While I consider myself a Strongman Athlete, I do dabble in the world of powerlifting. Coming from a strongman background it should come as no surprise that my dabbling comes in the form of equipped powerlifting. Specifically the single ply category.
For the uninitiated the sport of powerlifting consists of three events that athletes are divided based on weight and categorized by uniques classes based on the equipment the lifter has decided to use. Categorizing lifters based on equipment is a more recent development in the overall history of the sport but has become a definitive part of the sport.
Powerlifting federations vary on the rules, weight classes, categories available, but a quick breakdown of categories for laymen would be raw and equipped. Raw meaning the lifter will remain in their competition singlet and have little to no supportive garments, equipped meaning the lifter may use a specialized article of clothing for each lift as the lifter sees fit. The equipped class is then broken down to two main designations of single ply or multi ply referring to the number of layers a garment is allowed to have.
Without getting bogged down in the semantics of it all, not all federations offer all categories and equipment that is legal in one federation may not be legal in another. I happen to have experience in two different powerlifting federations as a single ply athlete and both federations allowed the same equipment, but your journey may vary.
Armed with this understanding the point of this article was not to be an explanation of what, but an insight to why. Equipped powerlifting has experienced a decline over its life. More and more athletes are competing in the raw classes. It has been said that the functional fitness crowd has had a lot of impact on that transition since raw powerlifting seems to be a more accessible point of entry to someone already training raw.
I hate to break it to everyone, but equipped powerlifters train raw. Putting on a squat or deadlift suit takes time. Getting into a bench shirt takes multiple people who just want to get you into the shirt. It simply is not always an option just for a training session. So why bother at all?
Equipped lifting, in my opinion, requires strength, mental ability, and strategy. This changes the game significantly. A raw lifter needs to be strong, they need to be mentally tough, but the equipped lifter needs to know how to get the most out of the equipment or the lift may not happen at all.
While every coach will tell you the suit “helps move more weight,” it will not move weight for you. Carry-over, the term for the number of pounds above the lifter’s raw ability, is still a function of your raw number. Rely on the suit too much and numbers will stagnate.
Mental toughness is an overlooked aspect of equipped powerlifting. On meet days I have been known to tell my teammates that I am ready for violence. My mindset is that I am about perform a violent act against myself as much as the barbell. The suits will cut into your skin, you will be under intense pressure. There will be blood, you will be in pain in the days that follow, but you must find your way through to the other side of the lift to be victorious. Let your mind get the better of you and you will miss the lift.
The last part of the puzzle is what draws me to the equipped class, strategy. Every suit is different and does something differently. Every suit responds to the lifter movement differently, you have to learn to harness the ability of the suit or shirt to your advantage. In my squat suit there is a moment the suit brings my to a complete stop at just above depth. Driving into that full brake with my hips gives me depth and propels me back upward, but if I let the suit go too fast the bar becomes unmanageable.
Just as a warrior must play to his strengths in the battle the equipped lifter must find the ways to maximize the effectiveness of the equipment for a victorious total. Overall taking to the platform in the equipped class presents a unique challenge beyond the sheer act of strength. It that balance between ability and strategy with the overall challenge or mental fortitude that will keep the equipped class alive for years to come.
CULT-OF-IRON 