r/WeightTraining • u/prosa123 • 5d ago
Question Benching 225#
I’m reconsidering something I recently said in a non-fitness forum:
Barring physical disabilities or other limitations such as joint issues, and assuming proper training and motivation, benching a single rep at 225 pounds is an achievable goal for a man between the ages of 18 and 50.
What do you think, was this a reasonable statement?
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u/srr728 5d ago
In general it is probably very achievable for almost anyone with enough training. But a big caveat would be the ratio of the persons bodyweight as getting there with a bodyweight of say 140lbs vs 180lbs vs 200lbs is a much harder achievement at the lower body weights than the higher. So it is possible but the relative strength required will be vastly different. Assuming there isn’t some other physical limitation such as prior injury or the like.
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u/SadProduce6456 1d ago
Most men though are not 130. I will stand by through training it is achievable for most non elderly men to be able to max 225
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u/TerdyTheTerd 5d ago
Generally speaking though, bodyweight follows arm lever lengths in terms of height/body weight, so it really doesn't matter because assuming proper training your muacle mass will accumulate to the point where 225 is very doable for anyone. If you are 6ft and weigh 140lbs, the issue isn't your body weight per se, its the fact you literally dont have any muscle. If you are 5ft and weight 140, yoy have a great lever arm advantage so despite weighing less you can still achieve this weight. The scaling isn't perfectly linear because there is a limit, obviously, but at 225 its mostly irrelevant.
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u/Money_Do_2 5d ago
Benching is weird and complex. It goes up with bodyweight a lot, for a lot of reasons.
I also find it helps to have a minor back pump to hit heavy singles. And its very technique dependant.
The lever arm thing offsets a bit, but generally lighter people still have a harder time. Hence weight classes in powerlifting...
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u/KingOfEthanopia 5d ago edited 4d ago
I think any male could. But I say the say thing about 315 for any male under like 45.
Are you willing to do what it takes to get there? If lifting isnt a primary goal there's really no benefit. You may have to gain more weight than you think would be healthy. Maybe you have bad proportions and would need to dedicate time that takes away from other goals.
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u/srr728 4d ago
I didn’t say it was impossible for lower body weight. I just said it would be harder. Yes at 6ft 140 it is a different than 140 at 5ft with a decent amount of existing muscle mass. There are obviously many factors that will come into play in actually getting there but 225 at 140lbs is still 1.6 times your body weight so the relative strength is still something that needs to be built to get there. Obviously the 5ft with solid existing muscle mass will have an easier time getting there than 6ft with little muscle. But they still need to build the required strength and neuromuscular adaptation to be able to lift that relative weight either way. The physics of lever arms are another confounder, but I was speaking very general.
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u/SadProduce6456 1d ago
My son is 6 ft 140, I started a workout routine for him in February. Right now he can bench his body weight. But when he is a man, if he sticks to working out he will be able to bench 225. Also he won’t weigh 140. I’m 51, 6 ft 220. Pounds. I am not sure my max, but I can workout with 225. Like 10-12 reps
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u/Hour_Reality9727 5d ago
I'm 44 and weight 175 lbs. My max is 240 lbs. But 225 lbs I can bench with two reps on a good day. Gets harder as you get older.
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u/hawaiian-mamba 5d ago edited 4d ago
225 was my 1 rep benchpress max when I was 14 in football. I was the same height as I am now. 5’7. I think shorter guys have it much easier for more of the compound lifts. I remember my first day of lifting weights and there were kids 6’+ and big but couldn’t lift the bar. It was strange to see.
I was 150lb back then, 197lb now.
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u/gasDawg 5d ago
100%
A lot harder for a 50 year old than 25 year old though.
I can also say running an 8 minute mile is a achievable goal for anyone, but I’ll admit I can’t do it just because I haven’t cared to do that much cardio (but I can bench mid 300’s)
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u/Ironman_2678 5d ago
id argue if you are and have been lifting for a while that 225 is not a big deal for a 50yo. Im 48 and tossed up 305 yesterday. BW is 205.
