Being able to bench press your bodyweight is a big benchmark for many people who lift weights. Especially beginners think that being able to press your body weight off your chest is a minimum respectable weight. Is it important to achieve this, and be able to bench press your weight? How do you achieve this if you are not yet able to do it?
The simple answer is that in order to achieve a BW (bodyweight) bench press, you should start by bench pressing what you can, and gradually working your way up via incremental increases. Train on the bench press with high frequency, (3-4 times a week) but with low volume(2-3 sets of 10-12 reps). The first set should be a light warm up and pump-inducing set, the second set should be a work set of 10 reps.6 Keep striving to add weight anytime you beat the number of reps you’re aiming for in the second set. With consistent work and effort, you can achieve this goal of a bodyweight bench press.
There are a number of things to consider. Do you just want to be able to get your body weight up once? Or for a work set of 10? Let’s look deeper.
Should I be able to bench press my bodyweight?
There seems to be some understanding that everybody should be able to bench press that weight. I’m not sure where this came from, it’s probably just a common-sense approach to what sort of weights people should be using in relation to their size.
This doesn’t really hold up to closer inspection. I mean, what if you are 300 lbs and just starting to workout? Or, what if you are a 5’2″, 130 lbs and built like a (small) tank? The bench-your-weight metric seems logical, but it really isn’t.
Gender is also a powerful factor. Men under 50 can reasonably expect to bench press their weight quite soon with regular training and some determination. This is not considered particularly strong for men.
Women in this age group can also achieve this but, generally speaking, a female trainee will be considered quite advanced by the time she reaches this goal, and it will likely take longer to get to this level.
What exactly does “Bench your bodyweight” mean?
When someone says “I just want to be able to bench press my weight”, what are they really saying? do they mean that they want to be able to bench press that weight for a one rep maximum? Or are they saying they should be working out with that weight? Doing multiple sets of 10 every time they train their chest?
Generally, it seems that people mean that they want to be able to bench their weight for a 1RM (one rep max). However, the goal should be to reach this level, then work towards having your bodyweight be the weight you workout with on bench press, for sets of 10+ reps.
Both of these are attainable goals for most people, but step one is getting it up once.
How long does it take to bench your bodyweight?
Depending on where you are now, the answer to this may vary. If you weigh 180 lbs and can bench 150 lbs for 1 rep, you won’t have as far to go as a 200 lbs person with a max of 100 lbs.
If you are in decent shape but are new to resistance training, you can expect to increase the weight by about 5%-10% per month. So going from a 150 lb max bench to 180 lb will take approximately 2 months of regular training. Don’t overtrain, focus on good nutrition, and get plenty of sleep (aim for 8 hours a night).
If you have further to go, keep trying to push for higher reps in your work sets, and focus on adding weight as soon as you can comfortably handle more.
How about losing weight?
If you are overweight or even obese, bench pressing your body weight will be no easy task. After all, if you are a skinny 150 (lbs) it’ll be easier to achieve a BW bench press than if you’re a chubby 250. So if this is the case for you, it makes sense to think about losing weight, more specifically, fat.
There are a wide variety of approaches to helping you lose fat but basically you need to burn more calories than you consume for an extended period of time. This is not really the topic of this post, but one great way to achieve this is intermittent fasting.
It makes sense that if you are trying to reach a certain goal, it makes sense to do whatever you can to bridge the gap. If you can “lower the bar” by reducing your weight, then this is a good goal to pursue. However, you are also trying to get stronger so don’t starve yourself and keep eating plenty of protein.
Can push-ups help my bench press?
When you do a push-up, you are lifting about 75% of your weight. While push-ups are not a direct equivalent to bench presses, there are definitely some similarities, and some overlap. The same primary muscle groups, chest, front deltoids, triceps, are used and the push-up will strengthen these muscles and allow you to add pounds to your bench press.
How many push-ups can you do? If you can crank out 20 push-ups non-stop, you should have no problem bench pressing your weight for at least one rep. If you cannot do this many, try performing one set of push-ups, to failure (as many as you can do in one go), every day for as long as it takes to get to where you can do 20.
Push-ups are a fantastic beginner’s exercise. It is highly recommended to get proficient at these and other calisthenics before venturing into the gym and lifting weights.
Find your power zone
Technique is very important when it comes to pushing maximum weight on the bench press. There are tons of variations, but when it comes to how you do it, choose the one that you are the strongest in. No matter what, your back and shoulders should be flat against the bench, and your feet should remain planted on the floor.
Many people bench press with too narrow a grip. This will emphasize the triceps and build strong arms, but you may be sacrificing on the weight. Too wide a grip, and the exercise becomes a pure chest movement. The sweet spot may be a little different depending on the individual and how long your arms are etc., but generally you will be strongest in between these ranges. A little wider than shoulder-width is best for most people. Experiment a bit and find the strongest position for you.
If you elbows are further away from your torso than your hands at any point in the movement, then you should use a wider grip.
It’s not just your chest that needs training…
Your goal is to lift more weight and get to where you can bench press your bodyweight, not to shape or build any specific muscles. So, instead of thinking about bench press as just a chest exercise, or even as a chest and triceps exercise, think of every single muscle group that is involved.
Secondarily involved muscle groups include the lats, biceps and core. Even the legs and lower back come into play to provide stability.
The lats and biceps in particular will sort of pull the arms to lockout and provide something to push against.
This means that you need to train the lats, biceps and core as well as the chest, shoulders, and triceps to get your maximum bench press to increase. Pull-ups, rows, and ab work will all be beneficial when it comes to your bench press. Particularly, bent-over rows will thicken the upper back and provide more stability in the bench press. This is a power exercise and will require focus and perfect form to work its magic.
