Taming the Bent Press: A Guide to the King of Lifts Digital

By Iron Tamer Dave Whitley

A complete guide to learning the bent press, the old school method for putting maximal weight overhead with one hand. Whether you are an experienced bent presser or brand new to it, this book has got you covered. This is the culmination of over a decade of practice and research.

You wanna get strong?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Sep 22, 2014
• ISBN: 9781312540644

Book preview

Taming the Bent Press:

A Guide to the King of Lifts

by

Iron Tamer Dave Whitley

©2014 David Whitley and Iron Tamer Enterprises, LLC.

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Iron Tamer Enterprises, LLC.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

DISCLAIMER

The authors and publisher of this material are not responsible in any manner whatsoever for any injury that may occur through following the instructions contained in this material. The activities, physical and otherwise, described herein for informational purposes only, may be too strenuous or dangerous for some people. Always consult a physician before engaging in an exercise regimen.

Acknowledgements

This book is dedicated to my dad Gene Whitley and my late mother Frances for alway believing in me and encouraging me to be what I wanted to be.

Special thanks to my wife Mandy for the love and support through everything.

Much gratitude the following folks, who have contributed to my knowledge of strength and the bent press. Without them this book wouldn’t exist: Pavel Tsatsouline, Dennis Rogers, Lawrence Farman aka Slim the Hammer Man, Bud Jeffries, Brett Jones, Mike the Machine Bruce, Jon Engum, Fabio Zonin, Geoff Neupert, Marty Gallagher, Mark Reifkind, Jeff O’Connor, Jedd Johnson, Chris Rider, Adam Glass.

Thanks to all my students over the years for making me a better instructor.

Thanks to Chris Creed for most of the photography in this book and creative guidance.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

IRON TAMER: THE GENTLE GIANT

Foreword: Why the bent press?

Chapter One: Philosophy / History

Chapter Two: The Path of the Masters

Arthur Saxon

Chapter Three: Practice, Performance and the Mentality of an Old-time Strongman

Chapter Four: Preliminaries

Rib pull / Brettzel setup

Rib Pull

Brettzel

The Arm Bar

Bent arm bar

Chapter Five: Progressions.

Getup with presses in seated and half kneeling

Kneeling bent arm bar

Half kneeling side rack with hinge

Elbow drop

Elbow Switch

Half kneeling bent press

Chapter Six: Performance

Getting it Done- the Bent Press proper

Here are the USAWA rules on the lift:

How is the bent press different from other one-arm presses?

Finding YOUR ideal body position

Anchor Principles

Technical Performance of the Bent Press with a Kettlebell

Assistance exercises and other miscellaneous stuff

Chapter Seven: The Plans

Bent and Sinister

Justa-fied bent pressing

The Great Wall

The LMH Plan Phase ONE

Phase TWO LMMH

Phase THREE LMHLM

LHM, part TWO

Barbell Badassery

Performance-style Training

Appendix 1: Eight Directions Diagram

Appendix 2: Symmetry

Appendix 3: Bent... But Not Broken: The Flexible Steel Way

Unlocking Your Bent Press With Original Strength Resets

Uncle Tamer’s Parting Thoughts

About the Author

IRON TAMER:

THE GENTLE GIANT

By Fabio Zonin, Master SFG

When I first met Iron Tamer Dave Whitley, I actually knew who he was for quite a while. Since the early days of my belonging to the RKC instructor ranks I followed with great attention his exploits on Facebook and YouTube. I have always had a huge respect for strong people, especially for those who have become strong thanks to their perseverance, dedication and sacrifice and that, in spite of their physical strength, have always maintained a humble and friendly attitude. Tamer perfectly reflects this type of person, but he is even more than this: he exudes passion for everything he does and teaches, from every pore of his skin.

When I finally met Tamer in person in May 2011 at an RKC event, he was exactly as I imagined. A real and genuine person, a gentle giant. He was just as I had seen him in his photos on Facebook and videos on youtube. I do not know if it has ever happened to you to come into contact with a person for the first time and immediately have the feeling it would be only the beginning of a long friendship, but when I shook my hand with Tamer's, and right after the first words I exchanged with him, I had the feeling that he was as much happy to meet me as I was to meet him. I've never asked him, but I am convinced that it was so.

From then on, Tamer and I have always kept in touch and we finally had the chance to work together for the first time in Belfast on the occasion of an RKC kettlebell certification course hosted by the brothers Damian and Paul McIlroy, of Centaur Fitness. We had the opportunity to finally spend some more time together, train together in an environment where we felt in our natural habitat, and strengthen our friendship. And we realized we had even more things in common than we could ever imagine!

Above all, I had the chance to see for the first time this man in action while he was teaching, and to assist him in this task. I swear I have never seen anyone so gifted for teaching in my life! The ability to communicate information and emotions seemed to have been carved into the DNA of this man. I have always believed that a good teacher cannot be distinguished only by the quantity of information that he is able to provide to his audience, but especially for how he is able to provide it. There are lots of people out there who own an incredible wealth of information, but do not have the ability to convey them in the best way. And having good communication skills is still not a sufficient condition to be a great teacher. To be a great teacher three other key ingredients are needed, ingredients that very few have. These three ingredients are: firmly believing in what one says, being very passionate about what one does, and having a big heart. Of course, the ultimate goal is to convey information, but information is not the only thing that the student receives. He takes the certitude from the tone of voice of the teacher, and the passion and the heart by the light that shines in his eyes. And these are transmitted; they penetrate into the mind and into the soul of the student. Being a great teacher is thus not only a matter of possessing some skills that can be learned and refined, but also some innate qualities are necessary. Tamer has them all! He owns the information, he is a great communicator, he firmly believes in what he does, he is animated by an immense passion and he has a heart that's bigger than his body. You could not ask for anyone better!

After the experience in Belfast, Tamer and I have taught many other times together, and between us it has established an incredible synergy that everyone have always immediately noticed and appreciated.

We both departed from RKC and followed Pavel in StrongFirst, in its mission to make the world a stronger place. We participated together in many courses and seminars, so we traveled together, shared hotel rooms, breakfasts, lunches and dinners.

My friends have become his friends and his friends have become my friends. My family has become his family, and his family has become mine. I was a guest in his house and he was at mine. We had fun, we visited new places, played rock music on