Which exercises to wear a belt for?

[mcr]

I have just bought a belt, as my lower back seems to get fried all the time.

I want my lower back stronger - so which exercises (if any) should I wear a belt for.

I am thinking:

Squats
Deadlift
Standing Military Press

Good Mornings are questionable - do I want the belt for added support, or does that sort of eliminate the purpose of the exercise?

Will wearing the belt on squats and deadlift mean by lower back will not be getting stronger?

 

[w8lifterchick]

I have just bought a belt, as my lower back seems to get fried all the time.

I want my lower back stronger - so which exercises (if any) should I wear a belt for.

I am thinking:

Squats
Deadlift
Standing Military Press

Good Mornings are questionable - do I want the belt for added support, or does that sort of eliminate the purpose of the exercise?

Will wearing the belt on squats and deadlift mean by lower back will not be getting stronger?

a belt does not lift the weight for you and it won't hinder your strength gain in your back at all.
i think a belt does two things (well, 3)...
1. keeps your back muscles warm
2. keeps your disks in place
3. helps you keep proper form, since a good belt will be too stiff for you to round your back MUCH.
4. will help you push your abs against your belt during a squat.

you can wear your belt when you do any heavy lifting - if you're going to compete you're going to wear a belt anyway.

 

[Becoming]

a belt does not lift the weight for you and it won't hinder your strength gain in your back at all.
i think a belt does two things (well, 3)...
1. keeps your back muscles warm
2. keeps your disks in place
3. helps you keep proper form, since a good belt will be too stiff for you to round your back MUCH.
4. will help you push your abs against your belt during a squat.

you can wear your belt when you do any heavy lifting - if you're going to compete you're going to wear a belt anyway.

I agree with everything above... you need to practice pushing abs out against the belt... it will affect your form and execution of the lift...

normally I have to say though I don't wear a belt with anything less than 75-80% of my max out of habit... (Also I want to do some things outside of PL...)

that said the dudes I know that ALWAYS use their belts like stated above lift a hell of a lot more than me (one of the dudes is fast approaching a 900lb SQ)

 

[w8lifterchick]

I don't wear my belt all the time, only cause its a pain in the neck to get on/off, but for some things, like anything really heavy, its a must.
once you throw your back out once, you'll want to put it on all the time.
(mine is pink suade)

 

[deowang]

I prefer not to wear a belt unless going for an extreme 1rm

 

[jimm]

for sure you should be wearing you belt on Squats and deads, you back will not get weak. I admit i do my first 2-3 warm up sets with out just to warm it up, but after that it is on for every set. You should also wear you belt anytime there is any excessive back movement in a the lift and the back is not your main focus, like when doing hammer curls, or shoulder movments. when doing heavy GM's I fell you should wear a belt, there are a lot of different opinions on weaing belt and doing GM's.
I say if you feel any kind of pain or unusual movement in the back put on a belt.

Good luck with your lifting

Lift smart and safe
JIMM

 

[BodybuildingUniverse]

I am thinking:

Squats
Deadlift
Standing Military Press

Those are the exact 3 I would have picked. And only when in the 5 rep or less range

 

[mcr]

Thanks everyone - very useful advice I appreciate it.

 

[pee wee]

I prefer not to wear a belt unless going for an extreme 1rm

Same with me, I just dont wear mine very often unless its something very heavy.

 

[TheProject]

I didn't used to wear mine on ME days, but have started using it more and more after I reach a weight that feels heavy to me.

As far as GM's go...it depends. If you're doing them in the 10-15 rep range for accessory work, I wouldn't. If you're doing GM's as your ME move, you might put it on as it gets heavy.

If your lower back is tiring quickly, I'd suggest having GM's in your regular rotation, as well as 45 degree hypers for accessory work.