This is another way that push-ups will help prepare you for a bigger bench press. Push-ups work the antagonistic and supporting muscles to a greater degree than bench press does, leading to a stronger core and back
The Workout:
If you aren’t benching your weight yet, you’re probably a beginner, so stick to one exercise per body part, except upper legs, you can do 2. A simple 3 x 10 routine will work well. Remember, you can choose a different chest exercise, but if your goal is to bench at least your weight you should do this specific exercise.
It is important to do the exercise that you want to get the most from first.
The following is an example
| Exercise | 3 days a week |
| Bench Press | 3 sets of 10, warm-up, medium, heavy. |
| Rest of Body | 1 exercise per body part; 2-3 sets of 10-20 reps. |
Keep adding weight whenever you can get more than 10 reps on the final, heaviest set. Test your max 1-2 times a month with a spotter. Get plenty of rest, and eat a clean, protein-rich diet.
Test yourself: How to max out on the bench press
You need to make sure the conditions are as close to perfect as possible when attempting a new personal best on the bench press. First and foremost, you need a spotter for safety. They will be there to assist you if you can’t get the barbell up. If you work out alone, at home, get a friend to come over, or go to the gym and ask someone there to spot you.
There’s a few other things to consider when planning to put forth your best attempt on a max out, including:
- Time of day. When do you normally work out? When are you the strongest? Be sure to select the date, and time of day when you are strongest. For most people, this is late afternoon/early evening, as you have had some meals by now, and this is when most people get off work and head to the gym.
- Time of day relative to your meals. You won’t be as strong on an empty stomach. You also won’t be at your best if you are bloated and full of food and drink. So it is important to be both in a ‘fed’ state, with plenty of available energy, but also having given yourself some time to digest your last meal so it won’t weigh you down and make you sluggish.
- Nutrition. What you eat is important too. It is important to have a good mix of macros in your system for maximum strength. Focus on protein, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates. A great pre-max meal for me is eggs with wheat toast, or a protein shake and some oatmeal or grape nuts cereal.
- How you feel. Some days you are just weaker than you are on others. If you are just not feeling it that day, postpone your max attempt until the next workout, and try to get a little extra sleep.
- Other things to help you. Everybody has a little ritual that makes them feel empowered. Whether that involves a specific type of music, hitting a speed bag, or yelling at yourself in the mirror, you need to get amped up. Maybe it’s wearing a specific shirt you own that makes you look/feel extra buff, or watching Braveheart, staring at a picture of your arch-enemy… find what gives you mental strength and use it to your advantage to get hyped.
On the day of the max attempt, be sure to warmup and stretch thoroughly. But don’t do any chest, shoulder, or tricep work beforehand. Once you are ready to attempt your max, do 2 warm-up sets of 10-15 reps with about 50% of the weight you are attempting to get for one rep. Wait 2-3 mins between sets, then 3-5 mins before the final, heavy set. Be sure to use a spotter, and control the weight the whole time, no dropping.
It is acceptable to have the spotter assist you in lowering the weight to your chest. Some people like to do this so they can save a little extra energy for the positive, or upward part of the movement. But, does it really count if you cannot control the weight through the whole exercise?
Keep the movement smooth and clean, lowering the bar to your lower chest, at, or slightly below the nipples.
What should I bench press for my weight?
When you start lifting, your initial goal should be to master the exercises and get your technique right. Then slowly increase the weight – never sacrificing good form for heavier weight. Once you are comfortable with bench pressing, and are ready to move forward, you goals could be as follows:
Goal 1: Bench press your BW for 1 rep.
Goal 2: Bench press your BW for 10 reps.
Goal 3 Bench press your BW x 1.5 and beyond.
Ultimately, unless you are planning on becoming a competitive powerlifter, the amount of weight you can bench has no real significance. People will notice your physique, no one cares how much you bench (except friends who also lift). Just continue to gradually increase the weight, but focus on perfect repetitions every time, and you will get stronger and look more muscular.
Are you strong if you can bench press your bodyweight?
If you can bench press your body weight for a set of 10 you’re definitely not weak. But unless you’re gigantic this is far from exceptional.
Bench pressing your weight for 1 rep is a mark of good progress for beginner, and is a respectable accomplishment.
To be considered strong, most advanced lifters would say that bodyweight x1.5 (50% more than your weight) is the level to shoot for. If you ever get to benching your bodyweight x2, or more, you’ll be at an elite level of strength.
Below is a chart describing the ranking of certain 1RMs (one rep maximums) on bench press as they relate to body weight (BW).
| Rating | Below average | Average | Good | Elite |
| 1 rep max | Less than BW | BW | BW x 1.5 | BW x 2 |
With good technique and regular training, along with rest and good nutrition, you can attain all these goals. So push hard and keep adding on the weight!
Related Posts:
Can Clean And Press Help Increase My Bench?
The clean and press will help improve your bench press more than perhaps any other ancillary movement. The overhead press portion of the exercise will work your deltoids (shoulders), upper pectorals (chest), and your triceps particularly in a way that will make you grow far stronger than just bench pressing alone will. The secret is in the way the triceps works. When you flex the triceps in an overhead position, you train the muscle in a much more thorough way than when the arms are in front of you or at your sides. The insertion point at the top of the triceps actually attaches to the shoulder, providing synergy in lifting the arm overhead, not just extending the lower arm at the elbow. When performed regularly, this movement will greatly enhance your poundage on the bench press.
Weight Training For Time Instead Of Sets And Reps
The basic concept behind weight training for time is that instead of doing a set of 10 or 12 reps, you will do an exercise for a period of time, usually between 1 and 5 minutes. Let’s say you perform a single exercise, bench press for example, for 1 minute straight. Your muscles will be controlling that weight for one whole minute. This doesn’t sound like much at first. But when you compare that to a set of say 10 reps, you will find that it is much more challenging.
