Week 35 – Raw Bench Readiness / 130 kg

Date: September 4, 2026
Age: 39
Bodyweight: ~81–82 kg
Focus: Assess raw heavy-bench readiness after the recovery-adjusted return to normal pressing during Week 35.

Bench Press

Load	Sets×Reps	Notes
Bar	1 × 15	Warm-up
60 kg	1 × 8
80 kg	1 × 5
100 kg	1 × 3
110 kg	1 × 1	Paused
120 kg	1 × 1	Paused
130 kg	1 × 1	Raw, RPE 8

I was near certain that 132.5 kg was available today, but deliberately held off. Rather than spending additional energy on another heavy single, I chose to preserve it for incline dumbbell pressing.

Incline Dumbbell Press

Load	Sets×Reps	Notes
42 kg left / 44 kg right	1 × 8	Accidental mismatch; set moved cleanly and the difference was not noticed during pressing
44 kg each	1 × 8
46 kg each	1 × 5

High Rows

Load	Sets×Reps	Notes
20 kg	2 × 20

Rope Pushdowns

Load	Sets×Reps	Notes
21.25 kg	2 × 15

Lateral Raise Machine

Load	Sets×Reps	Notes
20 kg	3 × 20

Pull-Ups

Load	Sets×Reps	Notes
Bodyweight	3 × 8	Felt effortless today

Treadmill

Duration	Speed	Incline
20 min	5	7

Session Interpretation / Why This Session Matters

This was the strongest confirmation yet that the recent recovery interruption did not meaningfully reduce underlying strength. The primary benchmark was 130 kg raw at RPE 8, returning 130 to essentially the same readiness level seen before the right pec/biceps issue.

There was enough confidence after the rep that 132.5 kg felt available, but another heavy single was not necessary. The saved capacity was instead used for substantial incline dumbbell work through 46 kg × 5.

The effortless 3 × 8 pull-ups were another encouraging recovery marker because pull-ups had recently been removed to avoid stressing or stretching the right pec/biceps region. Their return alongside heavy raw benching and incline pressing strengthened the overall recovery picture.

Across Week 35, bench progressed from 115 kg for 3 × 3 supported on Monday to 120 kg × 3 raw at RPE 8 Wednesday and 130 kg × 1 raw at RPE 8 Friday. Combined with stable lower-body strength, this completed a clean return-to-normal week and positioned the next training block toward a 135 kg raw attempt.