How much can tennis players bench press?

M

magdude

Guest
Anyone know how much some pros can bench (or give a rough estimate)?
 
V

VTL

Guest
it's not that stupid... but i doubt a lot of ppl know these kinds of things
 
F

ferrerofan

Guest
"most stupiest"

excellent grammar and spelling nowadays.
 

Matt H.

Professional
there's no denying that tennis players are some of fittest, if not THE fittest atheletes in professional sports.

However, i'd say they don't bench as much as most other pro athletes to the fact that it's a muscle group that isn't as important and needs much attention as compared to others.
 

Kevin T

Hall of Fame
I've said it before and I'll say it again; I call BS on Agassi benching 315# if we are talking free weight, strict bench pressing. I've seen him up close without a shirt on during his practice sessions at the Cincy tourney and I just don't see the muscular development required to move that kind of poundage. Maybe he can but I need proof. He is always so secretive about his training methods. We know he runs hills and lifts heavy weight but he never elaborates when reporters ask questions. Give us video proof Andre!! Maybe he can do 315# on a machine or the Bowflex...then I might believe him.
 

joe sch

Legend
Most 10s players have been historically weak compared to other athletes. Andre Agassi has help change this by hiring a fulltime trainer who specializes in power lifting, Gill Reyes. He can bench over 300 lbs. There are other weight training excercises that are much better suited for tennis motions but benchpress or squat is usually the one you will hear about since lifters can use the most weight in these lifts. Weight training can be very valuable for increasing muscle endurance and preventing injuries and this is one reason why I believe AA has outlasted most of the present day players. It works for me :wink:
 

Ash Doyle

Professional
Men's journal magazine once did an article about the fitness level of different pro athletes by sport, and if you go by their results then male tennis players are nowhere near the fittest. For body fat content they had male tennis players listed at 12% - 16%. It was way down the list. First place went to Basketball players at 4% - 8% on average.
 

JohnThomas1

Professional
@Kevin T, i am 5'6 and 172 pounds and was bench pressing 308. I am sure as heck not an elite athlete and do not have the time or professional hands on that Agassi has. I have no problem at all believing Andre was benching 315, as a matter of fact if he trains seriously with weights anything under would be a disappointment. In 4 years of semi serious weight training i doubled my strength and went from benching 15 X 90 to 10 X 220. Agassi has a lot more going for him. (Time, trainer genetics etc etc)
 

Kevin T

Hall of Fame
That's great John Thomas but I still don't believe it. Agassi is not as tall or as heavy as he lists himself. If you get the chance to see him up close you will notice that. All pro athletes, in all sports, exaggerate their ht/wt info. I played DI college football and the guys in Agassi's weight class that benched >300# were much, much more developed muscularly. He doesn't have a well-developed chest and the accessory muscles recruited during the bench press motion (lats,triceps,front deltoids) are very average. He also has a narrow shoulder girdle which is a major hindrance in benching. I hope he can bench 300#. I am just skeptical.
 

guernica1

Semi-Pro
I can believe a 315 lb 1 time max, but then again any person who has put in at least 12 months of dedicated lifting can do a rather impressive sounding 1 time max.

Like Kevin I highly doubt Agassi is 'working out' at 315 lbs reps which is a huge difference.

Go to the NFL combine results and you will see that cornerback and running back prospects are tested on 225 lb maximum number reps and many do like 8-10 maximum.

Among that field, Agassi is probably closest to a cornerback in strenght... MAYBE.
 

Kevin T

Hall of Fame
Agreed, Guernica1. Of course Agassi is a world-class athlete but I don't know if I would group him with the likes of pro cornerbacks and running backs. He's got the hand/eye coordination and endurance but with NFL corners and RB's we're talking 4.3 40's, 40inch vertical leaps,300# benches and >500# squats. Even if Agassi has that bench, there is no way he gets the others. Not to say those stats make a successful pro but they definitely accompany the large majority of prospects. I'll concede the bench to Andre considering he wore a compression benching shirt, bounced the weight off his chest and drank 3 Red Bulls prior to the workout.
 

