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then I watched the whole thing and I'm glad is not me, but damn I know I've done this in the past. Stealing reps from the partner. I now do like helping my trainee lift one last rep and then work the eccentric on their own, then done. I guess one can definitely get carried away sometimes.
I respect the stuff you're saying but I don't think it really matters also much of certain exercises like if your spotter has his hand on the bar barbell bench press for instance as long as your spotter is not using his Force the pulled away and it's all you I don't think it really matters and at same time for some people it's a mental thing having someone there
Another classic "getting your money's worth" trainer move is to explain the finer points of the biomechanics involved in a lift to a novice. The idea, I suppose, is that you're gaining an advantage over the other lifters who aren't getting the same kind of expert/insider info.
@@pjp7316 It would be useful if beginners could actually remember it, but realistically they won't. You can't do everything and there are far more important fundamentals to focus the mind on getting correct when you're starting out.
Same here..besides when I ask for spot just to make sure I dont drop the weights on me, they help by pulling it on my reps and waste that entire set...
Using a power rack with crash bars has been my boon; just set those up and no worries if I fail a rep. This way, the only time I need to ask for help is if I want someone to call my depth or lockout when things get heavy.
As a spotter you should only get the bar up when your partner as hit failure, you're there for safety. OR if you want to do a set of eccentric reps, as you're stronger on the way down, have your spotter (on a bench press) pull the bar up, but you have to slowly handle the weight down until you cant control it down.
Totally agree, I see this ALL THE TIME. As you said, the ONLY time it’s appropriate for a spotter to give assistance is if they get stuck & need help, or if they’re pushing past failure w/ a few forced reps. 💪
My parents were old-school gym rats, and had an amazing spotter trick. Take two fingers on each hand. Place them on the bottom of the bar but don't apply any pressure. It triggers some sort of psychological reaction in the lifter because you think the bar's being supported even though your spotter is doing zero work
@@keivan8137 Psychology plays a huge role in lifting. More times than not, if you believe you can do it, you can do it. You will push harder, you will try harder.
Actually, they find that even with no pressure applied. The assistance in balancing the bar can actually assist them greatly. I'd suggest not touching the bar at all, because even if you feel you aren't giving assistance, you may still be.
I've literally yelled at my wife "DON'T TOUCH THE BAR" in the middle of a 5 second rep. Obviously apologized right afterward :) Instead of spotters, I like working out with safeties in a rack, if you fail you just leave the bar on the pins and crawl out.
Hey Sean, most advice found on RUclips including yours is based around adding muscle mass. Would be great to hear your insight on how to "just" maintain a reached physique. Thanks and much appreciate your straightforward and honest videos!
but what about when u get close to the end of the set and a spotter helps with the positive allowing the lifter to do the negative. Surely that'll be good for the lifter to push themselves beyond failure, especially on the negative eccentric part of the movement to really stimulate more muscle growth, right? edit: omfg i really need to watch the full video before I write a comment
I haven't trained with partners for years but back when I did do Id only ever touch the bar when it stopped moving (example being a bench press) and even then would just touch it with my fingers, many times i found most people dont push themselves hard enough and their 'to failure' is more mental than physical. Many times they would say 'thats it' and I would touch the bar without giving any assistance and tell them something along the lines of "two more. ill stay with you" implying I'm helping them lift it which turns to "and again, just one more" all the while not having to help them at all until the last part of the very last rep for safety. So many times this used to happen where then after i would show them what I did to 'help' them lift the weight, ie nothing and that it was all them but they get used to either waiting for the spotter to start helping them lift when it gets hard or they convince themselves they are at failure.
I literally lose a huge amount of focus when someone spots me...like mind muscle connection goes to almost 0 and I end up doing the most 💩 reps when they help.
back around the early 2000's I used to train HIT. (Dorian Yates style) and found it vital to have a good training partner to push each other past failure and beyond with spotting. you really cannot replicate that without one, (drop sets, rest pause partials etc are just not the same level of intensity) there was at times a lot of assistance involved
You don't explain the difference between a spotter jumping in when not needed and a training partner or coach doing forced reps to get every little bit out of the set.
I actually thought those spotters were only lightly keeping their hands on the bar to be prepared to catch it in case their client/friend would lose control over the bar or not be able to lift it up again (especially for chest press) except from obvious cases of forced reps. I must have been so naive. If I'll ever get a spotter for the sake of safety with heavier lifts, I'd be sure to keep this in mind. Wouldn't want them butting in on my lifts unnecessarily!
Yep Its extremely annoying the spotter shouldn't even have there hands close to the bar unless the guy lifting literally can't get the weight up and needs assistent.
