Bench Press Question....

[Sheriff'02]

I have a friend who is starting to apply for LE jobs in Illinois, He has to pass the POWER test. His biggest problem is the sit reach where he has to hit 15 inches, (I have no idea how this is measured) If anyone does please let me know, and the best way to stretch for the sit reach

His biggest problem is the bench press he must do 87% of his body weight which he can not do. What kind of workout should he be doing to gain the strength the quickest. I know there is no quick way to do this that is legal. I am not really into body building unless it weighs 12oz. anyway any help on what kind of routine he should start up would be greatly appreciated. how he should choose the start up weight, how many reps how often and how many sets including how much rest in between sets. He also asked me about Creatine, which again I have no idea about I am told it is legal but not whether it will show up on a drug test or what it is supposed to do any help again would be appreciated.

[K9 Police]

Well, it's not IL but I have a minimum phsyical fitness standards test sheet from St. Paul PD in front of me. It states the following for the sit and reach:

"In this test, the individual sits on the floor with the legs outstretched and heels squarely against a box. A yeard stick is securely set on top of the box, with a 15 inch mark on the stick, flushed with the edge of the box. The individual would place his/her heels against the box. With the arms outreached and hands on top of each other, the individual would lean foward as far as possible."

This is the way I had to do it in the academy here in WI also.

As for bench pressing, the main part I would say is start ASAP. I, personally, do not like creatine and take WHEY protein instead while maintaining a sensible diet. I usually bench press two repetitions at 10 each. On off days I sometimes a high weight press to see how far along I am. Also my opinion, but advice him that in order to be profecient at bench pressing, he should also be working his arms and upper body with other workouts.

On a side note, SPPD requires 1.14% of the body weight for their bench press for males 20-29. Probably the highest I've seen for a PD.

K9

[CaptRidley]

Originally posted by Sheriff'02
I have a friend who is starting to apply for LE jobs in Illinois, He has to pass the POWER test. His biggest problem is the sit reach where he has to hit 15 inches, (I have no idea how this is measured) If anyone does please let me know, and the best way to stretch for the sit reach

His biggest problem is the bench press he must do 87% of his body weight which he can not do. What kind of workout should he be doing to gain the strength the quickest. I know there is no quick way to do this that is legal. I am not really into body building unless it weighs 12oz. anyway any help on what kind of routine he should start up would be greatly appreciated. how he should choose the start up weight, how many reps how often and how many sets including how much rest in between sets. He also asked me about Creatine, which again I have no idea about I am told it is legal but not whether it will show up on a drug test or what it is supposed to do any help again would be appreciated.

Hard Dawg,

How heavy is your friend?

At this point, it may be easier to drop some weight (the idea being less he weighs the less he has to bench) all the while working towards benching some more.

Creatine is not bad, but it isn't for everyone either. When you first use it you will feel that boost of energy, but you must remember to stop taking it for a while, and then start again, to maintain that energy boost. Also people tend to gain weight (not just muscle) when using creatine, as you have to drink plenty of fluids.

The fastest way to get stronger this short in the game, is to use a incline and decline bench with both dumbells and a regular straight bar. Different strokes for different folks. I rest only one day Sunday, others will say you have to rest and recover more, what works for me does not work for them, and vice a versa.

In any event he should pick up the max weight he can bench, and start lifting at about 50 - 70 lbs lighter, for example, I used to max out at 205lbs, so I started lifting at 135lbs (8 - 10 times), then moved up to 185lb (5 - 8 times) and then 205lbs (3 - 5 times), and then came back down in weight, so that I lifted my max weight for one rep, and the other lighter weights for two. Some people will talk about muscle memory and will suggest stopping at your max weight, in this 205lbs.

Any and all weight training will make your friend stronger, but obviously if he wants to get stronger on the bench press he needs to bench. He can also and should also get on the lat pull down machine, as well as the row pull machine, and again find out what his max weight is, and start perhaps 20 - 30 lbs lighter and work his way up to his max weight in increments of 10 lbs. The decline bench press as well as the dumbell will help get him stronger for the regular bench press in the shortest amount of time. What ever his max weight is on the decline bench press should be less that what his max weight on the regula bench will be, there for if he gets to the point where he can lift the required weight for this test on the decline he will be good to go when it comes time for the regular bench.

Out here!!!
Mike-D

[K9 Police]

Scratch what I wrote about SPPD, I found info about the POWER test through Chicago PD's website:

Sit and Reach Test
This is a measure of the flexibility of the lower back and upper leg
area. It is an important area for performing police tasks involving range of motion and is also important in minimizing lower back problems. The test involves stretching out to touch the toes or beyond with extended arms from the sitting position. The score is in the inches reached on a yard stick.

Preparing for the Sit and Reach Test
Performing sitting type of stretching exercises daily will increase this area. There are two recommended exercises.

