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AKN
07-01-11, 9:56 pm
The 4x6 bench routine for mass and strength
By: Austin K. Nichols

Finding the right bench press program can be difficult for some. I see a lot of guys
doing 5/3/1 and love it but their bench goes nowhere. This is a routine I developed after reading
J.M. Blakely's bench routine and have been using for a while now. I love it. It's so simple and is
a great way to ride out pr's for a long time. You warm up to doing 2-3 moderately heavy singles. For
all you percentage freaks it should be around 80-85% of your 1rm. I say that because your 1rm can vary from
day to day which is why I hate percentages in the first place. Then you will drop and hit your 4x6 then
drop again for 1-2 back down sets. I would recommend starting around 70% for your 4x6 and ride the wave
from there. I didn't do percentages when I started but I'm going back now and roughly estimating everything.
My back off sets were 20-30lbs less than my 4x6. Here's what a typical cg bench workout looked like when I first started it.
Warm up to 185x5,225x3,245x2,275 for 3 singles (fast), 4x6@245,225x13.

Another good way to gauge where your 4x6 should be is from the number you hit on your back off set. These should fall between 8-15 reps. Any less than 8 and your 4x6 is to heavy and any more than 15 it is to light. If your right at 15 though there is nothing wrong with that.
I would usually just even another back off set and go for 12 or another 15. I benched once a week and rotated
two different workouts so I did each workout once every 2 weeks. I lifted 3 days/week with a SQ/DL day and
an accessory day (upper back and biceps). I added 5-10 lbs on my single every 2 weeks and
5 lbs to the 4x6 and back off sets. If you stall on the 4x6 (fail to hit 6 on all 4 sets) you can do one of two
things.

1. Reset your 4x6 15-20lbs and do more singles at the beginning and add 5-10 to your B/D sets and go for rep pr's.
2. Get the 4x6 in two weeks, then get it for 4x7 2 weeks after that. THEN add 5 lbs and for 4x6, then 4x7 next two
weeks and etc...This will slow down progress even more obviously.



Here are the two workouts.

CG bench-Using 4x6 method
Seated DB press
Pushdowns

or

Incline bench-using 4x6 method
Weighted CG dips
Pushdowns

As you can see I didn't list sets and reps for assistance as it was more based on feel but I generally pushed
it HARD. Seated DB presses were usually in the 6-12 range, same with weighted dips and pushdowns were usually
in the 8-15 range. I did a lot of sets and my goal to just trash my chest, delts and tris. This method will
definetely work if you do it correctly and are patient. I also use this for squats and it works great as well.
Remember, start conservative and be consistent!!!

Some of my credentials...The bench has always been my best lift. At 19, I incline benched 365x5 and seated
overhead pressed (way below chin) 350 after 8 sets of speed bench with bands. I'm not bragging as I know there
are many people stronger than me. I'm just trying to help beginner/intermediate lifters with a good bench
program that works.

Pwr2Elite
07-06-11, 6:11 pm
Fucking PRO routine I be doing it too.