Baby, Bathwater, Gear

[stef]

"Gear exists on a spectrum and like everything else in life you have to pick your place along it based on your individual circumstances"

Powerlifter Gary Gibson writes on when and why supportive apparel can help you make your training more productive.

Read article (http://startingstrength.com/articles/baby_bathwater_gear_gibson.pdf).

Resources page (http://startingstrength.com/index.php/site/resources).

[tnumrych]

"He also spends way too much time reading, thinking and performing the three powerlifts and believes that everything important in life can somehow be related to the barbell back squat."

Me too. Although I try to relate everything important in life to lifting heavy shit (in my case, not so heavy shit) in general.

[GesD]

Great Article Gary. I was reading your post several weeks ago in the forums about the importance of a belt in squatting and thought this article really had to be written to clarify the debate over whether gear is to be used or not. Your really got the point across well when you mentioned the knee sleeves beig used for compression and to increase blood flow to the joints. Also, whenever I talk to someone in the gym or anywhere I always find myself bringing in low bar squats as having supreme importance for anything one wishes to accomplish in life.

-Dave

[Tor]

Hello Gary,

Thank you for the article, I think I was expecting a vitriolic defense of multi-ply and instead got a very well-reasoned, well-argued defense of gear based in getting stronger and staying healthier. Good stuff.

I guess one thing I don't understand -- and I'm not trying to spark a debate here about equipped federations, instead speaking to those who claim to be interested in gear for the above-mentioned reasons (strength, health) -- what I don't understand is why those who's main interest is strength can't just train in all the gear they want and then strip it off for the competition.

I mean, say you train year round with supportive gear, building up strength that you might not be able to build otherwise, but then compete in shoes and a belt for your three attempts, how hard would that be? How hard to perform three squats without a suit, or three benches without a shirt? Is it really so dangerous to lift heavy without the support of gear that this would constitute a serious health hazard?

Anyways, as I said, excellent article, hopefully will help us all get stronger,

Tor

[confuzzl3don3]

Great article Gary and i think you've discussed this before in the massively long thread about the use of belts in the Training Discussion forum. But just to reiterate, when do you feel that a person should begin utilising a belt, knee wraps, WL shoes, etc in their routine. I guess some things like WL shoes could be used right off, while should something like the belt be held out until....1x BW squats, 1.5x BW squats, or is it just individual preference? If you could go over some of these things it'd be great, because after recently purchasing a belt, I've been loving the extra stability i've been getting from it. Fact is i have been bashed by some people saying that i shouldn't be using a belt until i got to around 2x BW or something, and that it would develop my 'core' more (although i know you clearly pointed out fallacies in this argument as a belt makes your abs work harder). But i would believe that you have a personal opinion, as do others, on general timing of when to be adding certain things such as the belt.

[blowdpanis]

Excellent article, Gary, I'm impressed.

[anchor]

that suits and shirts had such little effect on poundage. good article, thanks.

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

Excellent article. I've been holding off using a belt thinking that I would be doing more work without it. Seeing it from your perspective, it appears that I am wrong about that.

Thanks!

[Gary Gibson]

...whenever I talk to someone in the gym or anywhere I always find myself bringing in low bar squats as having supreme importance for anything one wishes to accomplish in life.

My zealot's view of the squat is a running joke among the few in my life who love me.


Great article Gary and i think you've discussed this before in the massively long thread about the use of belts in the Training Discussion forum. But just to reiterate, when do you feel that a person should begin utilising a belt, knee wraps, WL shoes, etc in their routine. I guess some things like WL shoes could be used right off, while should something like the belt be held out until....1x BW squats, 1.5x BW squats, or is it just individual preference? If you could go over some of these things it'd be great, because after recently purchasing a belt, I've been loving the extra stability i've been getting from it. Fact is i have been bashed by some people saying that i shouldn't be using a belt until i got to around 2x BW or something, and that it would develop my 'core' more (although i know you clearly pointed out fallacies in this argument as a belt makes your abs work harder). But i would believe that you have a personal opinion, as do others, on general timing of when to be adding certain things such as the belt.

Shoes are a matter of tuning the balance of the lift while providing a stable surface between the floor and the foot against which to push. The angle at which the shoes put your feet will determine how far forward the knee can or can't travel and thus how the load gets split between the anterior (mainly quads extending the knee) and posterior chain (glutes, hams, adductors extending the hip). So use the heel appropriate for your goals right away.

I hate to dispense hard numbers for the belt question, but my experience and anecdote-based research says to start training the hard sets with a belt once your 1RM squat is somewhere between 1.5 and 2 times bodyweight. Complete guess here, but women would probably be that minus a factor of 0.5 x bodyweight (1 to 1.5 x). Before this the weight is simply too light for the abs to need to be able to brace harder than they can without the belt.

And as I keep saying, things change as you get stronger. You will get to the point where 10 sets of 5 with double bodyweight is actually LESS than 70% of your squat and you won't need a belt for it. But you'll have gotten to that point faster by training WITH the belt on the heavy sets. For example I'm at the point where the lower bound I've provided--1.5x bodyweight--isn't enough of a challenge for me to put on a belt even if I were to do it for multiple sets and reps. I got here by using a belt. And when I get to triple bodyweight, then double bodyweight won't be belt-worthy under any circumstances.


