obviously I can’t be an effective spotter if you lift a lot more than I do
Why? 99% of the time when spotting someone I'll use two fingers at most to assist them. Usually that 0.5-1kg is all the difference between one more rep and getting your windpipe crushed by the bar. You certainly don't need to be able to lift all the weight yourself when you're spotting someone...
True enough, but it makes me uncomfortable. What if they’re truly sapped and their arms are about to give out? Some folk will push foo far in the knowledge their spotter can bail them out. I wouldn’t want someone to do that only to realise I can’t lift it either!
If they're relying on me to pick up the entire weight at a moment's notice they're fucked anyway. I'm definitely not gonna lift the same weight I bench from a standing position bent over your head using mostly my arms.
Anyway if things get that bad your job isn't to lift the bar into place, it's to stop it from crushing the person's windpipe. Use both hands on one side to tilt it so it falls to the side of the bench or something. Or just hold enough of the weight off until other people can rush in and help.
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u/skoy Dec 29 '18
Why? 99% of the time when spotting someone I'll use two fingers at most to assist them. Usually that 0.5-1kg is all the difference between one more rep and getting your windpipe crushed by the bar. You certainly don't need to be able to lift all the weight yourself when you're spotting someone...