Janurary Web Lifting Meet!
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If anyone is interested, here is a link to the rules for USAPL. There are also rules around what you may wear and whether it puts you in the raw class or the geared class. For example knee sleeves are ok for raw; but knee wraps are not - those would put you in the geared class.
http://www.usapowerlifting.com/aboutus/rulebook.shtml
Also, regarding the technical rules of the lifts, it's not about good form per se. For example, they don't care if you do something like round your back during a deadlift - that would still be a valid lift as long as you don't hitch it and you lock out until the judge says to put it down. For the bench, you have to pause at the chest and get the bar to completely stop moving; then wait for the press command before pressing and locking out.
Precisely, especially on the deadlift. There have been many world records set with rounded backs and deflated lungs (see Bob Peoples for a ridiculous example that would freak everyone here out if posted as a 'how's my form?' thread).
@Gigi, the pause is intended to make sure that all momentum has ceased. The muscles can work the same way as a bench shirt does, by retaining 'elastic' energy, making it easier to spring the weight back up. The pause removes all of this 'ricochet' effect. At least, that's how I've been made to understand it.0 -
Cool, i will work on that pause.... we talking 2-3secs???0
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Precisely, especially on the deadlift. There have been many world records set with rounded backs and deflated lungs (see Bob Peoples for a ridiculous example that would freak everyone here out if posted as a 'how's my form?' thread
Link it! :-)0 -
A couple of examples of Peoples' "bad" form that ended him up setting a DL record that stood for over 40 years, until Ed Coan showed up in the 80s and started crapping all over every lifting record he could make weight for:
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Agreed! Don't stress to much about being red lighted. It DOES happen a lot, even to the strongest most experienced lifters. Lots of people were redlighted at my meet on the 2nd and 3rd attempts and most not even for not following the rules but for attempting too heavy a weight that they could not put up (challenging themselves). The best thing you can do is know the rules inside and out and practice your lifts the way you'd need to do them at a meet, with someone giving the commands if possible. I didn't have someone to practice giving me commands in my training, but I read the rule book weekly in the month before my meet. I always always practiced my 1 rep max's with a paused bench and did my squats ATG, waited a sec on racking for bench and squat, and making sure I locked out my deadlifts properly and waited a sec before putting them down.
I was pretty worried about getting red lighted for not following rules and went a little light on the weight. Being my first meet I wanted to complete as many lifts as possible. I just followed the commands and got 8 out of 9 of my lifts. My one failure was due just not being able to get my bench up. The rules honestly are really simple. Watch the other lifters is great advice. Watch them warming up and competing as well. Now that I know I can easily follow the rules, I want to push myself more on my attempt selections next time. I still did end up with a deadlift PR though - woot!
PS - my lifts and videos are on page 3 of this thread, I think they kinda got buried - shameless plug! LOL But being my first meet, I'd love some feedback!
TIA! 0 -
If anyone is interested, here is a link to the rules for USAPL. There are also rules around what you may wear and whether it puts you in the raw class or the geared class. For example knee sleeves are ok for raw; but knee wraps are not - those would put you in the geared class.
http://www.usapowerlifting.com/aboutus/rulebook.shtml
Also, regarding the technical rules of the lifts, it's not about good form per se. For example, they don't care if you do something like round your back during a deadlift - that would still be a valid lift as long as you don't hitch it and you lock out until the judge says to put it down. For the bench, you have to pause at the chest and get the bar to completely stop moving; then wait for the press command before pressing and locking out.
