How Can I Feel Safer Lifting Heavier with a Barbell?

The week started off a little hectic for Tundra Performance and Physical Therapy. On Monday we had the opportunity to talk with members of the YMCA, chatting about aches, nagging pains, and training programs helping their members get moving in the right direction on their symptoms. We followed that up with an event with Nest Health Connections, where we set up a table in a conference room with one of their partners, where tenants and employees could venture down and meet with us to talk about any injuries they were experiencing and get some advice on how to address them.

What an awesome start to the week! Being able to meet with new people curious about what they have going on, and just looking for a little help on their aches and pains. Within these conversations came up a great question that I thought was quite pertinent to people exploring new goals and objectives within their lifting.

How can I feel safer lifting heavier with a barbell?

I love this question. It comes with intent, with purpose, and objective. A lot of new lifters we work with after injury come to this precipice and are ready to take the next step in regards to how they look to continue to get stronger and create a new path for themselves after injury. As with anything, with practice comes experience. The more you practice under a barbell, the more you will know where you stand with the weight. Until then, here are a few of my favorite recommendations to help you get there:

1) Reps in Reserve

Simply, lift 1 - 3 reps lower than your max on that given lift. The heavier we lift, the closer to max we get. This is when we start getting a little uncomfortable if we’ve never been in this position before. This is why it's important to track our weights and lifting, and have a better understanding of our starting points when it comes to selecting weights that day.

By reducing the number of reps per set, it allows us to maintain a high intensity, while not placing ourselves in a compromised situation that requires us to bail from a weight that we might “fail.”

2) Safety Pins

Depending on the gym and set up at the given facility. They should provide full power racks or at least half racks that offer safety pins. These are exactly the circumstances that they are for. A lot of times safety pins are better than a traditional spotter because if that individual has never spotted a heavy lift before, they may not feel comfortable themselves providing assistance. The safety pins provide a solid structure made to assist heavier loads and lifting where an individual can safely step away from a “failed” rep.

3) Make a New Friend

If your gym does not have safety pins, no worries, traditional spotters can go a long way. The gym can already be an intimidating space for new lifters, I get it. However, the more you talk to people at the gym, you find most individuals are just nerds wrapped in big muscles. They love talking lifting and especially love new people engaged in what they are most passionate about. While it might be a spotter one day, it turns into a new community for you the next.

4) Lift Without Barbell Collars

While not my favorite recommendation with new lifters, as it requires some competence in moving the barbell in a smooth and fluid manner, it is an option. If you are concerned about getting trapped underneath a barbell, especially in a bench press, simply remove the collars holding the weights prior to the lift. This way, if you “fail” a rep, you can simply shift the weight over and slide the weights off using gravity.

Feeling safer and comfortable with heavy lifting takes time and practice. The more you explore weights and movement, the more competent you become with the equipment and the tools of lifting. In the meantime, try out a few of the recommendations provided and you might just find yourself more confidence along the way.

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If you are currently struggling with an injury or unable to perform in the activities you enjoy. Please follow the link to schedule a consultation call to discuss how we can help you.