Flat Bench claims another Pec!!

......So I am in the gym the other day and one of my buds (real big guy - built like a powerlifter. Not sure about him juicing or not, we dont ask, dont tell) is on the flat bench doing bench presses.
I'm not paying too much attention because I'm doing shoulder and abs, but I do notice him working up to four plates a side. He does one set of five with the four plates, stops and goes for some water. Goes back and gets under it again. All of a sudden, I hear screaming and commotion from the bench area and I run over to see whats up. He is laying on the floor, clutching his left pec area. His spotter luckily got the bar racked so that wasnt an issue. He pulls up his shirt at our urging and sure enough, the bruising has already started and a huge bulge has appeared on his chest, signifying the rolled-up pec. We call 911 and he goes to the ER.
Bottom line: He tore the pec (Duh) and had to have surgery. He has two nice incisions and will be out of the gym for at least six months to a year. His heavy bench days are over, I fear.
All you bros who go crazy on the bench press, please take this to heart. The flat bench press forces the wrists into an unnatural position at the bottom of the lift and shoulder and pec injuries are very common. This is the third one I have personally witnessed.

I was one of 3 spotters on a lift of 495. On the second, BOTH pecs tore. He never benched more than 65 pounds after that.

Tearing both pecs at the same time must take some doing. Why is recovery never complete even after a few years? There must be some kind of weakened scar tissue or lesions in the muscle which are still susceptible to tearing.

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Originally Posted by Flexor

Tearing both pecs at the same time must take some doing. Why is recovery never complete even after a few years? There must be some kind of weakened scar tissue or lesions in the muscle which are still susceptible to tearing.

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when he's talking about a tear he means the tendons actually tears off the bone. you have to get that shit surgically reattached and it's not easy for doctors to do.

I partially tore my pec tendon. No surgery, it healed fine. And I'm still benching heavy.

damn that sounds so painful

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Originally Posted by TCEL300

damn that sounds so painful

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This guy was in a ball on the floor writhing in pain. His dad (MD) arrived on the scene and shot him full of anti-inf and pain meds. He was competing at the time, but that was the end of his career. Shame, he had one of the sickest natural physiques I have ever seen except for the fact that he was practically an albino so on show day, he had to rub on tan for like an hour!

Yea, I hate these kind of stories. There's never a happy ending. That reminds me of a story about Alex Federov tearing his pec on the incline and his doctor telling him it's the worst tear he has ever seen. :bbcrying:

wish him luck man..sucks to hear he sounds like a good kid

can be a carrer ending injury,BUT i have heard stories of those who do make comebacks.you can't give up hope, in a situation like this, it is really all you have.optimism can only help, if you think you are done, you will be done. i wish your friend the best.