2.  You never hear in the warm up room of a geared meet, “Throw the 2 & 1/2s on the bar!” But, I have at a raw meet.

3.  Raw lifters wear low top Chucks with big multi-colored tube socks.  Geared guys wear hi-top Chucks with no frill socks.

4.  There’s a lot of thought put into a Raw life’s ensemble.  Most everything matches and they often wear singlets and belts with airbrushed designs on them.  Geared is whatever color bench shirt the company sent you and a basic, sometimes other company, any color singlet.

5.  Raw lifters can’t sit still for some reason. They pace. They mingle. They network. Geared guys find a corner and conserve energy because that squat suit drains every last drop of their soul.

6.  Raw lifters drink out of huge jugs.  Individual gallon containers with different color liquids for said physiological and psychological need.  Geared lifters down a couple of Monsters or Bang and some Gatorade.

7.  Raw lifters are surrounded by meal prepped foods, protein bars and foam rollers.  Geared lifters often can be seen knocking off a $10 box from the golden arches and pop-tarts.

8.  Raw lifters ceremonially unsnap their lever belt in a dramatic fashion to add an exclamation point to their lift.  Geared lifters unsnap it to finally breath after their suit sucks the life out of them.

9.  Raw lifters wait proudly on the platform for the ref to check their Hello Kitty singlet, ensuring the broken State record counts.  Geared guys will mow over anyone that steps in their way to getting their knee wraps off.

10.  Geared lifting has Hoff and Blaine Sumner.  Plain and simple. So, we win.

**** This post was made to be funny.  We all start somewhere. Having fun and not getting hurt, that’s what matters.

By Jeff Miller

From Anderson Powerlifting: If you have something you would like published on our blog; please send to Jennifer@andersonpowerlifting.com

The post Differences Observed Between A Geared Lifter and A Raw Lifter appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

          Remember, each lifter will have their own specific needs and preferences for what they need to hear under the bar. Please let them hear that without a bunch of excess information. If you want to help hype them up and create excitement, that’s fantastic, and it can really help on meet day or even heavy training lifts! Just keep it generic and let the coaches/handlers do their job addressing the details. If you just HAVE to impart some kind of information that you think will help someone, go ahead and do so, but do that at an appropriate time. Maybe strike up a conversation after the chalk dust settles for the day, or even wait and send the lifter a message on social media at another time. But under a heavy bar, please let them listen to their ONE VOICE.

For Coaching & Programming Inquiries

Steve Decker

All In Personal Training

(716)481-8443

Stevendecker@AIM.com

The post One Voice appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

Jeff Miller

                  They say the soul of a samurai lies within his beautiful, deadly and honored sword.  John F. Murphy writes on HistoryNet.com “So vital to the samurai spirit was the genesis of such a magnificent weapon that Shinto priests would be called in to bless the beginning of the process and the swordsmith often underwent a spiritual purification before he began his work.”  So what does this have to do with powerlifting?   More importantly, what does this have to do with geared lifting?  A lifters gear, such as bench shirt, squat suit, and briefs all become more than a weapon to push weight in training or your upcoming meet.  To the very elite in the sport, their lifting “soul” lies within their gear.

          We have all been on websites like EBay, Powerliftingwatch, and the several groups on Facebook where lifters buy and sell their used supportive gear.  Sometimes it isn’t used.  One can often find listings for brand new equipment that “just didn’t fit the person lifting the item” and they weren’t able to return it to the company they bought it from.  Geared lifters are always looking for a great deal on an expensive piece of equipment.  Sometime the deal is even half off or more than the original price.  As long as the sport has had gear, people have been buying others used equipment in hopes of finding big numbers when they open a package delivered to their mailbox.  A word to the wise, if it sounds too good to be true.  It probably is.  In other words, what’s slightly used to someone selling doesn’t always match what’s slightly used to who is buying.  You don’t want to spend your hard earned money on equipment with less pop than bottle of flat soda.

