Tumbarello’s feet being off the bottom is a fitting symbol for this feat that may make many levitate with joy.
When it comes to upper-body prowess and energy, powerlifter Joseph Tumbarello understands what he wants. If one were to peruse his general social media with none context of his profession, goals, or ambitions, one would see an athlete wholeheartedly committed to maximizing his chest strength through the bench press by seemingly any means essential. The chest-focused brick house of power can have outdone himself along with his latest impressive feat within the books.
On Jan. 16, 2022, Tumbarello posted a video to his Instagram profile where he successfully locked out a 281.2-kilogram (620-pound) Larsen press while wearing a lifting belt, wrist wraps, and elbow wraps. Normally, a bench press of any sort over 600 kilos is impressive. That’s, understandably, numerous weight to stack onto a barbell and lift off the chest. Except Tumbarello, who weighed 115.2 kilograms (254 kilos) on the time of the lift, didn’t perform a standard bench press. He used the Larsen press variation — with the legs fully prolonged and feet hovering over the bottom — and notched a private record (PR) in the method.
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What makes a Larsen press particularly difficult, and what should enhance the angle on Tumbarello’s latest display of strength, amounts to fundamental physics.
Because an athlete’s feet hover off the bottom in front of the bench during their set, a Larsen press removes any potential of using leg drive to assist with lockout. In a traditional bench press, athletes can harness their leg drive for added stability throughout the exercise with their feet firmly planted on the bottom. With the legs taken out of the equation, an athlete must higher utilize a mix of their chest, triceps, and shoulder muscles to complete their press and stay stable at the identical time. That might make commonly implementing the Larsen press right into a routine potentially all of the more useful.
For Tumbarello, even while notching a recent Larsen press, this showcase of upper-body strength appears to be one other day in his barbell-laden “office.”
On a competitive basis, Tumbarello does have experience outside of showing off what he’s able to on the gym’s bench press. In line with Open Powerlifting, the powerlifter has participated in two profession contests, the 2019 Revolution Powerlifting Syndicate (RPS) Heatwave 7 (H7) and, most recently, the bench press-only 2022 RPS Bench for Boobs (BFB). Tumbarello competed with wraps within the 100-kilogram weight class on the H7 and raw within the 125-kilogram category on the BFB. He can boast a respecatble first-place victory in each.
(Note: Tumbarello competed in each the Juniors and Open Division on the Heatwave 7 contest. He won the Juniors portion and got here in second within the Open.)
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Including this massive Larsen press PR, Tumbarello has wasted no time attacking 2023 full steam ahead. Lower than three weeks into the brand new 12 months, the athlete has already shared 10 separate Instagram clips of himself performing some form of staggering bench press training. With that form of dedication to his craft, it’s no wonder he can lift over 600 kilos without having his feet rooted deeply into the bottom.
Featured image: @josephtumbarello on Instagram