Good FOR a starter??

I am going to start weight training very soon.
By June 1st 2004.
Any this is going to be my first time weight lifting and stuff.. There is a bench that I wanted to buy and I wanted to know what you guys thought of it and if it would be an okay starter for a 14yr old like me...

Link to bench:
http://www.thesportsauthority.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1187058&cp&searchId=5332312341&keywords=weights&fpricesort=priceAscending&filter=yes&page=17&pageBucket=1&parentPage=search

Link to barbells:
http://www.thesportsauthority.com/product/index.jsp?productId=122957&cp&searchId=5332312341&keywords=weights&fpricesort=priceAscending&filter=yes&page=17&pageBucket=1&parentPage=search

-Mike Man 90
[img]http://upl.silentwhisper.net/uplfolders/upload5/mikeman901.jpg[/img]

it seems like a great bench for you but if you ask me i would not buy that bench nor the bar because its a standard bench with the standard bar, the bench is for light bars and you got the right bar for it but the bar is light, it doesnt weight 45lbs like all the others, and it cant hold much weight either. Get an Olympic Weight Bench with an olympic bar.

If i were you, i'd go to Sports Authority, and not look at the web site because they have totally different benches at the store then the internet. Go there and ask for help, they'll show you the best one for you.

Just my opinion.. I like olympic ones.

Thanks for your info any help is good for me..

-Mike Man 90
[img]http://upl.silentwhisper.net/uplfolders/upload5/mikeman901.jpg[/img]

Wow, someone from Long Island- I'm from Queens, Mike, welcome to DB!
Yeah, when it comes to benches, you want something different than that one- It's got a couple of features you really don't need, like the chest fly station thingies- Doing flies with Dumbbells are far more beneficial, and with those things in the way, it'll be hard to use dumbbells instead of them. Also, the preacher curl pad is something I used to use a lot- Not anymore. You get a much better workout when you don't isolate the muscles by using things like that, contrary to what a lot of us have heard over the years.
Personally, I'd go for something that could handle olympic weights, even if you're sticking with a standard bar for right now- I just feel more comfortable with uprights that are further apart. Plus, you might want to look into a bench that has a decent squat station.
As a matter of fact, check out this bench, it was the one right next to the one you posted a link to- Nice, wider uprights for better stability when you put the weights on them, plus you can do squats- And no annoying butterfly attatchment. Plus, it's not much more expensive than the one you were looking at.

That bench isnt for olympic bars either, the bars you guys are looking at can hold up to 110lbs max, the best ones go up to 160lbs, thats really light if you ask me, you'll be able to do a lot more than that in no time.

the bars you guys are looking at are like 110lbs max, the best ones go up to 160lbs

Not sure what you mean by this... You mean they're only sold in those weight configurations? You can always add more weight to them- By buying four more fifty pound plates, a friend of mine has a standard bar set that I've used myself to do heavy squats with 360- Of course, I'm not recommending that anyone try doing heavy squats on a bench like the ones we linked to- But you can do squats with lower weight safely. Even then, it's not that the benches themselves can't handle the weight, you'd be surprised at the actual load bearing capacity of some of those benches, but they just don't have the safety of an actual squat cage.
I gave Mikeman the link to that other bench because mostly likely, like everyone else here, he doesn't really have a ton of money to throw at a home gym. Sure, it's not an olympic bench and it's not the best thing out there, but for the price, it's not bad at all. He'll be able to get a good amount of weight on there for squats- Especially being a beginner, using light weights and having a spotter there are musts. There's the other factor of space- Not a lot of people have the room for a big bulky system with a proper squat rack or a smith machine, let alone the money.
In time, as the weight adds up to the point where he doesn't feel comfortable squatting with that bench anymore, he can figure something else out. Me, I have to work out more or less in three different places right now- Our own personal gym at work has all the freeweights and a decent bench, then the actual school's gym has a nice lat pulldown station, and a friend of mine has a squat rack where I do my leg workouts. I doubt I'll ever have a home gym where I can safely do my full workout all in one place.
As far as whether or not the bench is olympic, the only kind of bench I wouldn't use olympic weights on would be the kind where the uprights are just about shoulder width apart- So long as they're spaced out decently, it balances nicely.

there, i fixed what i meant, read it again

Yeah.. the money is the thing... lol i am only 13 , 14 on (may 24) so i am using my birthday money to buy it along with some money i have. I can spend about 250... I already have a BowFlex but i dont like using it at all... I much rather free weights and dumbells Thanks for your help i think i will get the one that you suggested CPL.. i was looking at that one too... but the weights.. right now i can only lift 100lbs 3-6 times in a row so 160lbs. for now should be good.

-Mike Man 90
[img]http://upl.silentwhisper.net/uplfolders/upload5/mikeman901.jpg[/img]

umm, the part I don't understand still reads the same- The link he posted to the weights has a 160 pound weight set, but you can always add more weight to it by buying more plates, the bar itself will be able to hold it.

By the way Mike, don't worry about the weight- We'll get you straightened out with the right nutrition and workout plan, and you'll be needing more than 160 pounds soon enough.

lol i sure hope so!

-Mike Man 90
[img]http://upl.silentwhisper.net/uplfolders/upload5/mikeman901.jpg[/img]

The link he posted to the weights has a 160 pound weight set, but you can always add more weight to it by buying more plates, the bar itself will be able to hold it.

I dont know, the guy at sports authority told me that thats the max it can hold, he said if i wanted more weights i should go with olympic bars.

Nah. Those guys know nothing- Like I said, I've had over three hundred pounds on a standard bar and no problem. I tend not to listen to the guys at sports authority. One of them actually told me a particular home gym had an excellent shoulder development station, and proceeded to point out the chin up bar. Whenever they tell you something like that, it's always in favor of you buying the more expensive equipment. Remember, to get a job in sports authority, you're not required to actually work out at all. With no practical experience, they're worthless to talk to.

Those guys know nothing-

Yeah.. in alot of places like that they are no help... but every once in a while there is one who knows a little about something...

-Mike Man 90
[img]http://upl.silentwhisper.net/uplfolders/upload5/mikeman901.jpg[/img]

My advice, join a gym, why waste cash on something you'll eventually grow out of weight wise, just join a gym and kick some ass...lol.

Reppen Long Island, woot woot! I just got outa dix hills/suffolk, but im in NC now.... anyway, yeah i go with goal keeper, i just got a athome gym type thing (or my mom got me it, i couldnt act idssapointed) and it maxes at 210 :(!!!!!!!!!...!!! :(