315-405 Bp

[evan101]

Is it possible to go from a bench press 1 rep max of 315 raw to a 405 max in one year with no drugs?

[Cruise91]

I would say it depends on your genetics, diet, and how often you train and changing the way you train to keep you CNS & PNS always guessing. It would be hard I'm sure but I believe it's possible it just depends on how hard you want it. Good luck.

[untranslatedZA]

I would say it depends on your genetics, diet, and how often you train and changing the way you train to keep you CNS & PNS always guessing. It would be hard I'm sure but I believe it's possible it just depends on how hard you want it. Good luck.

CNS and keeping it guessing ... okay ....

Yes its possible if you are willing to be 100% consistent with training and diet. I would think about getting a coach that knows what they are doing if you are actually serious/competing. But at your size its possible definitely.

[E-Tank]

yea if you eat

[Floider]

Is it possible to go from a bench press 1 rep max of 315 raw to a 405 max in one year with no drugs?

Sure its possible.

If it is possible for you depends on genetics (how easy was it to get to 315?... if it took years of dedicated work to get there you probably aren't making 405 in a year), how much weight you are willing to gain (more body weight = easier to add muscle and strength), and your commitment to following a program and being consistent, etc.

[arn710]

I guess I'll be the honest one here

No, its not possible

You might find an outlier that has done it. Vast majority will fail

[pandamonk]

I don't have experience benching 405 so I probably should not speak but as long as you are eating a lot and consistently training I do not see why you could not

[Sohale31]

I guess I'll be the honest one here

No, its not possible

You might find an outlier that has done it. Vast majority will fail

if an outlier has done it, then it is possible. But yes i can see how that would be a very hard thing to achieve, even with impeccable diet and programming.

[Lexira]

I guess I'll be the honest one here

No, its not possible

You might find an outlier that has done it. Vast majority will fail

I'm afraid this.


you will need crazy genetics and intense training for that to happen naturally

[evan101]

The reason I ask is because I'm so damn close to doing it. But I'm sure 99.9% of people at my gym think I'm on drugs. Just wanted your opinion.

[kinggorilla]

its very doable,even more so if you gain weight.
405 is really not that damn remarkable.

my best is 405 but I was 240 in bodyweight it took me 9 months to go from 315 to 405,I didn't stretch or do any recover and tore a rotator cuff muscle right now I have a 350ish bench at 210 after a long layoff,I will hit 405 again in less than a year.

[ecchastang]

I went from a grinding 315 back in September to a relatively easy 350 a month ago. I went from a bodyweight of 150-154 during the same time frame, but I feel I might have to aggressively try to add weight to continue gaining. My goal is 4 plates at 160lbs, for a 2.5x bodyweight, but its going to take more than 1 year from 315 to 405.

[John Prophet]

yes, probably with bodyweight around 230-240. A lot harder if u stay the same weight

[fakhter]

I'm just trying to get a 2 plate bench my time will come...

[BombDonald]

I hit 315 in late 2009, and hit 400 last week. It might come faster, or it might take you a long time. The best thing to do is forget about what anyone tells you, and just work your f*cking balls off and let the cards fall where they may.

[MEJ1990TM1]

Nobody can answer this question for you. Nobody has your exact genetic makeup. Train as hard as you can, eat a lot, be maniacal with your discipline, and come back in a year to let us know if you made it. As was pointed out, depending on how easy it was to hit that 315 mark will be a big indicator.

[adamsz]

I guess I'll be the honest one here

No, its not possible

You might find an outlier that has done it. Vast majority will fail

This. Maybe like 2% of the population could do it.

[Link815]

I'm probably (definitely) one of the outliers here, but I went from 305 to 380 in a year, took me 3 more months after that to get to 405. My bodyweight probably went up about 10 pounds in that time frame. If you have terrible technique that you can get straightened out, you might be able to do it. Part of why I was able to make that big a gain was learning how to bench with an arch, actively squeezing my shoulders together, leg drive, etc. That alone probably gave me 40 pounds. I'm also built to bench, broad shoulders, big chest, short arms.

My bench has now gone up 10 pounds if I'm lucky in the last 2 years.

[invain]

It took me about 3 years to go from 315 to 405. However, I probably weighed about the same each time.

Of course it's going to be easier if you gain 50 pounds..........

[IronOynx]

Depends how long it took you to get 315. For me, it took me less than 3 years of training to hit a 405 bench.

[Smolovicus]

It took me over a year just to bench 225 (with a ground level @ 155lbs), and another to bench 275, and I think another to finally get 300 -- which was last spring. I hit 315 sometime in that following May or June, I think.

Yesterday I benched 318 for multiple sets of 4 reps, and I'm wagering on a 355-370 max in another week or so. I've been at about the same body weight since hitting 300, which is in the 210 - 215lb range.

