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Thread: Press with an EZ curl bar?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
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    Default Press with an EZ curl bar?

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    Covid triggered a home gym, which is in a loft space with a vaulted ceiling that starts at 6' and tops out at 8.5'. So I don't have room to press a 7' bar with plates on. I've been making do with pressing a 4' bar, in this case an ez-curl bar that I bought for tricep rehab work. I'll have about 1" clearance on the ceiling when I put 45lb plates on the bar (don't need to yet, using 25s at present). I had to bodge up cantilevered j-hook out of bolted ply but it works.

    It is possible to buy a 4' oly bar, but is it necessary? It is not obvious to me whether the slight pronation of the grip is a problem with the press movement.

    The other option, should I get uncomfortable with the clearance, is to buy a cheap bar and cut both ends off. Then I can weld in some plate to create an offset bar, but that's a lot of hassle and bars are in short supply at the moment so I'm not overly keen on the idea.

  2. #2
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    Shortest I've seen with olympic collars is 5 feet.
    When I have a ceiling issue with clients, one alternative is to set the bench up in the rack and press while seated/straddling the bench. It's awkward at first, and you're likely to almost fall backwards if you're not careful.
    Another alternative, depending on where you live, is to pick up some cheap squat stands and setup things outside or another room. I have a client that has to do this.
    Finding a shorter bar to press with would be the priority so you can do it standing up.

  3. #3
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    I have an adjustable bench so could do that - I have my wife doing that at the moment since she broke her leg (still with the ez bar as a 7' bar is about where her work sets top out). Seems more like an 'if I have to' type compromise and I thought standing press with the ez bar was a better option than seated with straight bar.
    I could press in the workshop in the basement but that would require another bar/more plates as it is 2 floors down and carting bar/plates up and down twice a week is too much risk (if I damaged anything in the process I wouldn't live it down in any time soon). So not an attractive option at this point in time.
    There is a 4' straight bar available locally, welded collars rather than bearings so cheap - do you think that would be better than an ez curl bar for a press? As mentioned above I hold the bar with the bends horizontal so that my wrists are slightly pronated. This seems stable but having seen Rip discuss the disadvantages of the ez bar for curls I didn't know if similar logic might apply.

  4. #4
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    Sep 2018
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    Quote Originally Posted by No4_nz View Post
    I have an adjustable bench so could do that - I have my wife doing that at the moment since she broke her leg (still with the ez bar as a 7' bar is about where her work sets top out). Seems more like an 'if I have to' type compromise and I thought standing press with the ez bar was a better option than seated with straight bar.
    I could press in the workshop in the basement but that would require another bar/more plates as it is 2 floors down and carting bar/plates up and down twice a week is too much risk (if I damaged anything in the process I wouldn't live it down in any time soon). So not an attractive option at this point in time.
    There is a 4' straight bar available locally, welded collars rather than bearings so cheap - do you think that would be better than an ez curl bar for a press? As mentioned above I hold the bar with the bends horizontal so that my wrists are slightly pronated. This seems stable but having seen Rip discuss the disadvantages of the ez bar for curls I didn't know if similar logic might apply.
    Why don't you just pick up an extra set of 25s and press with those? 50 lbs on the press is a lot.

  5. #5
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    I’ve been thinking about that, but that’s where we start to run into collar length problems. I was warming up with 101lbs the other day which was 25,11,5,2.5&1 each side, and there was only just enough collar left for the locks. So that would only work for largish steps. What I would also need is some in between steps, say 35 which exists, & some custom ones of 15 and 7.5, thin and large diameter. I’ve turned up some fractionals out of mdf at 0.5 and 1lb, but I would probably have to use metal for these which is a bit more difficult.
    Actually my plates have 3 grip slots, so I could hang the light plates - not ideal but that would work.
    It still doesn’t address the original question though Is an ez-curl bar acceptable for the pressing movement?

  6. #6
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    There's a $50 squat stand build that only requires concrete, five gallon buckets, and 2x4s. I squatted 365 on them which I do not recommend, but if you're just pressing, you can keep them in your garage or some other room as Pete said. They're pretty low profile horizontally.

    Quote Originally Posted by Sebastian Ohanian View Post
    Why don't you just pick up an extra set of 25s and press with those? 50 lbs on the press is a lot.
    Buy plates for the weights you want to lift, not the weights you can lift.

    Quote Originally Posted by No4_nz View Post
    I could press in the workshop in the basement
    Is there a reason your home gym is not in your basement?


    Quote Originally Posted by No4_nz View Post
    Is an ez-curl bar acceptable for the pressing movement?
    No.
    Last edited by AndrewLewis; 12-28-2020 at 06:34 PM.
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  7. #7
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    There's a $50 squat stand build that only requires concrete, five gallon buckets, and 2x4s. I squatted 365 on them which I do not recommend, but if you're just pressing, you can keep them in your garage or some other room as Pete said. They're pretty low profile horizontally.

    Quote Originally Posted by Sebastian Ohanian View Post
    Why don't you just pick up an extra set of 25s and press with those? 50 lbs on the press is a lot.
    Buy plates for the weights you want to lift, not the weights you can lift.

    Quote Originally Posted by No4_nz View Post
    I could press in the workshop in the basement
    Is there a reason your home gym is not in your basement?

    Quote Originally Posted by No4_nz View Post
    Is an ez-curl bar acceptable for the pressing movement?
    No.
    Starting Strength Indianapolis is up and running. Sign up for a free 30-minute coaching session.
    I answer all my emails: ALewis@StartingStrengthGyms.com

  8. #8
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    Dec 2020
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    Thanks for a more definitive response.

    Quote Originally Posted by AndrewLewis View Post
    There's a $50 squat stand build that only requires concrete, five gallon buckets, and 2x4s. I squatted 365 on them which I do not recommend, but if you're just pressing, you can keep them in your garage or some other room as Pete said. They're pretty low profile horizontally.

    Is there a reason your home gym is not in your basement?

    No.
    We were using the basement with a timber rack for a few months until the proper rack showed up. It was convenient, cool and had plenty of height. But as it is my workshop as well it was just too crowded, taking up the one open project space, getting covered in sawdust all the time and having to pick our way around sharp edged items. It would require a fairly major rethink to make it work (not completely off the table, but more of a next year thing). The loft is a spare room, so clean and empty, and cool enough with the windows open and the fan going. So for the time being upstairs it is.

    Trimming back the timber rack to just a press stand is more viable but still requires another bar and more plates. I think for the moment I'll get the 4' bar and see how we go.

    Thanks again for the feedback.

  9. #9
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    Good luck. Post back in this thread after trying it out.
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