17 replies to this topic

[GOATNUTS]

i always workout by myself cause i dont like to talk or bullshit when lifting, it gets me unmotavated. dont use a spot unless you go real heavy. as far as the straight bar and dumbell are concerned they are both good but i perfer the dumbell cause my body part gets an equal exercise. an example exercise for my chest routine is incline dumbell press, incline dumbell fly, flat bench dumbell press, and flat bench dumbell fly. second machines are ok but i dont think they involve your stabalizing muscles which i think sucks and thats why i would much rather use free weights. last bro dont be a fool and mess around without a spot unless you know for sure you can lift that weight. you dont want to end up like a guy at the gym the other day dropping the barbell with 225lbs on your face. that shit didnt look like it felt good at all.

[wnt2bbeast]

Heavy is relative to yourself..i basically lift alone but i will use a spotter starting the medium heavy weights..for things like bench if i unrack the weight myself itll pull my delts off the bench and take me out of position so i ask for a handoff..Also you can never be too careful you never know if a shoulder is going to give, a wrist, etc..if youre in a gym dont be afraid to grab someone for a spot

[ImaBldr]

I workout in my home, so very rarely have access to a spotter. I do my heavy lifts in a cage w/safety bars, so if I dump something the cage catches it. I do lift heavy, but I also know when I get to that point of failure that it's going to drop. No more forcing it up with little nudges from a spotter. When I have friends come in town or the rare buddy come by to work out, I may take tha opportunity to get lift-off help on max effort reps, but that almost never happens.

[Airborne]

I never use a spot, That way I better use 110% or i`m fucked

[redspy]

I never have a a spot as it's tough to find someone who's working out the same muscle groups in a session as you and has the same goals. A spot for benches, squats etc is great though.

[chaos]

SMITH MACHINE. you can lift as heavy as you want, and never get into trouble. i have one at home.

chaos

[Dattman]

You guys need to find a partner who has the same enthusiam as you do, it took around 4 years before I found someone as dedicated as I am, but now Im glad I did, we are intense, we will talk after if we wanna bullshit, but during its all business. the way it should be, we help push eachother, i personally think i've gained alot from it...


DM

[ImaBldr]

I agree, some of my best gains were made when I had solid training partners in college....nothing like a group of motivated linemen throwing the iron around. That was 15 years ago though and my goals, lifestyle, schedule, and general dislike of people have driven me to working out alone.

[Kicker]

I for the most part work out alone but know most ever one in the gym. If I need a spot there are only soom of the guys I will go to because they know when to step in and when not. Also the ones I'm close to know how to push me for that extra effort. So my input would be find some one that knows you and knows when to push you and when to step in. This may take some time but IMO you should spend the time. I find the Bro's on juice tend to stick together and that is where you will find the right people.

[Volitan]

I miss my partner. Same schedule and this guy is waiting for you at the gym. Thre is no slacking. A good spot is hard to find, but me and my partner really jived and I had my best gains. Our schedules are all f"d up now and we no longer get togeather. If you have the oportunity and find someone that really helps and motivates I say do it. A spotter ensures you can take it to that next level with out hurting yourself.

V.

[bma1810]

i lift at home and i just have my wife give me a spot on a few exercises.its for that extra confidence to get that extra rep or to add on that extra weight.. for me its mostly mental. say you are benching and someone is following the bar with their fingers.your mind will think there helping even if there not and you may get an extra rep or 2. is a spotter necessary-no. does it help- yes.

[whitey]

I never use a spotter - just a matter of personal preference, and like redspy said, I haven't found someone with compatible goals and training philosophies.

I have a modified workout that allows me to go to complete failure without the need for a spotter. Basically this consists of a lot of dumbell work, and some hammer machines to fill in the gaps. I use an explosive concentric movement, with a super-slow (8-10 sec.) eccentric. I do rest-pause sets with 20 sec. rest between sets 2 and 3, and I'm going to failure on each set. [This is basically DC method].

It actually annoys me a little when guys attempt to give me a spot, although I appreciate the effort. I cannot get as much out of a spotted set as I can on my own. It seems like everybody gives too much help - I really want to struggle with those last reps. Whenever I'm asked to give spots, I end up doing all the work - these guys just want to make it to 10 reps, even if they only had 4 in them. LOL...

That's what you get when you work out in a college gym, I guess...

[wnt2bbeast]

partners and spotters are two different things
i dont believe you can lift heavy without a spotter..
eventually youl wind up hurt

[tattoojr]

I'll get someone to spot if I'm going for a PR or hitting a set to total failure. I know what my body can handle and I also know that if I get hurt there ain't no paycheck going to be coming in. I wished I could find someone to workout with but most of the guys that lift when I do are doing maintaince lifting or doing more shaping vs.compound movements then I care to use.J.R.