Blah blah, how much do you bench?

Wayne_Cowdrey said:
I just find bench shirts utterly ridiculous.

nico said:It's the classic non-lifter question isn't it? Given that the number is probably meaningless to the person who asks the question, it is funny that as lifters we tend to get fairly defensive about it.

Fatpete said:
To answer your question, I will never walk with a yoke, with a wiggle - sometimes, with a limp - now and then, with a sense of determination - when needed. With a yoke - never.

Col_Austin said:If you overtly establish yourself as an alpha male, which we all are doing, this kind of thing goes with the territory. Pathetic as it may be, most of these guys just want to pay their respects, but don't want to feel like you're looking down on them. Defensive, hostile answers to the 'how much do you bench' question are usually what trigger the bigger, stronger mate counter attack. These guys expect you to be up yourself, but there's no real reason to ignore or dismiss them. Apart from anything else, it's just rude. No need to get into a full blown discussion about training, but if they've taken the time to pay you a compliment, might as well accept it with a good grace, rather than show your irritation and deliberately make them feel like a t**t.

Pompy said:
You are sensitive as f**k

James_94 said:I get asked it all the time by guys at my school, i get the 'bigger and stronger' friend stories all the time (they're probably true), although some can actually bench as much as me
most however bench on smith machines etc, which i've tried and i found it alot easier..

robocop said:i just make numbers up its quite funny cause no matter what they go whheeeww
i was coming down the lift of the empire state building with my misses and the guy who works the lift with the remote was a small kinda street smart looking black guy and he was like
"hey big dog what you benching" and at the time i had not benched for about 2 years and had no interest in it, so quickly i said about 625 not sharp enough to work out the pounds to kilos ratio very well and he replyed "s**te that mother f**ker aint cleen" haha
so since me and the wife have adopted this as our we catchphrase when we are impressed with something

Fatpete said:
I never mention the suit as I don't wear it to bench in, I don't mention the shirt either which I do wear.
Do steriod users mention that they were using ? Do touch and go pressers mention that their bench was not to competition standard ? would a man with a wider than legal grip mention that ? Does a man who moved his feet slightly mention that techically that would have negated the lift ?
Where to you draw the line, it's a member of the public, what does he care about the finer points of lifting, he just wants a number.
I was in a chip shop recemtly and one of the waiters mentioned my size, I nodded. He asked if I lifted, I said I did powerlifting. He asked my bench, I told him, he asked my squat, I told him that too, finally the deadlift, I told him that as well. He seemed reasonably impressed and shook my hand. It didn't seem the time or the place to bore the man s**tless about the bench was shirted but sans wriat wraps, that the squat was suited but only single ply, and only a two metre wrap was used, but it was beltless, and that the deadlift was raw, with a belt only, all all were to comprtition standard.
He is unaware that I did not bore him with all that, but if he did, I suspect that he would shake my hand again