When someone first hears about the use of supportive gear in Powerlifting the usual questions are:
Isn’t that cheating?
The simple answer to this is: No, not when everyone has the opportunity to wear it. You’re always grouped with other lifters who are also wearing it. If anything, the gear makes lifting more difficult due to all of the variables it adds.
How much do you get out of that?
When I first started competing in 1995 the only options in Florida were single ply in the USAPL or AAU or multi-ply in the APF or APA. When I first heard about gear (the bench shirt was the first thing I learned of) all I could think was “Hell yeah, something that helps me lift more??!!” and there was no turning back for me. I didn’t think of it as cheating. I just wanted to find out how to get the most out of it.
To give you an idea of how much I got out of the gear, here’s a breakdown of my best competition squats:
Raw:
242.5 kgs/534.5 lbs @ 165 at the APF Raw Nationals at the Europa on 4/30/11. The APF doesn’t allow knee sleeves or wraps in their raw division or I would have gladly worn them. This was before they added the Classic Raw division which does allow them.
This gives you an idea of how much I could squat with just a belt and no other supportive gear.
Single Ply:
327.5 kgs/722 lbs @ 165 at the APF Single Ply Nationals at the Europa on 4/12/14.
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I estimate that I get about 50-75 lbs out of knee wraps which would mean that I got approximately 110 to 140 lbs out of the single ply suit.
Multi-Ply:
825 @165 in multi-ply at the 2008 IPA Pro/Am
Sticking with the 50-75 lbs out of knee wraps would mean that I got approximately 215-240 lbs out of the multi-ply briefs and suit. I would estimate that I got 75 to 100 lbs out of briefs and 140 to 165 lbs out of the suit.
This doesn’t mean that you can just throw on a suit and get over 200 lbs out of it, it just means that the potential is there. I trained in gear for almost 15 years before I hit my peak. Training in gear takes patience, a higher pain threshold (due to the increased pressure as well as how it can dig into your skin), and is much easier to do with a team who is willing to put in the time and go through the same experience with you. If you want to lift more, help save your joints, and add some excitement to the Powerlifting experience, then trying out some supportive gear is your way to go!
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