[aefx2387]

I've been doing a full body workout for the past 3 weeks and have been making progressive gains in all lifts but the past 3 workouts my bench press has been stuck at 185 for 8 and my right arm has been giving my trouble in terms of it comes up slower than my left arm, never had this problem before in my 3 previous years of on and off lifting. heres a look at my routine

Squats 295 10 reps
Leg extensions 130 10 reps
Leg Curls 115 10 reps
Bench Press 185 8 reps
Barbell Pullovers 90 10 reps
Military Press 135 10 reps
Barbell Rows 145 10 reps
Tricep Bench 175 7 reps(right arm was done by the 7th rep)
Pulldowns 140 10 reps
Tricep Pushdowns 85 10 reps
Seated Calf Press 180 12 reps
Cable Crunch 95 10 reps

I was planning on doing this for a total of 4 weeks and began the first workout out of week 3 today, i do this monday,wednesday,and friday, just to bring the amount of weights up. I do 1 warm up set,2 for squats, and then one working set with a weight that i can get for 8 but fail at 10 and once 10 reps are achieved i move up the weight 5-10 pounds on the next workout.I've been making constant gains on every exercise except for bench which has been stuck at 185 for 8 the past 3 workouts. Any advice?

[tim290280]

Sorry but you do the same workout three days a week?! You've missed the boat on full body workouts!

You are supposed to have three different full body routines that you do in a week. Changes in sets, reps, or/and exercises are what is needed.

You have literally adapted to the program due to training in the same manner every time, rather than keeping it a bit fresh. Change things around, while keeping the full body thing. Also you need more posterior chain work, more back work, and more single arm work.

[aefx2387]

can i still do the same exercises as long as i keep making gains with them

[aefx2387]

and change the ones in which gains have stalled

[miniduck]

Exactly. Once you have stopped making gains, change something. Using the bench press as an example, you can decrease reps and increase weights (or opposite), change it to incline, use dumbbells instead of barbells, or use the chain method (attach a chain to the end of each side, so you are increasing weight as you go up and decreasing as you go down). If you are still getting stronger, keep it the same.

For best results, I recommend the following:

Make 3 different full-body workouts. Work the same bodyparts about the same amount, but change the excercise: Squats-leg press, barbell bench-dummbell, etc.

Do each workout once a weak. So basically, it's what you are already doing but with more variety. Less us know how it goes, ok?

[Rocky]

All good points. Variety is the key. Also, on a side note I noticed that you do 2 tricep specific exercises but no bicep ones? Is this deliberate. Also, another thing to consider when arranging your workout is to maybe divide your session into 2 - a seperate upper body and lower body workout. Or a push and pull session to give you adequate rest time between muscles. Just a thought.

[aefx2387]

forgot to add that i do barbell curls 80 pounds 9 reps done after barbell rows

[aefx2387]

i was thinking about maybe doing 3 days of heavy,moderate,and light with rep ranges going from 4-6, 8-10, 12-15

[aefx2387]

also changing exercises, a lot of compound movements on heavy day, mix of compound and isolation on moderate day, and strictly isolation on the light day

[Rocky]

That's not a bad idea if not for a long time but for a little while just for a change, but then I'd go back to doing a minimal split routine focussing on the compound exercises as these will help build more muscle in a quicker time!