          Many gyms with geared lifters will have all sorts of used equipment left or donated by someone back in the day that used to powerlift and now does CrossFit, Parkour, Hot Yoga or something along those lines.  They get a lifter in and say something along the lines of “Hey, I wonder what you could do in a shirt?”  Then they proceed to dig through storage bin after storage bin trying to match up said Raw lifter with something that will make them fall in love with equipped side of the iron game.  Often times though the gear is too much for such a novice lifter or just not a proper fit.  I would say that this category is how most athletes begin their transition to THE DARK SIDE.  While this is ok when learning what the gear is and how it works, most lifters will only go so far in hand me down equipment.

          This brings me to my point.  A samurai doesn’t just go to sword and pick out a blade from the clearance bin and start fighting wars.  His sword is made specifically for him.  The elite in geared lifting have gear that is made specifically for them.  Yes, it might start out a stock item but after using a time or two the real gamesmanship begins.  Before my wife Rae-Ann Miller became a sponsored Anderson athlete she wore hand me down equipment.  In 2014 she won best lifter at The Mr. Olympia Bench press competition wearing bench press legend Tom Schmidt’s old single ply Titan Katana that had more holes in it than Swiss cheese.  After we got home I had a conversation with Ken Anderson and he sent her a brand new Katana of her own.  When it arrived, then Tom started to explain the nuances of how to get the most out of your shirt.  From taking the arms in, tightening the chest panel, scooping the collar and all the little tricks that will literally add significant weight to your lifts.  He then explained that you always start out small in those alterations.  A half inch tightening of the arms on an already tight bench shirt can make a big difference.  Also if you go too much then you have a piece of equipment that is now too tight and rendered useless.  It might take sending that gear back multiple times to get it just right.  That is the process.  Your gear might fit great.  Then after box squatting for months to parallel or below you begin to notice your briefs don’t have the pop they used to.  So what do you do? You get it taken in a half inch or an inch in the hips.  Once again, that is the process. 

          Are there exceptions to the rule? Are there elite lifters who use hand me down equipment and make it work?  The answer is yes.  However, the real question is how much more weight would they lift if they had their own, custom fitted gear?  Is it costly to get brand new equipment?  Yes.  Are you going to have to find a good tailor who has machines capable of sewing through powerlifting gear? Yes.  (If you buy your equipment from Andersonpowerlifting.com they will tailor your equipment.  Fees on the website)  Can the process be a headache of trial and error?  Yes.  Is it all worth it to get the very most out of the gear you paid good money for?  Yes.  Is it all worth it to perform at your highest level at meets that you spend upwards of two hundred dollars to compete in? You’re damn right.  In the movie The Last Samurai Tom Cruise’s character Captain Algren is given his own sword by the Samurai crafted by the local swordsmith.  The inscription on it reads “I belong to the warrior, in old ways have joined the new.”  Be a warrior and arm yourself with weapons that will become part of you as you wage on the platform.  #ShakeTheGround

The post A Samurai and his Sword appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

          When the Evil Twin arrived in the mail, she looked at the shirt and said “There’s no way that’s going to fit me.”  After some excellent shirt pulling by me I told her “Ken (Anderson) is never wrong.”  She had to wait until Sunday to bench but we were excited to see how she and the shirt worked together.  In her first training session she did a 585lbs. 3 board press, which was a 40 pound personal record.  She also did 515 lbs. off of a one board for another huge PR.  Her first meet wearing her new shirt she benched 485lbs. for a 45 pound meet PR.  Her next meet she broke the 500 lbs. barrier with a 505 lbs. bench.  Then 11 months after getting her Evil Twin she broke the women’s all-time single ply bench press word record with a 520lbs. lift.  So in less than one calendar year she improved from 440 lbs. to 520 lbs. while lifting at the same bodyweight.  For those like me not good at math, that’s 80 lbs.

