Lifting on the second floor.

[PaulBeech]

This is a question for any engineers out there. I am about to start coaching at a new gym where the weight room is upstairs. Management are down with lifting but they have concerns over the structural support and the effect deads and oly lifts will have.
Any advice or insightful information would be appreciated.

[Les Hahn]

How beefy is the floor, concrete or wood?

We work out on the second floor of an old lumber company. It is a wood floor, and people have lifted 800+ on it without problems. We do have a higher deadlift platform with tires underneath, just because the people downstairs can bitch a little.

Unless the place is structurally crap (like a house or something), it should be ok.

[PaulBeech]

It is an old movie theatre and the floor is concrete and around two foot thick. The tires under a platform sounds like a good idea. I just need to persuade them to get rid of the smith machine and replace it with a platform. Thanks for the information.

[Dastardly]

Any building designed to hold lots of people would surely be ok.

Even a world record deadlift of say 1000lb is only equivalent to four fat people. A cinema wouldve been filled with hundreds of fat people. Walking around too (dynamic load).

[hatmanii]

Any building designed to hold lots of people would surely be ok.

Even a world record deadlift of say 1000lb is only equivalent to four fat people. A cinema wouldve been filled with hundreds of fat people. Walking around too (dynamic load).

Hey, what's with calling people 250lbs and over, fat?

I'm just big boned, damnit!!

[Titanium]

Mark a rectangle in black-yellow caution tape on the ground floor directly below the lifting area, just in case this happens:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsADrXedSt8

[stonerider]

Any building designed to hold lots of people would surely be ok.

Even a world record deadlift of say 1000lb is only equivalent to four fat people. A cinema wouldve been filled with hundreds of fat people. Walking around too (dynamic load).

yea, it's equivalent to four fat people split into two groups of two, with one fat guy standing on another fat guy's shoulders, and then both groups jump and land at the same time.. and with oly it's like a fat dude falling from 6 feet above the floor and not absorbing any of the shock

also, these fat guys' bodies are not made of mostly water and are, instead, dense and rigid

but yea other than that very equivalent

[mcclamic]

Structural design is usually for a live and dead load. Often you'll find it called out as #/sq.ft. Rarely is second floor loads designed for weight lifting. In cas of deadlifts, for example, the dead load would be considerate as the lifter's feet would be within the one square foot. In other words, for a 220 lb lifter pulling 405, you'd have 665 l. Per square foot.

All in all, I'd recommend talking to a structural engineer. At a minimum, it'd reduce or eliminate your liability.

I am slightly biased, though, as I'm a licensed professional engineer. I am not a structural one though.

[PaulBeech]

Thanks mcclamic. There is a downstairs yoga studio I could possibly persuade them to let me use but there would be very limited time slots as there are almost constant classes on. Maybe there is a basement hidden away.

[Ello]

yea, it's equivalent to four fat people split into two groups of two, with one fat guy standing on another fat guy's shoulders, and then both groups jump and land at the same time.. and with oly it's like a fat dude falling from 6 feet above the floor and not absorbing any of the shock

also, these fat guys' bodies are not made of mostly water and are, instead, dense and rigid

but yea other than that very equivalent

This made me laugh both because of the accuracy and the imagery.