Sean a question here, I’m very new to the channel, loving your content btw. Just watched this video, and it sparked a curiosity in me, so basically, this year I’ve finally managed to get a good response to my training in terms of muscle and strength development, by always aiming for very low rep sets, 4 to 8 max, always striving for failure and to increase volume( reasonably). But in each one of my sessions I always hear that this isn’t really a good training method. But hearing you say in this video that the goal of a set is to reach those few last difficult reps, does that also apply to a heavy set, let’s in which you would fail at the 4th rep, as basically you would struggle in all those reps. I will also fulfill the stereotype, and say, I’m not a native English speaker, so there may be problems in my writing
The problem with doing it this way is that the risk of injury is much higher since you're gonna be using higher weights compared to if you did 8-->15 reps.. Plus it puts a lot more strain on your tendons and ligaments.
Funny thing when I got in to weightlifting I never made this mistake, I very purposely told my training partner I dont want you to to touch the bar I will tell you if I need help. I dont know if my background playing basketball pushed me to believe that I needed to do all the reps and sets without assistance, but thank God I never did this. I remeber seeing people who looked like they had much more progress than me doing this and thinking it seemed really stupid to have somone lifting the bar on every set, my whole thought before ever watching anything was if I cant lift that weight constantly I need to go down in weight because at that point I am just ego lifting.
How about using a spotter for forced reps after you hit muscular failure? I think it's ok for the spotter to jump in as soon as they see downward motion. For example, the bench press, once you are pushing up and the bar gets stuck and won't go higher and goes back down, that's a good cue for a spotter to jump in, but not before that. From there, assistant with a few more forced reps is ok with me. Could be considered a quick dropset. Thoughts?
I, for the first time, had someone ask me to spot them and I tried doing it in the "no stealing his gains" style. he said how many reps he had and after he got those reps, I only helped in re-racking the weight. the next set he said 1, but as he tried pushing it up I saw he couldn't lock it out so I helped.
So true, and nothing pisses me off more than when I’m at those final grinder reps and the spotter touches the bar. Needless to say they only make that mistake once with me. Great content as always man
I feel spotters on excercises like bench press or squats that are for safety or getting to failure is okay but spotters for machines seems so damn stupid to me... like you use machines to be completely safe if you can't use the machine just lower the weight and that's it...
Do you want assistance on the first lift off? How many reps are you aiming for? Expectation of how many reps to hit...anything after that you're just there to make sure the other person doesn't hurt themselves. Spotter could definitely motivate/pump person up (words) for extra reps but shouldn't be there to actually assist significantly. Great no nonsense content as usual Sean
I've had times where I had to restart my set because the spotter I had made my set very unchallenging. And when I spot someone, I don't even hover my hands under the bar bc I fear what if my hands accidentally touch the bar.
I would say the only time assisted reps are useful is when you are at the end of your hypertrophy block and you're doing an overloading week followed by a deload.
I’m actually not a big believer in having training partners. I might ask a gym bro to spot me if I’m going for heavy single, but I’ve never understood those guys who can’t go to the gym unless they have a training partner.
I’m very been working with a trainer since September and my trainer doesn’t touch the bar for bench press unless the bar drops towards my chest but when I’m strugeing they let me push myself with no grabbing of the bar
One of my pet peeves.... I’ve learned to just tell them not to interfere unless I say “help”. Find a good training partner, they will learn/know quickly.
I'd never heard the term "forced reps" before I watched this video, but after looking it up, I thought that's just what spotting was for (besides safety, of course). I also am pretty sure when I see coaches doing this, that's what they're doing as well... And aside from the coaches who supposedly give assistance starting at rep 1, that seems to be basically what you're describing otherwise anyway. It's sort of like a manual/immediate drop set. I wish you'd gone more into detail about the efficacy of forced reps because that's really what I'm looking for. You say it's for advanced lifters, and I happen to believe you (because I think you should usually be aiming for 1-2 RIR anyway), but for this reason I found this video kind of uncompelling. It certainly doesn't seem like forced reps "ruin" the quality of your workout the way you imply. I'm really wondering if forced reps that start earlier (so you can get to 1-2 RIR twice in one set, rather than getting to 0 RIR twice in one set) might be worthwhile even for beginner lifters. I guess I'll have to rely on the videos I can find about drop sets.
This happens to me always... It's sooooo annoying... I have no power rack or pins at my gym... So it's hard to push the bench press to a good amount of intensity without a spotter but it appears as if no one knows how to spot correctly
The few times I'm asked to spot for someone, i don't touch the bar before they either call out to me that they can't go any further, or i see the weight gradually stop moving away from them, and is gradually coming back down
how many times did I have to say to my spotter while bench pressing... "help me less!" and this is after I make Shure that I want to be help only when I was blocked. it's insane
I remember training with my step dad who‘s a pretty buff dude and he was doing bench presses and I was supposed to spot him. He‘s definitely the kind of guy to push to his absolute limits but when he was starting to really struggle with his reps I got into position to help and put my fingers under the bar. I was actually doing anything I really just touched the bar and followed his movement but just the placebo of my hands being there somehow unlocked a last bit of strength and he got that last rep he thought he couldn‘t get all by himself.
