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The Fastest Way to Blow Up Your Bench (Using Science)

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Get FREE 2-week access to the bench press programs with the BWS app: Click below to subscribe for more videos: Reaching a 225 bench press is a sign you've made it in the gym. But only 2% of new lifters can do it, and even among regulars, barely 1 in 5 ever get there. It took me 3 years to increase my bench press and hit a 225 bench press. But it took Ryan, a record-breaking lifter and pro bodybuilder, just 1. Now he benches over 400 lbs easily a bench press progress so rare you have better odds of becoming a billionaire. All using a system I’ve never heard of. and he says he's natural So, after breaking Ryan's method down (including bench press form tips) with the latest research, I turned it into a plan that could help you and me add up to 30 lbs to your bench in just 6 weeks. Here’s how to increase bench press, explained. Ryan: After I made that switch, it was a year's worth of progress in 3 months. This is key if you're serious about how to increase bench press. The switch His grip. Research shows that widening your grip just an inch or two can boost your bench press instantly often by 5-10% just by shortening the range of motion. Ryan: The rule of thumb is the wider you go, the more pec engagement you'll experience, and the more narrow you go, the more tricep engagement you'll experience. You kind of want to play to your strengths. If you have very strong triceps, going narrow might help. But it comes down to experimentation and using how it feels to guide you. This is essential insight for anyone looking to improve bench press form. Ryan's bench press form starts before his hands even touch the bar. He uses a big arch, similar to what powerlifters do, to shorten the range of motion and boost strength. It can look extreme, but it's one of the tools he uses to increase bench press safely and effectively. Your warmups matter if you want to make serious bench press progress. Ryan spends up to 30 minutes just working his way up to 400 lbs, treating every set as a practice rep to improve technique. This is key if you're serious about how to increase bench press. Ryan structures his workouts into three parts, starting with strength. A few focused sets of heavy bench press, lower reps, and high effort. Then he uses those sets to identify sticking points and apply fixes. This is crucial if you want to steadily increase bench press over time. There are 3 common sticking points. Right off the chest, in the middle, and at the top. If you’re failing off the chest, for example, it could be a pec power issue. Ryan recommends dips and speed bench press work. If you're stuck midway, overhead presses help. Lockout issues Try Spoto press or close grip variations. These details will make or break your bench press progress. Research shows that muscle size is one of the biggest predictors of strength, and that relationship becomes even more important as you gain experienced and master the skill of benching. Ryan takes full advantage of this by using bodybuilding exercises to develop the muscle groups that help him with the bench press. These include incline dumbbell presses and cable flyes, which target areas the bench press alone may miss. That’s a key strategy when thinking about how to increase bench press without plateauing. Motivation can make or break your journey to a 225 bench press. Ryan tracks everythingbench press progress, dips, flyes, and moreto gamify the process and stay engaged. This level of tracking shows how even small changes to your bench press form can lead to massive gains. Broga keeps Ryan injury-free. It's a hybrid of yoga and bro’ training that maintains joint health, allowing him to train harder, longer, and consistently push his bench press progress. This is one of those underrated strategies that separates casual lifters from pros. The final piece Recovery. Ryan only bench presses once per week now, and now, this might sound strange at first. In fact, as a beginner, research shows that going from benching just once per week to 2 or 3 times per week can literally double your strength gains. But as you get stronger and stronger, things change. It’s why, although research shows for beginner lifters, higher frequency training leads to faster strength gains, when you look at advanced lifters it doesn’t tell the same story. But even though Ryan’s low-frequency approach works for him, some people will still see better results by benching more often. The only way to find out which approach would help you With Ryan’s advice and using the latest science, I’ve created a low-frequency bench program and a higher-frequency bench program designed to get you to a 225 bench press (and beyond. Try one of them, track your strength gains, and then try the other and see which one you seem to recover and progress faster with.
Date: 2025-08-02

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Comments and reviews: 20

Homie-w2e
It's always interesting to hear from someone with a massive bench and how they built it, but I have to say that a lot of this guy's advise goes against what most powerlifters would recommend.
