The Belt Supports Your Abs, Not Your Back!
In reality, a weightlifting belt primarily supports your abs, not (directly for) your back. It sounds peculiar, but here’s why: The belt acts as a second set of abs to prepare your entire body to lift heavy loads. The short version is that to brace yourself for those super heavy lifts you’d take a deep belly breath and hold it, a method of “breathing” called the Valsalva maneuver. The Valsalva maneuver helps create intra-abdominal pressure that cushions and supports your spine. With a lifting belt, you do your deep belly breath into the belt, which pushes back against your abs. This amplifies the effects of that intra-abdominal pressure, and in turn, helps protect your back and lets it handle the stress of heavier loads even better. Thus with belt, your lifting efficiency increases & you could bang with little more weight.
Where should I wear my weightlifting belt?
To provide the appropriate feedback and comfort during the lift, wear your belt directly over your navel. You may need to adjust things based on the lift.
How tight should I wear my weightlifting belt?
Tighter than you think it needs to be. Most beginning lifters don’t put on the belt tight enough, so err on the side of too tight. Take a normal breath in and then pull the belt as tight as possible — as tight as you can make it without it interfering with your breathing & cutting off your circulation.
When You Don’t Need a Belt at All
· You have high blood pressure
· If you can't lift heavyweight with a proper form
· If you don’t know how to stabilize your body without a belt.
· You don’t do much Squat, Deadlift or overhead pressing.
Not every gym-goer will need (or want) a weightlifting belt. It’s useful, but not a requirement. Just keep in mind when they benefit you and when they don’t, and use them accordingly. They’re tools—not championship belts to show off in the gym.
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