Bench Press Spotter
- Thread starter jon16
- Start date
I was always told that a spotter in a bench press is necessary and some guy here was saying one should not need a spot in the other discussion. The discussion at the other forum (jpfitness) kinda illustrates what I've always been told.
Something like 95% of all accidents in the gym are bench-press related, and there are people training alone who have died.
A spotter is wise and definitely makes benching safer. I almost never use a spotter (train alone in a gym, but there are always people there), except when I'm gonna lift things I'm not sure I'm gonna make. I'm pretty good at judging if I can do one more rep or not, and if I fail, I can usually take the bar in on the lowest pins. If that doesn't work, the bar goes on my stomach and I roll it down. I think a lot of bench press accidents could have been avoided with the use of proper form and clips to keep the plates in place.
If someone actually drops a bar, a spotter probably won't help much anyway.
If someone actually drops a bar, a spotter probably won't help much anyway.
end of discussion right there. Great post Karky. But one needs to have some experience lifting to live by this. If you're a noob and aren't sure of your limits. Get a spotter.
The way I've seen guys benching heavy weights on youtube if they are benching heavy weights, they have side spotters. How can spotters not help in that instance?
I would hardly think people in competitions, bench without any spotters. Look at the guy benching at the arnolds, all that weight but he had spotters.
End of discussion? Are the guys who have accidents on youtube newbies? Was the football player hurt benching a newbie? If 95% of all accidents involve the bench press, then doesn't that mean something?
Stafon Johnson, the USC running back who was injured doing a bench press was not a rookie. Ironically, he had a spotter, but still managed to drop the bar on his throat, damaging his larynx and vocal cords. I suspect he had his thumbs unopposed and the bar rolled off his hands, but that has never been confirmed to my knowledge.
Might help, I've seen competition bench presses on youtube with side spotters where it didn't help when the bar dropped.
I never said people in competitions bench without any spotters. I simply stated how I do it and I think that works pretty good. The only way to seriously injure yourself (because of not making the lift. Not talking about tendon injuries from overuse or anything like that) is if you drop the bar or have some kind of crazy shoulder accident because of the plates sliding off.
If you use clips so the weights won't slide off (I don't think it's that big of a problem though, I've seen people slide a lot of weight off mid lift without any injury). Side spotters might help if the lifter drops the bar, presuming they already have their hands in place below the plates when it happens. But the bar drops fast, and it takes time to react and develop the muscle force necessary to stop the bar.
If I'm benching by myself, I will not use clips or locks to keep the weights on. If I can't get the weight off my chest, I want the option of sliding the weights off. If I want to go heavy and there's no help, I'll stick with dumbbells.
FWIW, the original story seemed a little embellished, with plates flying, bodies twisting and ER trips. Not sayin' it didn't happen, just there may be a different version out there.
FWIW, the original story seemed a little embellished, with plates flying, bodies twisting and ER trips. Not sayin' it didn't happen, just there may be a different version out there.
Embellished? Check out the story on jpfitness I just copied and pasted. Nothing sounds unusual to me, these guys who drop the bar on their necks/faces/chest do leave visible injuries and they have to go to hospital.
FWIW I have seen someone drop 450 on his chest in a contest. Guy sat up and asked if he still got a third attempt.
Hardly seems like legit training advice. Which recognised coach e.g. Rippetoe, De Franco, Wendler advises people this?
Hoss
1
Didn't know my only choice was to parrot a "recognised" coach. The moment you start forming your own opinions is when you should challenge someone else's.
You don't have to "parrot" a recognised coach, you do what the top lifters do and what the top coaches recommend. Are you an elite lifter by any chance? Are you pushing "world class weights" so that we can see for example how the guy at the Arnold should have done it "your way". Got a vid so that we can see your "world class weights" done the way elite lifter don't and we can see the value of forming our own opinions.
You are not an elite lifter nor are you a recognised coach and so we should take your opinion/practice as fact? Rippetoe>Derwyddon so listen to what he says :-
Mark Rippetoe: Spotting the Bench Press Pt.1 youtube.com/watch?v=Mygns0H6Ok4
Mark Rippetoe: Spotting the Bench Press Pt.2 youtube.com/watch?v=GmM9yxbYLc0
If you have any valid training advice from a recognised coach who says different (maybe you?) share it so we can see.
I have never benched in working sets without using a spotter. Getting a good lift off is important and being a little guy I have no desire to drop very heavy weight and get stapled to the bench with something I can't roll off of me. Just me...
Hoss
1
Are those people that you mentioned pushing world class weight? You're amazing at running circles around your statements.
I hate watching people bench with an unopposed grip. Honestly, what benefit can they possibly get from it? Risk significantly increases, benefit does not.
OP, you don't have to be a famous strength and conditioning coach to be able to apply common sense to the weight room. It makes perfect sense that if you train with reasonable restraint, such as always stopping 1 rep short of your RM, you will have very little need for a spotter, and if you do need a spotter, they're main job will be to help you get the bar in and out of the rack - a good spotter will usually only interfere with an actual rep if the bar is going back down, or if something else seems significantly wrong to justify their invasion of the exercise.