Sit and Reach. Do 5 repetitions of this exercise. Sit on the ground with legs straight. Slowly extend forward at the waist and extend the fingertips toward the toes (keeping legs straight). Hold for 10 seconds.

Towel Stretch. Sit on the ground with the legs straight. Wrap a towel around the feet holding each end with each hand. Lean forward and pull gently on the towel extending the torso toward the toes.

Preparing for the 1 Repetition Maximum Bench Press
If one has access to weights, determine the maximum weight one can bench press one time. Take 50% of that poundage. This will be the training weight. One should be able to do 8-10 repetitions of that weight. Do three sets of 8-10 repetitions adding 2 1⁄2 to 5 pounds every week.

If one does not have weight equipment, then the push-up exercise can be utilized. Determine how many push-ups one can do in 1 minute. At least three times a week, do three sets of the amount one can do in 1 minute.

Hope it helps.

K9

[universible]

What does a bench press show? Anyone know what they're trying to guage?

Ted

[Kevlar]

My guess is that they have bench press on the test to determine upper body strength to measure how well you could deal with issues out on patrol (restraining a combative suspect, climbing fences, etc.)

Sheriff '02-
Tell your friend to get at it, and not to give up. I just turned 15, and about 6 months ago I started lifting weights. On my first day, my max bench press amount was a mere 65 pounds. I lifted 2-3 times a week for about 30-45 mins (usually one or two of these days were lower body), and within 5 months my max BP was 165 pds. An hour and a half a week isn't that much. It is doable. I bet if he worked pretty hard he could have it up there in a couple months at most.

I was told to eat something with a decent amount of protein approx. 30 mins after your workout if you want, but I was strongly advised not to take Creatine because it is pretty shady.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?objectid=7C05F9A5-A456-4391-AE4457129F6337A1 That is a good article from the health perspective about creatine and some other supplements.

[Brindle]

I assume the bench press of 87% of body weight is one-rep.

Train as you would fight...

Since your friend is in a hurry, he may benefit from going straight to heavy, low-rep workouts. However, starting your lifting experience with low-rep sets is not a good idea. It depends on how much of a hurry your friend is.

In this case especially since your friend is in a hurry. Warm up well, and stretch well because low-rep workout's lend themselves to injury, which could really, mess your friend up. Tow words relating to injury: rotar cuff. The shoulder rotar cuff is the number one reason professional athletes retire.

Do low-rep workout's. I'd say focusing your "work" (or main sets) on first (after a really good warm up and stretch) a one- or two-rep set. Then you probably want to finish the workout with two- to maybe four-rep set's. I’d say do enough sets so that your warm-up weight is difficult (what you could do for 10, you perhaps only can do for three). Do enough so that you are sore for at least the next day or so. Wait until the DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) completely goes away until the next workout. And even then you may want to wait one day after the DOMS disappears. I do push (bench, up-right lateral raises) once a week and my DOMS lasts about two days. So my DOMS has been gone for about four days when I start my next work out. Don’t workout too often, which can happen to people who are in a hurry. Depending on how young and how much more your friend work’s out, he can probably workout two times per week.

But since your friend is in a "hurry", he will probably want to focus on the sole exercise that he is failing in. After he passes, then he should take a more balanced approach to lifting.

Creatine, yes, generally will help with the bench press and is probably the best legal supplement out there. Taking whey after your workouts is also good. I think Adnro is also decent.

CaptRidleym made a good point about loosing weight. Generally, the human body will loose fat faster than it will gain muscle. But that is not to say that one’s bench press will increase faster than the reduction of 87% of body weight.

If your friend does try to also loose weight, then have him “save” some of his daily calories for his pre-workout meal, which is about 45 to 90 minutes before working out.

[Sheriff'02]

Originally posted by K9 Police


"In this test, the individual sits on the floor with the legs outstretched and heels squarely against a box. A yeard stick is securely set on top of the box, with a 15 inch mark on the stick, flushed with the edge of the box. The individual would place his/her heels against the box. With the arms outreached and hands on top of each other, the individual would lean foward as far as possible."

This is the way I had to do it in the academy here in WI also.


