My quest to be able to lift 315lbs.

Since a young age I have always be interested in strength and physic, I started doing a small work out regime every night before bed of 40 push up, 40 sit ups and 40 oblique twists when I was about twelve years old, and kept this up for about two years or so in hopes that it would help me drop some weight and not be a fat kid. In high school I kicked it into overdrive by hitting the gym about five days a week on and off for about two years straight. I got pretty strong and by the end of my time there I was able to bench press about 275lbs twice, I was very proud of this but at the time was also realizing that I spent too much time lifting weights and not enough time doing cardio work, the Reason this dawned on me was that my father died do to heart related problems in September of 2007 because he was too heavy. That scared me so I started running a bit more.

So when I was out of high school I started running more than before, I started small and worked my way up to a couple times a week. Due to lack of funds running became a substitute for the gym and soon I had dropped from an average weight of 235lbs to 210 lbs. Eventually I disided to start going to the gym again and basically had to restart all the progress I had once made, This was compounded by the fact that I stopped every two months for a while then started again. The thing that always disheartened me was my lack of strength on the bench press compared to what I was capable of before, I had figured because of my lighter weight I would never get to my 315lbs bench mark that I always wanted to reach.

About three months ago I started working out again, five days a week and with a new outlook toward my fitness. My approach would be to hit everything as balanced as I could and work on cardio, form, and core work more and better than before. This new approach was also helped by having the guy who owns the gym that I go to start helping me train. Starting from the bottom and working back up with much stronger and more disciplined form. Now after three months of work I have made much progress and am much more healthy than ever before. Not only am I in better cardiovascular shape than before, and weight 25lbs less than I did, I can now lift almost as much as I once could but with much better form and discipline.

I hope to be able to flat bench press 315 lbs in the next four to six months, I am current able to press around 260lbs at a body weight of 215 lbs and a height of 6'3".

Here is a video of my max attempt last week.

So I ask you Giantbombers do you have a goal that you are finally near reaching? What is it, are you almost there? It doesn't need to be anything specific, just what ever you are trying to accomplish.

An update on my progress, I went up ten pounds on my Maximum 1 rep on Thursday, I also ran 8.5 km in 45 minutes yesterday, both are new records for me.

Update 2: I was able to press 225 for three sets of 6 today, this means that I am well on my way.Also I checked my weight, I've put on 5 pounds, I'm now sitting at 220lbs and I've gone from 14.2% body fat to 13.6 in a month.

Update 3: So I figured it's time for an update as my goal has not changed, after some back and forth health I am back at it, I got 245lbs for six reps on my final set yesterday, that brings my max up to between 290 and 300lbs, I am finally almost there, I will post a video when I reach my goal.

Update 4: I went in today, I did 1x8 with 135, 1x6 with 235 1x6 with 245 then 1x5 with 250, five pounds a week increase it seems, solid progress.

I am thinking that once I can get 3x6 at 265 I will try for 315.

Update 5: I went in today, it seems I am now reaching a slow peak, I got 235x6, 245x6, then 255 for 5 reps, now starts the slow grind.

Update 6 Duders: All right today I wanted to see what I could really do iif I started stacking the weight, I did 225x3 275x3 225x3 275x2 225x3 280x1

I am getting close, in two weeks I will try 290 and see how it feels, think I can do it, but trying new weight is always intimidating.

Very good. You've got awsome form, by the way. I'm a freshman in college, and play rugby (and some pick up hockey games). I weigh about 245 and press about the same that you do. Anyway, my goal is to be able to run a half marathon. Because I play scrum half in rugby (basically like a center in football), my coach wants me to gain a little weight, but I really don't want it to be fat, so I'm trying really hard to work cardio and gain some muscle as well. It's tough, though. I think I ran three miles in 18.5 minutes, which is a pretty good pace for me, but, unfortunately, that's not quite a half marathon. 

Damn, this just reminded me I havent lifted since like last October.

wow that's nice. i actually want to become a big guy also. at school for a project i am putting together everyone's video clips that they made. one of the clips  is an ad for an iron man lifting competition. the guy is huge and lifting like 900 pound huge wooden thing, and 225 pound dumbbell, and other such heavy weights. i am just like wow that is amazing i want to have an ability like that.

right now i'm just lifting a 30 pound dumbbell in the basement. 125 pound, 5'5. i don't want to go to the gym, with people watching me lift.

i have a question about stereotype lift weight.  crazy that you are that big and have 1,2-- something post on a video game forum.  do you get the girls all the time? are you a douche because your big? do you have other nerdy friends that you play video games with?

Good job, bro, and good luck.
Been bodybuilding for close to 7 years now, currently at 6'1 around 230 lbs, hovering at 10 %. Gonna cut to 8% and see if I can maintain it during the summer. 

