The Big Three

RiceandChicken

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Hey guys, whats going on? I'm here to ask a question, I'd like to increase my numbers on the big 3 lifts we all do.(bench, squats, deadlift). What should I be doing to get these numbers up?
I want to bench 315 by February. Squat 405 by February, and Deadlift 450 by February. I play football and we are in offseason right now if that matters. February is our next testing cylce. We just finshed our first one up a couple of weeks ago.

My physical stats: 5'10 183, 16 years old.

my numbers: bench=250. Squat=375. Dead= 350.

What are your tips to get the maximum numbers you can lift? Also, what are your numbers in these lifts?
 

TheStig

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Oh man, that sounds like a tall order to increase your bench and deadlift by 65 and 100 lbs in roughly 1 month. The squat doesn't seem as monumental as your goal is only 30 lbs away.

My current maxes are 315 for the bench, 405 dead/430 trap bar, and 315 front squat (haven't done any serious back squatting for awhile).

I've never really stepped back to think hard about how long it took me to progress, and what I did, but I will now and offer up some advice.

I started up lifting seriously again (after a long break from an injury) about a year ago. If I recall correctly, by bench max was ~240-250, deadlift was ~345 (10 months ago), and front squat (I'll use that since it's my recent squat) was about 255-265 (8 months ago).

So just to keep the numbers straight, bench: +65-75 lbs in 1 year, squat: +50-60 lbs in 8 months, and deadlift: +60 lbs (80 lbs for trap) in 10 months.

The easiest by far of the three for me to increase was the bench, so that's where I'll start. What worked very well for me (and is still working) is mixing high volume/lower weight one day of the week, while doing high weight/low volume the other bench day of the week. On Tuesdays I usually pick weights that I can do several sets of 10-12 with. These sets will NOT be easy, so don't go too light. You should be in a place where if you attempted another rep after your 10th - 12th (depending on the goal), you most definitely hit failure. Then for the heavy days, go warmup set, then working sets of 5 and 3 until you start maxing out on singles. I'd usually hit failure every time on the last set. They say you shouldn't test maxes every week, but it's worked just fine for me. After you hit that last heavy single, back off to the weight that you did your first working set for, and rep it out as many times as possible. So yeah that's what's been working for me on the bench.

I'll go deadlift next because it was harder to increase than bench, but easier than the squat. I would mix it up from week to week with different variations of the deadlift. One week would be conventional, the next would be trap bar, and the next would be rack pulls from just below the knee (that's when you can really pile on the weight). I would also do explosive deficit pulls from a pretty high platform with a back off weight at the end of my pulling sessions. That's been working for me pretty well, but I've had stalls.

The front squat has been monumentally hard for me to increase compared to the other two, and so fittingly I have the least advice for increasing your squat. I'll say go through your heavier sets, and then instead of stopping after your last set, back off to the weight you did for your first working set, and do explosive intense sets of 3-5, and do a lot of sets of those. If you choose 3 rep sets, do 5-6 sets. For 5 reppers, go 3-4 sets.

Hope that helps a little, and someone will probably tell you that in order to drastically improve your lifts that much in one month, you'd need some juice, Capri-Sun of course lol
 

Purefilth

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damn - had a whole post written and laptop fvckin froze me out!!

Basically - Stigg has you there IMO -
I did pretty much the same for bench - I Bench 315 - 1RM
Frontsquat I have at 275 -1RM
Backsquat I do a triple on 315 - I'm working on improving that, but mostly its in my head that's holding me back here - alongside dodgy Knees.

Deadlift - I followed stiggs training log and took a go for myself. I went from rarely deadlifting at all and having a 1RM of 170kg (375lB) to being a 210kg (465 LB)1RM and 200kg for a triple(440LB).

Most of hitting a new max though - is feeling good. If one day you aren't in the zone and you try for it - well you'll probably miss it and be disappointed.
Try try try for bigger weights - the effort you put in will cause strength to increase.
 

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RiceandChicken said:
I want to bench 315 by February. Squat 405 by February, and Deadlift 450 by February.

My physical stats: 5'10 183, 16 years old.

my numbers: bench=250. Squat=375. Dead= 350.
?
bottom position bench
partial squats (stack up 600lbs)
rack pulls
hammer curls (for bench)
db rows (for bench)
klokoves.i swear by them.
 

RiceandChicken

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So TheStig, you don't do the traditional squat at all?
And switch, what are rack pulls, Db rows, klokoves, and bottom position bench?
 

