Seated Chest Press vs Smith Machine Bench Press

On Thu, 7 Feb 2008, Prisoner at War wrote:

> On Feb 7, 7:29 am, Tom Anderson <t... DeleteThis @urchin.earth.li> wrote:
>
>> I'm getting the impression that you don't know how a chest press
>> machine works. You push forward, horizontally, on some levers. The
>> levers are connected by a spooky mechanism to a stack of weights - and
>> they move *vertically* (told you the mechanism was spooky!). So when
>> you're doing a machine chest press, you're lifting the weights 100%
>> against gravity. So the direction of push doesn't affect the way the
>> weights relate to gravity - but it does affect the way the weight of
>> your arms relates to gravity, since those aren't on the other end of
>> the mechanism.
>
> Can you show me a picture of what you mean, then? I'm pretty sure we
> have the same things in mind...there are a few different seated chest
> press machines in my gym, and thought their structural design is
> different, they all seem to work the same way.

Here is a lissom young lady doing a chest press (although they call it a
machine bench press):

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/exercises.php?Name=Machine+Bench+Press

As you can see (especially with the videos or the zoomed-in pics), she
moves the handles roughly horizontally, but causes a weight stack to move
vertically.

She seems to be a bit of a chest exercise specialist:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/exercises.php?Name=Flat+Bench+Cable+Flyes
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/exercises.php?Name=Incline+Cable+Flye
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/exercises.php?Name=Cable+Crossover

And hey, it's working for her o_O.

This, incidentally, is not a chest press:

http://www.youngwomenshealth.org/fitness/ti_chest_press.html

That's not anything. I see people doing that sometimes, and i want to slap
them in the head for wasting their time and my oxygen.

> Look, all I'm saying is is: you jump farther when jumping horizontally
> than vertically (basically my shot put example). Weight of the legs (or
> arms, what you'd noted) doesn't matter 'cause it's factored in in both
> situations.

That analogy is no good, because when you do a horizontal chest press,
you're still lifting the weight vertically. It's like doing a long jump
with a rope tied to you that goes to a pulley and a weight stack. Or
something.

>> Oh, and for itto be 70% against gravity, you'd have to be pushing at 45
>> degrees.
>
> Whatever the exact percentage is; my point was that it's much less,
> which is why it's easier. Again, jumping straight up isn't going to
> take you further than jumping straight across. Why not? You're
> working against much more gravity in one case than the other...same
> thing with the seated chest press.

No, not the same at all.

tom

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Next issue - Nigel and the slavegirls ... or, why capitalism can never
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On Feb 8, 12:54 am, "Burr" <pitzra....RemoveThis@earthlink.net> wrote:
[...]

> You a teacher?

http://curtjames.com/

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