@Pibo47 said:

" You should try joining crossfit. Theres probly one near you, wherever you are lol. They are super intense. About a year ago today, i way wayyyy out shape. Now im getting pretty ripped.. I went from a max deadlift of 90 lbs to..oh id say about 345 or so. And im still making big improvements each month. The only thing i really need to fix concerning my fitness is my cardio. im around 15% body fat, i needa drop to 7% or so...yeah. Working out is legit my favorite thing XD "

i want to have a nice looking body, thats it lol. ive been doing compound lifts for a while but i think its about time i do something thats more aesthetic focused because my body is hideous. im 5'10, 162lbs and dl 405x1, squat 315x4-5. probably bench like 185 tops and have no abs. do you have any recommendations for a well balanced routine? ive been doing a 5x5 routine for the longest time but i think im long overdue for a switch because im unfortunately really self-conscious about how my body looks currently

Nice dude! I've just started getting back into shape but in the way that i'm too skinny and need to bulk up, eat more and better and get my body more conditioned to exercise. For me it's more of a self confidence boost. 
In terms of goals, Once Uni is all finished I plan on spending a hard month of getting better at Maya and optionally 3ds max in modelling, rigging and texturing.

Skinny 4 lyfe<3<3

Now lift that with your penis. Than I will be impressed.

I was a pretty fat kid (5'7", 250lbs at my worst), became a vegetarian and started working out a little in high school and managed to drop to 160. Just started really hitting the gym a couple months ago and I'm feeling and looking a lot better than I used to. Not being able to lift as much as you want to is definitely discouraging though.

nice, I just started going to the Gym after a 2year lapse of being lazy and gaining to much weight :( went from a nice 245 to 275 since Football stopped after highschool. I can relate on how you had to restart from the beginning when you started lifting again since muscles get soft and deteriorate after not in use for a good time. I Must work harder to get back into shape and get back to my ole 1000+pound weight lifts! (Combined between bench, squat, and Man Makers)

"
@Empirepaintball: Aren't a scrum half and a center basically the opposites? Scrum halves are stereotypically the smallest players on the field.  "

I completed the 100 pushup challenge a while ago (I actually did it a long time ago but with bad form and whatnot so I sort of started over).  This is big for me since I'm mostly a long distance runner.  Marathon type stuff isn't a big deal for me but my goal now is to do well at some shorter distance stuff.  I did alright at state in hs for the 800 meter and I would like to get sub 2:00 times again and start getting beastly at it.  I figure I need to muscle up a tad after all this long distance stuff so that's pretty much my goal right now.  I eventually just want to go to the open state meet and beat some college dudes :P. 

Speaking of working out, does anyone else use the bombcast as their workout noise?  Is that weird?

...at a time?!

occasionally i look at my weights and realize that it's easier being skinny

My weigh regime consist of doing a variation of lifts non-stop with not a single break, from top to bottom. It seems to work for my body, 3 sets of 12 each. I find it oddly rewarding to tire myself to the brink of exhaustion, then continue to lift till i basically can't pick up the weigh off the floor/bench. The upside for me with this is that it fits my A.d.d personality since it basically cuts my workout time in half as well. I've nevered tried to lift  max at rested, idk why but my mentality has always been if you can't do 12 reps it doesn't count. Guess maybe am more of a tone, then size guy.

Props to OP though, 300 + is nothing to scoff at. I also think i don't do enough cardio, but the only cardio i enjoy is cycling, or swimming. I'd rather gouge my eyeballs out then do any sort of straight running.

 An update on my progress, I went up ten pounds on my Maximum 1 rep on Thursday, I also ran 8.5 km in 45 minutes yesterday, both are new records for me.

Update 2: I was able to press 225 for three sets of 6 today, this means that I am well on my way.

@big_jon Good job at working to where you want to be, especially if you don't play a sport. I'm a senior in high school right now, headed to college for football.
I'm considered small for a D-Lineman, but at 245 lbs 5'11, my last bench max was 340. My coaches have always stressed alternating muscle workouts. If you go into the gym with someone who thinks doing a bunch of reps is going to get you stronger, your not going to get stronger. Change workouts on different days, do a lot of reps with low weight, then do medium-high weight on a cycle, like 225 at 5 reps, 6 times. Then do about 95% percent of your max, with a spotter, as many times as possible, taking breaks in between each set. Cardio helps, but if you want more muscle and less fat, its all about plyometrics. Jumping in place, broad jumping, and short sprint bursts will help you to lose fat. Most people who play sports need to be physically capable of filling a certain role, but people like yourself, who just want to be in good shape generally, have so many options. You need to do everything possible, from P90X to power lifting in order to get where you want to be. Focusing on individual muscles instead of one muscle group helps the entire body to develop muscle. Good luck!

