ultrafilter wrote
Interesting interview (and interesting info in this thread). In the interview, Mr. Miller is pretty clear that he uses steroids:
Are steroids allowed in most benching contests, and by respected world-record publishers? Are the numbers in this thread (800+ world record, 3x bodyweight, etc.) indicative of non-steroid super power lifters?
Some contests allow them, some don’t. I’d assume that if a world record is unqualified, it’s anything-goes: steroids, bench shirts, and whatever else might make a difference.
I very seriously doubt that anyone benches over 700 natural, and I’d be suspicious of anyone who claimed to be much over double bodyweight and not a juicer. Mind you, neither is impossible, but I view them both as unlikely.
Woohoo! After almost a year on the boards, I finally get my first “how you doin’?”. 
heh heh…I have great calves, solid square quads…they do a lot of work hauling my slovenly upper body around. But whatever turns you on, eh?
I an bench, of, maybe 80 pounds. What is that…35 kilos?
Since many of my adult female acquaintances can’t do a single rep with an UNWEIGHTED bar, it’s nice know that not ALL women are so mind-bogglingly frail.
To be honest, it took me a while to work up to 150. When I started lifting, I could barely do ten reps with just the bar, couldn’t do a single dip, and I was incredibly sore the next day. But, now, I have biceps that scare people. 
I do have friends who are competitive rowers who can’t do much more than the bar. Most women (even very active ones) tend to have weak pecs unless they specifically train them.
But guys seem to build strength really quickly. Dog80, does your gym have dumbbells? Free weights are better than machines because they force you to use additional muscles to stabilize the weights. Plus, I generally think lifting to exhaustion every single workout is counter productive and will just tear down the muscles. I’d personally mix in higher rep, lighter weight days with lower rep, high weight to exhaustion days. Also, I don’t think you’ve said how many times a week you lift. You shouldn’t be working the same muscle groups more often than every other day. Anyway, check out the bodybuilding.com site. They have lots of articles on building strength and different exercises and routines you can try until you figure out what works for you.
At first I would train 5-6 days a week. But that kind of training made me feel really really tired. Now I’ve cut back to 2 or 3 times a week.
Oh, and yes, they have dumbbels. I will start using them. 
Sounds like you’re doint the same routine every time and you’ve “hit the wall.” With any exercise routine (lifting, cardio, etc.) eventually your body adapts and plans for the routine. So, after a few weeks of progress you reach a point where you really won’t improve much anymore. The plan is to constantly change your routine, both the exercises and how you perform the exercises. There are all kinds of variations you can use – super sets, 1 1/4 sets, half sets, high-weight low-rep, low-weight high-rep, etc.
I really recommend you meet w/ a personal trainer. It can make a huge difference. They can be expensive, but if $$ is tight try to find one who’s cool w/ just meeting once every month or two to set up your routines and teach you how to maximize your workout.
I concur, especially since it looks like you’ve got some weight issues as well. A trainer can help you balance weight-reduction/cardio type exercise with strength training. Even for normally heavy people, it’s universally recommended to mix in some cardio work; overweight people might need more.
I don’t think a personal trainer would be worth the money, especially given the sad state of the personal training industry.
The important detail here is that this guy’s been lifting for two months. He hasn’t hit the wall–he’s just not getting newbie gains any more. That’s to be expected, but it doesn’t mean he needs to change anything.
I firmly believe that everyone should spend their first year working with the parameters I outlined above–core exercises and intelligent isolation work with moderate volume, moderate weight, and fairly short rest periods. Their gains will slow down over the course of the year–at the beginning, you can keep stacking on the pounds, but after a while you just can’t keep that up. That’s to be expected.
Here’s the deal: the best training program for you is one that’s geared to address your specific weakness. For me, that’s my hamstrings, abdominals, and shoulders. The program I’m using to correct those might not make any sense for you, if that’s not what you need to work on.
For a guy who’s just starting out, his entire body is a weakness. There’s no need to address specific points, because every specific point needs to be addressed.
Dog80, take a look at this program. It’s a good program built around core movements with minimal equipment (Free weights only? No problem). Remember, technique is key; good form will make the difference between progress and injury later down the line, so learn it now.