Bench Press Safety

Today we're going to look at bench press safety. Bench press safety seems to be easily overlooked in gyms and especially for guys the have bench press benches in their home. Bench press safety is all about using your common sense and not pushing your limits when you're on the bench alone.

The first aspect of bench press safety we're going to look at is injuries. So many guys do do themselves serious deltiod and pectoral injuries because they do not warm up correctly. You need a good warm up before you even get on the bench. Do at least 50 reps on the empty bar before you even bench your lowest weight. If you are going bench real heavy, work your way up to it. You might think you're ready, but once that heavy weight hits your chest you'll realize you're not!


Another very important bench press safety tip to aviod bench press related injuries is to use correct bench press technique. Even if it means lifting a lighter weight, not only will correct bench press technique build more muscle but you will be far less prone to injury. Good form is important for bench press safety.

OK, so we've looked at how bench press technique and warming up are important for bench press safety and preventing bench press related injuries. Now let's look at using a bench press safety spotter. We all know that to really increase your bench press you need to push yourself and lift heavier weights. The only safe way we can achieve this is by using a bench press safety spotter.

A bench press safety spotter stands behind you (or in real heavy cases, 1 spotter on each side of the bar) and assists you to move the weight up when your muscles give out. A bench press safety spotter is good for 2 reasons. First, you can increase your bench press and get musch stronger by safely listing much heavier weights than you could on your own. Second, if you muscle gives way for any reason (failure or injury) you have someone to stop the bar for landing on your chest. The bench press safety spotter is even more important at home than in the gym. If you drop the weight on your chest when you're home alone, you may not be able to get it off. The #1 cause for home gym accidents is guys dropping the bench on their chest.

If you don't have a spotter there is still a safe way you can push your bench press limits and lift heavy weights. You can use the Smith Machine. Smith machines are perfect for guys training alone because you can simply twist the bar to lock it off at any time during the bench press. So even if you can push the weight more than 5in of your chest, you can twist the bar and lock the bar there so you don't drop the weight on your chest. A very important piece of bench press safety equipment for guys that workout alone.

Let's summarise bench press safety as these key factors:

1. Warm up correctly and if you're going to be attempting heavy weights work your way up to your heaviest set with lighter sets.
2. Use correct bench press technique for every rep
3. Don't attempt weights you're unsure of unless you have a spotter (especially at home)
4. If you train alone, use the Smith Machine

Well I hope this article has made you think about bench press safety. A bench press injury will only set you back in your training. You are better off using correct bench press safety from the start to prevent any injuries or accidents. Work hard and stay safe!