          So what is it about the Evil Twin that sets it apart from other single ply shirts?  We already touched on the thickness of the material.  With the material being so thick one would think it would be impossible to touch in this shirt.  While the material is thick it is also stretchy.  The very first time she used the shirt she was able to easily go to a one board in a very tight shirt.  The stretchy material makes the shirt more forgiving as far as bar placement goes.  You also get tremendous pop off the bottom compared to other single ply shirts.  The shirt gives you good support throughout lockout as well.  We have also found that brining the bar down at a quicker pace gives more pop off the bottom than other shirts too.  You have to be very careful not to drive the bar back over your face as the pop can be too much.  The bar can shoot right into the uprights or even worse your noggin.  The pop in this shirt is that of a multiply with the ease of touching of a single ply.  Plain and simple.

          No piece of lifting gear is perfect.  There are a few drawbacks to The Evil Twin bench shirt.  While the material is thick and gives amazing pop it also stretches after use, losing some of its pop.  If you are a person who has to live in their gear, week after week then be prepared to have this shirt altered often.  Anderson does tailoring and alterations on gear purchased through their site.  An alternative is to have a meet shirt and training shirt.  It’s always a good idea to have a backup shirt, anyways.  Another option is that Titan makes a double ply Evil Twin.  We can say for sure that the double ply doesn’t have that problem.  I have also recently seen runs in the arm pits of the shirt on other lifters.  We have never had that problem.  However we also never use the knurling of a bar to pull the shirt into our armpit.  We always put a t-shirt on the bar so the knurling doesn’t rip the fabric. 

          Lifter after lifter who used the Titan Evil Twin Bench shirt have put massive pounds on their bench press.  You have seen the videos on Instagram and Facebook.  Their names are posted on Powerlifting Watch and Open Powerlifting.  Time after time I have personally seen guys and gals struggling to break that magic number they are chasing.  They get an Evil Twin and it’s on to the next milestone.  Don’t take it from me.  Get the shirt and get PR’s.

by Jeff Miller

The post The Evil Twin Bench Shirt Review appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

Jeff Miller

            Dear powerlifters, ninety percent of your speed benches are lacking something.  SPEED.  We have all read the articles.  We have heard the recommendations from the top trainers and lifters in the world.  Dynamic bench work should be sixty percent of your one rep raw max. Twenty five years in powerlifting has taught me that this just doesn’t work for most people.  Watching social media videos of lifters doing their “speed work” might be the most frustrating part of my online experience.  Lifters grinding out their speed reps makes me want to tear out the long lost nonexistent hairs on my giant shaved dome. 

            So what percentage should you use? Through trial and error, we have found that thirty to forty percent is all the weight one will ever need.  For instance we had a lifter Dan Zahno who trained with 155 pounds on his speed bench, doing eight sets of triples.  Dan had been struggling to get a five hundred pound bench press for a long time.  I suggested he drop the weight to ninety five pounds.  Dan hit a five hundred pound bench soon after.  He then went on to press five hundred fifty five pounds in a single ply shirt drug free.  My wife Rae-Ann is the all-time world record holder in the single ply bench for a female with five hundred and twenty pounds.  Her dynamic work is done with eighty five pounds.  Yes.  Eighty five pounds.  So what does this mean?  Do they just lie on the bench and do these lighter weights lazily and easy?  Absolutely not.  Our speed work is done violently.  That’s the most accurate way I can describe it.  If you are going to punch someone, you don’t rear back and slowly aim your fist at them and casually brush it against their face.  You put your entire body into it, drive through your target and generate as much force as possible.  That is how we bench.  Are you aiming for a five hundred pound bench press?  Then you need to exert five hundred pounds of oomph onto the barbell or more.

