Here is a video clip of my buddy Mike Westerdal benching in the
APF Florida State Powerlifting Championships on Feb 27th, 2010
Mike opened up with a 600 pound bench which he nailed.
Then he went for a personal record of 630 pounds and got it!
For his 3rd attempt he tried 650 but just couldn’t lock it out.
This video shows that Mike knows his sh!t when it comes to benching big weights!
He weighed in at 241 for this meet so hitting 630 is more then 2 1/2 times his bodyweight!
Which is a very impressive bench press by any standard.
Mike is in the process of coming out with a brand new 2.0 version of his
Critical Bench Program. Now granted the original program was incredible
and it helped literally thousands of guys from all over the world set new
personal records in size and strength.
But with the new 2.0 version it will be better than ever and more evolved
with even more advanced training tricks to help speed up your strength and
muscle gains. It will be available in the very near future so stay tuned for that.
In the mean time if you’d like to get some killer bench press training tips
that will help increase your strength and build a powerful muscular physique,
then you can download Mike’s bench press training report called the…
“7 Fastest Ways To Increase Your Bench”
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In fact Mike used these tips here to help him build up to that 600+ pound bench
that you just seen in the video!
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21 Comments
Maxdj
Damn , Thats insane , long way to go for me being a newbie pressin around 80 Pounds haha . looks good!
Mike
Nice press with the gear, what can he press raw? That is what the real test of power is in my opinion.
Sean
Seems like he just needs to work on the triceps at the lockout area and he’ll nail even more weight, impressive!
Dave
Yes it is impressive lift, but what would be his raw lift of about 475-500lbs? All powerlifting records should be based on pure raw lifts and not on bench shirts. Rebecca Swanson can bench 575 suited up, but can bearly lift 335lbs raw. So why count the artificial lift when you really can’t do it??
bob smith
lee, how come you a trying to sell everyones product now. which bench press it better yours or his?
Westy
Hey Bob, Lee and I used to think it was all about being the best and competiting against each other. After meeting in real life we have a lot in common and there’s no reason to keep all this info to ourselves. Lee is an awesome coach that knows a lot of valuable info so I’ve been sharing his training tips with my list and blog readers as well. It’s not that either program is better…..they are both awesome. Nothing works forever so we have decided to team up….and have a really cool surprise for everyone next week. Keep training hard, Mike
Jason
I could care less bout his shirt assisted bench, what can he put up RAW
leehayward
If you’ve been checking out my blog you’ll notice that I posted up a video of Mike repping out 405 for 5 good full range reps raw at: https://leehayward.com/blog/2010/06/bench-press-blunders
I get a kick out of how people are so negative towards using powerlifting equipment. More often than not the guys with the biggest lifts using equipment also have the biggest raw lifts as well.
Just as a side note, I’m willing to be most people who are complaining about the lift probably can’t take 600 pounds out of the rack, let alone bench it (even with a shirt).
leehayward
Hey Bob, Mikes right…
It’s not so much that one program is better or worse. They are both bench press specialization routines, but they use totally different training variables and different methods. It’s almost like trying to debate over which is the better exercise – Squats or Deadlifts – Both work and there are pro’s and con’s to both of them. The same is kind of true with the bench press programs.
However, like Mike mentioned we’ve got something special coming up in the very near future so keep checking back… 😉
joe
That is no fancy blast you bench corse,that is sheer dedication to a sport that payed off.It took that guy years to do this,if he is a natural.The average person can’t even bench his weight.Twice my weight was my best,or the most I ever tried to do.So that was 2 1/2 times his weiht,I know he is a dedicated lifter.Thank for sharing Lee I enjoyed it.
Jason
I’m not taking anything away from him or degrading his efforts, neither can I lift that much…however….we can’t go around glorifing something that adds 135 instant pounds to a bench press. We shun steriods don’t we? And according to your own chart, 405 for 5 reps is a max bench of 465 or so.
There was a guy at a competition trying to beat a state record of 600 lbs with a lifting shirt. He didn’t do it. Another guy on the opposite side of the gym did 573 Raw. Which one was better?
Dave Ruel
LOL, yep, it’s funny to see people’s reactions whenever someone does a big lift… there’s always criticism and bashing about the form, equipment used, blablabla…
I’m going down in Florida next month to train with big Mike. He’s gonna make me suffer for a full week! can’t wait!
Westy
Hey Jason, thanks for your comment. You’re right a bench press shirt helps you lift more weight that is true. However I can promis you it takes a lot of practice and skill to get it rigth. You can’t just put a shirt on and add hundreds of pounds to yuour bench. We have a guy at my barbell club that came in and benched 500 raw. He tried a shirt on and couldn’t do 550 in a shirt. He had never trained with that much weight on his triceps and they werent’ strong enough to lock it out.
Ofcourse a raw bench of 573 is more impressive than a 600 shirt bench. I agree with you.
It’s really apples and oranges, they are two completely different things.
Appreciate the feedback, I realize shirted bencing isn’t something a lot of people care about or want to learn about which is why both Lee and I created raw bench press programs that have nothing to do with equipment.
-Mike
Chad
I have to agree with everyone on here that is saying the shirt should not count as a real lift. Me and my buddy had the chance to lift with a lifting shirt on one time. Usually I bench press 460 raw and he does around 350 raw. While using the shirt he got 500 easily and I was able to get 580. I never understood why power lifters have to use special equipment to get high maxes. Specialized equipment should not count in power lifting competitions. But congrates on your 630 bench, next time try a competition raw and see what the difference is.
leehayward
I just posted up the video of Mike’s competition bench because I thought it was an impressive lift. I really couldn’t care less if you hate bench shirts or not, it’s not like I’m in the business of selling them, so it doesn’t affect me either way what you think.
I’m not going to get into this whole raw vs. equipped lifting debate. There are thousands of posts all over internet forums right now on the topic if one wishes to indulge in them, I don’t need to add to it.
But the fact is that all sports use specialized equipment of some sorts to improve their game. Powerlifting is no different.
And we could even take a step back and question whether or not a lift is legit if someone wears a weight lifting belt, or if someone wears lifting wraps, straps, or even uses chalk for that matter. After all these are all ways to help us lift more weight then we could other wise lift.
Mike
Lee, lets just say that a shirt adds tremendous pounds to your lift if you train correctly for it (ie: board presses, chains or bands etc) I just don’t want someone to say they broke say Kaz’s bench record when he was raw and the other person used a shirt. Apples and oranges…not even close to the same thing. I competed in the 90’s for 8 yr’s raw. Tried the shirt and didn’t like it at all….can’t see benching to my stomach…lol…but to each his own.
Slade
ha he has a bench shirt. doesnt count
Admin
600 pounds ?
That must be insane. How could he do that?
Supplement that he used must be a very good supplement.
Anyway I wanna say, this is a nice post!=)
Joe
Thats bullshi*, and its only 135 lbs too. With a bench shirt!!!!! WHAT A FREAKING WEAKLING!! it aint raw at all.
Josh
This is great but would be better if he didnt cheat with the bench shirt.
Bob
Shirt or no shirt, that dude’s a f*#@in’ powerhouse. Nice lift. Amazing
control. WOW.