The rules can be slightly different for each fed. The SPF allows knee sleeves and knee wraps for raw. I personally did not wear either, since I have never trained with them yet. I used a belt for my DL and squat, and wrist wraps for my bench. Competed raw full powerlifting. If you do pick a meet, make sure you read the specific rules for the federation that is running it since the commands can differ also. At my meet, there was no "squat" or "up" commad for squat, only a "rack" command. You could go down and come up as you pleased, as long as you made depth and stayed in a continual motion each way (no bouncing, etc). Also, be aware that some feds use monolifts for squats. I had never used one before (my gym doesn't have them) and I always walk my squats out in training. I had the option to walk my squats out at the meet if I wanted to, but it felt awkward with the lower height of the bar and safety straps being there so I just did the monolift. It threw me off on my first attempt (I got it any way) but by the 2nd and 3rd attempts I was able to understand how to position myself much better.
Always take you time getting set up for your lift, get in the proper position, take the right breaths, don't rush yourself.0 -
PS - my lifts and videos are on page 3 of this thread, I think they kinda got buried - shameless plug! LOL But being my first meet, I'd love some feedback! TIA!
My lifts were on page 3 too.....no worries about the plug LOL!!!!! As far as your lifts i think they looked good but i couldnt see the beginning of the squat so im assuming it was plenty deep!!! ;-)0 -
A couple of examples of Peoples' "bad" form that ended him up setting a DL record that stood for over 40 years, until Ed Coan showed up in the 80s and started crapping all over every lifting record he could make weight for:
Sorry i will not sacrifice form for weight...... ouch!!!!!0 -
That's actually one of my primary gripes with the current state of Powerlifting, honestly. There's too much variance between federations, yet only one set of records.
The monolift thing is a great example. Now, don't get me wrong, few serious squatters consider the walk out a major part of the lift, so this isn't some plug for squat rack elitism. It's more that monolifts can be very uncomfortable for some due to their sway. I've read several stories from lifters who got so freaked out at the way the thing can move while locking the bar into your shoulders (especially with a really heavy weight on the bar, like 900+) that they ended up failing a lift they could push very easily. Nerves can do terrible things to a lifter on the platform. Others are so used to a monolift that they've almost lost all sense of how to walk a max effort weight out. Either use a mono option for all feds, or get rid of it altogether.0 -
Sorry i will not sacrifice form for weight...... ouch!!!!!
LoL, it didn't actually hurt him. That's a form that he came up with after years of tinkering with his body's leverages. The guy had an upper back and shoulders that looked like the Appalachian Mountains. Peoples is called 'Mr. Deadlift' for a reason. It was the only lift he truly cared about, and he spent many years figuring out how to get better at it. Keep in mind, his record was set well before steroids existed too, and it lasted decades until Coan broke his record...and Coan's record in that class still stands today, over 20 years later.
That's something I try to get through to people, but a lot of younger lifters have become so enthralled by the 'perfect form or you may die' boogeyman that they are scared to try things that might work better for them. They don't get that 'perfect' is a relative term in cases like this, as no two human bodies are exactly alike.0 -
Sorry i will not sacrifice form for weight...... ouch!!!!!
LoL, it didn't actually hurt him. That's a form that he came up with after years of tinkering with his body's leverages. The guy had an upper back and shoulders that looked like the Appalachian Mountains. Peoples is called 'Mr. Deadlift' for a reason. It was the only lift he truly cared about, and he spent many years figuring out how to get better at it. Keep in mind, his record was set well before steroids existed too, and it lasted decades until Coan broke his record...and Coan's record in that class still stands today, over 20 years later.
That's something I try to get through to people, but a lot of younger lifters have become so enthralled by the 'perfect form or you may die' boogeyman that they are scared to try things that might work better for them. They don't get that 'perfect' is a relative term in cases like this, as no two human bodies are exactly alike.
I get what your saying but i will stick to good form since im not worried about pulling 500lbs like EVER!!!! LOL0 -
Sorry i will not sacrifice form for weight...... ouch!!!!!
LoL, it didn't actually hurt him. That's a form that he came up with after years of tinkering with his body's leverages. The guy had an upper back and shoulders that looked like the Appalachian Mountains. Peoples is called 'Mr. Deadlift' for a reason. It was the only lift he truly cared about, and he spent many years figuring out how to get better at it. Keep in mind, his record was set well before steroids existed too, and it lasted decades until Coan broke his record...and Coan's record in that class still stands today, over 20 years later.