            Do we just do the same reps, sets and exercises week after week? Not at all.  We mix up our speed bench by alternating sets of 3s and sets of fives.  Some weeks we take thirty second breaks between sets.  Other weeks we rack the bar to switch our grip then immediately unrack the bar without rest.  Dumbbells are another variation we use.  Sometimes we do dumbbells on a flat bench and sometimes on an incline.  Chains and bands can be a great tool in building speed and strength.  Lately I have been experimenting with different size bands wrapped around my back and doing my speed reps with just bands.  I have a spinal injury and this eliminates any weight bearing on my back.  I will let you know how it works over the long haul.  Our base sets, however are 3 waves of 3 sets of 3.  We start with a wide grip for three reps.  Rack the bar and switch to medium grip and immediately unrack it.  Do the set.  Rack it.  Switch to close grip and immediately unrack it.  Do the set and rack it.  So it’s three sets of three with three different grips with no rest.  Then we rest for a minute and do it again two more times. 

            Another part of our dynamic day that is a bit different is that we do a lot of high board bench presses and shoulder press variations.  For most lifters a heavy single or three sets of five to a four or five board are just the remedy to fix a staling bench press. Several different bars and grips can be used to keep your body guessing, to combat overuse injuries and boredom.  For us with very long arms we may have to use seven, six and five boards to do the trick.  You have to sometimes think outside the box of normal if you are built outside the box of normal.   Power presses, log presses, military presses, military lockouts, dumbbell military press and hammer strength shoulder presses are a staple of our dynamic diet.  I’m not a fan of strict presses as I believe power presses are a better choice to add explosion to your bench.  Teach yourself to lift slowly and you will stay slow.     

            Undoubtedly, there are going to be those who will rebut with some scientific jargon filled response as to why you should do sixty percent for speed work.  How studies done by X and Y University show that strict presses directly correlate to the transfer of blah to blah.  I don’t know about all that technical stuff.  I mean, I thought AMRAP was a low carb choice for lunch that crossfitters ate.  I do know I live in Bench Press City and am married to the Lady Mayor of said municipality.  I know that one hundred percent of people who I’ve had drop their speed rep weight get hurt less and see their bench press increase.  So you can look like a fool struggling with your “speed work” with a big wheel on each side of the bar when your max is one hundred eighty five.  Or you can sit over here with us at the cool kids table where we all know that you can’t make force if you don’t accelerate that mass. 

The post Your Bench Speed Sucks appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

Reduce pain, swelling, and stiffness

Swelling is your body’s defense mechanism. If you’ve overextended yourself, the pain and swelling signal you to avoid using the injured part to protect it from further injury. The pain and swelling severely limit your range of motion. Knee sleeves compress and warm joints to reduce swelling and stiffness. Since movement has been proven to aid recovery, knee sleeves allow you to perform basic rehabilitation exercises. In turn, these movements further reduce swelling and stiffness.

Increase blood circulation

Knee sleeves compress the site of the injury, which increases blood flow. Because oxygen-rich blood can speed up recovery times, compression is recommended for all twists, sprains, and strains. The more blood flow your injury receives, the more oxygen it receives.

Provide support

Nearly all knee sleeves are made out of a flexible yet durable material, such as elastic rayon or neoprene. These characteristics give your joints stability and support. This lets you stay active throughout the healing process without making the problem worse. Thicker material, such as 7mm neoprene knee sleeves, provides better support. Thinner material, such as 5mm neoprene knee sleeves or woven ones, allows more freedom of movement.

If you injure your knees, remember that knee sleeves help speed up your healing time. Knee sleeves can help you get back on your feet — literally! Plus, wearing knee sleeves helps you reduce risk of injury in the first place. Their added support lets you push yourself harder and lift more weight with less worry. Whatever your preferred brand, be sure to take advantage of this essential powerlifting workout gear — even if your knees are in great shape.

The post How Knee Sleeves Help Healing Post-Injury appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

If you have been into cross fit, power lifting, or weight lifting, chances are you have come across a lever belt at least once or twice. Lever belts are the Titan twist on the traditional weight belt. Weight belts have been used by power lifters for dozens of years to help protect and strengthen the lower back while performing max rep exercises such as dead lifts.

