Magoo: The Quest for a 405 bench

[MisterMagoo]

haha, people tend to think i'm older. i'm not sure why, i'm not exactly the most mature poster on here.

i still think i got a bit of a late start compared to some guys (candi started at, what, 14 or something?), but all things considered i'd say things are going all right for me.

[MisterMagoo]

meh.

TUESDAY

bench:
135x5
225x5
275x3
295x3
315x3
335x2 - gassed out again. 
315x1 - fast. paused.

incline db:
110x5
110x5 - shoulder tweaked

chins:
7 sets - i think. i just did a whole lot, sometimes stretching, something going fast, etc.

DB raises:
30x12
30x12

curls:
95x21
95x21
95x21 - haw haw, curls for the gurls

pushdowns:
50x50 - SUPER light

weight: 220.5

notes: that weight was after drinking damn near a gallon of water between my two pre-workout shakes, so i'm probably still sitting in the area of 218 normally. who knows. poor sleep last night led to poor workout. it happens.

[MisterMagoo]

no damn sleep last night, burnt out.

THURSDAY

squats:
135x5
225x5
315x5
365x5
365x5
315x8

good mornings: squat stance, was actually a lot harder. higher bar, too
135x10
225x10
275x6
275x8

box front squats: dammit wicked, these are awesome but hard as shit.
225x6
245x6
245x6

DB shrugs:
105x50 - one set, no straps

some leg extensions/curls for blood flow and joint feel

jackknife crunches:
12
12
12
12

weight: 219

[thewickedtruth]

we need to fix this fucking benching man..that sheiko routine really cleaned your clock!

props to you though man..that kinda routine would've been too much for me to handle. Way to have the sack to try new shit for sure!

[haider]

damn, magoos only 23? 

[MisterMagoo]

we need to fix this fucking benching man..that sheiko routine really cleaned your clock!

props to you though man..that kinda routine would've been too much for me to handle. Way to have the sack to try new shit for sure!

it's entirely possible that once i stop trying to eat light and drop weight, everything'll work itself it. it's why i'm not doing singles for the time being.

[The Master]

damn, magoos only 23? 

Are you getting your hopes up?

[MisterMagoo]

hm.

SATURDAY

bench: kinda wanted to do some speed work.
135x5
225x5
275x5 - nah

close-grip:
225x5
275x5
315x1 - BAD handoff
315x2 - mighta gotten a 3rd, didn't feel like it.

feet-up bench:
225x8
245x6
245x6

standing military: closer-grip, down to the collarbone
135x6
135x6
135x6

BB rows:
225x8
225x8
225x8

dead-hang pullups:
12
12

some light pushdowns for blood flow

hammer curls:
50x10
50x10
50x10

weight: 219

notes: i predict in the late fall things will get better. it's a sleep issue, really, but that's just strength. i do look a lot better. 34 pants are damn loose, more veins on the arms, that whole thing.

[PANDAEMONIUM]

shazam, 225 would be pretty sick. a double BW bench? booyah. i figure i'll have to be more like 250, but we'll see.

your max is somewhere in that area, isn't it? how heavy were you when you first did it?  i know MoS is sitting around 280 and hits 485, so that's a bit of an indicator.

My best ever flat bench was 455x3, with the 3rd being kind of assisted, but "3" sounds better than "2" so what the hell.   Also did 405x6 a few months before that.  That was a few years back, in my late 20s.  I believe MOS got 485 for 3.  At his peak he was definitely stronger than I was at my peak, so props to him.

[MisterMagoo]

My best ever flat bench was 455x3, with the 3rd being kind of assisted, but "3" sounds better than "2" so what the hell.   Also did 405x6 a few months before that.  That was a few years back, in my late 20s.  I believe MOS got 485 for 3.  At his peak he was definitely stronger than I was at my peak, so props to him.

were you in the 280s when you hit that, though? lighter? heavier?

i weighed 217.5 today and i'll readily admit i'm really conflicted over things now (much as i like being leaner), curious what weight range i'm like to see for that mystical 4-plate bench.

[PANDAEMONIUM]

were you in the 280s when you hit that, though? lighter? heavier?

i weighed 217.5 today and i'll readily admit i'm really conflicted over things now (much as i like being leaner), curious what weight range i'm like to see for that mystical 4-plate bench.

The first time I got 405 for a clean rep (no assistance), I was weighing in the area of 250.  When I hit the 455 for reps I was pushing 300 BW.  I could barely walk a flight of stairs without totally losing my breath.  That's no way to live.

Listen, brother, don't sacrifice your long-term health to get a gym lift, or even a meet lift for that matter, even if it's the "mystical 4-plate bench."  I'm in my early 30s, I am rarely able to flat bench anymore due to a right shoulder "issue," and about a week ago I got a medial meniscus tear in my right knee.  Long story behind it that I won't get into, but suffice to say my days of heavy (500+) squatting for reps are long, long gone.  My body is falling apart, and I can barely walk at the moment, my knee is hurting so badly.  The "mighty" Heckler ain't so mighty anymore.

All that being said, go for your goals with gusto, but realize there might be a hefty price to pay down the road.  Not trying to be a killjoy, just pissed that my "glory days" (oh brother) are over.

[MisterMagoo]

there was a time when i figured weighing 300 was a reasonable goal, a sentence that now makes me go kinda  at myself, but now unless i plan on making money as a powerlifter (hahahahaa oh brother) there's no way i'll go that heavy. at my height with my frame i can hold 250 without issue, but too far above that and there's gonna be problems.