They are following NSCA guidelines. If they don’t follow the guidelines, they can get sued if any injury occurs. Those trainers probably know their shit. When they are off the clock they may train for sport, but when they are on, performance is limited by the conditions of exercises.
Hey Sean, I've seen guys such as Chris Bumstead use this technique alot. Going to true failure, then having your spotter help you squeeze out a few more reps, essentially serving the same purpose as a dropset. Wouldn't you agree that when used correctly, this can be a useful tool for advanced lifters?
Most lifters do not communicate with the spotter. An example would be, "Hey, I usually start to fail on the 4th or 5th rep. My goal is 5-6 reps. When curling, I'll often ask the spotter to assist me just enough to move the weight in that failure rep(s).
I see personal trainers at the gym mostly training novice skinny high school kids, and I notice that they give them nothing they can use going forward. No guidance on their routine or explanation of progressive overload. I saw one guy training a clear beginner and he had him doing drop sets of tricep exercises for the first movement of the workout, followed by trx bodyweight curls. I wanted to catch the kid after and tell him to learn and focus on getting stronger on the basic compound movements
Yes, you're thinking of 'forced reps." but in the examples used, the assistance comes in before failure is reached and appears to terminate without failure being reached.
Hey Sean, I have a question unrelated to the video. As far as I am aware your 'Body Transformation Blueprint' is out for quite a while now. Have you ever or do you consider to rework/optimize your plan? Reasons could be new scientific knowledge or personal experiences regarding some exercises. E.g. in the Blueprint there is a 'Dumbbell Shrug' recommended, while you have a video on your RUclips channel about overhead shrugs titled as 'best trapezius exercises'. I would like to hear your opinion on this matter. Thanks for your hard work so far. Ano
Yeah, we see a lot of that especially with female fitness influencers on IG who has a guy holding her arms with the weights while she lifts. If they got the money to pay someone that does half of the work when the going get tough....
This was a lot more common about 20 to 30 years ago but there was always a crew of guys at every commercial gym that had the whole bodybuilding uniform on including the ridiculous zubaz zebra striped or tiger striped pants,, a bodybuilding specific sweatshirt that often had rubber bubble let rising of the fabric with big open necks so you can see the string tank top underneath. These guys would often wear Oakley blade style sunglasses, and every single one of them what's sporting some version of a mullet. They were at the gym to load up as much weight on the bar so that their training partner straining his ass off would be able to keep the bar moving this way the guy was receiving anywhere from 50 to 200 lb of assistance on every single rep
real easy solution to this work out with a friend that doesn't care if you die or not, that bar will not be touched unless you ask for help, i was pinned bye 315 for a solid 5 seconds before my buddy pulled it off me, best training partner ive ever had, we push each other to the absolute max
I see this a lot too with fitness trainers. I think many don't train motivated clients who can take the proper workout to build muscle. The client gets intimidated quickly and runs off or has no confidence on how to perform the lift without the trainer hovering over them. So it is mostly common with trainers who don't have motivated clients. All that said....yes it destroys one's workout completely.
My general rule is I don't jump in until the bar path moves backwards. Ex on the bench press it's starting to go back down. If it's just stopped, let em try to grind out that last rep.
That's better than most people, but the best rule is not to help until the person asks you to. No one is ever straining SO hard that they can't grunt out a "grab it!!!" instruction to you. It's best to discuss the conditions before the set begins, although things don't always work out the way you think because people regularly misunderstand each other. (I've lost count of how many times I've told people not to touch the bar until I tell them, but they touch it anyway.)
I only let someone assist me on the bench press and I do that only in the last rep of my last set of that workout. If I can't do 99% of the workout by myself in a weight that actually makes me struggle, I'd rather not go to the gym at all. You go to the gym to lift and make your body hit hypertrophy, if you don't struggle, you're not gonna get any results.
If I ever do get a spot I always tell them to not touch the bar until it either comes all the way back down to my chest, I tell you to take it, or I drop it. I normally just do the roll of shame if I fail though because I don’t want someone to screw it up. A month ago on my third attempt bench at a meet though I broke my humorous and the spotters saved me from dropping the bar on myself though so I may have to reassess this when I get healthy again.
I never ask for a spot because it’s never consistent unless you have a dedicated partner. I’d rather lift a bit less with more TUT in a controlled manner. I’d only understand it solo if one was going for a 1RM, which isn’t many people.