K9

so for him to hit 15 the measurement is just him putting his heals flat against a box or wall and basically touching his toes while keeping his feet flat and not bending his knees good now at least I can tell him where the 15 mark comes from thanks k9

He has about 2 months to prepare for his first test. and yes it is a one rep bench press at 87% of his body weight. He is a tall lanky guy so loseing weight is not really an option, this guy can eat like a horse and not gain a pound he weighs about 180-185 and has for about 15 years now heck he still has some of the same clothes from when he was younger (really gets me mad sometimes lol) but anyway he used to work out and was never really able to build mass so he quit and hasnt worked out for over 4 years now but is in decent shape just cant lift a lot he is about 6'1" and 185 but like i said he just can't seem to get stronger it seems. So he should lift and wait until soreness goes completely away before lifting again huh?? he is also running to try and keep his 1.5 mile run time good so to make sure he doesn't over due it would it be advisable for him to do his lifting then running then a few days off till soreness is over then again basically just doing the test with the exception of a little more lifting that is what i told him but he said he was sore for about 3-4 days afterword is this normal and will he be able to get stronger waiting that long between??? it is only 158 pounds but for him a hard to reach 158 would creatine benefit him do you guys think for the short haul?? thanks for the quick responses i have been on mids and didnt get a chance to get back right a way. thanks again

[MAX STEEL]

Hi there what’s your friends max bench at now, and what does he have to do? I would definitely stick with free weights and not use machines, i.e. Smith, hammerstrength, etc. Free weights give him a chance to build up his stabilizer muscles, I agree with the several posts about lifting heavy and low reps; maybe throw in some negatives at the end of the routine. I would stay away from anything fancier until there was a good foundation built. Creatine is definitely not "shady" at least in my mind here's some Creatine facts.

Creatine can be directly obtained by eating sources of skeletal muscle, ie meat and fish. During the digestive process the creatine contained within meat and fish is directly released into the blood stream where it is transported to skeletal muscle. For reference, approximately 2-3 pounds of raw meat or fish contain the equivalent of 5 grams of pure creatine monohydrate powder. Since heat degrades creatine, however, cooking reduces the creatine content of meat and fish. Therefore, you'll need to eat more cooked meat to get the same amount of creatine as from uncooked sources. (Hmmm think I will stick to my Teaspoon of creatine I don't like fish anyways).

Typically you will notice an improvement in exercise performance when your muscle creatine levels increase by at least 20% as a result of creatine supplementation. Simply speaking, creatine increases the energy content of muscle cells. Creatine does this by increasing the availability of ATP, the energy currency of cells. Since our strength depends on how quickly ATP can be made available during exercise, creatine supplementation increases our strength. It's important to note that Creatine works on fast muscle fibers, so explosive movements respond best to creatine supplementation, i.e. Weightlifting, and sprints. It follows that endurance tasks are influenced less by creatine supplementation. In addition, many endurance sports may be adversely effected by the increase in weight associated with creatine supplementation, i.e. your friends 1 1/2 mile run time.

Not everyone responds to creatine supplementation. It is estimated that 20-30% of the population are non-responsive to creatine use. This isn't to say that many "non-responders" couldn't convert to "responders" given the right circumstances. Taking creatine with highly glycemic sugars helps in many instances (many people I know take creatine with white grape juice, or my preference Crystal light). Also two top Creatine's that have been designed for non responsive people are V12 by SAN and SWOLE by Syntrax I prefer SWOLE I think. The jury is still out on if you should cycle Creatine or not, some evidence points to the fact that your body naturally produces creatine, when you supplement your body stops producing because it doesn't need to make it. I cycle but right now I am off of creatine because I am working on my runs, and won't go back to it till after my PT test.

Your friends 3-4 days of being sore is alittle on the high side a good protein drink or more protein in his diet should help him build/repair muscle faster. I use Optimum Pro Complex, he should be taking somewhere in the neighborhood of 222grams to 240 grams of protein a day. This is based on a 1.2 to 1.3 grams of protein per pound of body weight (weightlifting build). A note on Creatine use research suggests that post workout with a meal to ensure insulin spikes is the best time to ingest creatine.

Good luck to your friend

Max

[mr. mac]

I agree with all the posts mentioned. TO throw in my .02 cents worth, Although I don't use creatine now, When I used it-quite frequently in my mid twenties, I gained 20-25 lbs on my bench press max in about 6 weeks worth. That's by working out chest twice a week-total of 12 sets-3 bench, 3 decline, 3 incline, 3 misc.

The bench press test is used by depts to measure your upper body strength. In my opinion, if your injury free and can't bench 87% of your bodyweight, you're out of shape and I'm glad dept's-including mine require this. You'll see many times in making an arrest, you must use upper body strength esp if you get in a wrestling match with someone. I recommend once your buddy reaches 87% mass, he continues working out for the job itself. In addition, most depts require you pass this test annually.

Sit and reach test in my opinion is a joke. Maybe that's because it's the only one I really suck at and is the only reason I don't score 100% on my fitness tests. I can run and lift lots but my abiltiy to stretch is laughable.

Here's a little advice-which you'll see many other recruits and officers do and get away with in this test, bend your knees a tad. Although I don't think you're suppose to, I always saw these other people score really high because they beant their knees and no instructor said anything. I've been doing this since. Once I did get a little greedy and beant them too much to a point that the instructor corrected me, but he still let me bend them slightly. The worst that's going to happen is being corrected by the instructor.