That's something I try to get through to people, but a lot of younger lifters have become so enthralled by the 'perfect form or you may die' boogeyman that they are scared to try things that might work better for them. They don't get that 'perfect' is a relative term in cases like this, as no two human bodies are exactly alike.
Agreed, particularly true for squat. There is so much to be gained from tweaking form relative to your own body.0 -
I get what your saying but i will stick to good form since im not worried about pulling 500lbs like EVER!!!! LOL
Hehe, fair enough, and to each their own.
I have made it my personal crusade to dethrone Coan's deadlift in the 181 before I die, or kill myself trying. That record (791) was set in 1984, which happens to be the year I was born. I am gunning for that nearly 30 year old number. LoL. That's why Peoples is such a major inspiration for me. I could care less about getting high in the other lifts. The deadlift is my baby, and I am willing to have a crappy squat if it means I can keep pulling 3x per week. ^_^0 -
PS - my lifts and videos are on page 3 of this thread, I think they kinda got buried - shameless plug! LOL But being my first meet, I'd love some feedback! TIA!
My lifts were on page 3 too.....no worries about the plug LOL!!!!! As far as your lifts i think they looked good but i couldnt see the beginning of the squat so im assuming it was plenty deep!!! ;-)
Thank you!! Yeah, hubby filmed it too late so it only shows me coming up out of it! lol But it was plenty deep. 3 white lights all the way!
I watched yours as well. Your form looks great!!0 -
That's actually one of my primary gripes with the current state of Powerlifting, honestly. There's too much variance between federations, yet only one set of records.
The monolift thing is a great example. Now, don't get me wrong, few serious squatters consider the walk out a major part of the lift, so this isn't some plug for squat rack elitism. It's more that monolifts can be very uncomfortable for some due to their sway. I've read several stories from lifters who got so freaked out at the way the thing can move while locking the bar into your shoulders (especially with a really heavy weight on the bar, like 900+) that they ended up failing a lift they could push very easily. Nerves can do terrible things to a lifter on the platform. Others are so used to a monolift that they've almost lost all sense of how to walk a max effort weight out. Either use a mono option for all feds, or get rid of it altogether.
I totally agree! I think squat should be across the board. The monolift really did make me uncomfortable and threw me off. My opener felt like 2000 lbs because I was so mis-positioned and not used to using the monolift. (I used it during the meet warmups of course but that was not enough time to get used to it) and I don't have access to one to train with currently, so it kinda sucks. I could've walked it out though, it just felt weird doing that with all that crap in the way and the bar moving/swaying like you said.
That's cool about your powerlifting meet honeymoon! haha The meet I was at yesterday was the state one in TN.0 -
Honestly, I doubt walking it out would have helped much anyway. All of the awkwardness seems to come from trying to get the bar positioned well. It's only made worse if the height is set even a little higher than what you are used to being at in a squat rack. Granted, you can ask them to adjust it if you notice weirdness before you nod for the mono to be jacked back, but if you don't notice it until afterward, you're pretty much screwed. To me, especially when squatting heavy, it doesn't take much bad positioning on the shoulders to throw your entire lift off.0
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Just wanted to chime in to say that I don't think perfect form is possible on a max effort attempt. If you're squatting at a true >98% of your max, it'll never be perfect.
I also don't think it's nearly as dangerous as some folks make it out to be. There's a reason saving true max attempts for meets or for your very infrequent skills assessments is probably a good idea, and assuming you only really do it once every 6 weeks or whatever, having 9 lifts with iffy form in that time frame isn't that big of a deal.
Form on max attempts is far more important for a beginner because they should be training at or near their max a heckuva lot more often than an intermediate or advanced guy would.0 -
I get what your saying but i will stick to good form since im not worried about pulling 500lbs like EVER!!!! LOL
Hehe, fair enough, and to each their own.