Haha, the stock video for the bench press clip is from one of my gyms in - Croatia, Zagreb haha gym is called XXL and is one of the biggest in the city. What a crazy coincidence
Once I was bench pressing asked the dude to spot my first 150lb bench press he was there with one fucking hand tried to pull up with struggle... Like wtf use both hands. , he destroyed the whole balance and I failed after 2 reps. (
Never understood the thought process of helping somebody with a set, spotting is one thing, but if you can't do the weight just don't do it. If your doing 120 BP and your spotter helps you, your better off just doing 80 by yourself
I always use a safety rack :) Usually people start running to me when I fail and I just dont understand why, the rack is obviously there to save my life :'D
Hi Sean. I have been following you for a short time now but I want to be honest and tell you that I thought you seemed credible and that you actually want to help people. I have a question for you? What are the most stamp workout exercises for a beginner like me? I once heard a bodybuilder say that one should keep his training simple as a beginner and even all the way up to professional bodybuilding. I hope you understand what I mean? 😁 I have also filled out your forms for an exercise program and look forward to getting your answer on my bad shape 😄🙏 Hope you have time to answer my question.? Best regards from here Denmark
I hit without thinking 🤔 it's good to see my favorite RUclipsr back in full effect. You have truly been on a roll. I know you been so busy with Real Science Athletics just know I support you on everything you do. I stand behind you 💯. To anyone who reading this post if you're looking for the truth look no further it's here.
I haven’t trained much at a commercial gym in a while...people actually commonly do this?? I remember this happening back in high school, but jeepers 😵
When I used to train to failure more frequently I used to ask people for a spot and I would explicitly instruct them, as nicely and clearly as I could, not to touch the bar until I requested it. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, something like 75% of the time people still jumped in to "help" me without me asking them to. I think it's a combination of some people being too dense to understand even simple instructions, and panicking when they see the bar speed slow down and thinking that you'll fail and the weight will crush you.
@@danieltemelkovski9828 that is very unfortunate ☹️ but also makes a lot of sense (again, unfortunately). As your trusted spotter, they were sabotaging your gains, the charlatans!
See this is why when I spot someone I don't use my full hand I only use my pinkies so that way it's only taking off what my pinkies can lift and pinkies they can't lift that much
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I read the title and immediately tought, ''hopefully is not something I do''
then I watched the whole thing and I'm glad is not me, but damn I know I've done this in the past. Stealing reps from the partner. I now do like helping my trainee lift one last rep and then work the eccentric on their own, then done. I guess one can definitely get carried away sometimes.
I respect the stuff you're saying but I don't think it really matters also much of certain exercises like if your spotter has his hand on the bar barbell bench press for instance as long as your spotter is not using his Force the pulled away and it's all you I don't think it really matters and at same time for some people it's a mental thing having someone there
I think a lot of trainers do this just to make the client feel like they are "in this together" or are "getting their money's worth". It's silly.
Everyone please report these fake accounts
Another classic "getting your money's worth" trainer move is to explain the finer points of the biomechanics involved in a lift to a novice. The idea, I suppose, is that you're gaining an advantage over the other lifters who aren't getting the same kind of expert/insider info.
@@danieltemelkovski9828 thats just cool to know if ur serious about training, and can be useful for deciding things and form in the exercise
@@pjp7316 It would be useful if beginners could actually remember it, but realistically they won't. You can't do everything and there are far more important fundamentals to focus the mind on getting correct when you're starting out.
I don’t ask for a spot anymore ‘cause even when I explain to someone that, they always start to help when they are not supposed too.
Same here 👍
Same here..besides when I ask for spot just to make sure I dont drop the weights on me, they help by pulling it on my reps and waste that entire set...
Aggravatingly common!
Same. Back when I started spotters we’re there to stop you dying under a bar and nothing else ! Gym staff are horrific for this.
Using a power rack with crash bars has been my boon; just set those up and no worries if I fail a rep. This way, the only time I need to ask for help is if I want someone to call my depth or lockout when things get heavy.
What's worse is when your spotter lifts the bar and racks it for you when you're 3 reps from failure because the bar speed started to slow down
"Don't spot me. WATCH ME, bro!" - Dom Mazzetti. He accidentally gives out good advice every now and then.
@@larryelder6589 stfu
As a spotter you should only get the bar up when your partner as hit failure, you're there for safety.
OR if you want to do a set of eccentric reps, as you're stronger on the way down, have your spotter (on a bench press) pull the bar up, but you have to slowly handle the weight down until you cant control it down.
exactly
"let's call him..oh idk..Vince?" lmaooooo😂
Poor Vince ha ha!
"What's goin on guys?" Never gets old
I subscribed to you mamaswole 🙌🏾. Great content Sean!