A Titan Brand Level Belt works by giving your lower back this same support. Support in the lower back is super important for performing max range lifts such as dead lifts, because without the added support a person could compromise their form and end up injuring the lower back area. In fact, when done correctly, strength training has been shown to alleviate back pain in about 80% of people who suffer from lower back pain. That is a pretty incredible number!

Getting out and lifting should be a no brainer. Not only does it alleviate back pain, weight lifting can also help cut down on body fat (which has a host of benefits, including lower blood pressure, decreased risk for heart disease, and many more), increase confidence, boost your mood, and many other things. With all of these benefits in place, a training belt can help in two ways. Titan brand lever belt is good for both new powerlifting to help novices stay safe while learning proper technique and strengthening the supporting muscles. A Titan brand lever belt is also good for advanced weight lifters who are trying to break new PRs and want that extra support to protect their lower back.

When to use a Lever Belt

While titan brand lever belts are a great tool, they are just that: a tool. Each tool has it’s intended uses and also has situations in which it should not be used. For example, there is no reason to wear a training belt while doing pull ups. This would be like using wrist wraps to do sit ups, the tool just doesn’t match the exercise. So here are some of the most important exercises to consider using a titan brand lever belt:

-Back Squats and Front Squats: Squats are often hailed as the king of leg exercises, and for good reason. While performing a squat, nearly every muscle from your torso down is engaged and firing – including your lower back. In a front or back squat, it is important to keep your lower back in the correct position. If your lower back is weak, it will start rounding and compromise your form. When the form of a squat is compromised under the pressure of weight, it can cause a host of issues. Titan brand lever belts are great for supporting your lower back through a squat.

-Dead lifts: If squats are the king of leg day, dead lifts are the champion fighter. In addition to working many of the same muscle groups that squats do, dead lifts engage the forearms, shoulders, triceps, traps, and upper back muscles. Because the lower back is a so close the the crucial “hinge” point in a dead lift, it is common to see new weight lifters rounding the lower back and setting themselves up for injury. Weight lifting belts are great tools for supporting your dead lift.

-Barbell bent rows: Barbell bent rows, while traditionally performed with much less weight than a squat or a dead lift, can put incredible strain and tension on the lower back. Using a training belt can help support your lower back through these exercises, allowing you to focus on the crucial movement of pulling through your upper back.

While there are other exercises that could benefit from using a titan brand lever belt, these are some of the most common ones. Keep training, keep pushing. Become Titan Strong.

The post When You Should Use a Lever Belt appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

Get Enough Sleep

This may seem surprising, but sleep plays a major role in one’s workout achievements. When it comes to improving your brain and body performance on a regular basis, a good night’s sleep is a must. Many do not consider their sleep schedule when mapping out a new workout routine, but it can make a big difference when it comes to getting you stronger.

Statistics reveal that around 60% of weight trainers make time for good sleep, averaging approximately seven hours every night. Some even get more than that. In today’s fast-paced world, sleep sometimes is not given much of a priority, but when it comes to building muscles, improving form, and entering your workouts with the energy necessary to get the job done, enough sleep is essential.

Don’t do too Much too Fast

We understand feeling eager to get your workout routine going in full swing. Along with this, it can be hard to limit yourself when you are feeling good and getting excited about your progress. That being said, it is important to take things step by step, and to not rush your goals.

Overusing equipment leads to about 65% of injuries, and this kind of setback can really put a damper on your momentum. Try to slowly strengthen your shoulders, lower back, and hips to help prevent injuries down the line, and focus more on form than how much you are lifting. Bad technique is another big cause of injury, so keep yourself in check and do not rush ahead.

Also, keep in mind that even small achievements contribute a lot to the overall picture and should be celebrated.

