Guide

What is a bench press gym?

Judged by the rules, not the marketing.

A bench press specialty gym is a gym whose equipment, coaching and room are all chosen for the bench press. Where a general fitness club spreads its budget across cardio and selectorised machines, a specialty gym spends it on competition racks and bars, plates that weigh what they say, and a floor that can take heavy loads safely. In Japan there are still few of them, and most are run by competitive powerlifters.

Difference

Four things to look at

The difference is not how much equipment there is. It is what the equipment was chosen for. The heavier you lift, the more that shows.

What to check
The rackHow many, and whether the bar height adjusts. A competition combo rack lifts the bar on a jack, so lifters can swap over quicklyCompetition grade?
The barStiffness, knurling, sleeve rotation. A powerlifting bar does not whip and does not slipRight for the lift?
The platesIPF rules require competition plates to be within 0.25 percent or 10 grams of face value. Ask whether there are 1.25 kg incrementsAccuracy and increments
The roomFloor loading, noise, whether people share racks, and whether there is anyone to ask. In an unstaffed gym there is nobody to ask when the weight gets heavyFloor, culture, people

Source: IPF Technical Rules 2.2(b), edition effective 1 March 2026.

Standard

There is a common yardstick

Bench pressing has an international federation, and the equipment specification is written down. That means you can check a gym against the rules instead of against its own description.

What the IPF rules specifyEdition effective 1 March 2026
Plate toleranceApplies to every plate used in competition0.25% or 10 g
Plate weights allowedLighter discs are used only to set records1.25–25 kg
Colour10 kg and under is not specified — green for 10 kg and white for 5 kg are maker conventions, not rules15 yellow / 20 blue / 25 red
Bar and collarsTogether, not the bar alone25 kg
RacksOnly racks from makers approved by the technical committee are used at international meetsApproved makers

Source: IPF Technical Rules.

B.A.D. GYM URAWA

The bench press gym in Kita-Urawa

B.A.D. GYM URAWA is one minute on foot from the west exit of Kita-Urawa Station in Saitama, about 25 minutes north of Tokyo Station. It is supervised by Yusuke Suzuki, who won the IPF World Classic Bench Press Championships in 2018 and 2019. The gym is built around an Eleiko IPF-certified competition combo rack (full equipment list).

The basics
Where2F Iwasaki Bldg, 4-1-11 Kita-Urawa, Urawa-ku, Saitama-shi, Saitama 330-00741 min from the station
Opening hoursFrom the grand opening on 1 October 2026. September is a pre-opening period with irregular daysTue–Sun 10:00–22:00
Train for a dayNo joining fee. One week JPY 7,700. JPA-registered lifters JPY 2,200 per dayDrop-in JPY 3,300
MembershipJoining fee JPY 11,000. Join by 31 December 2026 and the founding rate of JPY 13,200 is held for as long as you stayJPY 14,300 / month

All prices include tax. Prices may change; the Japanese price page is the current source. Payment is cashless only — we do not accept cash. Whether cards issued outside Japan are accepted is still being confirmed.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is a bench press specialty gym the same as a bench press gym?

Yes — the terms are used interchangeably for a gym built around the bench press. A gym covering the full sport is usually called a powerlifting gym.

How many bench press gyms are there in Japan?

There is no official count. Gyms advertising powerlifting or bench pressing exist across the country, but few have a full set of competition equipment, and most of those are run by competitive lifters. Search the area name with “bench press gym” and check the photographs and model names of the equipment.

Can a beginner train at one?

Yes, and it is arguably the better place to start: correct form is easier to learn before habits set in. At B.A.D. GYM URAWA the first session begins with a form check, whatever weight you lift.

How do I check whether the equipment really is competition standard?

Look at it. Racks carry the maker and model name, and IPF-certified equipment says so. Plates are stamped with their weight. The IPF rules require competition plates to be within 0.25 percent or 10 grams of their face value, so a gym that states its plate tolerance is telling you something checkable.