prevent it from falling and crushing you. For example, https://repfitness.com/products/pin-pipe-safeties

There are 3 main variations: safety pins, spotter arms, and safety straps. They have pros and cons, but they let you bench and squat in a rack without needing a spotter.

 

[purpleflower2]

@alex17791 than you very much

 

[peacehopejoylove1987]

@katy89 Try doing a chest fly with slow reps and an incline machine press. It’s a good idea to switch up your exercises once in a while when you plateau