Spotting is assisting another person in performing fitness exercises. The goal is to ensure that the person training can push themselves to the limit without worrying about being crushed under heavy weights.
“Until Failure”
The principle of “until muscle failure” assumes that you do as many repetitions as you can. In other words, continue until you can’t anymore, until you “fail.” The heavier the weights get, the harder it becomes to synchronize this point with the point at which your energy level for that exercise has also diminished to zero.
Imagine, for example, you’re bench pressing a heavy weight. You’ve just struggled through the third repetition but hesitate to attempt the fourth because you’re unsure if you’ll make it. After all, if you fail, you’ll be stuck with your record weight on your chest and have to roll the barbell over your chest to your midsection to get up. A bit embarrassing.
If you, however, leave that fourth repetition and stop after the third, you’ll feel that you had more energy left and didn’t push yourself to the limit. The spotter ensures, by providing the right amount of assistance, that you can still do that fourth repetition and possibly even a fifth and sixth.
Spotting is an art learned through experience. Here are some tips to get you started.
Be Selective in Asking for Help
If possible, only ask for help from people you know can spot well. If these aren’t available, try to assess based on someone’s physique if they can assist with the weight you’re using. Although the spotter usually doesn’t need to use much strength, they should have the necessary strength when needed. In all my years of training, I’ve only encountered trouble with bench pressing twice, and both times were with an unknown spotter.
Communicate with Your Spotter
- Specify beforehand what’s expected. Should your spotter help lift the weight, for example? Also, tell them how many repetitions you expect to do. A good spotter will naturally see when assistance is needed. However, a less experienced spotter benefits from knowing how many reps you intend to do to gauge when assistance might be required.
- If you’ve received too much help during a set, let your spotter know. They can only learn from mistakes if they’re given feedback. You can also communicate if you’ve received too little help, but your spotter should naturally notice if you’re pinned under the barbell.
- Also, let them know if you intend to perform certain training techniques like forced reps (doing additional reps with assistance) and drop sets (reducing weight between sets with assistance).
Encouragement if Desired
Verbal encouragement can make a huge difference in performance. It’s no coincidence that during studies on maximum capacity (in terms of strength or endurance), researchers often provide verbal encouragement. They do this because they know it increases the likelihood of someone adopting the mental attitude to push themselves to the limit. Encouragement from the spotter can thus be of great added value.
However, some people don’t appreciate verbal encouragement at all. There’s even a chain of gyms in the U.S. that prides itself on not appreciating “strange practices like verbal encouragement” in their gyms.
Here too, communication is key: Let your preferences regarding encouragement be known:
“I’m aiming for four repetitions, maybe 5 or 6 with a little encouragement.”
As a Spotter, Provide Only the Assistance Needed and Nothing More!
This is the most common mistake in spotting. I would have liked to put it at the top because it’s the most challenging in practice. However, all other points concern safety and are therefore mentioned first.
As long as the person training can perform their repetitions under their own power, the spotter shouldn’t intervene. Keep your hands underneath for support, but don’t touch the bar! If assistance is needed, provide it only to the necessary extent. Often, someone can provide 95% or more of the required strength themselves. If, as a spotter, you suddenly lift 30% of the weight as assistance, you prevent the other person from pushing themselves to the limit. Instead of having to deliver 95%, they now only have to deliver 70%. Often, a few fingers under the bar and a little assistance are sufficient. If more assistance is needed, gradually increase it.
Spotting is an art. There’s little difference between too much or too little assistance, and you have to learn to feel this. It’s a matter of gaining experience.
As a Spotter, Let the Person Replace the Weight Themselves
If someone, for example, is doing dumbbell presses and needs help, let them replace the weights themselves after the last repetition. Don’t lift the dumbbell from one hand, causing the person to lose balance and fall off the other side of the fitness bench. Also, don’t push them from behind when getting up. If the person training hasn’t anticipated this, they can lose balance and fall forward.
An exception might be replacing the barbell during bench pressing. Here you can ensure it’s securely placed on the supports. But even then, guide the barbell to the right spot rather than lifting it up and placing it. Another exception is if you’ve agreed beforehand that the spotter will take the weights from you.
Ensure a Good Position as a Spotter
When spotting, ensure you’re in a position from which you can provide any necessary assistance without influencing the range of motion (ROM) of the exercise. For example, if you’re assisting with bench pressing, don’t stand too far behind, but position yourself as close as possible. If you’re too far back, the weight is too far past your center, and you won’t be able to generate enough force when needed. The best position varies per exercise. If you’re the person training and see your spotter isn’t positioned correctly, correct them. After all, it’s about your safety!
Hold Above the Waist for the Squat
In line with the previous tip: If someone needs help with squats, don’t support the barbell. Instead, stand behind the person with your arms around their waist or slightly above and move up and down as assistance is needed.
Communication is important here too. If you know how many reps someone will do, you’ll know as a spotter when assistance is likely needed. Until then, stand behind. If you see the person struggling to stand up, step forward, place your arms around their waist, and assist in a straight upward movement.
Push the Elbows Up, Not Inward, During Dumbbell Press
If someone is bench pressing with dumbbells and needs help, assist by placing your hands under their elbows and helping to lift the dumbbells. Don’t push the elbows inward! Otherwise, the dumbbells could collapse inward onto the chest. Some advise holding the wrists for this reason, but that quickly affects the ROM. If you prefer this, let your spotter know.
Be Cautious with Multiple Spotters
Sometimes, it feels safer to have two people assist. The two spotters can stand on either side of a barbell and distribute the load. However, be careful! The spotters must be well-coordinated. If not, there’s a high chance of imbalance with all possible consequences. If you doubt the competence of a pair of spotters during bench pressing or squatting, use the Smith Machine so the barbell can’t tilt. Only do this for forced reps since the Smith Machine ensures safety itself (when properly adjusted) if you can’t lift anymore.
Be Careful with Sweat
As a spotter, consider sweat. Speaking from experience, it’s not pleasant to have sweat drops from your spotter land in your mouth while you’re exerting maximum effort. Therefore, as a spotter, wipe your face first if you’re going to assist with bench pressing and possibly your arms if you’re assisting with squats.
