i've never done a LBBS in my life. prior to my first HBBS i had done quite a bit of heavy leg press and power cleaning though, and some front squatting, which i suppose prepared me a lot more than if i had never lifted at all.

but i suspect that most pro athletes have at least that much lifting experience

edit: and i didn't try 200 the very first time. i'm just 99% sure i wouldn't've failed if i had tried it. i suppose i could be wrong.

i wasn't exaggerating. i think you are overestimating most people's strength, or at least biased because american athletes are more likely to have trained on a program that included squats before. personally, when I started lifting weights I already thought my legs were pretty strong having played sport my whole life, being a fast runner etc and I could barely squat 60kg the first few times - it took a few months to get close to 100kg. For most people thats pretty fkn heavy, I dont think i have ever seen anyone at the various gyms I have been to perform a squat below parallel, let alone squat 100kg+ with decent form. Id say my observations are pretty typical in Australia...

I had my first experience of having to wait to use one of the 5 power racks at my gym because there were 3 guys doing 1/4 to 1/2 squats and 2 guys doing curls. One was doing 65 lbs, the other 60. There are literally 20 other places to do these in the gym that are actually meant for doing curls. And the gym wasn't even busy today when I went.

I don't think I would have even noticed had I not read most of this thread, but I went on super monkey tilt immediately, muttering expletives under my breath while I pretended to do more stretches waiting for one of the cages to open up.

Thanks H&F!

point taken deaders. i'm convinced you are closer to correct than i am wrt the cricket team

Bro willie24 knows only the stronger Bro(e)s.

According to charts I'm looking at I'd say a 135 1 RM bench press would be roughly equivalent to 150-170'ish 1 RM squat in terms of trained'ness.

Around 150'ish 1RM bench press would be the rough equivalent of a 200 1RM squat, assuming they are both trained to roughly the same point.

This. Almost to the letter heh.

Also re: Cricket players squatting, I read an article about Brett Lee trying to return to the test team a year or 2 ago after an injury layoff, and the training he was doing, and it had a picture of him 'squatting 200kg'. It was taken at the top of his squat so I have no idea about depth, but he had the pussy pad on. Make of it what you will, but the Australian team definitely at least 'squats'.

people doing lameass squats where they drop 12 inches if that

I've never seen this. Is it common?

s'ok, my girl tells me she can't squat cause her knees are wrecked from hs soccer, but she'll use the squat machine at the gym.....

Have you not been training because you've been having TOO MUCH SEX?!?!

Whats up with dudes wearing hats in the gym?

like winter hats? (i see this more often than ballcaps)

i just don't get the whole winter hats indoors thing to begin with. must be a sign i'm getting old.

Needs to be around 80+ to where I stop feeling mild discomfort.

No, ballcaps.

i wear a ball cap because my hair is little longer, hate getting hair in my eyes lol emo kid

Get a headband.

2 power cages, probably 3 meters from each other

I am bench pressing in one rack while a middle aged guy is OHP'ing outside of the other rack. He isn't cleaning the bar, rather just kinda using his arms to get it to his shoulders and then struggling to OHP 95 pounds with nowhere near a full range of motion.

He finishes his sets, and waits around for a minute before asking how many more sets I have left, I say 1 set and then like 5 sets deadlifting. He asks if we could switch after my one bench set... I say sure(the bars are identical, as are the weights and benches, the only difference is my cage is closer to the windows and has a better chance of getting glare from the sun outside). I take a few minutes rest while he just stands there, finish my set and then start setting up for deadlift while he warms up with my workset weight(165 pounds). He struggles while doing about a 2/3 range of motion and then racks the bar. I see him now putting 205 pounds on the bar. I go grab a drink and immediately here the bar come CRASHING down on the supports and a little swearing.

I really wish I saw it

No way I wouldn't have stayed to watch the inevitable trainwreck.

i usually wear a hat to the gym. it comes in handy once in a while as a mark that I'm using a rack/bench too. I just throw it off and leave it in the middle of the power rack when i go to get a drink or whatever

Some turd was doing pullups in the power rack with a mat on the floor and all.

After he was done he obv left the weights bar unracked, pad sitting there and walked off with an air of douchery.

Too exhausted to find the proper word to describe this tool.

Pull ups in the power rack = standard. Maybe he didn't put the mat there. Not re racking an empty bar is nowhere near as bad as leaving the bar there with like 350lbs of weights.

the funniest part of becoming active again, (8 weeks into my program? roughly 9 years of inactivity) are the ppl that talk all the time about joining me. one guy took it as far as making up stories about working out. my buddy txted me "hey, heard you and so and so are working out, good for you guys!" i was like wtf??

i've had at least 5 diff ppl approach me IRL, txt, FB, twitter, email "hey when do you go? i've been meaning to go, maybe i should join you!"

He had two 25's on each side w clips. I also would bet that mat was all him.

TheCroShow you will find that sort of talk is what lazy fatasses etc substitute for actually working out. The thought that they are about to start, any day now.