Power Rack Etiquette

Some comments in another post have made me believe we need to address this issue. What uses are acceptable for the power rack at the gym?

I use the power rack for squats, pin pulls and barbell shrugs. I don’t care how much you curl, because its not enough to require a squat rack! There’s no way you’re curling more than you can deadlift, so get the hell out of the way and pick up your curl weight from the ground!

I think its OK to use it for shrugs if you’re shrugging close to what you deadlift. (I’m currently working with 420 on shrugs and I don’t want a deadlift workout every time I shrug).

That being said, what are the unspoken “Rules of the Power Rack?”

curls on the squat rack are sweet.

I used it for regular flat bench all the time, other than DE days.

I set the pins where I can still touch my chest with the bar, but the pins can hold the weight if I ‘deflate’ my chest.

I always wondered if people considered that wrong, but I never need a spot and don’t have to worry about missing a weight.

  • Swiss balls are not stored in the power rack

  • Swiss ball crunches, dumbell curls, and other exercises that don’t involve a barbell are not valid exercises in the rack

  • Take the gay foam pad off of the bar when you’re done squatting

I’m not even trying to be an angry meathead wannabe, but I think that these are a few points that seem to be lost on the general population.

For the most part, nobody in my gym even uses the rack – I could be doing curls in one and hanging my clothes to dry in the other one and it wouldn’t bother anybody.

what is the point of those foam pads anyway? if people learned how to actually squat there is no purpose in it.

You meant to say the pussy pad :slight_smile:

About a month ago, I had to run a guy out of the power rack because he was doing push-ups in it. PUSH UPS!! He acted all hurt because I politely told him he could use any patch of floor to do push ups on.

[quote]budlight1 wrote:
what is the point of those foam pads anyway? if people learned how to actually squat there is no purpose in it.[/quote]

That foam pad is actually dangerous! It makes it easier for the bar to roll. The best way to pad for squats is to fold your gym towel in half twice and lay it on your shoulders. Oh yeah, and have huge traps.

Here are some PR Etiquette guidelines:

  1. When someone is in the rack working, don’t pull weights of the side pegs of the rack and shake the whole damn thing.

  2. When someone is in the rack working, don’t lean on it or hold on to it to stretch.

  3. When there are PR racks next to each other, don’t work out in between them.

  4. Use the PR rack if you are doing heavy benching with no spotter. I can only sprint across the gym so many times to pull the bar off you neck!

[quote]J.W. wrote:
About a month ago, I had to run a guy out of the power rack because he was doing push-ups in it. PUSH UPS!! He acted all hurt because I politely told him he could use any patch of floor to do push ups on.[/quote]

Maybe that was Mr. PushUps he’s one of the baddest mofos alive.

D

lol when people do pushups i think “why the hell are they in the weight room?”.

The only power rack rule.

He who is most powerful rules the power rack.

DONTS

Do not walk between the PR and the wall AFTER i start squating 300…

Do not try to take weights off the PR when its in use

Do not walk up to me while im using the PR with a curl bar and ask me how many more sets I have

Do not try to talk to me whilst im squating

Do’s

Do bend over and strech infront of the PR if you are a hot chick

Whats great is theres a mirror there and the girls like to make sure they are stretching right…ahhhh

I just can’t understand why someone would rather use the power rack to do curls when you can just stand in front of the preacher curl bench!!

Oh yeah, I also saw a guy using the space in a power rack to do an entire bodyweight ab routine! He was doing crunches, leg lifts and bridges and stuff. I almost changed my whole workout plan that day just so I would need the power rack and would have a reason to go kick him out of it. My wife wouldn’t let me though.

[quote]jmwintenn wrote:
DONTS

Do not walk between the PR and the wall AFTER i start squating 300…

Do not try to take weights off the PR when its in use

Do not walk up to me while im using the PR with a curl bar and ask me how many more sets I have

Do not try to talk to me whilst im squating

Do’s

Do bend over and strech infront of the PR if you are a hot chick

Whats great is theres a mirror there and the girls like to make sure they are stretching right…ahhhh[/quote]

yeah girls love to stretch by the pr. one question why do you have a curl bar in the power rack?

[quote]budlight1 wrote:
jmwintenn wrote:
DONTS

Do not walk between the PR and the wall AFTER i start squating 300…

Do not try to take weights off the PR when its in use

Do not walk up to me while im using the PR with a curl bar and ask me how many more sets I have

Do not try to talk to me whilst im squating

Do’s

Do bend over and strech infront of the PR if you are a hot chick

Whats great is theres a mirror there and the girls like to make sure they are stretching right…ahhhh

yeah girls love to stretch by the pr. one question why do you have a curl bar in the power rack?[/quote]

I think he meant walk up holding a curl bar and ask about using the pr.

I think that shrugs should only be allowed in the power rack if the person performing the shrug uses the power rack is not a light bulb.

The gym I go to has only one power rack… I don’t like sharing with Mr. Chicken legs period.

This topic reminds me of a Squat Rack story of mine. This was probably 8 or 9 years ago, I get into the gym for squat day and luckily find the Power Rack open. I notice the bar and think “wow, where did they get this nice bar?”

A few minutes later, Brent Mikesell comes over and asks if I’d mind using the other rack. I told him I needed the safety bars but he’s welcome to work in.

A set or two into it, I notice Brent’s bag and all his gear over to the side. It had been there the whole time. Now I realize it was Brents bar too. He was all set up before I even got there! Oops. He never said a thing and I got to squat with a world class lifter. I guess it worked out… for me anyway.

yep your right i read it wrong

Haha, gotta love curls in the squat rack.

Saw the best thing at my gym yesterday… some skinny dude was doing curls in the squat rack. This girl comes in, walks over to him and says something like ‘Do you mind doing curls somewhere else, I gotta do some squats.’ Hahah… It was classic… Made my day.