Anybody Ever Feel Like Their Bench Is Cursed?

[JNNocket2]

No matter how good the workout feels, I keep missing the next jump on bench. Meanwhile my rows, squats and even overhead press are improving. Curious what changes actually worked for you guys.

[JRsilva09]

Bench is always the first lift to stall for me. Every time I back off for a week, it starts moving again.

[Richardd5]

I quit trying to max out every Monday and started focusing on getting more total reps with the same weight. After a few weeks I finally broke through the plateau.

[JNNocket2]

That's probably part of my problem. I've been trying to add weight almost every week instead of just owning the weight I'm at. Might need to change my approach.

[Jjohnson]

How's your sleep? My bench tanks fast if I'm only getting 5-6 hours a night.

[SladeIron]

For me it wasn't even a strength issue it was technique. I filmed a couple sets and realized my elbows were flaring way too early. Once I cleaned that up and started using leg drive consistently, I added 15 pounds to my bench over the next couple months.

[ZekeBarBN]

I added paused bench once a week and it made a bigger difference than I expected. It felt awful at first, but my sticking point off the chest got a lot stronger.

[JaxBulk(JB)]

Microload it. Even adding 2.5 lbs is still progress.

[JNNocket2]

Appreciate all the feedback, guys. I honestly haven't tried paused reps or microloading. Sounds like I've been forcing the same routine expecting different results.

[Austin-SMX]

I was stuck at 275 forever. What finally worked was eating a little more, dropping some junk volume from chest day, and actually letting myself recover. I realized I was doing way too much pressing every week and never felt fresh enough to push heavy.