What are the commands in a Powerlifting Competition?
Knowing the commands in a powerlifting competition is vital to having a good day. Without knowing these crucial rules, your day will be very difficult to get any lifts in.
The commands are issued by the head referee (the middle one in front of you) during your attempts. They are very simple to follow. But if you are not used to training to these standards, they can cause you to slip up and lose precious KGs on your total.
What is a powerlifting meet handler (and the benefits)
What is a meet handler?
A meet handler is someone who comes with you to your competition in order to make the day go as smoothly as possible. Powerlifting comps can sometimes be a bit overwhelming and fast paced, especially if you are new to it. Having an experienced person there to help you on the day can be the difference between hitting a PR total or bombing out.
In this article, I’m going to go through all the benefits of having a meet handler with you.
Heel Shoes vs Flat Shoes for squats
Should you wear heeled shoes or flat shoes for squats?
Short answer, if you can hit depth with flats fairly comfortably, then use flats. If not then use heels.
But, im going to delve into the pros and cons for using each.
The mental side of powerlifting
I don’t think it is talked about enough or coached enough the importance of your mentality to succeed in this sport. Some of the best powerlifters I’ve seen all have 2 things in common.
Complete fearlessness going for a PR.
And the second one is…
Benefits of having a Powerlifting Coach
Is having a coach worth it?
The short answer is definitely yes
The long answer is a bit longer.
Just go and do your first Powerlifting Competition
A lot of people will wait and wait and wait to enter their first powerlifting competition. Giving themselves arbitrary numbers or totals that they need to hit before their first competition. I have seen people call themselves a “powerlifter” but have been training for 3+ years and not competed. Imagine if people waited until they were as good as professional footballers in order to start playing Sunday League level. That’s what it is like when people wait until they’re “strong enough” in order to compete at their local meet. Going and actually doing your first powerlifting competition is the best thing you can do as a powerlifter. Which sounds obvious when it’s said. There are so many benefits, which I will go through in this blog.
Signs to go up a powerlifting weight class
Are you anything less than absolutely jacked? Are you always taller than the other lifters in your weight class? Then stop limiting your potential by staying in your weight class. Grow more muscle and pick up the fork.
All too often with young or new powerlifters I see them making a huge mistake with their long-term progress. And that is being in the wrong weight class.
Percentage, RPE, or RIR?
When following a powerlifting program, there are a few different ways it can be designed for you to follow. Particularly when it comes to selecting a weight. So, this post will be going through the most common ways programs get you to select weights, the goods and the bads of each, and my personal opinion on what I use.
What to pack for your first Powerlifting Competition
Your first powerlifting competition. An exciting time. But also, a nerve-wracking time. The last thing you want to do is travel to your first competition and realize you forgot something important. There’s also more to bring than you might think, depending on how prepared you want to be. In this post I am going to go through a list of what you should bring and why. As well as some general good advice for packing for your first competition.
How to pick your attempts at competition:
At powerlifting competitions, you get 3 attempts at each lift to get a score on the board. Before a competition starts you have to hand in your opener (first attempt) for each lift. You have to hand in your second attempt for a lift within 1 minute after doing your opener. And your third attempt within 1 minute after your second attempt. This means having a plan before the competition starts, makes things a lot less stressful. In this post I am going to go through how to pick what weight to do for each attempt.
The Best Bench Press Variations for Powerlifters:
Here are some of the best and most common variations of your normal bench press for powerlifters. The bench press has more variations available than the squat and deadlift. Most programs will also have you benching more times than you squat and deadlift. This can make figuring out which variations to choose quite tricky. I will be going through what each variation is and who it is useful for. This should hopefully give you some information on which one is best suited for you to choose.