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TheStig

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RiceandChicken said:
So TheStig, you don't do the traditional squat at all
I do, just not that much because I'm a huge fan of the front squat. I did some box back squats yesterday actually
 

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RiceandChicken said:
So TheStig, you don't do the traditional squat at all?
And switch, what are rack pulls, Db rows, klokoves, and bottom position bench?

front squats have a very high carry over to the back squat. basically a maximum 220lbs front will translate to 315lbs back squat.

rack pulls ,also called the health lift is done in a squat rack.
place the safety bars around 3 inches below your knee joint , place the bar on the safety bars and deadlift it. it mainly builds up your posterior chain by excluding the leg muscles out of the deadlift.

dumbell rows or kroc rows
. get a dumbell and row it for 100 reps over 3 sets.

klokoves :
this one is a man maker, but use VERY light weights at first to build up a good base.we are talking about 40lbs or less.start from 40 and go up.
its THAT difficult.but once you get to 80kgs your delts will have 3 visible strong heads.

get in to position for a normal back squat.now change your hand position.you should be holding the bar really wide.snatch grip.now press the weight behind your back with an initial push from the legs.press to lock out.

bottom position bench:


get a squat rack. now put a bench inside it.lie down on the bench an note your chest height. put the safety bars just about 1 inch above your chest. now load up the bar and place it on the safety bars.lie down on the bench ,under the bars and presssssss.
 

RiceandChicken

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Watch all those videos and damn but those klokoves are no joke. I was cringing and I was just watching professional weight lifters do it. Jeez. And dumbbell rows, should have thought of that my self. All in all very good exercises. Will be implementing these very soon.
 

TheStig

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mrRuckus said:
95% chance you're squatting high.
I was just thinking that too, because once I was the same way. I've 'squatted' 425 before, but at that point in time my deadlift was only 385. I took a video of myself squatting once, and was so glad I did, because it showed how shallow I was getting. Oh trust me, I never actually thought I wasn't hitting depth, because to me it felt like I was. But I was horrified to see I was about 2 inches above parallel. So that's why I switched over to front squats as my main lower body lift; you can't not go deep with those (for me anyway), and they really require a strict technical form to do without hurting yourself.

Rice, how deep are you getting on your squats? Do you do low bar power squats or high bar olympic? If you're the least bit unsure of how deep you're getting, just have someone video you, or set up your camera/phone and do it yourself. You may be surprised at what you see. What we feel like we're doing and what actually is happening are two very different things a lot of the time.

Looking back, I don't know how I ignored the fact that my squat was so much higher than my deadlift.
 

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RiceandChicken

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I go parallel on squats. Have a coach right there watching me squat so I know for a fact I'm not cheating. Also, when I deadlifted, that was with no belt, no strap, no chalk, and my hands were getting pretty slippery. At 385 my grip gave away. Earlier in the year(April or so) I deadlifted 405. Chalk helps a lot.
 

Krueg

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I think you have some great goals, but I also think your aiming a little high. The numbers your wanting by February seems a little un-realistic to add 195lbs to your total with only a month or two of training... Those lifts will come in time. :D

What does your current training program look like now?

How are you progressing?
 

RiceandChicken

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Krueg: true, but I believe I can pack on those numbers. All the more reason to bus my butt. For my bench, 315, does seem a bit lofty. But if I can get 300 I'll be happy.

And 405 squat, your right, I could probably do it. I just don't ever get low enough because I'm afraid ill get stuck and now come up, thus being a scratch. Gotta get rid of that fear.

Deadlift, I'm certain I can get it.

And my training routine is basically whatever the coaches have us do. Our routines are powerlifting based.
 

Krueg

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If you are talking about hitting those numbers by the First of February, here is how I'd do it it. For example you could try this cycle out for your bench press.

Bench
Week 1: 225
Week 2: 240
Week 3: 255
Week 4: 270
Week 5: 285
Week 6: 300 *New Record*

If you get to week 4 and cannot lift that weight, your gonna have to start a new cycle and work your way up.

Merry Christmas!
 

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honestly there are only 2 ways to get your lifts to that level in less than 4 weeks.

a gram a test a week
OR
a cycle of dbol + some other steroid
 

RiceandChicken

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Man, I ain't planning in hopping on gear for a long time. Gotta stay natural.
Thought my goals are a little bit too much. By April I should be able to reach that.
 
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