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How to bench in power rack [Article, Video]

Posted by Pascal Landshoeft

Dec 24, 2019 9:00:00 AM

How to bench in power rack

How to bench in power rack

 
Make use of the safety pins and arch your back. If the pins are set up an inch lower than the highest point of your arch you are able to exit safely.
 
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Power racks

 
There are different types of power racks. Usually, the power rack is safer than a normal bench press setup as you can use safety pins. Especially when training on your own. If you want to get a spot from behind the bench press only setups are usually better. These provide a little platform your spotter can stand on while you make your veins pop. 
 
If you have the choice, always try to go for the rack which has smaller increments in the bench area between the holes for the setup. This way you make it easier to find the right bench press setup for yourself. The Rogue Monster lite rack series has been designed with Westside hole spacing. This design specifically addresses great options with small increments for the bench press. The racks to mention out of the line are:
 
  • RML 490C
  • RML 690C
You find more detailed reviews following.
 

Overview and review of the Rogue RML 490C Power Rack

Price: 1.075

This review was originally posted in the longer article "Which strength equipment to buy from rogue" in which you can read about 25 products of Rogue which cost more than 1.000$. The Rogue RML 490C rack is a stylish and not too expensive Rogue option for your home gym. See the details in this article.

What else to consider from Rogue

 

Overview of the RML 490C

 
The Rogue RML490C weighs 340LB and comes in with a footprint of 53''x53''. This is a solid full rack in the mid-range price area of Rogue. It is 90.375'' high and comes with a free choice of color. The colors to choose from are:
 
  • Bright Blue
  • Bright Green
  • Burnt Orange
  • Dark BLue
  • Dark Red
  • Gun Metal
  • Light Gray
  • Rogue Red
  • Satin Black
  • Satin Clear
  • White
With this rack, you will be entering the Monster Lite series of Rogue and accessories. You can also have a look at the Monster Lite rigs to built a solid CrossFit gym. This is a good entry point to build from for powerlifters and other heavy lifting needs alike. Rogue provides a long list of accessories for their Monster lite series. 
 

How many clients should the Rogue RML 490C bring you?

If you think that the RML 490C will bring you 4 new clients who pay you 50$ on a 1-year retainer it is worth the investment. This will yield 2.400$ net new revenue against an investment of 1.075$. Adjust the numbers for your own gym accordingly.
 

Pros of the RML 490C

The Monster Lite gives you a full rack in which you can train with space. You will be secure and be able to maneuver without feeling cramped
 

Cons of the RML 490C

The 490C does not leave a lot of room to store any plates. Be prepared to find other solutions to store the plates or upgrade to a 690C rack to get the plates organized.
 

Conclusion

The Rogue RML 490C is a great option to be nice to your bank account while still getting a solid piece of Rogue into your gym.
 
 

Bench

 
For a proper bench press, you also need a proper bench. The most important feature is that it can take the weight. Please avoid buying a flimsy IKEA press wood bench to do your bench presses on. You might impale yourself. Yes, these things have happened. Nothing to freak out about, just check whether the bench can take the concentrated pressure in all places. 
 
The next thing to watch out for is that the bench weighs something and has proper stoppers. Nothing is worse than a bench that moves while you are bench pressing heavy weight. The first thing is to check whether the bench has some weight to it. If you can not lift it up easily and need to use the attached wheels to move it around, that is already a good sign. The second thing is the plastic rubber stoppers. Just like with furniture you want to have rubber to stop the bench from sliding around.
 

Overview and review of the Rogue RML 690C Power Rack

Price: 1.750

This review was originally posted in the longer article "Which strength equipment to buy from rogue" in which you can read about 25 products of Rogue which cost more than 1.000$. The Rogue RML 690C rack is a great option for style and storage to build your home gym. See the details in this article.

 

Overview of the Rogue RML 690C

 
The Rogue RML690C Rack weighs in at 530LB. It has 76'' of length while being 49'' in width. The height comes in at 90.375''. When you want to place the RML690C into your gym the footprint will be 80''x53''. With this rack, you are getting the little sister of the RM6 rack. It is compatible with the Monster Lite series and gives you a full and half rack to work with. The half rack can either be used for plate storage or have more athletes train in the rack. 
 