First, most powerlifters advise benching 2-4 times per week, and most of that bench work should be submax using reps in reserve and/or percentages of estimated 1RM. Basically they often treat the powerlifts as skill work followed by bodybuilding work to failure. Second, most powerlifters seem to think that if you fail at the bottom, then it's because of weak shoulders (front delts, middle is pecs, and top is triceps. No Weak Links by Greg Nuckols is a good, short book about this and how to target weak links on the powerlifts. Third, the OHP is pretty controversial choice for improving your bench. It works for some people, but most powerlifters would recommend just benching more, or doing incline bench instead if the delts are your weak link (as evidenced by failing at the bottom.
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marc2638
I have an extremely hard time on bench press. I don’t get it either because I shoulder press 55lbs DB’s I cable row 250lbs lat pull downs I’m at 160lbs machine rows I do 200lbs TBar 3 45lb plates incline press I’m at 270lbs peck deck 305lbs I’m maxed out on the peck deck I can not fly anymore weight than there is I’m doing all of it now! I just don’t understand why my bench press is so weak and when I sat weak I mean this.
I have issues with 135lbs 2 45lb plates incline have issues with, I do 8 reps for 3 sets but I’m not lifting isn’t very easy I struggle and I don’t understand why My grip is a little more than shoulder width apart I just don’t understand why I’m so weak with this exercise. 3 years ago I benched 300lbs for 6 reps 2 sets then hurt my rotator cuff and I think I never fully recovered
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jeremy_ethier
I can hit 225 but I don't bench super frequently. It took me about 2-3 years as well, not that I was trying super hard, probably could've shortened the timeframe slightly. The weird thing is that I can should press (machine) and chest press (machine) more than 2 plates easily, but benching is just slightly different.
I always find the wrist and left shoulder to be the trickiest. I never felt it was necessarily my strength. But people underrate and don't talk about how important your shoulder, wrist, etc. health and preparation are. Probably because there are just some freaks out there who make it look so easy, and also in the gym NOBODY ever has content where you see their warm ups and preparations, you just see them benching but nothing else.
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jasondeveloper2009
I'm 57 (5' 9'' 193lbs, and have a bad left shoulder. I got introduced to something called the reactive slingshot band (by Mark Bell) band (helps keep your shoulders in proper position and provides a bit of assistance at the bottom. I started using it on my heavy bench press (over 245. On my heavy day, I (currently) do sets of 3 from 265 to 305 (using the sling shot, then singles of 315 and 325. After the heavy sets, I drop down to 225. I remove the slingshot and do a set of 225 for 10 as the finisher. I'm crediting the slingshot with the gains in strength (from the heavier weights) that have allowed me to press 225 for 10 reps. It wasn't instant gains, it took many weeks.
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VetusGeist
1 in 10, 000 people can bench 405. 1 in 2, 600, 000 can become a billionaire.
I just recently hit a PR of 275lbs 175lbs body weight and some of the things I changed were adding dips/weighted dips, using a belt, and using the strength matrix every couple weeks. I also started shoulder mobility training and training my rotators. I also cleaned my form up by bending the bar and focusing on creating a platform with my back and turning my elbows inward rather than flaring out. Also added in heavy Strict overhead presses every couple weeks as well.
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yewknight
Your timing on this is fantastic. I started working with a personal trainer on my bench about a month ago and you and I both plateaued at about 225-235. The advice my trainer gave me is very similar to what you talked about here, but he makes me rest a lot more. This week I blew past 285!
I really appreciate how humble you are about your sticking points and challenging lifts. I was stuck on my bench for years and didn’t get the help I needed to push myself past the plateau partially because I didn’t have the humility.

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clamum9648
You'll get that 315 big, I have no doubt.
I think the biggest thing holding my strength gains back, not just in bench but in general, is the lack of calories. I'm a fellow skinny and REALLY have a hard time getting enough calories. Even making super calorie shakes every night, with ice cream/protein powder/mass gainer/peanut butter/banana/olive oil and drinking it shortly before bed isn't enough. I just have a basically zero appetite and it blows.
