by

Joseph

Okay, it's been a long time since I've written a challenge article. I'm doing it this time because I want to see how far I can go with my barbell floor press. 

I focus primarily on body weight exercises so my push ups (straight, incline, decline, closed fist, etc.) are all very good. This helps translate strength for powerlifting exercises like the bench press. My last bench press was 265 and that was four years ago. But now I'm getting back to benching again, but my current gym is set up such that Olympic bars are fixed on smith machines. I thought to myself that I can do better than that. Just get rid of the bench altogether and go for the floor press. So here I am.

My goal is to reach a personal record (PR) of 400 pounds by December 15, 2017. I just pulled that number and date out of my proverbial hat. I'm committing myself to it by putting it in print.

Therefore, I'm going to present a weekly log of my floor press exercises so that you can read how well I'm progressing.

I started floor pressing two weeks ago and quickly went from 135 x 10 x 1 to 185 x 10 x 1 (weights x reps x sets). Then I did 205 x 6 x 4 then 215 x 6 x 3.  From there I just decided to add more weight, and did 230 x 6 x 3 and 235 x 4 x 6. 

Tomorrow I plan to do 250 x 5 x 3. I will do one warm up set, then straight to 250 pounds x 5 reps x 3 sets. I'll keep you posted.

By the way, this is with my legs fully extended, relying solely on my chest, shoulders, and triceps. If I were to bend my knees during each rep, it would take much of the weight off my upper body and distribute it to my legs for drive. I'm focused on this being a complete upper body exercise.

How do I perform the barbell floor press?

I position my chest under the bar. Using a medium-wide grip, I lift the bar so that my arms are fully extended. Then I lower the bar until my triceps touch the floor. I pause for one second before explosively pressing the weight upward until my arms are fully extended. Then I lower the bar toward my chest again. That's one rep. I repeat this process until I complete five reps. I take about 3 minutes then do the whole thing again. 

 I'll keep you posted on my progress.

But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear ; do not be frightened." 1 Peter 3:14 

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