@@cjtech8284 awe thank you so much CJ I'm happy to have you on the squad
?
Totally agree, I see this ALL THE TIME. As you said, the ONLY time it’s appropriate for a spotter to give assistance is if they get stuck & need help, or if they’re pushing past failure w/ a few forced reps. 💪
Yup. Sometimes it's like the spotter is getting more of a workout than the person who's actually lifting the weight.
My parents were old-school gym rats, and had an amazing spotter trick. Take two fingers on each hand. Place them on the bottom of the bar but don't apply any pressure. It triggers some sort of psychological reaction in the lifter because you think the bar's being supported even though your spotter is doing zero work
it works, i call it "magical fingers" lmao
hmm but if your training is gauged on true technical failure then psychology shouldn't really be playing a role in it
@@keivan8137 Psychology plays a huge role in lifting. More times than not, if you believe you can do it, you can do it. You will push harder, you will try harder.
@@jontargaryen1425 I understand that, but the whole idea of training to true failure is that gun to your head, you can’t do another rep
Actually, they find that even with no pressure applied. The assistance in balancing the bar can actually assist them greatly. I'd suggest not touching the bar at all, because even if you feel you aren't giving assistance, you may still be.
Oportunity missed to include "Killing your gains" in the title
I've literally yelled at my wife "DON'T TOUCH THE BAR" in the middle of a 5 second rep. Obviously apologized right afterward :)
Instead of spotters, I like working out with safeties in a rack, if you fail you just leave the bar on the pins and crawl out.
safety bars are frickin epiccccc
Hey Sean,
most advice found on RUclips including yours is based around adding muscle mass. Would be great to hear your insight on how to "just" maintain a reached physique.
Thanks and much appreciate your straightforward and honest videos!
also mobility
Agree with everything. Smart remark, Sean
but what about when u get close to the end of the set and a spotter helps with the positive allowing the lifter to do the negative. Surely that'll be good for the lifter to push themselves beyond failure, especially on the negative eccentric part of the movement to really stimulate more muscle growth, right?
edit: omfg i really need to watch the full video before I write a comment
Yeah watch the vid first 😂
I haven't trained with partners for years but back when I did do Id only ever touch the bar when it stopped moving (example being a bench press) and even then would just touch it with my fingers, many times i found most people dont push themselves hard enough and their 'to failure' is more mental than physical.
Many times they would say 'thats it' and I would touch the bar without giving any assistance and tell them something along the lines of "two more. ill stay with you" implying I'm helping them lift it which turns to "and again, just one more" all the while not having to help them at all until the last part of the very last rep for safety. So many times this used to happen where then after i would show them what I did to 'help' them lift the weight, ie nothing and that it was all them but they get used to either waiting for the spotter to start helping them lift when it gets hard or they convince themselves they are at failure.
I literally lose a huge amount of focus when someone spots me...like mind muscle connection goes to almost 0 and I end up doing the most 💩 reps when they help.
I don't have a spotter I bench in a squat rack at home so if I fail I can just put it on the safety pins
Yeah same bro
I feel your pain as a gym instructor and personal trainer myself. Your the man Sean. Thanks again
Derek 🥋
back around the early 2000's I used to train HIT. (Dorian Yates style) and found it vital to have a good training partner to push each other past failure and beyond with spotting. you really cannot replicate that without one, (drop sets, rest pause partials etc are just not the same level of intensity) there was at times a lot of assistance involved
You don't explain the difference between a spotter jumping in when not needed and a training partner or coach doing forced reps to get every little bit out of the set.
Love the back to back uploads 🐐
I actually thought those spotters were only lightly keeping their hands on the bar to be prepared to catch it in case their client/friend would lose control over the bar or not be able to lift it up again (especially for chest press) except from obvious cases of forced reps. I must have been so naive. If I'll ever get a spotter for the sake of safety with heavier lifts, I'd be sure to keep this in mind. Wouldn't want them butting in on my lifts unnecessarily!
Yep Its extremely annoying the spotter shouldn't even have there hands close to the bar unless the guy lifting literally can't get the weight up and needs assistent.
Sean a question here, I’m very new to the channel, loving your content btw. Just watched this video, and it sparked a curiosity in me, so basically, this year I’ve finally managed to get a good response to my training in terms of muscle and strength development, by always aiming for very low rep sets, 4 to 8 max, always striving for failure and to increase volume( reasonably). But in each one of my sessions I always hear that this isn’t really a good training method. But hearing you say in this video that the goal of a set is to reach those few last difficult reps, does that also apply to a heavy set, let’s in which you would fail at the 4th rep, as basically you would struggle in all those reps. I will also fulfill the stereotype, and say, I’m not a native English speaker, so there may be problems in my writing
The problem with doing it this way is that the risk of injury is much higher since you're gonna be using higher weights compared to if you did 8-->15 reps..
