Belt or No Belt??

[littleguns]

Read stories that say wearing a belt keeps abs tight and is good but other articles say wearing a belt weakens the lower back

Discuss

[Deicide]

Read stories that say wearing a belt keeps abs tight and is good but other articles say wearing a belt weakens the lower back

Discuss

If I am squatting heavy or doing heavy deadlifts I will always use a belt...it's just plain safer...period.

[webcake]

Yeah if you are going fairly heavy then wear one. And don't worry about the people who say wearing a belt is for pussies. Its safer, and the back is one thing you don't want to mess with.

[wes]

Do whatever you want,either way it`s not a big deal trust me.

All this stupid shit they spread today...........I knew guys that wore belts on almost every bodypart/exercise back in the day and they have/had no problems and were stronger than shit.


Work your "core" ..................anothe r new fitness catch phrase that I hate !!

[JasonH]

I feel safer using a belt on deadlifts, squats, and standing calf raises. Anything else doesn't seem to bother me so I don't bother.

[Beener]

I wear my belt for every workout...except deadlifts, go figure.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Just keep your abs drawn in and tensed and you can do whatever the hell you want.  Belts get a bad rap because people don't tighten them enough and then blow their stomachs out to fill the extra space.  Good idea if you want a hernia.

[triple_pickle]

no belt 99 percent of the time, only use it when i max out on the deadlift and squat which is roughly once a month

[NoCalBbEr]

I say yes and no. wear a belt on the hard exerises on the lower back i.e. squats,deads, bb rows, bb curls etc. the belt help when you need to re-ajust. like if a wight  starts to slide  on the bar or your balance  goes u can get your balance back without hurting your back.

[thewickedtruth]

I say yes and no. wear a belt on the hard exerises on the lower back i.e. squats,deads, bb rows, bb curls etc. the belt help when you need to re-ajust. like if a wight  starts to slide  on the bar or your balance  goes u can get your balance back without hurting your back.

YEP...wear a belt when you're going really really heavy just to help prevent injury and give you a lil more support. Even if it's only the mental thing of just earing a belt that gives you the confidence, where it. Don't let them be like straps are for some people and use them for everything. THAT is a bad thing...it's just liek any other tool. Use it for ti's intended purpose but don't be like soem tools and wear a belt for everything..squats, deads, then tricep extensions, etc. If you just don't want to take it off...loosen it..don't make it your ONLY form of core support.

[BFP]

Belt.  Helps you lift more weight, which brings about all sorts of good stuff

Jason

[LENSNART]

Just keep your abs drawn in and tensed and you can do whatever the hell you want.  Belts get a bad rap because people don't tighten them enough and then blow their stomachs out to fill the extra space.  Good idea if you want a hernia.

Don't want to get into an argument on this one, but anyone thinking of taking this advice should read up on some articles on the Westside site, so that they can get the opinion of people who dead 800 and squat a grand.

Then make your own mind up.

[PANDAEMONIUM]

I'll use a belt on squats and DLs only for max efforts or for near-max efforts.  Otherwise I try to contract the abs as much as possible during each rep to give them some indirect work.

[Geo]

Read stories that say wearing a belt keeps abs tight and is good but other articles say wearing a belt weakens the lower back

Discuss

personally I think a belt helps aliveate your lower back if your pulling so I don't ever use when pullin deads but I'll definitely use one for lower reps schquattin ....

good reminder to think about form

[Detroit Muscle]

I wear a belt for every single workout a) to avoid any off-the-wall injury, b) to keep my waist tight because you use your obliques to stabilize even when you rack and unrack weights, c) because that seems to be what all serious lifters do.  I saw a Ronnie clip where he said he was wearing his belt at home when he was just watching tv to keep his waist tight 24/7.

[PANDAEMONIUM]

I saw a Ronnie clip where he said he was wearing his belt at home when he was just watching tv to keep his waist tight 24/7.

hahahah if that's true that's about as gay as you can get.

[Geo]

I  I saw a Ronnie clip where he said he was wearing his belt at home when he was just watching tv to keep his waist tight 24/7.

and they wonder why we think bodybuilder are queers

[rockedupmotha]

i don't wear a belt anymore kept pinching my obliques

[powerpack]

Every one to their own but I never really felt like I was getting any extra protection from a belt.

[wes]

Work your abs and do hyperextensions with weight while beltless and you`ll have no problems.

Wear a belt or not,on heaviest sets or not..................... whatever works for you,it doesn`t lift the weight for you,just supports the midsection of the body.

[Hedgehog]

Read stories that say wearing a belt keeps abs tight and is good but other articles say wearing a belt weakens the lower back

Discuss

Only when disciplining your woman.

Only when going for a max effort lift, setting a PB.

Otherwise, don't use it. You will only have to do more ab and lower back work, since the stabilizing work is tremendous for overall core strength.

[Bluto]

i prefer suspenders myself