I imagine (and only imagine) if I wasn't bound to studying and depriving myself of sleep/food for 8 months at uni, I could have put more effort into gaining another 30lbs of body weight, train a bit harder and be a lot closer to if not at a 4 plate bench. Obviously, I don't really know -- but it wouldn't necessarily be an outrageous assumption.

So yeah, I would say that it is possible, and that you wouldn't necessarily need to be a complete genetic freak to accomplish it. However, if you are on the lower end of the "bench specific" genetic spectrum, you're probably out of luck at least for a few more years.

[302rx7]

Yes you can, if your form is good and your technique is solid. Then it's just a matter of finding your weak points and building them.

What has been working for me is full ROM presses until 1rm, then a 3 board to a 1rm, then I just start to do holds in the press position until I pretty much deflate with a weight and have my spotters pull it off me. This is mostly for CNS training to get used to holding heavier weight. Then I do a a JM press movement, some heavy chest supported rows, face pulls, and then abs. This works for me because I have really weak triceps and lats.

If you have some big lifters (guys who lift how much you want to) in your town talk with them and get their opinion on your form and technique.

[John Prophet]

break it down into chunks. Can you make it to 365 in 6 months? To get a good start on that u need to gain like 30lbs in the first 12 weeks. But then you have to do that (or very close) again like 3 more times.

youll need a very solid routine and IMO youll need to vary the bench exercise itself some. I would do 8-12 weeks (at the most) using a grip either finger wider or narrower than usual. Then for the next 8-12 week cycle go back to your main grip. Then next cycle change it again, then next cycle go back to your main grip again. If u did 12 week cycles that gives u 48 weeks and youll be coming up on that year using your main competition grip.

Of course a lot of people debate it but IMO if u use the same grip all the time you are simply not getting a fresh stimulus at any point and your body will be VERY adapted. The longer you use one particular exercise, the less effective it becomes. Many lifters in the past benched year round but they also varied their grip width (Kaz, Pacifico etc)

[killemall1983]

[QUOTE=Smolovicus;1255735391]

Yesterday I benched 318 for multiple sets of 4 reps, and I'm wagering on a 355-370 max in another week or so. I've been at about the same body weight since hitting 300, which is in the 210 - 215lb range.
QUOTE]
Dang, you are estimating near 370 bench with a 320 4 rep set? Your max seems insanely strong for your reps.

[Smolovicus]

Dang, you are estimating near 370 bench with a 320 4 rep set? Your max seems insanely strong for your reps.

when I hit 340, my best rep set was something like 305 for 3. I wouldn't say it's really an 'insane' rep-to-max ratio. I usually assume I can lift around 25lbs over my 3RM, with 5-10lbs additionally for each rep after that (ofc depending upon how prepped I am on a 1RM test day).

keep in mind that's 318 for multiple sets of 4, during/after 5 additional sets of 4 at 312. 5 or 6 reps would probably be my actual max effort at that weight. and I said up to 370, but I'm betting more on the lower end at 355-360.

[sheed30]

when I hit 340, my best rep set was something like 305 for 3. I wouldn't say it's really an 'insane' rep-to-max ratio. I usually assume I can lift around 25lbs over my 3RM, with 5-10lbs additionally for each rep after that (ofc depending upon how prepped I am on a 1RM test day).

keep in mind that's 318 for multiple sets of 4, during/after 5 additional sets of 4 at 312. 5 or 6 reps would probably be my actual max effort at that weight. and I said up to 370, but I'm betting more on the lower end at 355-360.

Yea, that's high. I can hit 315 for 3x5 pretty easily and I've never benched over 365...granted I've never tried to though

[ecchastang]

I hit 350 when my 4 rep best was 305, but my 3 rep best was 320. Now I have done 310 for 5, so probably around 360 or so.

[Smolovicus]

Yea, that's high. I can hit 315 for 3x5 pretty easily and I've never benched over 365...granted I've never tried to though

lol, wut. 312 5x4 and 318 3x4 in the same session is not too far off a 315 3x5, if it isn't already there. listen boys I'm not saying I'm going to bench 370+, just that it's not absurd to keep it in the general expected range. I'll find out exactly what I have when I put myself under the bar but I'm confident for at least 355+.

the point i was making is that i've put a good 50-60lbs on my bench in the course of a year under very subpar conditions, and I see no reason why someone could not achieve a 300 - 400 progression in under a year after putting on some weight / programming intelligently / etc assuming they are not predisposed to have terrible bench development.

[sheed30]

well all you said was multiple set of 4 at 318...you never said any of the other stuff. Yea, you could prob hit 370. couple months ago I hit 325x7 and I felt like I was close to 400, so it makes sense

[Drew23]

Anything is possible, but it's highly unlikely.