Starting Strength, 3rd Edition - Mark Rippetoe [44]
Figure 2-60. Different types of weightlifting belts. They can be constructed in various ways, but useful belts are the same width along their entire length. Belts that widen in the back are designed by people who do not understand the function of a belt.
You may not need a belt at all for the early part of your training career, and if your abs are strong and your back is uninjured, you may prefer to never use one. Very heavy weights have certainly been lifted without one. This is a judgment call, but it is probably prudent to err on the side of safety if there is any question at all about it or if you have previously injured your back. When a belt is used, it should be used judiciously, possibly restricted to the last warm-up set and the work sets. As a general rule, do not introduce a new variable into the work set – if you’re going to wear a belt in the work set, make sure you use it in the last warm-up set so that your movement pattern will not be altered or your attention diverted under the heaviest weight of the day.
Using the belt correctly is a matter of practice. It must be worn in the right place at the right tightness to be effective, and if it’s wrong, it can actually screw up the lift it’s designed to support. Put it on around your natural waist (higher than you wear your pants) at a comfortable tightness, take your squat stance, and squat down into the bottom position. The belt will adjust to the position it wants to settle into, the place where it functions most effectively, and it will have done so before the weight is a factor. In other words, don’t let this position adjustment take place at the bottom of the first rep you need the belt for – do it in advance. Stand back up and tighten the belt to the point at which it adds a little pressure to the gut.
There is a common misconception about the use of a belt. Many people have heard that you push the “stomach” out against the belt. Doing this, however, will usually result in spinal flexion, the very thing we wear the belt to prevent from happening under a load. Just put the belt on tight, forget it’s there, and use your abs the way you would without it. The belt functions without your having to actually “use” it, because the tightness it provides against the abs causes them to work harder without your micromanagement of the situation.
The right amount of tightness is a matter of individual preference, but as a general rule, more experienced lifters can wear a tighter belt than novices can. It is also quite possible to have a belt on too tight. If you have to stretch up to get the belt’s prong in that last hole, you will be less able to exert pressure with your own abdominal musculature, since it must be contracted to actually generate force. Try this once to see for yourself; when you do, you’ll find that there is an optimum tension on the belt, and that too tight is worse than too loose. You’ll eventually find that your belt adjustment varies with your body weight, your underlying clothing, and even your hydration level; if your belt is designed with holes close enough together to allow for fine adjustment, it will come in handy.
Contrary to the new conventional wisdom regarding this, a belt will not prevent your trunk from getting and staying strong. It is hard for the layperson – or for that matter, a coach who lacks personal experience with very heavy squats – to understand this, but there is not one single relaxed muscle group in the entire human body under a 600-pound squat; this statement most especially applies to the muscles that