Hats off to those special unselfish souls who give time and attention to assist others with their bodybuilding training. Commonly called "spotters," these guys play a vital role in the safety, education, and development of their peers in the gym.
Don't you wish you had a dime for every time you've heard the guy on the flat bench next to yours say, "Hey, couldja gimme a spot here?" Always consider a request like that a compliment, because the fellow asking you that must believe that you are capable, else he would not have done so. He is putting his own safety and training to some degree at your mercy.
To be really confident in your ability as a spotter, nevertheless, there are some things you need to think through:
1. If you are not a competent bodybuilding spotter, politely decline. Perhaps you are at the moment recovering from an illness or surgery and are really not in peak condition. Perhaps you are taking a medication that alters your motor control or response time. Such conditions put both spotter and spottee at risk.
2. If you should be involved in an accident while spotting, does the gym have insurance coverage for you and the guy you are spotting?
3. Do your need to be wearing a lifting belt? Got your non-slip gloves on?
4. When positioning yourself for the spot, glance about the perimeter of the area. If objects are near that might interfere with an attempted lift, remove them. If persons are mobile in nearby aisles, be certain they are clear before beginning any exercise. Be certain you are not standing in a wet or slick area.
5. Position yourself in a stance symmetrical to the person you are spotting. Let him know if he is postured correctly for his exercise i.e. if he is preparing for a squat, inform him if his back is not aligned properly for the lift. Assess whether you are able by yourself to maneuver the weight attempted should the spottee experience failure or loss of control. If you are not, say so, and either enlist the assistance of a second spotter or decline altogether.
6. Agree with the spottee on the point of beginning his lifting effort. When you and your buddy are both positioned properly, concentrate and focus on the activity you are about to perform. Communicating verbally is important. I usually say something like, "On three...one...two...THREE!" At that point, there is a surge of energy and you have LIFT-OFF!
7. Be encouraging as you perform a spotter's duty. You should have the following phrases as a natural part of your spotter's vocabulary: "Way to go, man!" "Come on now, you've got it!" "Just one more...you can do it!" "Let's put an extra five on each end next set." "Great set, mate!" (If you live in Australia). If you live somewhere else, it might be "dude," "bro," or "pard'ner."
Unless you are a personal trainer, you likely will not get paid for your gratis bodybuilding spotting. But some day in the future when a guy you train becomes an IFBB competitor, a famous wrestler, or Mr. America, you can proudly say, "I used to spot that guy when he was green as a new cucumber." And inwardly, you will feel all warm and tingly.
Copyright 2008, Masszymes Inc. All rights reserved.
If you want to join Kevin Dillon and experience some freaky growth naturally, then go to: www.freakygrowth.com - You'll learn more about bodybuilding, natural bodybuilding training, bodybuilding, cutting-edge bodybuilding diets and powerful supplement stacks.
Why Your Muscle Pumps Have Nothing To Do With Your Muscle Gains
Your back is firmly planted on the bench as you wrap your chalked hands around the cold, steel bar. Your training partner helps you un-rack the weight as you power the bar up and down, squeezing your chest and triceps on each grueling rep. You complete your 6 repetitions, re-rack the bar and stand up.
Your chest feels tight and engorged with blood. You take a look in the mirror, thrilled with how full and vascular your pecs appear. You feel strong, powerful, healthy and motivated to blast through the rest of your workout with your newly achieved “pump”.
Let’s face it, a pump feels incredible. For those of you who aren’t quite sure what I’m talking about, a pump is the feeling that you get as blood becomes trapped inside your muscle tissue as a result of resistance training. The muscles will swell up and increase in size, vascularity and tightness.
There is certainly nothing wrong with achieving a pump in the gym, and it is simply a natural result of intense weight training. However, contrary to what the majority of weightlifters may think, a pump is in no way indicative of a successful workout. Anyone who uses the intensity of their pump as a gauge for the effectiveness of their workout is making a costly error.
On countless occasions I've heard lifters raving about the massive pumps they get in the gym as they share methods for achieving the best pump possible. "Dude, this will give you a crazy pump!" If you have already been working out for a decent amount of time then you know exactly what I'm talking about. While a pump does feel extremely satisfying, just remember that it means very little in terms of muscle stimulation and growth.
A pump is simply the result of extra blood within the muscle tissue. Think of it this way: if I took a pair of 10 pound dumbbells and performed 300 reps of a bench press movement, I would achieve an incredible pump. If muscle pumps meant muscle growth, then super light weight, ultra high rep programs would be the most effective way to grow. Any serious lifter with half a brain knows that this simply is not the case.
Do you want to know how to truly gauge the success of a workout? Here it is…
Take your workout records (in terms of weight and reps) from the previous week and compare it to the current week. Did you improve? Were you able to either increase the resistance slightly on each exercise, or perform an extra rep or two?
If so, you had a successful workout, regardless of how much blood you were able to pump into your muscle tissue.
Building muscle mass and strength is all about training with 100% intensity on every given set and then striving to improve from week to week. If you are able to consistently achieve this, your muscle size and strength will increase faster than you ever thought possible, with or without a pump.
I hope this article cleared up your confusion on the issue of "muscle pumps". There's so much misleading muscle-building information circling around on the Internet these days that it can sometimes be impossible to know who to listen to. If you want to learn the truth about 14 other common, counterproductive "myths", visit my webste below for details.
About The Author
Sean Nalewanyj is a bodybuilding author, dedicated trainer and writer of top-selling Internet Muscle-Building E-Book: The Truth About Building Muscle. Learn why 95% of trainees in the gym will NEVER see any significant results by visiting his website: MuscleGainTruth
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