Overhead Pressing and Low Ceilings

[Mr_Rogers]

When I press in my low-ceilinged basement, I have to stick with 25s as the biggest plates or I hit the subfloor above. I also have to position myself carefully to ensure the plates go between the joists. Maybe using smaller plates would help depending on how low it is.

This is exactly what I do. I can get away with bigger plates if I'm lined up perfectly, but I tend to just stick with smaller plates.

[mdeshaies]

I was the guy who made the press pit. It was actually super cheap. I had a concrete floor that was about 2-3 inches thick so I just broke that with a sledge. Dug the pit much larger than needed and poured a concrete base in the hole. I then stacked masonry blocks to form the sides. I back filled the area on the outside with dirt and concrete. I then topped the surface with a layer of concrete. I'll try to find the pictures- much easier to see than explain. I finally sucked it up and rented some warehouse space and opened a gym/lifting club. the pit will now serve as a sump pump hole it needed. My original plan was to dig out a space large enough to fit a platform for clean+jerks and snatched but if I ever tried to sell the house with a pit that large they would wonder what the hell was happening in that basement... it puts the lotion on its skin...

[mdeshaies]

http://imgur.com/a/uYJjP#1

here is a link to a picture of the pit- In hindsight I would have made it a little wider.

[Mr_Rogers]

What kind of power rack is that?

[mdeshaies]

Its a custom made rack that I bought off craigslist. I think it was in a high school or something. If I was making it I would have done it differently but it works pretty well. Hole spacing is too long and hole are not low enough to do rack pulls unless you stand on plates.

http://www.facebook.com/CambridgeStr...ndConditioning squat video shows the rack very well

OP, I would recommend cleaning and pressing outside it you don't want to or can't make a pit. I tried kneeling and sitting on a flat bench but they were just not the same feeling at all.

[jimmyc]

http://imgur.com/a/uYJjP#1

here is a link to a picture of the pit- In hindsight I would have made it a little wider.

Dude, I love your gym. I'm a cellar dweller from years ago and the dungeonesque look is great .

[Kincain]

dig a hole

[patterson]

I have just been totaly inspired to dig a pit myself no matter how crazy my girlfriend thinks it is.

[mdeshaies]

Thanks jimmyc naturally we called it "The Dungeon". It was a great spot but the new warehouse (http://www.facebook.com/CambridgeStr...ndConditioning some new pictures of it on there) place is so much better not to mention the dungeon recently had a rather large sewer back up issue... really glad we had all the stuff moved out before that happened- it was a real shit show down there. The pit was so much easier to make that I thought I thought it would be. Not sure if I made this part clear before but I lined it with 8x16x4? solid concrete blocks from home depo. You have to mix mortar and seal everything up well but really it wasn't hard. I probably used 1 bag or mortar and 3 bags of concrete. Good luck to you!

[omaniphil]

I realize I'm resurrecting an ancient thread, but the problems I face are similar, and am too lazy to start a new one. My garage is about 80" high and I'm 72" tall, so trying to press between the beams doesn't really work. I've been power cleaning the bar out in the driveway when I press, but as my press has gone up, its become more difficult to get into the right grip position and what not, and so need a new solution. I've thought about just getting some cheap squat stands, but even the basic Rogue ES-1s are around $275 which is a bit steep. Cleveland's Craiglist pickings are not that great for gym equipment, and so am wondering if a DIY solution would work. Has anybody tried the 2x4 in the bucket filled with concrete solution? I wouldn't feel comfortable squatting with it, but with the lower weights of the press, it might be ok?