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allenfrazier6400
2 years ago at 16, 6'0 180lbs; I got weights at home and within 2 months my max went from 135lbs to 205lbs.
Then because of the way I was training and sports I was stuck at 205lbs for 4 months.
I then watched a video on how to program bench workouts and the proper form to lift and my max went from 205lbs to 245lbs within a month. (I was still 16 at the time)
The only workouts I have done before this were Wrestling and Football.
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Gwen42000
If like to see you do a video on gainin period like I know the average person wants to lose weight but plenty of ppl struggle with little to no weight on there body and it’s not the perfect dream everyone thinks it is so if like to see what foods and exercises to do to build overall muscle weight and bodymass if this makes any sense I just wanna gain weight in a healthy manner
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Snoopydogg743
I don’t think I really believe this guy he is just too skinny and too easy for him to handle that much weight but I think he must b taking something every other ne is on something now a days! Plus I even know a guy who is mta worker who was doing 365 for 1 rep max and never did 400 so idk and that kind of kid was 30’ not 20-21 or 22 so idk this is might be true but idk!
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Sandman60077
I've always been disappointed with by bench press. Last night I was laying in bed and for some reason it just popped in my head Maybe try widening your grip.
So today I tried it and I was able to add 20lbs to my bench just by widening my grip. 2 sets for 3 reps each. Might of even been able to do more if I didn't pre-fatigue my chest muscles with other workouts.
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jeroendevries1
Question. Mostly I do 4 sets and try to improve the reps, start at 8 and climb up to 12 and increase weight, start at 8 reps etc. But always the same weight for all the 4 sets. I'm doubting if it would be better to start at e. g. 8x 70kg / 8x 80 / 8x 90 / 8x100. In stead of 4 sets of 8x85kg. What would be better or is there no better in this
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bucky5063
Never been a guy who could bench a lot. I've committed to hitting 225 before end of summer. Im 215 and I realized for me it's been 3x bench a week, sets of 2 or 3 and trying to move an extra 5 pounds a week and you must GAIN body weight, seeing the abs go wasnt great but you have to pick a lane. Good luck everyone with your goals.
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linneasalte1513
Is there any chance you could do a video on what is the best exercises for building bone health. I have a family history of osteoporosis and I’m having a hard time getting information that feels science based. Everything feels all over the map and I appreciate some science backed information
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matthewkesterson
I havent been in the Gym in over a year. I started back last week and I got 1 rep at 225 incline. Off the couch strength. A few years back I was doing 3 x 10 at 225 flat bench which allowed me to get 315 for 1 rep. So if you can do 3 x 10 at 135. you should be able to get 225 at least once
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Arpin_Lusene
14: 42 Yeah usually the limiting factor is not your muscle, but your joint and tendon. Plus, I found that doing really heavy weight so often exhausted me in daily life. Now I do like once or twice of really heavy weight and the rest of time is either resting or doing dumbbell workout.
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v3n0mx917
I don't even do bench anymore. (Personally dislike it) And when my friend wanted me to join him, I was able to do 235lb 5 reps with no sticking point. I still refuse to do bench, but I think it's because I do a lot of incline chest flyes/dumbbell presses and pushups almost everyday.
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sriramtheman2248
It took me a 18 months to go from 90lbs when I started to 225lbs, I've been stuck at 225 since april 2025, probably because to get to 225 I maxed out every 1-2 weeks, adding 5lbs. I'm going to try this and see if I can bench 3 plates in the 10 upcoming months before I'm 18
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paulf3
Chasing numbers doesn't make you stronger. Biomechanical hacks that add 10% to the bar is just that, a hack that does not change your physiology. Pick a position and progressively overload that position. That's how you add weight to the bar and the strength that goes along with it.
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andrewtanczyk4009
Makes sense. Mass moves more mass. Would make sense that bodybuilding or having bigger muscles would help you lift more weight.
Seems as if using a periodization model would help. Or using some bodybuilding exercises along with your powerlifting program for max PR.
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