Ronaldo

Bionic Poster
Just for the record, Earl Boykins, 5'5" guard for the Denver Nuggets benches 300-350# and weighs 133#. He can bench more than any other player on that team. Steve Nash, Dallas Maverick guard squats over 400# while standing on a wobble board. Finally, Ben Wallace of the Detroit Pistons benches over 475#. These guys really look like gym rats
 

Rabbit

G.O.A.T.
I can bench 315 on a machine like Nautilus or Cybex, but Kevin's right. Free weights are a hole different ball game. I doubt I bench about 275 on free weights, and then only one rep....it's a lot harder to work with free weights than the machines.
 

guernica1

Semi-Pro
One thing is though the shorter your arms are it does help with bench and squat because you do have a shorter distance to carry the weight through.

Boykins is truly impressive though, fast as lightning, skits around the court like a water bug and yes he is strong as an ox for his size.

I have often wondered how well some of the elite point guards or cornerbacks or boxers would do if they dedicated themselves tennis as they have a premium combination of speed, flexibility, smoothness in hip movements for direction change, hand-eye coordination and size-strength ratios, not to mention point guards especially have very good court awareness and sports strategy..

We'll probably never know but interesting food for thought.
 

Kobble

Hall of Fame
Tiger Woods has similar chest development to Agassi, and Tiger claims well over 300 pounds on the bench press. Tiger seems to have greater tricep development though, and triceps are one of the greatest contributers to a great bench press. I don't blame Kevin T for being skeptical. Most of these guys seem to use their fitness as a form of intimidation, and neither him or Tiger tell all the details about their training routine. Tiger said he will not disclose his current strength levels, because he has to have some secrets. I do have a story to tell Kevin though. Ever since I saw one of my friends bench press 210lbs. in high school I will never instantly doubt anyones claims for a big bench anymore. He was 6'2 and weighed approximately 130-140 pounds, and he couldn't curl or tricep press more than 40 lbs with one arm. He had a complete bird chest along with no lats, and on top of that he had long skinny arms. The only other person I have ever known who looked like him struggled to get up 130+lbs. I would have bet my life he could get up 150 at best, but he could easily get up 200lbs. on his worst day. Everyone who has ever known him was amazed at what he could do. He achieved it by benchpressing every day while doing nothing else. It was truly amazing.
 

Ronaldo

Bionic Poster
Worked with a guy barely 140# who challenged us daily to bench over 200# daily between JagerBombs and shots of Stoly. Freeweights
 

tetsuo10

Rookie
One can become quite strong without becoming overly muscular. A big part of muscle development is diet, and I doubt Agassi's diet leans toward large muscle development. Beside, Agassi is rather ripped in photos and in person. Also, I wonder what Gambill can bench as he too is pretty well built.
 

Hewittfan22

Semi-Pro
i cant believe all these people are responding to this dumb question..... how sad is that? just anwer mine about roddick's racquet please, who cares how much they bench, and how the heck would you know how much the bench?!?!
 

JohnThomas1

Professional
Here's a quote from the Houston Chronicle

First, there was the skill, front and center for everyone to see.

Then came Gil.

One didn't need much understanding of tennis to suspect that the teenage Andre Agassi had superstardom in his cards. At 18, he climbed to No. 3 in the world. Before he turned 20, he already had won 10 ATP tournaments. But something was missing in the spindly, stringy-haired bowlegged boy wonder from Glitter Gulch. Muscle mass, for starters.

That's why he wound up in Gil Reyes' UNLV weight room one afternoon almost 14 years ago, inquiring as to whether the Runnin' Rebels' barrel-chested, no-nonsense strength coach might be willing to help him bulk up, too.

"I don't know anything about tennis," Reyes said warily.

"I do," Agassi replied. "Leave the tennis to me."

