This is an unusual line of thought, but it does make some sense to me at least.
Basically, I've now benched more than I ever thought I was able to
at this very time. I made a new personal best of 110kg the other day, and tried for 115kg under the guidance of the gym owner/team "coach". I almost got it but it ground to a halt halfway through the press.
Roll on a little bit later, he decides to "guide" me in the lift by placing his index finger and thumb on my wrists. This means that he can't really make any assistance in the lift, and the two spotters on either side of the bar do their usual job of er... spotting. I was to do 120kg, never done it before, I knew it was quite a big jump and that if I didn't control it, it could hurt a bit!
Down it came, controlled and I blasted the 120kg off the chest. A little while later he had me attempt 140kg, which involved him squeezing my wrists with his finger and thumb to make sure I kept stability during the bottom of the lift, and then it flew up!
Now this raises the question. There was no chance of me even doing 120kg before he did this little "trick" with my wrists, and there's no way he can assist much at all with just his index finger and thumb. So this has me wonder, is it likely that it is my lack of confidence in handling 120-140kg that prevents me from being able to do it? It makes little sense to me how one can go from 110 (almost 115) on their own, to do 120 no problem and fought 140 up with "guidance" from a pair of fingers and thumbs! It must be all in the mind surely? A false sense of security that all can be given with little that could go wrong?
