False Grip Debate

I'm curious what people think.

Sparked by this video posted by Bryce Lewis today:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huuk1CgBAUw


Also the other side:
http://articles.elitefts.com/training-articles/get-a-grip-know-what%E2%80%99s-false/


Cliffs:
Bryce Lewis' dad dropped 300+ on throat while benching (false grip) crushing trachea..in coma for weeks...Bryce was spotting

Dave Tate...People don't know how to false grip correctly..false grip=better in long run...be responsible

Don't not do something because someone, somewhere got hurt doing it. Is a false grip more dangerous? Yes. But if you have a good reason to perform it that way, then do it.

It's hard to justify without one of those benches that protect your head/neck imo

KKeough wrote:

Don't not do something because someone, somewhere got hurt doing it. Is a false grip more dangerous? Yes. But if you have a good reason to perform it that way, then do it.

 
I guess maybe the point he is trying to make is that the false grip risk is categorically different than any other risk of injury in the gym.

KevinAlvy wrote:

It's hard to justify without one of those benches that protect your head/neck imo

Agreed, but I usually bench in a cage if I'm doing something "risky" anyway. You don't have to drop a bench on your neck to kill yourself--your ribcage will do just fine.

Allprocro wrote:

KKeough wrote:

Don't not do something because someone, somewhere got hurt doing it. Is a false grip more dangerous? Yes. But if you have a good reason to perform it that way, then do it.

 
I guess maybe the point he is trying to make is that the false grip risk is categorically different than any other risk of injury in the gym.

I think that could be true if you consider the false grip to be an "unnecessary" risk. While I understand the premise that one shouldn't use it because there is even just a small chance of something quite bad happening, if you move substantially more weight with it and am at peace with the possibility of death as a result of losing your grip, then you should use it.

Again, I don't think eliminating an option in the sport of powerlifting because it increases risk is a good idea. Powerlifting itself increases risk--maximal weights encourage technical breakdown and increase the possibility of injury. If one were set on not getting seriously hurt, one would never want to do a powerlifting meet or even test a max. After all, isn't it safer to bench, squat, and deadlift the bar? Is it "necessary" to be so strong?

I don't mean to sound cruel to Bryce Lewis here, but this to me reads of an instance in which someone is so shaken by what has happened to a loved one that they change their philosophy on something based on that one piece of anecdotal evidence.

The only person to ever (I believe) kill himself whilst benching did so by dropping it on his ribcage/abdomen, not his throat. I believe it was with a false grip. Also, in that video, you can see that the spotters are absolutely fucking god awful.





Good spotting is always key, regardless of grip.