@flipcollar @Vincepac1500 @littlesleeper
Guys can you please help finding a good belt for squats and deadlifts. The belts at gym are either too big or velcro so I need to buy my own. I need a belt thats easy to take off, non-velcro, not too expensive, and preferably a dark color. I dont want velcro becuase every time I do heavy weight or 1RM it pops off and messes up my lift especially if its a squat. I looked online but the reviews for each belt are mixed. You guys all lift heavy so you probably know what belts are better and which are worse.
I can’t remember where you live, you’re in the US, right?
So the belt I would choose is the 10mm Pioneer powerlifting belt. There are different options for it that you’ll be able to choose from. You could get a lever mechanism, or the prong/hole thing. Either is fine, both work well. I have a pioneer belt with the prong, and I love it. I also have an SBD lever belt, which is marginally better quality and significantly more expensive. No reason to invest 200+ dollars in a belt. I got it used. The pioneer is like 100 bucks, and plenty of color options, stitching options, etc. And it will literally last a lifetime. Also, their customer service is really good, and fast turnaround time, even if you order custom things for it like a logo or something. Great company. I’ve had an inzer belt as well, it’s fine. Pretty much same quality as pioneer, but their customer service kinda sucks, and if you get anything non standard, delivery takes forever.
their website is generalleathercraft. don’t know if i can link it here.
Would a cheaper belt like this work? https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Iron-Fitness-Comfortable-Weightlifting/dp/B07CG6XTG7
I would prefer to get a cheaper belt first to experiment with and then get a quality belt later on.I dont want to pay 100+ for my first belt.
define ‘work’. will the cheap belt provide some benefit? Probably. I’ve never used a belt like that, but my guess is that it would be more akin to the thinner fabric belts than a standard, more robust leather PL belt.
That belt is 5mm thick. The one I recommended is 10mm. That’s a huge difference.
If it were me, and money was the issue, I’d save up for the better one and just wait. If you have 40 bucks to spend now, and you think you could have 100 saved in a couple months, that’s a far better option.
Do you take any supplements? A good belt is worth far more than any supplement you can take. Maybe spend a month or 2 of supplement budget on a belt instead.
Unless your waist size changes DRASTICALLY, you’ll be able to wear this belt for the next 20 years. That amounts to 5 dollars per year. I doubt you’d get more than a year, maybe 2 out of the one from dark iron. That would be 20-40 dollars per year. Cheaper initial investment? yes. better value? not even close.
Sorry man, just can’t recommend the cheap one i good conscience. Maybe someone else will have a different opinion though.
Honestly, I use a Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt, 10 mm. It works fine for my purposes. I should have gone with a 13 mm. belt, but eventually I’ll get a new one.
Yeah I need something for under $100, Im not intending to do meets in it, I just want something that would support my abs and back during deadlift/squats. Ill stick with it until I find a job. I dont take any supplements that are expensive and dont waste money on anything I dont need.
(Also can you tell me where you find the thickness of the belt/s, It doesn’t seem to say for most of the belts.)
I need something for under $100 until I get a job, I wish I could spend that much right now but I just cant. Also what does the 13mm do that the 10mm cant?
Honestly, it’s just thicker. It allows you to brace harder against the thicker material. Think of it like having stronger abs.
why do you think you should have gone with the 13mm? I don’t mean any offense by this, but your lifts aren’t even in the ballpark of that being useful. Hell, MY lifts aren’t at that level. I think that you should probably work on your bracing if you’re feeling like a 10mm isn’t thick enough. I doubt you’d see any benefit of going from 10 to 13.
I have the “Texas Training Power Belt 4x4” from Lifting Large. It is $59, and I love it. I’ve had it for a couple years already and it still looks new. It is the single pronged version, which I prefer over the double prong. I have never used a lever belt before.
I figured I’d put another 50 pounds on my Squat and Deadlift if I had a thicker belt! Just kidding. I was thinking, if a 5 mm belt sucks and a 10 mm is okay, how much better and more stable is a 13 mm compared to those two? I believe there’s also a mental aspect to wearing a belt for heavy lifts. Feeling more stable just might equal another 10 pounds or another rep on a heavy set of squats or deadlifts.
Bracing feels stable for me, but it is definitely something I need to improve upon. I’ll admit, I have gotten lazy about getting in as much air as possible on the last reps of a heavy squat set.
Yea I get what you’re staying. My contention is that you shouldn’t need a thicker belt to feel that stability. I’ve had 800 lbs on my back with a 10mm belt. And the belt was not a limiting factor.
And to be clear, I’m not actually trying to argue AGAINST a 13mm belt. The only real downside to it is how still it is when you get it, and how hard it is to break in. What I’m saying is that I don’t believe that, until you’re handling tremendous weights, a thicker-than-10mm belt has any perceivable benefit. Hopefully that makes sense.
I personally have a pioneer lever belt. Had it done with my name burned into the back and it was pretty expensive. I am going to get a different one made up when I get someone to draw something up for me. As far as a cheap belt, I hate to say it because I do not like the company (but that’s for another day) lifting large economy belt is what I used before. Prong ones run $50 and a lever one for $60. No one needs anything special 10 or 13 mm is fine. The belt won’t lift the weight for you and they all feel the same once you get used to them. I only upgraded to pioneer and am going to get another done up because powerlifting is a big thing in my life and I don’t care about the price for something nice.
The price is close to what im looking for, is the single prong one hard to pull off if you get it very tight? Im gonna look into it.
Whats wrong with the company?
Just stuff I didn’t like that i feel they were doing with their sponsorship contests. The conclusions I came to after seeing winners a few years. I get they wanna know about social media but it just seemed like they picked people because of their followers. I get is a big big part but it’s not the only part. Maybe I’m wrong but I still don’t like them lol. Their on the same level as ipf to me.
No, you make some good points. That makes a lot of sense. I need to work on my bracing. Thank you for the tip! I also heard that a 13 mm belt was much harder to break in than a 10 mm belt (which is why I opted for getting a 10 mm belt!).
No, the single prong is quite simple to get off (for me, compared to a double prong).
Left shoulder nagging me when I bench so I stopped and went home. Dont know If I should ice it.
Its 10mm right?