I workout in my own gym, and come to think of it, I guess I do a lot of lifting in my socks. I always put shoes on for squats though, guess I always figured I’d flatten my feet with heavy squats.
I guess my main worry is my feet breaking through the sub-floor while squatting heavy and getting a floor joist in the nads!
Im not using it for injury prevention. Im using it to lift more weight. If you dont care how much you lift then dont wear one. If you do care how much you lift, then you need to practice with it occasionally to use on your max attempts.
I rarely use a belt. I rarely go heavy enough to require one though. 6 reps is about as high as I go. I suppose if I were to attempt a max I would consider it, but I am with one of the earlier posters… If I can’t do it WITHOUT a belt, I have no business trying to lift it. The same goes with wraps and straps or any other crutch. Using straps denies an athlete of a great opportunity to strengthen their grip. My 2 centavos anyway. I have never tried a tire flip though, so I can’t give a qualified answer on that. I saw those pictures of Patricia hauling that thing, and any girl who could overhead press me I have a general policy of not arguing with.
I use a belt and I have always been under the impression that not using a belt leads to a petruding stomach because it pushes the ab muscles outward or something.
I and those I work out with do workouts with and with out the belt. Usually the belt is used on heavy singles/ max effort and competition. We don’t use it on dynamic workouts.
I do a lot of heavy lifting at work and have never used a belt. To me it would do the same thing as lifting with a belt. If anything I think my midsection is stronger because I lift at work without a belt.