Hi Fittit. I've been basically making up my own routines in the gym for the past six months. Started at 250 and just saw 199 on the scale a week ago. Most of this has been doing 45 minutes on the elliptical 3 time a week, and going up on the resistance 1 or 2 levels every week to keep my heart rate between 190 and 200. The other 2 days, I just kind of use whatever equipment no one else is using, which is usually the cable pull, v-squat, shoulder press machine, or whatever else is free.

Now that I've hit my target and gotten to the 200 pound mark, I want to get strong. I want to do SS, but I can barely bench the bar 10 pounds, and I'm pretty wobbly then. We also lack a squat rack at the gym that I go to (which is free for me, so I can't get too upset about that), but we have a Smith machine.

So, is there a method to work up to getting more comfortable with the bench press, or do I just need to keep doing it with the bar until I feel confident enough to move up? Is it worth it to keep bothering with the machines in general?