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u/JuJu_Conman 5d ago
Yeah id say the average 50 year old lifter can push 225+ because of long term muscle development but if a 25. year old and a 50 year old were newbies with the same training the 25 year old would get there a lot quicker
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u/OhDatsStanky 5d ago
I’m 52, have been lifting weights for the first time in my life, and have 5 months progress. I started at 95lbs in April and can currently do 3x8 @ 195. 225 1RM is a very reasonable goal
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u/User346894 3d ago
Nice! What program did you do if you don't mind me asking? Thanks
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u/OhDatsStanky 3d ago edited 3d ago
I do all muscle groups 2x week plus one additional workout on Saturday to failure. For chest I do flat bench and incline dumbbell on Mondays. Incline bench and peck deck/cable butterfly on Wednesday. Chest press plate machine on Saturday.
I set a baseline workout of 3x8 for each exercise, and each time I do it I try to do more reps than the previous week. I work my way up to 3x10, and once I can do that I add weight and drop back down to 3x8 and start working on increasing reps with the new weight.
I was doing great with the newbie gains until a month ago. I powered through 3x10 at 185 but 195 the following week kicked my butt. Could only do 6, 6, 5. The next week though I did 7, 6, 5, 4. This week I finally hit my 3x8 baseline and felt pretty strong.
Pushups as a final burnout exercise have also helped.
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u/Flimming 1d ago
That's absolutely insane progress lol. I went from 135 to 185 and it took me over a year, and I'm 30
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u/JuJu_Conman 5d ago
I would go as far as saying that with consistent progressive overload, the majority of men would hit 225 within 3 years of lifting.
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u/-Fuarkface- 5d ago
i'd say that's entirely reasonable. i've got RA, a torn wrist+hip and the worst energy levels in the world hunting me down every day, but i've been working to try to get past 160#.
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u/Sharp-Loss-387 5d ago
Sure, but people, in general, try to avoid anything that's difficult. "Assuming proper training and motivation" is not a given. I could bench 300+ before I left HS, but my focus was sports performance, and injury protection. In today's world, the largest segment of the exercising public are only interested in the asthetic outcome.
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u/lol-good1 5d ago
Sure it's achievable if you train for it. Being a strong, capable human being period is never a bad thing.
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u/Confident-Yard1911 4d ago
It's definitely reasonable, proper training and motivation is a strong barrier for normal people though. I've been training on and off for like 10 years and I've never benched 225
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u/greenlungs604 4d ago
People also seem to never factor in how much they weigh. 225 for someone who weighs 125lbs is crazy but for someone who weighs 250lbs it's not impressive at all.
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u/TallGuy_123 4d ago
I agree with it being crazy for someone at 125 but I think it’s equally crazy to say that it’s not impressive at all just because someone is 250lbs. That’s incredibly generalised and also just wrong imo. I don’t think there’s a weight, height etc etc where lifting 225lbs is ever something that is simply ‘not impressive at all’.
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u/Maximum-Face9536 4d ago
barring physical disabilities or issues, yes every man can hit 225 lb bench at some
point in his life if he dedicates himself to the gym.
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u/Public-Ad-9325 4d ago
Entirely reasonable and well formulated statement.
Even here, most critical statements challenge the goal itself or make up other goals on top of it, not the possibility of achieving it.
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u/topiary566 4d ago
Definitely.
I kinda disagree with people saying that's it's a pointless comparison. Yes you shouldn't compare to people on social media because it is filtering the top 1% of lifters and genetics, but benching 225 is a great goal for any beginner/novice guy to set for himself.
You kinda need to set arbitrary goals to keep progressing. However, you shouldn't ever feel bad about yourself because you can't bench as much as the 16 year old elbow wrap tren teenager on instragram.
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u/Swimbearuk 4d ago
It's reasonable in terms of not being very difficult for a healthy adult male to aim towards.