At the time, Andre could bench-press maybe 135 pounds. Sunday, as he readied himself for the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships at Westside Tennis Club, he knocked off a set at 350. And Reyes was at his side, orchestrating a workout regimen that has evolved over time, ever perfectly in tune with Agassi's needs as he moves from one surface to the next, growing older by the day.


i'd be shocked if he could churn out a set at 350 tho......
 
V

VTL

Guest
Phil said:
as he readied himself for the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships at Westside Tennis Club, he knocked off a set at 350

I call major b.s. on this one.

I doubt it's b.s., I just did 3 reps of 300 a couple hours ago and ppl always tell me i look like i can only do 180. And I don't really train professionally as Agassi would and I'm quite smaller than him.
 

Kevin T

Hall of Fame
Agreed, Phil. Since we're all B.S.ing here, I just came back from the gym. I benched 515# 4 times and squatted 750# 5 times, even though I am only 6'3" 220#. After my grueling workout, I picked up my new girlfriend Halle Berry in my new Porsche convertible for a light lunch at Tavern on the Green. We have a dinner meeting this evening with Donald Trump to discuss my insights on next season's "The Apprentice". Soon after, my wife smacked me upside the head and said to turn off the alarm clock.
 

guernica1

Semi-Pro
LOL Kevin, you meant you went to pick up Omarosa...

Don't know about anyone else but I tried playing tennis once about 2 hours after a pretty intense weight lifting session and it is very very difficult to play fine motor coordination and reflex sports after your muscles have been put through maximal exertion.

Did that article say Agassi knocked off a set of 350 before the finals?
 

Phil

Hall of Fame
I doubt it's b.s., I just did 3 reps of 300 a couple hours ago and ppl always tell me i look like i can only do 180. And I don't really train professionally as Agassi would and I'm quite smaller than him.

Well, people tell ME that I look like I can bench 435, when in fact, I do 5 x 5 of 680 as my regular workout, and I only weigh 128. You figure out the math, stud.

And Kevin T., 515 is wuss territory, and Halle Berry is my EX-I dropped her-so you're getting sloppy seconds! Trump's a punk-I sold him a couple properties for a 1,000% mark-up, and went and opened a chain of chicken fried steak restaurants with the profits.

Obviously, my alarm clock's not even working today.
 

baselined

New User
Well I look like i can bench 350 but I can only bench 110 and I weigh 105 lbs.

Honesty...America's greatest flaw.

But seriously, it doesn't matter how much muscle you have or how much you can bench press. The fact of the matter is Andy Roddick can hit a serve 2x faster than Arnold Schwartzagovvenah ever could.

And the stat about basketball players being #1 in fitness...that's a joke because I can name of quite a few chubby dudes who run the wood floors. If you want truly fit athletes, look to soccer players and motocross riders (believe it or not).
 
V

VTL

Guest
baselined said:
And the stat about basketball players being #1 in fitness...that's a joke because I can name of quite a few chubby dudes who run the wood floors. If you want truly fit athletes, look to soccer players and motocross riders (believe it or not).

Hey, even though Shaq looks big enough to be the NBA, he's actually just one person
 
V

VTL

Guest
I don't think soccer players are as explosive as basketball players, and also a baller's lateral speed is much better too.
 

tetsuo10

Rookie
If you're talking about endurance, yeah soccer players are perhaps the fittest. But I think overall combination of speed, strength, and stamina, it would have to be basketball players (forwards mainly) or NFL cornerbacks.
 
genetics plays a huge role in bench pressing.

In a previous life power-lifting was my sport of choice. While I was not great at it, I did see a lot of accomplished lifters - some whose body-size belied their strength, and others who looked stronger than they were.

