Continuing the theme from my last training safety tip, this one could actually save your life…
If there’s one exercise that deserves a warning, it’s the bench press.
It’s linked to killing enough people that it deserves to have a warning label attached to it….
But don’t think that I’m blaming the exercise.
Oh no… The bench press doesn’t roll alone. It has a partner in crime, the person doing the exercise…
I might get fired up enough to start talking to the weights while training, but last time I checked, they don’t talk back (well, not all of the time)…
In other words, the weights don’t talk you into putting yourself in harms way.
I believe 99.9% of benching accidents are due to human error. Telling people otherwise takes the onus off of them for ensuring their personal safety.
Benching accidents happen at commercial and at home gyms. But it’s the latter that’s the real danger zone.
Garage gorillas and cellar dwellers usually train alone, and that means no spotters…
They get fatigued, and the weight ends up on their chest or throat. From there it slowly suffocates the life out of them. Think about that for a minute. It’s a crappy way to go out.
This is why you should ALWAYS bench in a power rack.
If you don’t have a power rack, ALWAYS use a spotter when you bench, whether you’re at home or a commercial gym.
Personally, I think a rack is mandatory, even if you’re using a spotter.
If you don’t have a power rack or a spotter, build two ‘boxes’ out of VERY sturdy material, like metal or heavy lumber.
Make them high enough so that when you’re in the bottom position of the bench, the plates barely touch the tops of the platforms. If you fail, you can lower the barbell onto the boxes and save yourself from being crushed. ALWAYS use these.
If you don’t have any of these, I highly suggest that you avoid benching with a barbell and use dumbells until you get a rack or boxes.
But if you absolutely insist on benching with a barbell when you don’t have a power rack, a spotter or boxes, bench without the collars on.
If you can’t rack the bar, let it rest on your chest and lower one end of the bar. The plates will eventually dump onto the floor. Just brace yourself for the empty end to shoot up in the air once the plates slide off.
Some guys bench without collars even when they have a spotter.
If you’re using a weight heavy enough that your spotter can‘t lift the bar up from the bottom position, going collarless might be a good idea. Just be careful that the plates don’t work their way off as you bench.
Don’t let all of this scare you off of benching, that’s not what I’m trying to do here…
Just understand that benching is no joke…
All you have to do is use your noggin, and you’ll enjoy years of accident free benching and all of the gains it has to offer…
Train Smart, Train Hard
Ray Toulany
PS: Developing a big bench is one of the best ways to build your upper body size and strength. And if you want to max your gains and speed them up, you need a power packed meal plan.
To learn more, hurry on over here…