I have made it my personal crusade to dethrone Coan's deadlift in the 181 before I die, or kill myself trying. That record (791) was set in 1984, which happens to be the year I was born. I am gunning for that nearly 30 year old number. LoL. That's why Peoples is such a major inspiration for me. I could care less about getting high in the other lifts. The deadlift is my baby, and I am willing to have a crappy squat if it means I can keep pulling 3x per week. ^_^
Wow, thats Awesome and an amazing goal!!! ;-)0 -
PS - my lifts and videos are on page 3 of this thread, I think they kinda got buried - shameless plug! LOL But being my first meet, I'd love some feedback! TIA!
My lifts were on page 3 too.....no worries about the plug LOL!!!!! As far as your lifts i think they looked good but i couldnt see the beginning of the squat so im assuming it was plenty deep!!! ;-)
Thank you!! Yeah, hubby filmed it too late so it only shows me coming up out of it! lol But it was plenty deep. 3 white lights all the way!
I watched yours as well. Your form looks great!!
Thanks!!! I figured it was fine you could hear the guy say it was good!!! I think its cool you did that, i think my biggest problem with ever doing a competition would be finding one in my area!!! Opp, Alabama isnt known for this kind of stuff!!!0 -
PS - my lifts and videos are on page 3 of this thread, I think they kinda got buried - shameless plug! LOL But being my first meet, I'd love some feedback! TIA!
My lifts were on page 3 too.....no worries about the plug LOL!!!!! As far as your lifts i think they looked good but i couldnt see the beginning of the squat so im assuming it was plenty deep!!! ;-)
Thank you!! Yeah, hubby filmed it too late so it only shows me coming up out of it! lol But it was plenty deep. 3 white lights all the way!
I watched yours as well. Your form looks great!!
Thanks!!! I figured it was fine you could hear the guy say it was good!!! I think its cool you did that, i think my biggest problem with ever doing a competition would be finding one in my area!!! Opp, Alabama isnt known for this kind of stuff!!!
Thanks so much, it was a really awesome experience and I'm so glad I did it! The SPF has a couple of meets in Alabama this year I'm pretty sure! Here, check out this calendar!
http://www.southernpowerlifting.com/calendar.php
There is one in alabama on 02/23 and 04/20! Not sure what part of AL you are from, but some of the meets in TN or MS might be close enough for you as well.0 -
Im on the Florida line pretty much!!! 1hr10mins to beaches!!! ;-)0
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Little bit of a late thought, but my wife found the video of that young girl's deadlift. I am even more impressed now. If she could have made that look any easier, I don't know how. No slow down, no grind...she just grabbed it and stood right up like it was nothing. LoL.0
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I competed in my first ever powerlifting meet today! I know it's 2 days late, but can I still play? If not, count these towards next month's if we do them!
Competed raw, and weighed in at 136.
Squat: 170 lbs (Wilks 84.151)
(hubby only got the tail end of this squat in the video, but as you can hear/see - it was a good lift)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0IgxWIEgng&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg&index=1
Bench: 85 lbs (Wilks 42.075)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hrn5AjaPj0A&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg
Deadlift: 225
(Wilks 111.376(this was a PR for me but I should've gone for more since it went up so easy!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxsHMNBj1rw&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg
Total: 480 lbs (Wilks 237.6)
I've been squatting and DLing for 4 months, and benching for 3 months. I'm super happy with my progress and so proud of myself for competing in this meet! I was scared out of my mind going into it but everyone there was so nice and supportive. It was a great learning experience too. I went 8 for 9 in my lifts
whoa. killer!!!!0 -
for the record, you ladies who are kicking my bum are inspiring me to push myself harder.
When I started lifting a year ago, I was so afriad of doing too much weight and injuring myself. It took me a good while to figure out where to be at in terms of how much weight was reasonable for me to aim for. Now that I see what y'all can do, I'm feeling inspired to push myself a bit harder!