The 690C is available in the following colors:
 
  • Bright Blue
  • Bright Green
  • Burnt Orange
  • Dark Blue
  • Dark Red
  • Gun Metal
  • Light Gray
  • Rogue Red
  • Satin Black
  • Satin clear
  • White
In a Semi-Gloss Powdercoat. You have Westside hole spacing at the bottom to have more options for bench pressing setups. Another big advantage of this rack is that it does not need to be bolted to the floor. 
 
The Rogue RML690C is a solid all in one solution for storage and training space for a home gym or in a professional gym to make the best of the space. 
 

How many clients should the Rogue RML690C bring you?

 
If you think that the Rogue RML 690C will bring you 6 new clients who pay you 50$ on a 1-year retainer it is worth the investment. This will yield 3.600$ net new revenue against an investment of 1.750$. Adjust the numbers for your own gym accordingly.
 

Pros of the Rogue RML 690C

 
The Rogue RML 690C is a bit lighter on the budget than its bigger brother the RM6. It still provides storage options and space to train multiple athletes and hold plates at the same time. It comes in different colors to fit your taste or gym setup depending on how you want to express your branding. 
 

Cons of the Rogue RML 690C

 
The Rogue RML690C might be a bit too big for home setups. There are reports of people who purchased it for personal use and came to the conclusion that the 490 would have more than sufficed. Think about how you will use the additional half rack, as otherwise, it will only be a waste of valuable floor space. You can also not use the RML 690C with the Rhino Drop in, which is one of my personal biggest reasons not to get it.
 

Alternatives to the Rogue RML 690C

Here are some alternatives for you from Rogue for a budget of 1.750$
 
 
The RML4 still gives you the option to choose a color of your liking while saving you 700$ USD which can be used towards a barbell and plates on your first purchase for a home gym. For professional uses, you can also fit more 490C into your facilities if you already have solutions for string the plates
 
 
If you do not want to compromise on having a full and half rack at your disposal you can go for the R6. The R6 is part of the Infinity series which uses less material to build the racks. It is still more than enough to train heavy in them as the Monster Lite and Monster series bear their names for a reason. With this, you would still be able to sneak in an Ohio Bar while staying under 2.000$. 
 

Conclusion

The Rogue RML 690C is a great option for home gyms or commercial gyms for mere mortals. Be mindful about the space you have before buying the 690 versions of Rogues racks. If you do not know what to do with the half rack at the back, go for something smaller.
 
 

Safety options

 
There are three main safety options for a power rack:
 
 
Safety pins are the most common and are available in almost every gym. They are cheap and stable. They are also great for pin squats when you have problems getting out of the hole. The negatives of safety pins are that they can be annoying to set up. Fiddling the steel rod into the hole of the rack can be time-consuming. More often than not you will not set it up parallel to the ground but with a tilt. Another disadvantage is the bounce. Pins deform and bounce the bar back up. This not what you want on a heavy drop.
 
Safety straps are one step up from safety pins. You don't see them as often as safety pins in regular gyms. The two big advantages are that they are easier to set up and have a dead stop when you drop the bar. No bouncing around The disadvantage is that they are harder to set up at the right height and therefore also not as good for pin squat.
 
The rolls Royce of safeties is the flip-down. The flip-down safety is usually hooked into the rack and has a wider space where you can drop the bar to. And can be used for pin squats and rack pulls with more ease and less noise. To some, you can even attach a seat for box squats.
 
 

Bench press setup

 
Tp set up a rack for the bench press you want to use the powerlifting style. Arch your back to form a bridge. Find the highest spot in this arch while your shoulders and butt still touch the bench. Set the safety up just slightly below this. This way you can bench to your chest and use the full range of motion without hitting the safety. In case you fail you can exit the setup and lower the bar to the pins. From there you just exit and enjoy another day in your life.
 

How to bench in a power rack

 
Always get the pins ready at the right height for you. Play around with some setups until you find the ideal one and then keep it. The ideal height for the safety is just an inch below the highest point of your arch.
 

Topics: Rogue, TITAN