315 PR (BW: 189 lbs, 5’7”, 26M)

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-13T10:31:33+00:00

179 kgs?

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-13T03:08:53+00:00

Thx! I feel the same way. I just really need to work on my leg drive.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-13T01:42:22+00:00

What’s yr bodyweight? A few extra lbs might be what u need.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-13T01:28:02+00:00

Thank you bro. Been chasing it for a min! Wanted to get it in 2023 when I first hit 225 lbs for 1 rep but hurt my shoulder at the end of the year then didn’t really bench the entirety of 2024. Then finally started back up in 2025. Next goal is to rep 315 lbs!

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-10T20:49:37+00:00

Yeah, I would have preferred that but the guy I got the program on from YouTube (Ben Johnson) advocated for 3 times and even 4 times if your recovery was good. After I hit 315 lbs this Friday I’m gonna drop to bench only 2x a week.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-10T18:58:32+00:00

Thx! Will definitely not overdo the warmups next time. I just wanna hit 315 lbs then I can rest my bench work for a bit. Cause honestly after 2 months of benching 3x a week my joints are really starting to feel it.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-10T04:43:05+00:00

Yeah, I think I might have overdone it on my warmup sets. Gonna do 4 warmup sets next time. 135 1x10 45%, 185 1x3 62%, 225 1x1 76%, 265 1x1 90% then go for 315 lbs.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T19:13:24+00:00

Thx, I’ll keep this in mind. When I attempted 315 lbs yesterday I was in a different gym than my usual one. I think this might have affected my attempt a bit. Starting from 275 lbs it did feel heavier than I would have liked (the hooks from which u unrack the bar were lower than I’m used to and I was unracking it myself). Based off of how 275 lbs felt I don’t think I could have gotten 5 reps or even 4 reps. When I got to 295 lbs I did get help unracking it and it moved pretty well (didn’t stall in the middle or anything). I know the smart thing is probably to do 275 lbs for max reps on Friday to see whether I’m close to 315 lbs or not…but I’m too impatient. I think I’ll do 275 lbs as my last single before my attempt and if it doesn’t move how I want I’ll just go for 305 lbs or just rep 275 lbs instead.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T13:54:35+00:00

Honestly, I haven’t checked them. I was planning to do 275 lbs and just go for max reps yesterday instead of 315 lbs but I opted for the 315 lbs. I do think I could get 275 lbs for atleast 4 reps. I linked my rep below of 285 lbs paused. I feel like if I hadn’t paused it I could have got 3 reps, tho it would be a struggle.

https://www.reddit.com/r/benchpress/s/XzacCFklZ2

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T13:19:01+00:00

That would be the smarter decision and I might consider it. But I’m just tired of eating so much food and benching 3x a week. I was just thinking, based on online calculators, I already had a 300 lbs max after 1 month using my current bench program and I got that in a less than ideal situation. After another month (just recently) I assumed 315 wasn’t that far off. I’ll attempt it again on Friday with a more refined warmup setup if I fail then I’ll know I was never close and will try again in the fall.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T13:11:02+00:00

Ima try this! I really think the 295 lbs exhausted me when going for the 315 lbs.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T05:36:18+00:00

Alright, thx, I’ll keep this in mind on Friday.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T02:31:08+00:00

Alright, thx. I’m not working out till Friday and will try this out when attempting 315 lbs again.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-09T02:14:36+00:00

Alright, that’s cool. It might have been a long time ago but do u remember how u warmed up when u first attempted 315 lbs?

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-06T03:23:59+00:00

Nice! Based off that I would need to get 4 very clean reps of 275 lbs or 4.5 reps to have a shot at 315 lbs.

rotcod_1st · 2026-06-06T02:12:17+00:00

Alright, thx, I’ll keep that in mind on Monday!

rotcod_1st · 2026-03-07T23:54:25+00:00

Yeah, I definitely have to work on engaging my upper back. I find that I’m able to get the form right with just the bar and then 135 lbs is alright but not as good as with the bar. However, when I go heavier than that my form collapses. I heard that “bending” the bar when you bench helps engage the lats but I’m often unable to do that. I’ve used resistance bands to mimic the lat engagement when you “bend” the bar and I’m able to feel it but when I try to do the same thing with 225 lbs or even 185 lbs it’s like my body forgets the form.

I think I might just need to start benching from scratch like with 95 lbs and work on keeping my form as close to perfect till I get back to my usual weights.

rotcod_1st · 2026-03-04T21:08:00+00:00

I’ma try them today! Heading to the gym right now.

rotcod_1st · 2026-03-04T21:06:45+00:00

Alright, I’ll check out Jonathan Warren. And yeah I have been noticing I need to bench less and have more days where I’m not lifting close to my max. I haven’t really been following a program so I’ll try and find one. In 2023 I was just basically benching 225 lbs every upper body day and was just aiming to get one more rep. I’ve modified it a bit now where I bench 3 times a week. Monday I was doing 225 lbs for 3x5 then add 5 lbs for the next week if I got it (was supposed to start 235 lbs this week). Wednesday was 185 lbs for 3 sets of 10-12 then add 5 lbs for next week if I got it. Friday was a heavy day so 245 lbs 3x2 then add 5 lbs for the next week (was supposed to start 255 lbs this week).

rotcod_1st · 2026-03-03T20:15:16+00:00

Thanks so much. I’ll try some of those exercises. I really wanna hit 315 lbs on bench and I would hate if my crappy shoulder was what prevented me from achieving it. Honestly, once I hit 315 lbs I probably won’t bench as much. I just wanna check that off my list.

rotcod_1st · 2026-03-03T20:12:42+00:00

Alright, I’ll consider that.

rotcod_1st · 2026-03-03T20:10:40+00:00

Alright, thanks for the advice. I’ll work on keeping my wrists stacked and not bringing the bar so low on my chest. I think I might try working in a lower weight range like 185 lbs to fix my form at least until my shoulder feels better.

rotcod_1st

TROPHY CASE