8 weeks of intermediate programming for presses, and no progress

[spacediver]

A couple months ago, I reached the end of my LP for presses, and reached 144 lb as my 5RM.

During the LP, i put on a good 20 lb of bodyweight, bringing my weight up to 192 lb (5'9.5), and staying fairly lean in the process.

Here is what the last 5 sessions of my LP looked like for press:

17th Feb: 141.8 lb (5,5,5)
19th Feb: 144 lb (5,4,2)
23rd Feb: 144 lb (3,4,3?)
28th Feb: 144 lb (5,4,4)
6th March: 144 lb (4,4,4)

I decided it was time to move onto intermediate programming for press.

Also, during the press LP, I had brought my bench up to around 205 lb for sets of 5 using LP, and decided to deload my bench at this time to work on form.

For press I decided on alternating a volume day with intensity day. Here is what I did. I'm including bench workouts as they may be relevant, along with some notes.

8th March:
Bench: 188 (3x5)
Presses: 111 (5x5)

11th March:
Presses: 146.2 (3x3)

14th March:
Bench: 190.75 (3x3)
Presses: 122 (5x5) - 2-3 min rest between sets

19th March:
Presses: 148.4 (3x3) - NICE
Bench: 188 x 5, 182.5 x 4, 182.5 x 5 - maybe was harder than expected as just did heavy presses

22nd March:
Bench: 194.6 (3,3,3)
Presses: 124.2 (5x5)

26th March:
Presses: 150.6 x 3 (barely), 144x3, 148.4x3
Bench: 185.8 (5x5)

29th March
Bench: 199 (3,3,3)
Presses: 126.4 (5x5)

*At this point, dropped bench due to AC joint aggravation caused by previous session's bench)*

1st April
Presses: 150.6 (3x3)

7th April
Presses: 150 (3x3)

10th April
Presses: 128.6 (5x5)

12th April
Presses: 152.8 (2,2,2)

15th April
Presses: 155 (2,2,1)

18th April
Presses: 133 (5x5)

21st April
Presses: 157.2 (2,2,2)

24th April
Presses: 135.2 (5x5)

28th April
Presses: 159.4 (1,2,1)

At this point, I decided to see whether I'd made any strength gains. So today, (2nd May), I tried the weight that I finished my LP at (144 lb) for 3 sets of 5.

Here's what happened:

2nd May 2017
Presses: 144: First set: 5 reps, though *barely* made it. Second set, 3 reps, and *might* have made 4 reps. Didn't go for third set.

So, what have I done wrong here? Too much intensity work? Not enough volume? I find intermediate programming murky as fuck, and figured that I'd start with something simple as an experiment. The experiment was useful insofar as it gave me useful data, but I'd really appreciate some guidance on what I should change up for my next experimental round.

[Andy Baker (KSC)]

Looks like your 5s started out much too low. You ended LP with sets of 4 at 144 lbs and began your 5x5 work at 111. You probably detrained yourself on sets of 5 with much too big of a reset.

[spacediver]

Thanks Andy, I never considered that. I'll continue to build up my 5x5's as those seem to be going well, and retest in a few weeks.

Appreciate your time.

[Smead]

FWIW I found sets of 8 in addition to the heavy 1s-3s to be very helpful in driving my 5s up.