Q: I weight 88 kg and I am 5 feet 11 inches tall. I am a vegetarian. I have been working out in a gym for the past 1 year. But even with such a body weight, I can't lift a barbell with 30 kg plates while doing bench press. Yet other men with less body weight are able to lift double the weight I can. Proteins do not suit me as they increases the uric acid in the body, which results in toe inflammation. What should I do to increase my strength?

A:There are several things you can do to increase strength in your bench press routine, but here are some of the most simple things you can do: 1. Warm up correctly: I don't mean just warming up before beginning your bench press routine, but warming up correctly all the way to your heavy sets of your bench press. Most people do not warm up correctly before beginning their heavy sets for their bench press routine. This could have a significant and negative impact on your ability to lift maximum weight and overload the muscles sufficiently. A proper warm-up lessens your chances of becoming injured, and, it will help you increase strength on your bench press routine the very first day you put this principle into practice. I recently observed this in the gym. This person started with the bar, which in most gyms is 45 pounds. He worked out a quick, easy set of 10 reps. He then put on 45-pound plates (135 pounds) and did another set of 10. Then he went up to 155 pounds and did another 10 reps. Here's where he started to go wrong. He was beginning to use way too much energy on these warm-ups. He then did another set with 175 pounds for 10 more reps, then 200 for a set of 8 reps. So far, 5 sets down and this person hadn't even started his heavy and intense sets yet! He wasted time, energy, and intensity all before it really even counted. On the 6th set, he noticed he was starting to tire quickly and could only handle 210 for 5 reps. So, this is where he stopped the bench press portion of his workout figuring that since he was fatigued, he has worked the muscles sufficiently. An improper warm-up keeps you at a fixed weight and unable to break past this plateau for months. You've probably assumed that you can't get any stronger. And trust me all you need to do is pay attention to the warm up. And keep in mind the following: 2. Consume 1.7 to 2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight. 3. Include Whey Protein Concentrates/ isolates immediately post-workout with a 2-4 gram dose of essential fatty acids. 4. Evening meals should include paneer up to 3 times per week. 5. Minimise endurance training duration during strength phase efforts. 6. Caloric intake should be adequate to above normal levels; strength gains occur only when caloric intake is sufficient but are inhibited during a caloric deficit. 7. Avoid alcohol during strength-speed phase training; alcohol neutralises hormonal influence during muscle synthesis. 8. Strength resistance low reps exercise may result in higher testosterone release, required for growth, than high reps sets. 9. Don't compare yourself to others. Set your own strength development standards.