Quote:
Originally Posted by DBall
Lets say DBall who benches 200lbs. I don't need to lose or gain any weight (not that I'll be broken up if I do, but I'm happy where I am)
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If you are looking for strength gains, you are going to want lower reps, higher weight. for strength, I generally work in 5 rep sets at about 80-85% of my 1RM, and I do three sets at that weight. So, if 150 is your 1RM, then you should be doing 5 rep sets at 120 or 125.
If that starts to seem to easy, increase the weight. If you are unsure about that weight, get a spotter, but also try upping the weight with each of the three sets, so instead of 125x5/125x5/125x5, do 120x5/125x5/130x5. But get a spotter any time you are trying a new weight/rep combo.
You will also want to vary intensity. If you are doing full body workouts, you can do it by day, but otherwise by week, do heavy, light, and medium workouts, where heavy is 80/85% 1RM, med is 70/75% 1RM and light is 60/65% 1RM. If you do this for a few months and want more of a challenge, change the med week to a heavy week and do heavy/light/heavy/light. Don't drop the light week though. It helps solidify good form, increases blood flow to the muscles you are working, and promotes good recovery.
Chest/arm volume work for me this morning. Flat bench, incline bench, supinating curls, and dips.