Weight Belt? - JP Fitness Forums

Doug M. · 12-16-2005, 10:53 PM

Okay..i was doing deadlifts today because it was an off day and i wanted to know my 1RM...seein kevin almost hit 300 got me thinkin..i hit 235 and almost had 245 when i felt my back tighten up too much...i wasnt sure wat it was, but i did a few lighter sets, tried again and it did it again. I then cooled down and rested. Do you think i should get a weight belt to stop that?

Doug

Irishdazza · 12-17-2005, 04:40 AM

Weight belts are likely to lead to a false sense of security that could cost you injury wise.

Better to concentrate on form and build the strength up in all the supporting muscles.

igunick · 12-17-2005, 07:00 AM

My uncle gave me his belt some time ago, he thought I could use it more. I never understood how those things help though. I just use it as a dip belt

diamondpete · 12-17-2005, 08:36 AM

Hi Doug

Have a look at this post by Rev:

http://forums.jpfitness.com/noncgi/u.../t/003150.html

Some comments by Bill:
http://forums.jpfitness.com/cgi-bin/...c;f=2;t=000604

Post by JP:
http://forums.jpfitness.com/cgi-bin/.../t/000140.html

These should answer your question

Peter

Kevin T. · 12-17-2005, 10:10 AM

No. Make sure you warm up well next time. If it happens again and you feel your back start to hurt, it means you can't do that weight. If your back is your weak spot, then your core isn't strong enough for that weight. Work on your core strength as well to help improve your deadlift. What I think really helped me was that these past 3 months, for baseball, i've been doing a lot of exercises that involved core stability. Some of them include:

-single arm shoulder press
-wood chops-both high to low and low to high
-reach and pulls
-single arm split jerks
-lateral planks
-rotational lunge to curl

All those involved my core and helped strengthen it. Also, for the past 6 weeks, we've been doing sumo deadlifts. I've usually done heavier deads on Tuesdays and then lighter sets on thursday to help with recovery and to keep myself from burning out. I don't really know how this affected my pull, but i doubt it could hurt it, as i trained light on tuesday and then went for my max on thursday at home when i couldn't stay at school to lift.

Note: I also felt my back tighten up a bit, nothing with pain, that was just my sticking point-getting it off the ground. Once I got it a few inches off the ground, it got easier and it was easier to explode forward with my hips. Also, an important thing to remember when your deadlifting is not just to lean back to lift it; explode your hips forward as well. I can't remember who talked about this (danny?) but i do remember reading it in some thread a while back.

Cynic · 12-22-2005, 05:04 AM

Sorry to drudge this back up, but I read somewhere recently, and at this time I forget where I read it, that some lifters wear it looser and use it for feedback on form. Would this constitute a more acceptable use of a weight belt?

Esteban · 12-22-2005, 09:04 AM

Some articles by renowned spine researcher, Dr. Stuart McGill:

http://www.backfitpro.com/articles.htm

Hope you find these useful.

Kevin T. · 12-22-2005, 02:19 PM

Cynic-I'm not so sure how they would use them for feedback on form. Do you remember how they used it? I'm a little confused by that.

Cynic · 12-22-2005, 03:25 PM

No, they didn't actually go into detail, but I've worn them in the past when I worked warehouse loading and unloading trucks. You tell by the way pressure applies all around. Remember, it's not worn for support, but for feedback. I think you could put it on, while standing in an erect position with the natural curve to the back and get the feel of that. That's how the belt should feel when you're in a proper form. If the belt is a stiff one, you 'listen' to your body and make the judgement.

I don't use a belt, but I am trying to get other opinions.

UrbanUK · 12-22-2005, 06:11 PM

as someone has already stated, a weight belt lulls you into a false sense of security but also effects the natural motion of your body. This will have a big effect on dead lift form and muscle development, your core will also suffer massively. It will train your muscles within the range allowed when wearing the belt. The best, and most beneficial way to train is to start with lower weights and encourage your muscles to memorise and become accustomed to the dead lift motion on their own and in the correct physiological manor, thats how the body is supposed to work. To sum up....all a belt would do is set you back a few months. hpe this has helped.