Bench presses how many reps

A high-rep bench press is a bench press that is performed with 8 or more repetitions per set. It is often used to break through a plateau, build additional muscle mass, and build work capacity back up following a peaking phase. While there are benefits of high rep bench press for powerlifters, it will only yield the desired results if it is implemented in our training plan correctly.

Otherwise, we increase the risk of overtraining, injury, and decrements in performance. There are also benefits to incorporating high rep squats, to learn more about the benefits and how to incorporate them, check out our article on the Science-Backed Benefits of High Rep Squats. While high rep is different for everyone depending on the rep range they typically train with, it is generally accepted that high reps for the bench press range from 8 reps to 20 reps.

This range is what we consider high reps for a powerlifting bench press, but could be a more normal rep range per set for a bodybuilding style bench press. Implementing a high-rep bench press into our training program can help us break through a plateau.

When our body adapts to our current training plan, the plan is no longer as effective as it once was. When this adaptation occurs, we often experience what we refer to as a plateau, or a stall in progress.

To break through this plateau, we can incorporate a high rep bench press to present a new stimulus for our body to adapt to, and therefore stimulate the need for growth.

Training with higher reps and an appropriate load can result in hypertrophy of the working muscles, which can improve our bench press performance. The reason for this is that hypertrophy increases muscle mass and the more mass that we have, the more potential we will have to lift heavier weights. Research shows that high reps with a lower load leads to similar amounts of hypertrophy as training with heavier loads, and that strength and hypertrophy are best developed over a variety of rep ranges.

Higher reps still contribute to hypertrophy despite being lighter loads because of the size principle , which describes the nature of motor recruitment — in which smaller motor units that produce less force are recruited first and larger motor units are recruited as necessary if the force requirement increases. For those interested in physiology, here are a bit more details: With high rep training, we are initially using more slow-twitch fibers that are present in smaller motor units these muscle fibers are made for endurance, and low-force output.

This is important because these larger motor units must be activated for us to achieve hypertrophy; therefore, we want to choose a load that challenges us during high repetitions but that we can complete without complete technical failure which would increase the risk of injury.

For the bench press, hypertrophy would occur primarily in the muscles of the chest, shoulders, and triceps because they are the prime movers they do the most work of the lift. Interested in learning more about how powerlifters train for upper body hypertrophy? Check out these resources:. When we are doing more reps, we have the opportunity to practice our technique and become more consistent with where we touch the bar on the chest, and the path of the bar as it is pressed off the chest towards the lockout.

The seated position supports good posture and form, which is ideal for beginners and people with lower-body injuries. To ensure safety, use proper form and correct breathing techniques. Avoid forcing or holding your breath. This exercise uses a pulley machine to tighten, tone, and strengthen your chest. It helps improve balance and range of motion.

Use slow, steady movements and stay within your limits. Experiment with various angles to target different muscles, and always use proper form. Inclined dumbbell flyes work your upper chest and shoulders.

Your arms and wrists help stabilize the movement. You do this exercise lying on your back on an inclined bench. Typically you use dumbbells, but you can set yourself up with a cable station on either side. Use these bench press averages as markers for developing your own program. Make good form a priority over increasing your bench press weight. Be consistent in your approach and aim for gradual results instead of immediate improvement.

Listen to your body and take a break if you feel pain. Rest for at least one full day each week. Talk to your doctor if you are just starting out or have any medical concerns that could be affected by weightlifting. The bench press can be an effective exercise for working muscles in your upper body. By using variations, you can target different muscles in that…. This type of training enhances the muscle's endurance without necessarily increasing the size of the muscle.

Highly trained aerobic athletes can do lots of reps for long periods of time without fatiguing, but you won't typically see a sprinter's body on a marathon runner. Focusing on muscle endurance means choosing fairly light weights that can be done for reps or more. Train like an endurance athlete: Most endurance sports aren't gym-based, so it's hard to duplicate their motions with weights. Rest periods should be kept fairly short, since oxygen intake and lactic-acid removal shouldn't be limiting factors as you exercise.

Discovering how many reps you should do also tells you how much weight you should lift. The two are inseparably linked. If you were to plot a graph, you'd discover a near-linear inverse relationship between the two: add more weight and you can do fewer reps; with a lighter weight, you can do more reps. I'm always amazed when I train with a new partner who has been stuck at a certain weight-and-rep scheme—say, dumbbell bench press with 80 pounds for 8 reps. I'll tell him to grab the 90s, to which he'll respond, "I can't do that!

Invariably, he'll handle the 90s, and with that newfound sense of strength even give the 95s and s a try. With time, you'll understand your personal strength curve and the relationship of weight to reps for each exercise you do. Jotting your numbers down in a logbook or on BodySpace will help you keep track of your reps and weights used. This brings up an important point: You don't need to train in one rep range all the time.

You might start a workout with a heavy compound exercise for 5 sets of 5 reps. To focus on building muscle, you could follow that with a few exercises in the range. To finish the workout, you could even tap into your slow-twitch reserves and finish the session with an isolation exercise in the range. This is important because as you get stronger, you'll want to lift more weight in the same rep range.

When building muscle, once you can do more than about 12 reps on a core lift, it's time to increase the resistance by about percent. The weight you choose along your strength curve should correspond to the number of reps you want to achieve, which matches your training goals. In that sense, your workouts should never be random, where you just grab any old weight; there is a best weight and optimal number of reps you should be doing.

It just depends on which goal you want to prioritize! Bill Geiger, MA, has served as a senior content editor for Bodybuilding.

If your haphazard training has been producing mixed results for a while now, consider periodizing your training. Periodization is a system of training that organizes your workout into distinct cycles. Because each cycle has specific objectives, the number of reps for each varies sharply. Phase 1 : Preparatory, consisting of extremely high volume 15 or more reps, three to five sets and low resistance.

Phase 2 : Hypertrophy, or growth, consisting of high volume eight to 12 reps, three to five sets and moderate resistance 50 percent to 75 percent of one-rep max. Phase 3 : Strength, consisting of moderate volume five or six reps, three to five sets and heavy resistance 80 percent to 88 percent of one-rep max.

Phase 4 : Power, consisting of low volume two to four reps, three to five sets and very heavy resistance 90 percent to 95 percent of one-rep max. To build the explosive strength necessary for competition, athletes frequently use Phase 4, the power phase. Keep reading for a simple three-month periodization cycle that can be used by both gym novices and grizzled veterans.

Devote one month to each phase, gradually increasing resistance while decreasing the number of sets as the month progresses. After the completion of this three-month cycle, actively rest run, hike, play basketball, etc. In the interest of simplicity, we have not changed the exercises between cycles.

Traditionally, however, the exercises do vary. Note how the number of repetitions changes per phase. This will maximize growth by engaging the greatest number of muscle-fiber types.