need some help i'm stuck

[mareck]

ok so i'm 17 and i've been competing the last three years in high school powerlifting so i'm not too new to lifting. i was making improvements in my lifts but i seem to have come to stopping points in all my lifts. i weigh 140 my bench is stuck around 215, my squat 350, and my deadlift 385. i've tried changing up my workouts but it isn't working out for me. any suggestions?

[Bryan Hildebrand]

so many things.

first, congrats on using powerlifting as a foundation of your youth. trust me, it will yield tremendous advantages in many aspects of your life, let alone other sports you may try and tackle.

when is the last time you took a break from the gym? say, more than a week?

what does your diet look like?

are you using any supplements at all?

what kind of training schedule are you following or are you just lifting and gaining?

[78up]

Food...lots of it. Nice lifts!

[SwoleChamp]

eat bro...dont overtrain breaks are good...i started off powerlifting before bodybuilding, and it helped me tons...
if your not already, get a good quality protein shake and add in 1-2 times a day...

[mareck]

thank you! everyday i walk 2 1/2 miles to the gym and then i alternate between main lifts on different days. i eat a lot of food and drink protein shakes and as for supplements i only take kre alkaline. i haven't taken a break in a while though. i always forget to give my body rest

[ayezer]

yes get good calories and do not overtrain and get rest good sleep.

[mareck]

i took a few days off and when i went back and started again my bench jumped up to 225. thanks for the advice everyone!

[Hoss06]

I took a break for 5 days for the first time in over a year. (just kept cardio in) strength and motivation went up. I also added in an extra meal or two (clean) during the rest period.

[Bryan Hildebrand]

are you just lifting to lift or are you utilizing some sort of program. IMO, this is a must read for every young powerlifter:

Read everything on this site. some of it will apply to you, some wont. but IMO its the best foundation for a young lifter to use.

www.westside-barbell.com

http://www.westside-barbell.com/articles/using-the-conjugate-system/

[mareck]

i'm just lifting to lift right now but i will be on a training program that my sponsor is putting together for me in september. thank you so much for the link though Bryan!

[mareck]

update... i haven't maxed on squat recently, but my bench is up to 250, my dead 405, and now i weigh 155

[TheRage93]

its always good to do deload after a meet. always remember that. Also, don't get too concerned if your gains aren't as well as they were when you first began... it happens to all of us. it gets to the point where you need to eat better, rest well of 8 hrs of sleep a night (quality sleep), and keep up with your modalities/prehab! heat, stretch with bands, TENs unit, foam rolling (rumble rollers are the best), and etc. train smart but hard. no staying up late and partying until you puke your guts out coming home at 4am. if you want to be the best that's what it takes, nno excuses. also, sometimes if youre in a low weight class, sometimes you have to jump into the next weight class if you want to get stronger. I went through this.. it's normal. keep training hard and keep grinding.