Excellent article, Gary, I'm impressed.

Coming from you this is high praise indeed.


that suits and shirts had such little effect on poundage. good article, thanks.

Suits and shirts CAN have little effect if they're not very tight. Apparel assists by deforming under load and releasing the energy as it returns to the original shape, exactly like springs. The tighter they are, the more the deformation (and the harder they are to deform; one of the perversities of tight gear is that getting the bar to touch or getting to depth becomes a completely new challenge; you have to learn to help load the spring you're wearing like an archer learns to load energy into a bowstring when he pulls back on it).


Hello Gary,

Thank you for the article, I think I was expecting a vitriolic defense of multi-ply and instead got a very well-reasoned, well-argued defense of gear based in getting stronger and staying healthier. Ha! Fair Enough. Good stuff.

I guess one thing I don't understand -- and I'm not trying to spark a debate here about equipped federations, instead speaking to those who claim to be interested in gear for the above-mentioned reasons (strength, health) -- what I don't understand is why those who's main interest is strength can't just train in all the gear they want and then strip it off for the competition.

I mean, say you train year round with supportive gear, building up strength that you might not be able to build otherwise, but then compete in shoes and a belt for your three attempts, how hard would that be? How hard to perform three squats without a suit, or three benches without a shirt? Is it really so dangerous to lift heavy without the support of gear that this would constitute a serious health hazard?

Anyways, as I said, excellent article, hopefully will help us all get stronger,

Tor

Guys from various feds do come together once a year to compete raw (belt and knee sleeves only) at the Raw Unity meet initiated and run by Eric Talmant. I have no problem with feds allowing as much or as little gear as they wish in actual competition. I believe at least one fed offers raw, "classic" (belt plus wrist and knee wraps), Standard (basic single-ply) and then a couple of flavors on the way up to mutli-ply. I love it! Guys who get 300 lbs out of a mutli-ply shirt are monstrously strong period and if they want to display that and play around with those weights, then more power to them.

I've tried some advanced gear on a lark. It hurt. A lot. Without weight. But I now have a greater appreciation as to what goes into getting that carryover. Not everyone can do it. Honestly, I think being able to get anything out of the advanced stuff is a testament to how freakishly strong you really are. Sure you can't get those weights WITHOUT the gear...but the average trainee couldn't get those weights WITH the gear and lots of practice.

[elVarouza]

I really enjoyed reading this article; thanks for writing it up. Before reading it I was one of the people who insisted on using non-heeled shoes because it was "more natural", but now I'm going to pick up a pair of the 1/2" heel rogues when they come out.

[78704]

I'm one of those squat naked kooks; barefoot, no chalk, no belt or sleeves; T shirt and shorts in company, but my power rack's in my living room, so....

Your point about the barbell and power rack being gear hit home. I bought a belt. I have Chucks gathering dust in the closet, guess I'll pull them out. If you have a recommendation for knee sleeves I'll buy some.

The thing about squatting barefoot: Sure, it puts a little more load on the posterior chain. That never struck me as a bad thing, though, and the floor is a more stable surface than shoes. If a little heel will let me use more muscle and lift more weight, okay, I'll try it, but the stability argument is incorrect, I think.

Thanks again, great article.

[stef]

Chucks are pretty close to being barefoot. They don't add stability and they don't have a heel. You'll note that they are not weightlifting shoes or squat shoes, which are much more stable than your squishy little feet.

[78704]

Chucks are pretty close to being barefoot. They don't add stability and they don't have a heel. You'll note that they are not weightlifting shoes or squat shoes, which are much more stable than your squishy little feet.

Oh; well, then sleeve and shoe recommendation, pretty please.

The feet and floor are non-negotiable, Stef; I don't see how putting something between could possibly increase my stability.

And they're not squishy, damn it; proud manly feet....

[stef]

All feet are squishy and sproingy. That is their nature. This is what appropriately designed shoes overcome.

Hard soled shoes (not sloppy loose or 6" spike heels) increase stability because they are not squishy or sproingy and they transfer these attributes to your feet. Rigidity and increased surface area means more stable. And the soles are more slip-resistant as well (critical for splitting and benching).

Even if you can't get this by consideration, it takes perhaps 10s in footwear designed to maximize training to see that this is so. You will see. And it is not a trick. It is a Good Thing.

Rogue Fitness, VS Athletic, Adidas, Werksan, Powerfirm, EliteFTS, Titan Support Systems, Pullum UK, Crain's Muscle World, Safe USA are places I can think of off the top of my head that sell good shoes.

Shoes are much more basic than knee sleeves, or even a belt.

stef.

[Maslow]

Great article. I didn't realize there were different types of squat suits/shirts. It's amazing how tricky it can be to find the most basic information about strength training. That's why I really value this site and a couple others, and Rip's books.

I am a 24 year old male with all of my ligaments in good working order and I'm probably getting close to finishing my linear progress (squatting in the low 300s at 190 bw). I started using a belt at 250 lbs. Should I look in to getting knee sleeves? It is winter time now so my gym is a little cooler but it's heated and everything.