Invest in a Weight Lifting Belt

A well-designed and durable weight lifting belt can make a big difference in staying safer and making more progress. If you are looking to lift some serious weight, then consider the benefits of this investment, and be sure to do your research to ensure you purchase the appropriate powerlifting belt for your needs.

Also, keep in mind that a belt should not be simply slapped on. Using it correctly and in the right circumstances will ensure you get the most from it, thus enhancing your workout significantly.

Need Some Workout Gear?

We have a weight lifting belt for every preference, and we can assist with wrist wraps, knee wraps, lever belts, deadlift socks, and more, as well. Check out our stock today, so we can set you up with everything you need to get started.

The post Get the Most From Your Powerlifting Workout with These Tips appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

Resistance bands provide an ascending resistant throughout your range of motion. This helps to provide a synergistic relationship with your muscles because the resistance bands stretch farther and increase resistance as your muscles contract and exert force.

How can resistance bands help with my powerlifting?

Resistance bands offer minimal resistance at your starting position. This is also considered your weakest point. Because the bands offer minimal resistance here, they help you ease the way over the lowest point of a bench press or squat.

As you continue through the rest of the rep, the resistance band increases its tension gradually. This gives you optimal muscle strengthening efficiency. And all you’re doing is using gravity.

What kind of powerlifting can I do with my resistance bands?

Resistance bands are also incredibly versatile. You can use them with weight or without. You can also add bands, loop the bands around the bar, or adjust the positioning of the bands for a different effect on your workout.

The get the most out of your resistance bands, it’s recommended to look for the bands that are medium and heavy. Light resistance bands don’t offer a lot of resistance, which doesn’t make them the best for a broad range of exercises.

Of course, you can always add resistance bands to increase tension. This is why it’s good to have a variety of bands, so you can modify the level of tension depending on your workout routine.

The appropriate resistance bands for each workout depends on a variety of factors including your body types and your desired outcome. That said, it’s a good idea to talk to the employees at your local powerlifting gear store to get a better opinion on the tension levels you need.

Where can I find workout gear for powerlifting?

Sedentary people can lose up to 50% of their muscle mass by age 80. Weight training and powerlifting can help to stop, prevent, and reverse muscle loss. But before you can safely take part in weight training and powerlifting, you need to right workout gear.

Anderson Powerlifting provides a variety of powerlifting accessories and workout gear including weight lifting belts, knee wraps, knee sleeves, deadlift socks, and resistance bands. To learn more about our workout gear and powerlifting accessories, contact Anderson Powerlifting today.

Jennifer Del Cid

The post Resistance Bands: How You Can Add Variety To Your Powerlifting Workouts appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.

Weight lifting belts are heavily relied on to support your abdominal wall and stabilize your spine during lifts. Here are a few tips that will help you find the best weight lifting belt for you.

• Width: Weight lifting belts work by giving your abdominal muscles something to brace against, thereby stabilizing your back. This is why belts that are wider in the back are absolutely useless in practice. Good weight lifting belts are equally wide all around; for most people, the maximum width that sits comfortably between their ribs and hipbone is 10 cm.
• Thickness: Your belt should be firm and stiff enough that it stays in place during your exercises. The thickest and most durable Titan belts are 13 mm thick, creating a strong wall for your abs to press against.
• Prongs or Levers? Weight lifting belts are secured in three ways: single prong, double prong, and levers. Double prongs generally require an extra step during your heavy attempts, and can be a real hassle when you’re trying to pull it tight. Single prong and lever weight lifting belts are the more practical option.
• Material: As a thick and sturdy material, leather is ideal for weight training belts. Top grain leather is the best choice (as opposed to suede) as the fibers are closer together and create a more durable final piece.

When you have the proper tools, any job gets easier and enables you to do more. Whether you favor prong or lever weight lifting belts, having that crucial support for your spine will allow you to push yourself harder and lift heavier weights without risking your physical health and safety.

The post 4 Tips For Finding The Right Weight Lifting Belt appeared first on Anderson Powerlifting.