Thanks for posting your videos! you are amazing!0 -
I competed in my first ever powerlifting meet today! I know it's 2 days late, but can I still play? If not, count these towards next month's if we do them!
Competed raw, and weighed in at 136.
Squat: 170 lbs (Wilks 84.151)
(hubby only got the tail end of this squat in the video, but as you can hear/see - it was a good lift)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0IgxWIEgng&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg&index=1
Bench: 85 lbs (Wilks 42.075)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hrn5AjaPj0A&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg
Deadlift: 225
(Wilks 111.376(this was a PR for me but I should've gone for more since it went up so easy!)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxsHMNBj1rw&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg
Total: 480 lbs (Wilks 237.6)
I've been squatting and DLing for 4 months, and benching for 3 months. I'm super happy with my progress and so proud of myself for competing in this meet! I was scared out of my mind going into it but everyone there was so nice and supportive. It was a great learning experience too. I went 8 for 9 in my lifts
all of those were easy You have a lot left in you.
gigi76: I just saw your vids. VERY impressive chins I think! And stop looking in the mirror :laugh:0 -
I know I know :laugh: I'm going to turn back to it from now on I promise and I have deads tomorrow! Thanks about chin ups.... I love working my back can only do 2 pull ups with 25lbs but I'm cool with that! :-)0
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Little bit of a late thought, but my wife found the video of that young girl's deadlift. I am even more impressed now. If she could have made that look any easier, I don't know how. No slow down, no grind...she just grabbed it and stood right up like it was nothing. LoL.
Brooklyn, right? Isn't she freaking amazing! Here's the crazy thing... her 3rd lift was either 165 or 175 (175 was her previous PR) and she was shaking and totally had to grind that one out. On the 200 lb lift it was easy with no grind. The difference was that she knew how much was on the bar for the 3rd lift but her dad didn't tell her how much was on the bar for the 4th lift, he just told her to go for it. Sure, she could've added it up quickly, but she was in the moment and just walked up to the bar and did her thing. It was amazing! And it just goes to show you how much of powerlifting really is mental!!!0 -
I competed in my first ever powerlifting meet today! I know it's 2 days late, but can I still play? If not, count these towards next month's if we do them!
Competed raw, and weighed in at 136.
Squat: 170 lbs (Wilks 84.151)
(hubby only got the tail end of this squat in the video, but as you can hear/see - it was a good lift)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0IgxWIEgng&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg&index=1
Bench: 85 lbs (Wilks 42.075)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hrn5AjaPj0A&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg
Deadlift: 225
(Wilks 111.376(this was a PR for me but I should've gone for more since it went up so easy!)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxsHMNBj1rw&list=UUumGQR0JhKi17VpseKNTsfg
Total: 480 lbs (Wilks 237.6)
I've been squatting and DLing for 4 months, and benching for 3 months. I'm super happy with my progress and so proud of myself for competing in this meet! I was scared out of my mind going into it but everyone there was so nice and supportive. It was a great learning experience too. I went 8 for 9 in my lifts
all of those were easy You have a lot left in you.
gigi76: I just saw your vids. VERY impressive chins I think! And stop looking in the mirror :laugh:
Thank you!!! The all did feel easy (except for the 90 lb bench which I failed, but only just barely... I need to work on my bench a lot) and I felt like I had a lot left, especially on the dead. I wish I had a video of my squat opener though to show you how horrible it was... combo of nerves and the stupid monolift... it threw me way off balance. I scaled back my 2nd and 3rd squat attempts because of it, but they both went up easy.0 -
Well now that you all have thoroughly inspired me, I'm off to start my deload week. Talk about anticlimactic! :laugh:0
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Well now that you all have thoroughly inspired me, I'm off to start my deload week. Talk about anticlimactic! :laugh:
LOL, i know im going to hate the deload week, but i know it is crucial to the program so i will if i must!!! :-(0