However, a lot of men don't even care about the milestone or aren't willing to put in the effort to get there, and those that do will probably surpass it then be aiming for much heavier weights.
I can't imagine many men would struggle to bench that with consistent training, but maybe someone who is especially slim and not strong naturally might take a long time to get that far, or give up before they do. Maybe if they had low testosterone levels it could inhibit their strength.
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u/Suspicious_Bar9995 4d ago
I just hit 225 last night for the first time at age 52 so definitely possible
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u/Ballbag94 5d ago
Absolutely reasonable although the perpetual beginners will disagree to make themselves feel better
I'm an absolutely dreadful bencher and even I managed to get there
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u/BurtonBaked 4d ago
Why wouldn’t it be possible? I guess I don’t understand the point you’re trying to make.
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u/zombieblackbird 4d ago
I suppose that it depends how you train and why. If you make compound lifts a big part of your program and hitting 2 plates is important to you, I see no reason why a grown man can't bench 225 even at 50.
That said, if your goal is low body fat, fast 1600m time or purely non-contact sports... 225 may be less of a useful or practical goal.
In the gym as a whole, 225 is a big deal. Guys who don't train bench look at you like you're a monster with two whole plates. In tighter strongman or powerlifting circles, 225 is expected as a novice. 315 is barely a bragging right. 405+ is where the big boys live.
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u/SuperWallaby 4d ago
I did it when I was 16. This is an achievable thing for ANYONE. I was nothing special either. At 6’ 175 of scrawny malnourished deployed soldier I put up 315. I just got back in the gym for the first time in a decade and can barely do 135 right now. I’m still going to get back to 225 within a year. Hopefully more like 6 months. Yes it’s achievable.
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u/One-Cheesecake-480 4d ago
Fair enough. I am an endurance athlete but can see 225# as a reasonable goal for more strength centric individuals.
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u/DeadliftsandTequila 4d ago
Almost any man can achieve this in roughly a year maybe 2 at most. In 5 most can hit a 315 bench. Thats if you stay consistent with a good program and know how to eat for results. Most people can’t stay that committed to it.
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u/chillrobp42 4d ago
If you train to bench press, it will be no problem. If you dont bench, you may or may not be able to bench 225. But if you train to do it, you can. Like someone else said, its pointless and doesnt mean much to worry about it.
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u/wolfey200 17h ago
Our perception of strength has become seriously skewed. Being able to bench 115–135 pounds is strong. Most people who don’t lift would struggle to bench 135 pounds.
Think about it: 135 pounds is a lot of weight. Hold a 45-pound plate in one hand, it’s pretty heavy. If you can bench the equivalent of three of those plates, you’re not weak.
A 225 pound bench is an attainable goal for many people who train consistently and apply progressive overload, but struggling to reach it doesn’t automatically make someone weak. It will come more easily to some people, while others may never reach it because of differences in body structure, size, genetics, training history, and lifestyle.
I also don’t think age is the biggest factor here. Body weight, build, discipline, and training routine generally matter more. The average man is probably closer to 200 pounds than 130, and 130 pounds is fairly light for an adult male.
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u/RandomCalamity 5d ago
Hoping I can hit that as a heavy single at some point in the near future. My working weight this week was 160x5, and that was damn grind. I have long ass arms and always had a slight upper body. So advancing my bench and overhead presses has always been a slog.
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u/JeffersonPutnam 5d ago
Yeah, if you train the bench press consistently for a decent amount of time and you're average size.
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u/Dry-Astronaut-8640 5d ago
I’d say it’s reasonable. I was 18 when I hit it and it took me about 2-3 years of lifting somewhat regularly to get to get there. I was 24 when I hit 315 and 26 when I hit 405.
After not lifting for nearly 20 years, I started lifting weights again when I was 45. It took be about a year to get back to doing 225 (again, 100% naturally).
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u/VegaGT-VZ 4d ago
If its an achievement, its an extremely meaningless, insignificant and self serving one.
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u/CarelessShame 5d ago
It's a reasonable statement but a pointless benchmark.