A weightlifting belt primarily supports your abs, not (directly) your back. It sounds backwards, but here’s why: The belt acts like a second set of crunches to prepare your entire body to lift heavy loads.
To prepare for those super-heavy lifts, you need to take a deep breath and hold it, a “breathing” method called the Valsalva maneuver. The Valsalva maneuver helps create intra-abdominal pressure that cushions and supports the spine. And that’s where a weightlifting belt lends its powers. With a lifting belt, he takes a deep breath with his belly on the belt, which pushes against his abs. This amplifies the effects of that intra-abdominal pressure, and in turn helps protect your back and allows you to handle the stress of heavy loads even better. Weightlifting straps are a secure way to secure the barbell in place and prevent it from slipping.
Wearing a belt alone will not automatically increase your strength and lifting ability. There is a learning curve to using it and lifting with it on (just like there is a learning curve to being able to apply intra-abdominal pressure and lift correctly). Sure, some may reap the benefits right away, but most will take a while before things work.
When you strap on a belt and use it correctly, the skies open, the birds sing, and your deadlifts or squats (or both) get a noticeable boost. Greg Nuckols of Strengtheory.com found that well-trained belt users can generally move 5-15% more weight for the same sets and reps, can do a couple more reps with the same weight, or lift the same weight for the same weight. same weight. same number of repetitions with less effort. That is quite significant!
We can take this as a suggestion that training with a belt will probably make you stronger over time than training without a belt. This makes sense in the context of being able to do more overall “work” (i.e. lift more weight and do more reps) and continuously push your body to get better, a process called progressive overload. In the long term, you can gain more muscle size and strength.
A weightlifting belt can be used for squats, pullups, and deadlifts. Experienced lifters strap on the belt for near maximal efforts and take it off for regular training and warm-ups. Generally, “near max” is a weight that is 80% or more of your max lift. The exact percentage is often arbitrary, so use it when you think you really need extra support on big lifts.
How to wear a weightlifting belt?
1) Take a breath (hold on)
2) Put the belt in position and support the abdominal wall
3) Tighten the belt just enough to slightly restrict your braced abdominal position for maximum benefit
Weightlifting belts are going to be uncomfortable for a while, especially as you learn to get used to one. However, once he is comfortable with his belt, he can begin to experiment with changing the position of the belt on his torso. For example, Omar Isuf, a strength and performance coach, says experienced belt users tend to wear their belts higher on the torso during a deadlift than during a squat. More specifically, in a deadlift you may find that using it around the middle of your stomach is more comfortable. During a squat, you might like it above the iliac crest.
You also want your belt to be tight enough to stay in the same place as you lift, but not so tight that it cuts off full, deep breaths or circulation. The clothes you wear and even the amount of water you’re holding in could influence how hard you need to pull on the belt. If he’s just learning, it’s okay to wear it a little looser until he learns to love his not-so-cute hug. Finally, keep in mind that your new belt should be broken in the same way as a shoe.
Happy lifting!
