Man dies dropping bar while benching

[pellius]

I can't tell if he was using a thumbless grip but that's the only way I can see it falling on him by the way he was benching.

PIP

https://www.instagram.com/p/B53oRc1pNUO/?igshid=1mjm4cjspy4mf

[Matt]

Damn.  RIP.

[Coach is Back!]

Damn, that’s hard to watch. Never bench alone and always use a spotter. Pellius, I guess I’ve been lucky for 40 years using a false grip, however I don’t recommend it. Bet almost anything his heart exploded

[pellius]

Damn, that’s hard to watch. Never bench alone and always use a spotter. Pellius, I guess I’ve been lucky for 40 years using a false grip, however I don’t recommend it. Bet almost anything his heart exploded

I actually use a false grip on everything. When the thumb is engage, especially on a straight bar, it twist your forearm unnaturally and I believe hurts the elbows long term. On pulling movements I want my hands to act more like hooks. When the thumb is engage I think you grip too hard and fatiguing the hands and using your arms more.

[pamith]

Never use thumbless grip

[galain]

I actually use a false grip on everything. When the thumb is engage, especially on a straight bar, it twist your forearm unnaturally and I believe hurts the elbows long term. On pulling movements I want my hands to act more like hooks. When the thumb is engage I think you grip too hard and fatiguing the hands and using your arms more.

I've always thought the same - I find a thumbless grip a bit easier to use. Might just stick dumbells and the hammer machine after watching that.

[SOMEPARTS]

I can't watch it. I used to bench pretty heavy at night by myself with false grip. Pretty stupid but I was young.

[Skylge]

Damn, that’s hard to watch. Never bench alone and always use a spotter. Pellius, I guess I’ve been lucky for 40 years using a false grip, however I don’t recommend it. Bet almost anything his heart exploded

You are creating a false sense of safety:
this experienced lifter had 3 spotters, yet died at a nearby trauma centre, at age 34

www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgYDfporX00

Do the math: a 400 lbs weight drops from say 2 feet in what time?
Human reaction time is at least 0.1 seconds
If the weight hits your heart / lungs / ribs sooner, even Thor & Eddie Hall won't be able to save your life

A correctly used Smith machine probably isn't tough or masculin looking for some guys, but the entire point of going to a gym is to become healthier, not dying imo

[Powerlift66]

Epic 1/2 reps, no self-spotters, thumbless grip, now lack of oxygen.
If you bench by yourself, setup in power-rack under pins, or ya, use d-bells.

[robcguns]

Never used a spotter and always used a thumbless grip,I occasionally thought about this happening luckily never did.He prob thought he made it until he dropped dead, that sucks.

I did almost die getting 495 stuck on my chest while benching alone at a Boston sports club about 15 years ago.My buddy was the manager and I can in at closing time and he was just leaving,well long story short I worked up to 495 and then got stuck and luckily he came back in and helped me get it off cause for some reason I put collars on that day which I almost never did.It was almost like I was supposed to die that day.

[pellius]

I haven't benched in over 15 years. (I know, it shows). I did get stuck once when I was a kid lifting at home with my Sears 110 lb barbell set. Of course, stage and era, I never thought what I would do in that situation. In this case, I did the roll to the stomach but I still couldn't sit up and the bar was digging into my gut making it hard to breathe. So, even though it had collars holding the plates in place I tilted the bar to one side and slid it off that way. I did crack one of the 25 lb plates. The cement cracked open the plastic casing but I was able to Duct tape it back together.

[Rambone]

How hard is it to wrap your thumbs around the bar to secure it   I’m sure keeping your thumb muscles out of the lift really direct the gains entirely to the pecs and is worth the risk of heart explosion or barbell guillotine to the throat. Whatever it takes....

[Soul Crusher]

This is why I stick mainly with DB - that really sucks.  RIP

[f450]

The thumb-less grip feels better for a full ROM and a deep stretch.. .. but that does not help build the chest and screws up the shoulders. Heavy Benching in general is horrible for  he shoulders anyways, and there is no evidence that it builds the chest better than inclines, declines or machines. so Incline all the way for me for my basic free weight strength builder.

Its called suicide grip for a reason. RIP. to a fellow brother in iron.

I also don't see the sense in benching anything over 405. Unless you are just a massive dude like Thor where 405 is like 225 for the regular guy.

[Flexacon]

It was the half reps that undone him as well as the grip. The half reps cause a tiny bit of rotation forward, so much more likely for the bar to slip out.

[Royalty]

It might not have been the grip.

It is possible that he had a wrist injury or shoulder injury during the set, and his hand/arm gave out.

[illuminati]

I can't tell if he was using a thumbless grip but that's the only way I can see it falling on him by the way he was benching.

PIP

https://www.instagram.com/p/B53oRc1pNUO/?igshid=1mjm4cjspy4mf

Oops   

Rule No. 1 - Don’t drop a heavy weight on your Chest / Rib Cage !!

Still he went out doing what he liked.

[IroNat]

Coach is right.  The impact of the bar stopped his heart.

Similar to kids who get hit in the chest with a baseball or someone who gets punched in the chest.

It's a rare event but it does happen,.

Guy was dumb to not bench in a rack with safety bars though.  Many people who go to gyms just don't know what they are doing.

[illuminati]

Coach is right.  The impact of the bar stopped his heart.

Similar to kids who get hit in the chest with a baseball or someone who gets punched in the chest.

It's a rare event but it does happen,.

Guy was dumb to not bench in a rack with safety bars though.  Many people who go to gyms just don't know what they are doing.

He likely knew what he was doing - just didn’t factor in the possible danger !!

[IroNat]

He likely knew what he was doing - just didn’t factor in the possible danger !!

Maybe he committed suicide.

[kreator]

Thumbless grip prevents you from maximizing your grip strength which significantly increases your overall pressing strength. You want to grip the bar as though you want to pinch it in half. When you grip as hard as you can you automatically engage other muscle groups aiding in the lift phase. Same with curls, presses etc. Gripping the bar as hard as you can should be the priority when lifting heavy

[wes]

RIP

[milone79]

The amount of dumb fuckss in this thread is hilarious!! Heavy benching is NOT bad for your shoulders, heavy benches with your shitty exercise form IS!!!  Thumb less grip may feel good but so does sniffing glue for some idiots, doesn't mean it's good for you!!! You don't need a spotter if you bench in a power rack with safety bars set up.

[robcguns]

The amount of dumb fuckss in this thread is hilarious!! Heavy benching is NOT bad for your shoulders, heavy benches with your shitty exercise form IS!!!  Thumb less grip may feel good but so does sniffing glue for some idiots, doesn't mean it's good for you!!! You don't need a spotter if you bench in a power rack with safety bars set up.

Never have and never will use a spotter and thumbless grip is the only way for me to press.guess I’m a dumb fuck.

[funk51]

use this, a thumbless grip is safe with one of these plus you actually get a greater ROM due to the yoke design.