There is no "universal" answer to either of your queries. First, weight lifting advances and goals are based on the individual, just as is "over-training". You will know when you are hitting a muscle group properly and making advances and you'll know better than anyone when you're hitting plateaus. What might be over-training for one person, may be just right for another AND keep in mind that each body part reacts differently to stimulation.
I once had a young lifter come up to me in the gym and say that I was over-training my arms, he said this after watching my bicep work-out. My response was a bit cocky. I said, "when your arms are as big as mine, THEN come back and talk to me about over-training". I followed this with the same statement that I opened this paragraph with.
What he saw: I was doing warm-ups and then 4 sets of 8 reps of 4 different types of curls - sitting isolation, standing bar, preacher and straight bar. The last set of each exercise was a ball-buster and my lifting partner had to spot me and "finger-up" that last rep. We then did 3 sets of standing "buddy-curls" to exhaustion. My response to the new guy may have been cocky, but simply put, this is what worked for me - I saw advances and had no injuries.
That said, I never had to hit my chest or shoulders, my hams or quads with as many sets as I did my arms to see advances; but I had to do
twice as many sets to see growth in my calves.
In my experience, every person has a muscle group (or 2) that will virtually explode with little to moderate stimulation and another muscle group (or 2) that requires intensive work-outs to see growth. Further, though proper form is huge, modifications to form must be made by an individual to fit his / her body mechanics. Simply put, you'll know if you are hitting it right...you'll feel the "burn"; just remember, joint pain is never a good thing.
Having a "max" goal is a great thing; it gives you something to work towards. However, this goal should be based on you, not on what other guys have done or do, unless you are into competitive weight-lifting. I do suggest having a lifting partner to help motivate and encourage you. Utilize a dependable person who is fairly close to you in most exercises as far as weight goes, this keeps you going to the gym even on those days when you might not want to go, and keeps the workouts moving along without taking time to make big weight changes between sets. For example, I wanted to hit 350 on my bench...I ended up hitting 355 for 3 reps (at 5'9" 182lbs); of course I was 21 years old, went to school, worked the same job and lived with my lifting partner - we lived in the gym 5 days a week. *My lifting partner (5'11" 195lbs) couldn't touch what I was curling, we squatted almost exactly the same weight, but he popped 365 for 3 reps the same day I hit 355...he just couldn't let me have my moment.
The truth is that I never tried for 350 again; I hit my goal and then I changed my work-out and did pyramid workouts starting at 325lbs going down to 225lbs, hitting as many reps as possible at each weight drop. Pyramids are a great tool for breaking plateaus and hinge on the concept of "muscle confusion". When you plateau, mix your work-outs up for a week, then go back to your format.
I hope that this helps a little.
Good luck.
Mac
How much should I be benching for muscle mass/definition? At a body weight of 130(currently doing 120 at a max).
Also, how do you tell the difference between over training and doing it right?
I'm a fighter(boxing/mma) and have just recently been trying to move up in weight so any mass building tips would be great.
No supplement suggestions though please.