Plus it puts a lot more strain on your tendons and ligaments.
i see this every single time i go to the gym and especially by all these IG posters. It's never gonna change.
Funny thing when I got in to weightlifting I never made this mistake, I very purposely told my training partner I dont want you to to touch the bar I will tell you if I need help. I dont know if my background playing basketball pushed me to believe that I needed to do all the reps and sets without assistance, but thank God I never did this. I remeber seeing people who looked like they had much more progress than me doing this and thinking it seemed really stupid to have somone lifting the bar on every set, my whole thought before ever watching anything was if I cant lift that weight constantly I need to go down in weight because at that point I am just ego lifting.
How about using a spotter for forced reps after you hit muscular failure? I think it's ok for the spotter to jump in as soon as they see downward motion. For example, the bench press, once you are pushing up and the bar gets stuck and won't go higher and goes back down, that's a good cue for a spotter to jump in, but not before that. From there, assistant with a few more forced reps is ok with me. Could be considered a quick dropset. Thoughts?
I, for the first time, had someone ask me to spot them and I tried doing it in the "no stealing his gains" style. he said how many reps he had and after he got those reps, I only helped in re-racking the weight. the next set he said 1, but as he tried pushing it up I saw he couldn't lock it out so I helped.
So true, and nothing pisses me off more than when I’m at those final grinder reps and the spotter touches the bar. Needless to say they only make that mistake once with me. Great content as always man
I feel spotters on excercises like bench press or squats that are for safety or getting to failure is okay but spotters for machines seems so damn stupid to me... like you use machines to be completely safe if you can't use the machine just lower the weight and that's it...
Do you want assistance on the first lift off? How many reps are you aiming for? Expectation of how many reps to hit...anything after that you're just there to make sure the other person doesn't hurt themselves. Spotter could definitely motivate/pump person up (words) for extra reps but shouldn't be there to actually assist significantly. Great no nonsense content as usual Sean
It’s almost like these trainers don’t want their clients to hit max hypertrophy. Do they know what that even is, one has to ask?
I've had times where I had to restart my set because the spotter I had made my set very unchallenging. And when I spot someone, I don't even hover my hands under the bar bc I fear what if my hands accidentally touch the bar.
There's no Sean video without some sort of reference to VShred Vince 😂😂
I would say the only time assisted reps are useful is when you are at the end of your hypertrophy block and you're doing an overloading week followed by a deload.
One thing i like to do is to assist reps after my lifting pals hits failure
Come to think of it, i have never seen anyone need a spot for a machine press
Was literally going to comment “this of course doesn’t apply to Leroy Davis training Dorian in temple gym” then saw the clip 😭😭
I’m actually not a big believer in having training partners. I might ask a gym bro to spot me if I’m going for heavy single, but I’ve never understood those guys who can’t go to the gym unless they have a training partner.
I’m very been working with a trainer since September and my trainer doesn’t touch the bar for bench press unless the bar drops towards my chest but when I’m strugeing they let me push myself with no grabbing of the bar
Finally. Some one said this 🤦🏻♂️ that kinda helping is actually bothering 😑
One of my pet peeves.... I’ve learned to just tell them not to interfere unless I say “help”. Find a good training partner, they will learn/know quickly.
I'd never heard the term "forced reps" before I watched this video, but after looking it up, I thought that's just what spotting was for (besides safety, of course). I also am pretty sure when I see coaches doing this, that's what they're doing as well... And aside from the coaches who supposedly give assistance starting at rep 1, that seems to be basically what you're describing otherwise anyway. It's sort of like a manual/immediate drop set.
I wish you'd gone more into detail about the efficacy of forced reps because that's really what I'm looking for. You say it's for advanced lifters, and I happen to believe you (because I think you should usually be aiming for 1-2 RIR anyway), but for this reason I found this video kind of uncompelling. It certainly doesn't seem like forced reps "ruin" the quality of your workout the way you imply. I'm really wondering if forced reps that start earlier (so you can get to 1-2 RIR twice in one set, rather than getting to 0 RIR twice in one set) might be worthwhile even for beginner lifters. I guess I'll have to rely on the videos I can find about drop sets.