I've only skimmed like a sentence of this thread, but one thing just jumped out at me: why in holy hell would you ever throw out a perfectly good egg yolk?

I put on 22 pounds over my first 3/4 months hitting the gym here - went up from 132 to 154 in body weight (about 10% last time I checked). Am about 5'10.  Lifting about 160 but not having seen much improvement in terms of weight recently. 

" Speaking of working out, does anyone else use the bombcast as their workout noise?  Is that weird? "

So I figured it's time for an update as my goal has not changed, after some back and forth health I am back at it, I got 245lbs for six reps on my final set yesterday, that brings my max up to between 290 and 300lbs, I am finally almost there, I will post a video when I reach my goal.

... Do I live in some crazy world full of midgets, or does America breed huge people by comparison?

245 pounds is 17.5 stone (or 111KG). That's heavy by any measurement - why would anyone desire to put on more weight than that?

At the moment I'm pushing something measly like 65KG (though I was benching 80+ at my strongest) and weigh 170 at 5'11".

This thread has made me feel like a woman.

@big_jon: I'm a much smaller guy than you (136 lbs) but my max is just over 200lbs right now. Your form might need a little work but the angle of the video is a little odd: it looks like you might be flaring your arms a little and you're probably not coming down low enough since the inner angle between your biceps and forearm barely hits 90 at the lowest point. You want to aim for just a bit past that, like try to reduce it to about 80. Keep at it though, your max is already well above your bodyweight.

In terms of diet I wouldn't avoid fats. Fats are incredibly sources of energy...that and your body needs them just to operate effectively. The key is not to eat shitty fats if you want max performance. This means getting lots of quality EFA's and some healthy saturated sources coming from nuts, coconuts etc.

@Empirepaintball: In reality even individuals with great genetics have a tough time putting on muscle at the rate of about 10lbs per year. Unless they're on steroids of course. Additionally, if you're shooting for something like 10lbs the reality also is that you'll probably end up putting on a little bit of fat also (depending on your diet). The road you're taking is going to be slow, in fact it'll take years before you put on something close to 20lbs, but it'll be worth it once you get there.

@SirOptimusPrime: The only issue with lifting 30's is that, depending on the person of course, it may be too light. Most studies have shown that you want to go to failure to achieve the the level of muscle tearing that is needed to promote build up again. For example, I could bench 50 lbs for who knows how many reps. In fact, even if I ever got tired it would only be from holding my arms up perpendicular to my body for so long. At the end of the day, to build muscle you need to lift heavy and go to failure.

Does weight lifting become easier when you become older?  Because Im 16 and my squat max has been 275 for a long time....  Its really bugging me because I really want to go over 300 pounds

@the_OFFICIAL_jAPanese_teaBAG: I have found that they key for me was just rest, take a week in between your chest workouts, make sure your muscles are well rested before you lift.

I was over training, it is hard to get stronger when you do that.

@GetEveryone said:

... Do I live in some crazy world full of midgets, or does America breed huge people by comparison?

245 pounds is 17.5 stone (or 111KG). That's heavy by any measurement - why would anyone desire to put on more weight than that?

At the moment I'm pushing something measly like 65KG (though I was benching 80+ at my strongest) and weigh 170 at 5'11".

This thread has made me feel like a woman.

I am not sure, I have always just be somewhat obsessed with both size, and strength. When I was 17 my 23 year old land lord was I successful guy, he was strong, smart, and was good looking, I looked up to him as a roe model I suppose.

He also bench pressed 315lbs, it was something of awe for me to see, I wanted to do the same.

Also, I am Canadian :)

I used to go to the gym and thought I was in shape... then I went with people who are in ACTUAL shape and learned what it means and never hit the gym again:p. Your body will adjust to get in shape according to what you need! Though if ur a house cat(is that valid in english?, means stay at home too much and don't have an active lifestyle) i guess Gym is a good substitute.

The real question is: How many cock pushups can you do?!

@Xeiphyer said:

The real question is: How many cock pushups can you do?!

Just one is all you need.

@the_OFFICIAL_jAPanese_teaBAG: Yes, I was going five days a week before and hitting chest twice a lot of the time, my bench press was stuck, now it is going up when I do it after fully rested, and repaired muscles.

@the_OFFICIAL_jAPanese_teaBAG said:

@big_jon: Really? Damn, Ive been working out 5 times a day and Ive been doing chest and legs twice a week.... Thanks for the heads up.

@Xeiphyer: Ahhh the true test of a man's strength

Rest will allow your muscles to build back up. Alternating your work out so you don't do the same muscles two days in a row can be helpful, or you can just work out every other day (cardio on off days or something).

I used to squat 315 lbs. I'm about 6'2 and weighed 195 lbs at the time, squatted to parallel, 4 reps. Can't do it anymore though, I lost some weight, can maybe do 275 now.