@miskee11

1 year ago

1. Wipe your face. Nothing's worse than dripping sweat on someone's eyes as they're going for a 1RM.
2. Ask the lifter if they want a liftoff and how many reps they're going for.
3. Tell the lifter you will only touch the bar if it completely stops or starts descending mid press. At this point a novice lifter might ask you to "be there for them" or they might ask you for a few assisted reps, and if they do, comply.
4. Give the lifter space to set themselves up before the lift. Some people slide around on the bench like crazy, and you standing too close is going to interfere with their pre-lift ritual.
5. Step back in when they're ready to start, and try to stand as close to the bar as possible without putting your balls on the lifter's face. Nod to let them know you're there.
6. Don't keep your hands under the bar as they're lifting (even if you aren't touching it), because it's gonna mess with the lifter's head as they won't know if you are in fact touching it. Keep your hands close but away, and be ready to assist.
7. If the lifter motions for you to assist, assist -- even if the bar is still moving or if you think it looks like they've got it. Always listen to the lifter.
8. Give them a little encouragement and confidence towards the end of the set by saying "come on, you got this, one more" and set yourself in a good position to assist. In any longer sets it's also good practice to keep count of the reps and tell them what number they're on.
9. When the set is done, don't touch the bar just yet; let the lifter kip it back into the rack, and only then make sure it stays on the rack by really grabbing it and pulling it firmly so it won't bounce back.
10. Praise them for a good set and tell them you're around if they need you on their next set.
+ If you don't know what you're doing, tell them you haven't spotted anyone before and ask them for what they expect of you.

This isn't just a noble service for a fellow lifter, but it also means you've got yourself a spotter in the future any time you might need it. People return favors.

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