This happens to me always... It's sooooo annoying... I have no power rack or pins at my gym... So it's hard to push the bench press to a good amount of intensity without a spotter but it appears as if no one knows how to spot correctly
If im not gargling or unresponsive i don't want help
The few times I'm asked to spot for someone, i don't touch the bar before they either call out to me that they can't go any further, or i see the weight gradually stop moving away from them, and is gradually coming back down
I was going to slightly disagree until you mentioned eccentrics and forced reps. Hit the nail on the head 💪🏼
how many times did I have to say to my spotter while bench pressing... "help me less!"
and this is after I make Shure that I want to be help only when I was blocked.
it's insane
I hope you'll upload more on yt again
My friend makes me push past failure is that ok
I just signed up for your free plan and I can't wait to see what you or someone on your team has in mind for me
I remember training with my step dad who‘s a pretty buff dude and he was doing bench presses and I was supposed to spot him. He‘s definitely the kind of guy to push to his absolute limits but when he was starting to really struggle with his reps I got into position to help and put my fingers under the bar. I was actually doing anything I really just touched the bar and followed his movement but just the placebo of my hands being there somehow unlocked a last bit of strength and he got that last rep he thought he couldn‘t get all by himself.
They are following NSCA guidelines. If they don’t follow the guidelines, they can get sued if any injury occurs. Those trainers probably know their shit. When they are off the clock they may train for sport, but when they are on, performance is limited by the conditions of exercises.
planet fitness trainers hate me. and im just 8 months in of lifting. why do people at the gym dislike me so much?
Hey Sean, I've seen guys such as Chris Bumstead use this technique alot. Going to true failure, then having your spotter help you squeeze out a few more reps, essentially serving the same purpose as a dropset. Wouldn't you agree that when used correctly, this can be a useful tool for advanced lifters?
I think this is in the same line as the forced reps he mentions in the video.
Most lifters do not communicate with the spotter. An example would be, "Hey, I usually start to fail on the 4th or 5th rep. My goal is 5-6 reps. When curling, I'll often ask the spotter to assist me just enough to move the weight in that failure rep(s).
I see personal trainers at the gym mostly training novice skinny high school kids, and I notice that they give them nothing they can use going forward. No guidance on their routine or explanation of progressive overload. I saw one guy training a clear beginner and he had him doing drop sets of tricep exercises for the first movement of the workout, followed by trx bodyweight curls. I wanted to catch the kid after and tell him to learn and focus on getting stronger on the basic compound movements
But wouldnt pushing past failure whilst being assisted help muscle building even morem
Yes, you're thinking of 'forced reps." but in the examples used, the assistance comes in before failure is reached and appears to terminate without failure being reached.
I have signed up for the free program twice now and have yet to receive it. I have recieved a good 20 other emails from your site though.
Hey Sean,
I have a question unrelated to the video.
As far as I am aware your 'Body Transformation Blueprint' is out for quite a while now. Have you ever or do you consider to rework/optimize your plan? Reasons could be new scientific knowledge or personal experiences regarding some exercises. E.g. in the Blueprint there is a 'Dumbbell Shrug' recommended, while you have a video on your RUclips channel about overhead shrugs titled as 'best trapezius exercises'.
I would like to hear your opinion on this matter.
Thanks for your hard work so far.
Ano
Yeah, we see a lot of that especially with female fitness influencers on IG who has a guy holding her arms with the weights while she lifts. If they got the money to pay someone that does half of the work when the going get tough....
The few times I do get spotted I usually say: "Don't touch the bar unless it's going for my teeth."
This was a lot more common about 20 to 30 years ago but there was always a crew of guys at every commercial gym that had the whole bodybuilding uniform on including the ridiculous zubaz zebra striped or tiger striped pants,, a bodybuilding specific sweatshirt that often had rubber bubble let rising of the fabric with big open necks so you can see the string tank top underneath. These guys would often wear Oakley blade style sunglasses, and every single one of them what's sporting some version of a mullet. They were at the gym to load up as much weight on the bar so that their training partner straining his ass off would be able to keep the bar moving this way the guy was receiving anywhere from 50 to 200 lb of assistance on every single rep
But what about the two finger spot on bench press? Where the “spotter” uses only there fingers and mentally it feels easier.
Is not only a placebo effect. The spotter is actually taking some of the load off you, even with just their fingers.
real easy solution to this work out with a friend that doesn't care if you die or not, that bar will not be touched unless you ask for help, i was pinned bye 315 for a solid 5 seconds before my buddy pulled it off me, best training partner ive ever had, we push each other to the absolute max
I see this a lot too with fitness trainers. I think many don't train motivated clients who can take the proper workout to build muscle. The client gets intimidated quickly and runs off or has no confidence on how to perform the lift without the trainer hovering over them. So it is mostly common with trainers who don't have motivated clients.
All that said....yes it destroys one's workout completely.
My general rule is I don't jump in until the bar path moves backwards. Ex on the bench press it's starting to go back down. If it's just stopped, let em try to grind out that last rep.
That's better than most people, but the best rule is not to help until the person asks you to. No one is ever straining SO hard that they can't grunt out a "grab it!!!" instruction to you. It's best to discuss the conditions before the set begins, although things don't always work out the way you think because people regularly misunderstand each other. (I've lost count of how many times I've told people not to touch the bar until I tell them, but they touch it anyway.)