While training is certainly a key determinant of how much one can BC, so is genetics. While there is debate over what the perfect "build" for bench pressing it, it seems that short arms, a broad chest, and long dense tricep and pectoral muscles are a big part of it. ..Interestingly, this doesn't always result in someone developing huge muscles. I've seen 165 lb. guys who after just a year of lifting were able to bench 315 (3 big plates per side). Some of these guys developed huge muscles, others did not. Conversely, there are many (like myself) who - despite decades of proper training, diet, and technique - never get there. I was built (at the time) like a legitimate body-builder, but still very mediocre bencher.

This is also true of squats. Squats came easy to me - I was able to deep squat 315 for 20 reps, and do 455 deep for 1. ..But BC - I never got above 305.

Anyway, ..It's possible that Agassi (or Tiger Woods) benches 315, but I still kind of doubt it. Neither appear to have the short arms, or ultra broad chests that great benchers generally have. ..I won't say it's impossible, just unlikely. All that aside, I think benching 315 goes way beyond what is necessary to compete at the pro-level in tennis. .. In the case of Tiger Woods, I think lifting is hurting him. Golf is a game where players spend years figuring out that a "3/4 pitching wedge goes precisely 110 yds." ..By dramatically changing their strength, all of a golfers distances change. Tiger needs to decide what he wants to be! ..If it's the worlds best golfer, he needs to dial down the body building.
 

david aames

Professional
A few days ago... Proof that wearing black does make you look slimmer.

 
Kevin T said:
Agreed, Phil. Since we're all B.S.ing here, I just came back from the gym. I benched 515# 4 times and squatted 750# 5 times, even though I am only 6'3" 220#. After my grueling workout, I picked up my new girlfriend Halle Berry in my new Porsche convertible for a light lunch at Tavern on the Green. We have a dinner meeting this evening with Donald Trump to discuss my insights on next season's "The Apprentice". Soon after, my wife smacked me upside the head and said to turn off the alarm clock.

You guys are absolutely right to doubt. I was a personal trainer for 7 years...I have seen a lot of things. I have seen a lot of bench press "claims". Funny thing about these claims is...you take away the spotter...and suddenly you have to call for an ambulance. If Agassi ever put over 300lbs on a bar, he is either not using a full range of motion(required for real bench pressing competition) or ol Gil is "spotting" him...or both. Same goes for Tiger Woods.

I am sure (and have a source) that Agassi was using steroids for a while, even then....there is no way this guy can bench 350 properly.
 

Kevin T

Hall of Fame
Interesting, Datacipher! Very interesting. Agree with all the previous comments concerning short arms/broad chest/wide shoulders/thick triceps and lats. Those are the keys to powerful benching. None other than Charles Poliquin, famous trainer of Olympic and Pro athletes, has stated that when most famous clients come to him to train, he can't believe how weak they are. They will state in the media how much they bench, how strong they are, yada, yada but when he puts them through the paces he sees something else entirely. And the previous comment that you don't have to appear strong to be strong is correct but not the norm. Agassi goes his entire life without heavy lifting but after a few years he becomes a world-class bench pressor? And in his early 30's mind you, not in his 20's when testosterone/growth hormone levels are peaking? I call even bigger BS on Tiger benching 300#. I know they are world class athletes with spectacular genetics but give me a break. Beckham might be incredibly fit and a fine soccer player but he's not benching 300#, just like Shaq isn't going out to run the 400 meter hurdles. A 300# bench is a standard/baseline for most college football players and I just can't lump Agassi into that group. Call me a skeptic.
 

perfmode

Hall of Fame
Have you seen Tiger's arms lately? I saw a commercial about a month ago and he had his shirt off. The guy's arms were gigantic. Way too big for a golfer. He seriously looked like The Rock.
 
Kevin T said:
incredibly fit and a fine soccer player but he's not benching 300#, just like Shaq isn't going out to run the 400 meter hurdles. A 300# bench is a standard/baseline for most college football players and I just can't lump Agassi into that group. Call me a skeptic.

