Into the lab I go.....

This is day 2. Bench presses have a meditative quality. There is something very personal and almost angrily intimate about doing a bench press. Just you and the weight. It looks to dominate you. You, in turn, look to dominate it. Weightlifting S&M.

I am still very confused about the path to take in ultimately bench pressing 400 pounds but I do know it starts with starting somewhere. I have decided a gradual, pyramiding, 5 day approach will be my first attempt. I flipped through the bodybuilding book with Arnold Schwarzenegger and found little inspiration. Nothing like I did when I read it when I was younger. I do not have access to all of the lifting paraphernalia as he did. I do not have Lou Ferrigno screaming at me in the background - so close to morphing into the hulk. Veins popping from everywhere. So many veins! I do not have perfect Swedish genetics. Not to mention that the workout plans in the book call for insanity and no life. So I continue forth alone. No Arnold.

My bar currently has 2-45 plates. I am looking at 90 pounds plus the bar which is not a true 45 pounds Olympic bar, rather a standard size bar with an Olympic sleeve over it. I figure it to be 35 pounds at the most. For a total of 125 pounds. This is very easy for me, but I am going to do 5 sets to failure each day for this first 5 days. I will rest on the weekends, and starting Monday the 14th, I will add 10 pounds to each side and continue this same pattern for that week. 5 sets to failure.

Yesterday I did 25 presses my first set, 20 my 2nd, 18 my third, 15 my fourth and then found strength to do 25 my last. It was painful. Everything burned. This is not a show of strength but of initial break-in. I am feeling it today. My chest is tender and my shoulders ache.

A good ache though. My body crying for more right?

This evening I will replicate yesterday even though I still do not know if it is a good idea to lift to fatigue on a body that is already sore. If you have thoughts on this, please let me know in the forum.

Adding in other body parts I believe is necessary so after each 5th set of bench presses, I will do one heavy set of.... shoulders for this week - back for next week - triceps on week 3 and so on.........

I love my lab. My dark garage. I love the sound the weights make when they clank together.
Am I weird?