Spotting question

[halfaclue]

These two guys in my gym always lift togther and seem to over train but that is besides the point. Last night they were doing chest and they got up to 405 on the straight bar...the spotter had his hands on the bar the entire time and you could see his arms shaking from pulling up so hard. What benefits are there from doing this? Wouldn't make more sense to do a weight where the spotter only helps at the end for a rep or two instead of the spotter lifting weight on every rep? Not sure if they are doing this because they see a benefit or if they are doing it to make themselves look bigger but I would bet cash this one guy couldn't do 405 for 1 if his life was on the line.

 

[Backlash]

It is possible that he was trying to do negatives. But more likely he just wanted 4 plates on the bar and is a dumbass. I see this all the time, but it's usually high school kids with 2 plates.

 

[resonator]

probably doing heavy negatives.

 

[cwick0]

I suspect the guys are trying to show everyone how much of a badass they are. However, they fail to realize that most know they are full of shit. Next time just look over at them and shake your head. They will get the point real quick.

I do this when i see idiots in the gym doing something stupid. If they want help, then they can ask and i will be more than gracious to help them.

 

[d3track]

yeah
jackasses


but i cant say too much

if i have agood spotter on inclines i go until they do almost have to lift the bar off of me

 

[halfaclue]

yeah
jackasses


but i cant say too much

if i have agood spotter on inclines i go until they do almost have to lift the bar off of me

Yeah but do you get a few reps without any help. They weren't doing any by themselves.

 

[d3track]

lol
i usually get to 6-8
then grind out with a spot till i basically cant move it any more

 

[WalkingBeast]

Ive done forced reps similiar to this for a while, and even went up to 455 assisted by one spotter,when I was only pressing 335-350 unassisted.The mental aspect of hands on the bar can also give a huge strength boost. I feel it helped my strength levels before I started doing everything completely unassisted. It gave me the feel of very heavy weights and sent the signal to my muscles. I also did 455lb negatives unassisted at the time. Id try anything to get the desired end result. Im sure alot of people do it strictly to feed the ego though.

 

[halfaclue]

Yeah..I use a similar mind trick when i max....if I cam going for 315 I'll put 355 on the bar..lift it off the rack hold it for a few seconds and put it back. Have spotter remove the 10's and then hit the 315 because it feels lighter in your hands and your mind follows that logic. My old shot put instructor use to cover the weights with pillow cases so we couldn't tell how much weight it was. One of the throwers who obviously had a mental issue improved dramaticly. he went from 205 for 5 to 225 for 7 in 2 days just by not knowing how much was on the bar. Keep in mind with these weights that we were in highschool so it was impressive for us...LOL

 

[cwick0]

You want a spotter to force you to do extra reps. By theming keeping the bar moving, not doing the weight, you are able to fatigue and shred your muscles that much more. People hate me when i spot them. They always think i am going to let them off easy and i kill them, just so they get those last few forced reps.

 

[wnt2bBeast]

These two guys in my gym always lift togther and seem to over train but that is besides the point. Last night they were doing chest and they got up to 405 on the straight bar...the spotter had his hands on the bar the entire time and you could see his arms shaking from pulling up so hard. What benefits are there from doing this? Wouldn't make more sense to do a weight where the spotter only helps at the end for a rep or two instead of the spotter lifting weight on every rep? Not sure if they are doing this because they see a benefit or if they are doing it to make themselves look bigger but I would bet cash this one guy couldn't do 405 for 1 if his life was on the line.

Funny you mention this..I actually saw a trainer yes a trainer working with a younger kid probably 18-20..this kid is maybe 150 soaking wet and he puts 225 on the bar and was basically pulling it up the whole time..as if that wasnt enough they do the same thing with 250 now on the bar..trust me they were not doing negatives...on those 2 sets he did not complete one rep on his own..wtf????trying a 1 rep max every so often i say go for it but there comes a point where stupidity seems to rule..i work out with my brother and i try to push myself every time im in the gym but we're constantly aware of our form and whether or not we're giving to much assitance on the lift..there have been numerous times where i have pulled weight off the bar because it was too heavy ..be sensible here people when your at the beach no one is going to be able to tell whether or not you had 2 plates on the bar or 8!!!!!

 

[Scotsman]

It's just an ego booster for most people. Just so they can walk around and say "so I was benching 405 the other night" We had guys like that at my old gym one of them didn't show so the other one asked me for a spot. I figure these guys "assist" each other with 315 so he should be able to do 275. Nope ended up having to upright row it off of him. He got mad when I racked the weight and said "hey I had more in me" my response was that I didn't.

Cheers,
Scotsman

 

[halfaclue]

wntbbeast...I hear you and that was my point exactly
Scotsman...I have been there and have handled it the same "you had one more?? You didn't do that one"