Then you're probably determined to get one. It's that
same determination that will be your struggle. The
more you want it, the harder you want to work and the
longer you want to stay in the gym. This is going to
lead to overtraining which will stunt any strength
gains you've made and delay any dreams of an even
bigger bench.
How do you know if you're at risk of overtraining? If
you feel run down after a workout, notice that you
aren't making any gains, you always do forced reps,
you're not getting enough rest, your diet stinks, you
have a bad attitude or you aren't motivated you're
probably overtraining. Insomnia is another big sign.
Put it this way, if a weight continually feels heavier
than normal, chances are you haven't gotten weaker,
you just haven't recovered from previous workouts.
There are three distinct stages of metabolism. The
first is a state of equilibrium easily described as
the fully recovered state where energy is neither
being depleted and tissue is not being damaged or
repaired. The second stage is catabolism. Catabolism
is the stage you are in during a workout. Energy is
being depleted and muscle tissue is being damaged.
Your goals should be to keep catabolism in the gym,
but many people that overtrain keep this stage going
long after their workouts end and lose hard-earned
muscle tissue to help the recovery. Finally the stage
that usually doesn't get much of a chance to kick in
before we're back in the gym for another session.
The third stage is anabolism where energy is restored
and tissue damage is being repaired. So after you lift
you want to heal and reach a state of homeostasis,but
instead many of us are back in the gym tearing our
muscles and using energy when we haven't even let the
muscle fully recover from the previous workout. Never
lift a muscle group that is still sore. I know it's
difficult but sometimes more isn't better.
There is always the urge to overtrain thinking that if
we just work harder the gains will come. How do we
resist the urge? First off lets think, quality not
quantity. If you lift each muscle group only once a
week and spend less than 1 hr in the gym you're on the
right path. Although you don't have to spend a lot of
time in the gym the time spent must be intense. Every
single exercise and rep should be performed with a
passion and you will accomplish more in 45 minutes than
most people do in two hours. If you are truly pushing
yourself you should be exhausted at the end of the
workout. After tearing your body apart, do you think
it's going to be ready to do it again in two to three
days? I think not, try at least a week.
So all you
benchers out there if you're lifting heavy, workout
after workout make sure that the reason you hit a
plateau is not that you are trying too often. Let your
body recover, heal, and grow before you start ripping
it up again. When you hit each body part several times
a week you don't really try as hard because you know
you'll get another shot at it in a week. When you only
lift each body part once per week you develop a sense
of urgency. You know you better lift hard because
you won't get another chance to train it again for a
week. Then as the week passes by you find yourself
looking forward to your next chest day. Anyone that
thinks they might be overtraining take a couple of days
off and go back to the gym revived and motivated with
the determination to train smarter and harder.
Then you're probably determined to get one. It's that
same determination that will be your struggle. The
more you want it, the harder you want to work and the
longer you want to stay in the gym. This is going to
lead to overtraining which will stunt any strength
gains you've made and delay any dreams of an even
bigger bench. 