Yes, those are keys to a good bench press. And every lifter tends to have a favored lift depending on many factors but certainly body proportions play a huge role! No, you don't have to be enormous to have good genetics and a well trained nervous system which allows you to maximize your power efficiency. BUT these claims are BS period. I can also assure you that even many of those college records are highly suspect. For 3 years I trained college and semi-pro hockey players in the off season for their dry land training. Looking at the team testing records and what I was actually seeing was a joke. Sprint times and weight records were "enhanced". One guy had set the team squat record at 650 lbs. Now he authentically believed he had done this, but was unable to explain why he couldn't go over 450lbs in training. OIf course the usual excuses "adrenalin" etc... ha ha..
Eventually even he admitted the team trainers were spotting him..."but they even said they barely did anything!" uh huh...

One note about spotters is...it's common for spotter to say 'gee, i barely took any weight...it was all you! Maybe I took like 2 lbs. Well for a strong guy, it's not hard to lift say the bar with no weight....feels like nothing....well that's 45lbs!" Have nobody touch the bar and whoa...look out!"
 
JohnThomas1 said:
@Kevin T, i am 5'6 and 172 pounds and was bench pressing 308. I am sure as heck not an elite athlete and do not have the time or professional hands on that Agassi has. I have no problem at all believing Andre was benching 315, as a matter of fact if he trains seriously with weights anything under would be a disappointment. In 4 years of semi serious weight training i doubled my strength and went from benching 15 X 90 to 10 X 220. Agassi has a lot more going for him. (Time, trainer genetics etc etc)

John, at 5'6 you are 5 inches shorter than Agassi but the same weight. In other words, you are a lot thicker. You believe that Agassi can bench 15-50lbs more than you were? Now granted Agassi may have better training and genetics than you or I....but if this is true, next time he plays the AO in your country he should swing by the power lifting championships and clean up:

http://clubs.uqsport.uq.edu.au/uqpwc/Powerlifting_promov2.pdf

You can see here that Agassi is doing a "set" with just a couple kilos under the Australian Open power lifting record in his weight class! ha ha....
 

JohnThomas1

Professional
Hi Datacipher, thanks for the comments. My original post was always based around a single rep. Agassi doing sets of 315 isn't even believable for gullible old moi lol. As said above, gil would sure be doing one heckuva upright row. The record for a 165 lbs (About) person is 162.5 kg by your page. That's getting around 360 lbs. Take a look at the record for a 148 lbs person, a whopping 382 lbs or so. We also must remember that these contests are based on absolutely perfect form, no bouncing and with a pause at the bottom. These guys also use suits, which definitely add a few kilo to the lift. Now picture Andre in the gym, you think he would bench this weight without a just a little bounce? Just a small bounce at the bottom makes a big difference trust me. I'm not saying he DID do this bench, i'm just saying i myself would believe it. A kiwi friend at the gym weighs 206 and benches, for one rep, 396. He's just a weekly trainer who doesn't compete. The other post (the story one) i did was a cut and paste.
 
JohnThomas1 said:
Hi Datacipher, thanks for the comments. My original post was always based around a single rep. Agassi doing sets of 315 isn't even believable for gullible old moi lol. As said above, gil would sure be doing one heckuva upright row. The record for a 165 lbs (About) person is 162.5 kg by your page. That's getting around 360 lbs. Take a look at the record for a 148 lbs person, a whopping 382 lbs or so. We also must remember that these contests are based on absolutely perfect form, no bouncing and with a pause at the bottom. These guys also use suits, which definitely add a few kilo to the lift. Now picture Andre in the gym, you think he would bench this weight without a just a little bounce? Just a small bounce at the bottom makes a big difference trust me. I'm not saying he DID do this bench, i'm just saying i myself would believe it.quote]

Fair enough John, it's certainly not completely impossible. and you're correct about the lifting suits being a definite boost, of course I assumed Andre would not be squeezing into a lifting suit during work outs! Nevertheless...usually even the smaller lifters don't "look" like Andre.....I have to see this one to believe it even at 315. We both agree that sets (assuming his sets are more than 1 rep! lol) at 350 is out of the question...
 
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