270 was no fun at all, and i can't imagine it'd be great even if i was less soft and squishy at that weight than i was last time. much as i'd love to be hitting 455-495 raw even if it meant weighing near 3 bills, but given my heart scare and my newfound ego at having 34 pants be loose, i don't think i'll really be able to do it.

[Overload]

Listen, brother, don't sacrifice your long-term health to get a gym lift, or even a meet lift for that matter, even if it's the "mystical 4-plate bench."  I'm in my early 30s, I am rarely able to flat bench anymore due to a right shoulder "issue," and about a week ago I got a medial meniscus tear in my right knee.  Long story behind it that I won't get into, but suffice to say my days of heavy (500+) squatting for reps are long, long gone.  My body is falling apart, and I can barely walk at the moment, my knee is hurting so badly.  The "mighty" Heckler ain't so mighty anymore.

All that being said, go for your goals with gusto, but realize there might be a hefty price to pay down the road.  Not trying to be a killjoy, just pissed that my "glory days" (oh brother) are over.

Very good post.

This is why i dropped from 250+ down to 220.

This is why i quit using AAS.

Magoo, it is almost impossible to make gains while dropping weight as a natural. you are stronger than you think, just do what makes "you" happy.

I think you will hit 405 in a few years if you stay heavy...i weighed 245-250 when i benched 405 the first time.

[MisterMagoo]

thing with me is that i just love being in the gym and lifting, so it gets frustrating when it feels like i'm not getting better, you know? like if i practiced the piano every day but didn't improve. so even though i'm losing weight or whatever, i feel like i'm hitting a wall (although, hey, i'm almost down 20 pounds since this log started  ). just gotta get my head on straight.

[MisterMagoo]

shit workout. end of story.

[QuakerOats]

thing with me is that i just love being in the gym and lifting, so it gets frustrating when it feels like i'm not getting better, you know? like if i practiced the piano every day but didn't improve. so even though i'm losing weight or whatever, i feel like i'm hitting a wall (although, hey, i'm almost down 20 pounds since this log started  ). just gotta get my head on straight.

not that big of a deal, just sounds like that Sheiko routine was just too much just like it would be too much for me and 99.9 percent of people on here, chalk it up to experience and keep your workout volume normal from now on, that many triples even if they were 80 percent or whatever are way too much training.

[slaveboy1980]

thing with me is that i just love being in the gym and lifting, so it gets frustrating when it feels like i'm not getting better, you know? like if i practiced the piano every day but didn't improve. so even though i'm losing weight or whatever, i feel like i'm hitting a wall (although, hey, i'm almost down 20 pounds since this log started  ). just gotta get my head on straight.

you need to be realistic; its very hard to increase strength while losing weight (unless your a complete newbie, drug user or coming back from a layoff...muscle memory)

be happy if you are able to maintain strength when your losing weight.

what is your target weight?

as for the bench press: if you wanna make big gains in the bench press..your bw will have to go up. and then it becomes a question of how heavy do you wanna be. health and others aspects have to be considered too (as panda says)

but you know all this already.

[PANDAEMONIUM]

not that big of a deal, just sounds like that Sheiko routine was just too much just like it would be too much for me and 99.9 percent of people on here, chalk it up to experience and keep your workout volume normal from now on, that many triples even if they were 80 percent or whatever are way too much training.

I agree.  We tend to think that progress is only vertical, but sometimes it is horizontal, if that makes any sense.  Magoo, I'd be willing to bet you got some benefit from the sheiko routine: maybe it was simply to give your body a change of pace, and now it can be in a position to be more stimulated for growth once you get back to one of your more traditional routines.

[MisterMagoo]

not a bad one today, actually.

TUESDAY

flat bench:
135x5
225x5
275x3
315x3
335x3 - surprise!
335x2
315x3

DB bench:
110x6
120x6
130x5 - sort of.

chins:
12
12
12
12
12

DB rear raises:
30x15
35x12
40x12
40x12 - easy pie

cable crossovers:
25x20
25x20

random bicep shit

weight: 217.5

notes: hey, 335x3. there's a new one for me. might be my grip change. went back to middle fingers on the rings, since my chest seems to be doing well overall, while i've got poor shoulders. paid off, i'd say.

[thewickedtruth]

at his bodyweight.. in less than a year with the right program he can hit 405 if he's mid 300's right now without gear or juice. as long as he takes precautions with alot of rehab/prehab work and takes his time, he'll have it. I know I did my first 405 at 247 but I know I can keep that strength once I get back down. I think as a natural you have to put the cals away and get "fat" while gaining size and strength then cut back down over and over untilyou reach your strength goals at your body weight. Tha'ts how it's been for me away.

[Ursus]

Magoo ill try my best to give u a little friendly competition for ur 405lb bench as i am looking it fairly soon say by xmas. I however am heavier than you.

Friendly challenge there if you want it?

[MisterMagoo]

Magoo ill try my best to give u a little friendly competition for ur 405lb bench as i am looking it fairly soon say by xmas. I however am heavier than you.

Friendly challenge there if you want it?

sounds good dude. gym lift, no pause needed, no need for a video unless you feel like it. i believe ya.

what's your weight?

[Ursus]

I would say 230ish these days...probaly a bit lighter.

I have chest tomorro ill post a few vids. Also i have a PLing comp on Sept 13th so that will show me exactly where i am.

[thewickedtruth]

i want in this! Friendly challenge.. see if you guys can hit 405 before i hit 455?!

[Ursus]

Fine by me. See what Magoo says. What you @ now?