I only let someone assist me on the bench press and I do that only in the last rep of my last set of that workout. If I can't do 99% of the workout by myself in a weight that actually makes me struggle, I'd rather not go to the gym at all. You go to the gym to lift and make your body hit hypertrophy, if you don't struggle, you're not gonna get any results.
If I ever do get a spot I always tell them to not touch the bar until it either comes all the way back down to my chest, I tell you to take it, or I drop it. I normally just do the roll of shame if I fail though because I don’t want someone to screw it up. A month ago on my third attempt bench at a meet though I broke my humorous and the spotters saved me from dropping the bar on myself though so I may have to reassess this when I get healthy again.
I always hated when people would insist on the shit helping with every rep. Help me with the last one that I can't get, and be done with it.
I never ask for a spot because it’s never consistent unless you have a dedicated partner. I’d rather lift a bit less with more TUT in a controlled manner. I’d only understand it solo if one was going for a 1RM, which isn’t many people.
Everyone needs to watch this.
On the extremely rare occasion I ask for a spot, I let them know from the get go NOT to touch the bar unless I tell them to.
I’ve never seen this before. Why would anyone do that
Haha, the stock video for the bench press clip is from one of my gyms in - Croatia, Zagreb haha gym is called XXL and is one of the biggest in the city. What a crazy coincidence
I utterly agree with you 100%. I call these ghost riders.
I utterly second the motion
I swear Im fucking dead everytime I bring in "hey whats going on guys?" Lmao
If done properly, these assisted/forced are just drop set reps.
Hi Sean, what are your thoughts on assisted positives post failure?
I love brad dingleberries spotter assisted curl presses
I never spot unless my homie is bout to die
Once I was bench pressing asked the dude to spot my first 150lb bench press he was there with one fucking hand tried to pull up with struggle... Like wtf use both hands. , he destroyed the whole balance and I failed after 2 reps. (
Never understood the thought process of helping somebody with a set, spotting is one thing, but if you can't do the weight just don't do it. If your doing 120 BP and your spotter helps you, your better off just doing 80 by yourself
I always use a safety rack :) Usually people start running to me when I fail and I just dont understand why, the rack is obviously there to save my life :'D
You have the right idea but I disagree with most of what is being said here
Damn i needed to hear this
Hi Sean.
I have been following you for a short time now but I want to be honest and tell you that I thought you seemed credible and that you actually want to help people. I have a question for you?
What are the most stamp workout exercises for a beginner like me?
I once heard a bodybuilder say that one should keep his training simple as a beginner and even all the way up to professional bodybuilding.
I hope you understand what I mean? 😁
I have also filled out your forms for an exercise program and look forward to getting your answer on my bad shape 😄🙏
Hope you have time to answer my question.? Best regards from here Denmark
Don't touch the bar! When the person you're spotting can't get the weight up anymore then spot by deadlifting it up...
A spotter is not supposed to make your workout easier...they're supposed to make it harder (like that guy screaming at Dorian Yates at 6:30!)
I airways tell spotters don't touch the bar unless I say take it.
your home gym lookin pretty good, how much did you spend in it and what is the equipment
It only costs as much as a green screen. Lmao
As much as Simon Miller's PlayStation room
It’s like when you tell your family members that I’m on a fat loss phase but they bring ice cream everyday thinking we care about you 🧐🤨
I hit without thinking 🤔 it's good to see my favorite RUclipsr back in full effect. You have truly been on a roll. I know you been so busy with Real Science Athletics just know I support you on everything you do. I stand behind you 💯. To anyone who reading this post if you're looking for the truth look no further it's here.
I haven’t trained much at a commercial gym in a while...people actually commonly do this?? I remember this happening back in high school, but jeepers 😵
When I used to train to failure more frequently I used to ask people for a spot and I would explicitly instruct them, as nicely and clearly as I could, not to touch the bar until I requested it. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, something like 75% of the time people still jumped in to "help" me without me asking them to. I think it's a combination of some people being too dense to understand even simple instructions, and panicking when they see the bar speed slow down and thinking that you'll fail and the weight will crush you.
@@danieltemelkovski9828 that is very unfortunate ☹️ but also makes a lot of sense (again, unfortunately). As your trusted spotter, they were sabotaging your gains, the charlatans!
5:17 "(or gently caressing your lower back) 🤣
See this is why when I spot someone I don't use my full hand I only use my pinkies so that way it's only taking off what my pinkies can lift and pinkies they can't lift that much
1:26 that “what’s going on now” has started haunting my dreams
Tbh, it kinda just turns it into a drop set at that point
I thought everybody knew the assisted reps kick in after failure.
more great advice.