You Can Bench Press 300 Pounds!

How to Build a Big Chest and Get Stronger

The 300-pound bench is the hallmark of a strong guy. You can bench press 300 pounds in only 12 months- no matter how much you weigh- if you develop proper technique, work hard and consistently, use a training program that develops your muscles and nervous system, and follow a scientifically sound nutrition program that builds muscles and provides energy for intense training.

The Bench Press is a Whole-Body Exercise

Bench-pressing heavy weight is a skill. Learn a precise motor pattern that will allow you to bench press a heavy weight for just one rep. The bench press is a whole-body lift. A big bench press requires strong pecs, deltoids, and triceps, but also strong legs, abdominal, and back muscles that act as stabilizers during the lift.

Use an Olympic bar designed for powerlifting, and avoid bars bent from overuse. Use a bar with comfortable knurling (roughened part of the bar). Finding a bench you like can make a huge difference in how much weight you can lift.

Use the major muscles of your body to bench press- not just your chest, arms, and shoulders. Place your feet flat on the floor, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Try to move your feet backward toward your head, while keeping them flat on the floor. This position provides stability and will help keep your back arched and chest up during the lift. It will also allow you to drive with your legs during the exercise without lifting your butt from the bench. The arched back technique will allow you to make large, rapid improvements in the bench press because you don’t have to push the bar as far and the position gives you an exceptionally strong base.

Pull your shoulder blades together and try to keep them retracted during each repetition, and stabilize your spine by pulling down with your lats. This position provides spinal support and helps to maintain a high chest and arched back during the lift. Grasp the bar firmly with your thumbs aligned in the opposite directions from your fingers. Grip spacing is highly individual, so experiment with wider and narrower grips. Brace (tighten) your ab muscles to increase stability.

Lower the bar under control to a point below the nipple line. Pause briefly, squeeze your glutes together, and then push the bar explosively in a straight line above the chest, keeping the elbows in, shoulders back, while keeping an arch in your lower back. Pushing the weight explosively from the bottom activates more motor units and decreases the chance of the bar stalling during the lift. Have the spotter help you rack the bar after completing your last rep.

Training Aids to Boost Your Bench

Training aids and exercise accessories include bench shirts, power rack training, band and chain training, and board training. A support shirt can increase your bench press by 50 pounds or more with little training- after you get used to it. If you choose to wear one, use the shirt once a week during the peak cycle (high weight, low volume).

Power Rack and Board Training: Put a bench inside the power rack and set the pins so that you work different parts of the range of motion of the lift: bar at chest level; bar 2 inches from the chest; bar 4 inches from the chest; and lockouts. Board training involves placing boards of various heights on your chest to alter the range of motion during the lift.

Chains and Bands: Chains and bands increase the resistance at the end of the range of motion of the lift. Bands also increase the intensity of the eccentric part of the lift (lowering the weight to the chest) and will help increase your capacity to accelerate the bar.

Bench Press Training

The training process involves a preliminary conditioning cycle to prepare the muscles for intense training, a load cycle to build base strength, and a peak cycle to help you increase your bench press (single-rep maximum). Bench pressing is a skill. Your training program should be directed toward lifting a lot of weight for 1 rep.

The Conditioning Cycle: 8 Weeks

Do this cycle three times per week if you are a beginner or haven’t weight-trained seriously for a while. Rest approximately one minute between sets and three minutes between exercises. Rest at least two days per week. Increase the intensity gradually.

Example of an 8-Week Conditioning Cycle

Exercise	Sets X Reps
Bench Press	4 x 10
Incline Dumbbell Press	4 x 10
Lat Pulls	3 x 10
Seated or Bent-Over Rows	3 x 10
Dips	3 x 10
Flyes	3 x 10
Squats	3 x 10
Roman Chair Knees Raises	3 x 10
Back Extensions	3 x 10

Load Cycle and Base Conditioning Program: 12 Weeks

The load cycle builds base strength in the major muscle groups involved in the bench press, in the support muscles that provide a platform for the lift, and in the antagonistic muscles that give muscular balance to the joints and help control the movement. Work as hard as you can during each exercise.

Rest three to five minutes between sets. Your goal is to increase your bench press, so rest enough so that you can lift as much weight as possible during each set. Progression is critical. Each week try to add weight during each exercise- even if it is only 2½ pounds.

Example of a 12-week Bench Press Load Cycle

	Exercise	Sets X Reps	Weight
Week 1 Monday	Bench Presses (bar) Dumbell Incline Lat Pulls Seated Rows	6X6 4X6 4X6 4X6	Do all exercises to failure
Wednesday	Squats Roman Chair Leg Raises Back Extensions	4X5 4X10 3X10	80 to 100% max Without Weight Holding weight plate on chest
Friday	Dumbbell Bench Presses Dips with Weights Dumbbell Flyes Bent-Over Rows Bench Presses (bar)	5X5 5X5 4X5 4X5 3X5	Do all exercises to failure
Week 2 Monday	Bench Presses (bar) Dumbbell Inclines Lat Pulls Seated Rows	6×6 4×6 4×6 4×6	Do all exercises to failure
Wednesday	Squats Roman Chair Leg Raises Back Extensions	4X5 4X10 3X10	80 to 100% max Wighout Weight Holding weight plate on chest
Friday	Dumbbell Bench Presses Dips with weight Dumbbell Flies Bent-Over Rows Bench Presses (bar)	5X5 5X5 4X4 4X4 3X5	Do all exercises to failure
Week 3	Repeat week 1	Repeat week 1	Progressively add weight
Week 4	Repeat week 2	Repeat week 2	Progressively add weight
Week 5-12	Repeat weeks 1 & 2 (alternating)	Repeat weeks 1 & 2 (alternating)	Progressively add weight