[Document

Title]
[Document Subtitle]
David Kirschen

 By Dave Kirschen and Friends

For Powerlifters, by Powerlifters

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 For Bob Youngs

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This manual is for informational and educational purposes only and is expressly
not to be considered medical counsel. Always consult a doctor or health
services professional before beginning any new weight training programs. The
application of techniques, ideas and suggestions proposed by this manual is
solely at the risk and discretion of the reader.

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There is Internet Powerlifting.

A hate filled, jealous, rumor spreading, tear each other down and try to ruin
one another sport where any opportunity to spew hate and make
one another look bad is jumped on with a fervor.

Then there is Actual Live Powerlifting. Where your closest competitor is rooting
for you to get a lift so he’s got motivation to go out and beat it. Where he’ll
lend you his wraps if you’ve forgotten yours. Where people bond together
because they know the line you walk when you take that platform makes you
feel alive in a special way and normal people will never know that feeling.

If you are an Internet Fan, this sport sucks.

If you actually compete, there is nothing like it in the world.

- Tone Barbaccio

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 Table of Contents

Why Lift Multiply? 8

Why I Wrote This 15

My History in Gear… A love Story 18

Why Did Multiply “Die” ? 23

Entering the World of Multiply 34

How to Reach the Top (for real) 49

Dealing with Trolls 54

Women and Multiply 59

Raw Gear 64

Initial Break-in Techniques 82

Gym Equipment for Multiply 92

Equipped Squatting 103

The Equipped Bench Press 134

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Equipped Deadlifting 173

Sizing up the Gear Companies 182

Selecting Your First Gear 225

Special Consideration for Big Weights 229

Special Exercises 235

Programming 255

Your First Multiply Meet 315

Spotting the Strongest 322

How to Handle a Multiply Lifter 333

Judging 338

How to Survive a Major Injury 342

The OGs 357

Fred Hatfield 360

The Legacy of Ernie Frantz 374

Epilogue 468

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 Why Lift Multiply?

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Multiply powerlifting is better than raw.

I’m not saying this to be shocking or controversial. Since I’m not trying to make
money on this project, there’s no reason for me to say shit just for attention.
This is what I believe and this is why I wrote the book.

I’m not comparing the sports based on the executions of the lifts themselves,
because then they’d be tied with every other sport. In terms of the sport itself,
multiply powerlifting is no better or worse than raw powerlifting, football, or
bowling, in that you’re just executing a series of actions in order to score
points within the rules.

But when you look a little deeper, over a longer period of time, and you see
the effect a sport has on it’s participants, the difference becomes clearer.
Geared powerlifting is harder.

Much harder.

Now please don't take this to mean that raw powerlifters don’t work hard,
especially at the top. ALL high level strength athletes are extraordinarily hard
workers.

But the difference is that what makes raw powerlifting great is also what
makes geared lifting better. Raw powerlifting is inclusive. Almost anyone can
do it and almost anyone does. While I would argue that mastering the power
lifts isn’t easy, almost anyone can perform them well enough to make it
through a meet. In my opinion it’s one of the best participation sports out

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there, and whenever someone tells me they are considering trying
powerlifting I steer them towards raw almost every time.

Multiply however is a totally different animal.

For starters, the equipment is expensive and finding the right size (a process
that never fucking ends) is difficult. Advanced gear can take up to 2 months
before it’s broken in enough to even be usable. I don’t even want to get into
alterations and repairs.

The workouts take forever. 3 hours is about the minimum for a full gear squat
workout. In a large crew with strong lifters, 5-6 hours is very common.

Misses are a motherfucker. Not only does the gear make executing the lifts far
more difficult, it also tends make things go sideways really, really fast if you do
happen to fuck up (which you will, constantly). In fact, as I’m writing this, I
really can’t believe we didn't see more deaths during the “shirt wars” of the
early 00’s. People used to watch that shit for the dumps like watching
NASCAR for the crashes.

Powerlifting equipment fucking hurts even when everything is going well.

Squatting in a suit eats into your upper thighs, crushes your nuts (if you happen
to have them) and the extreme pressure makes passing out in the hole
common. And there’s nothing better than taking a full 20 minutes to get all
your shit on then realizing you need to piss.

Bench shirts cut the shit out of your triceps, and the pressure from the collar
against your chest feels like being crushed under a car. I have so much nerve
damage in my chest from the constant pressure that my pecs have basically

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atrophied away to nothing. Deadlift suits aren't all that bad except for the
feeling of the worlds worst wedgie when you try to bend down to get your
hands on the bar.

Learning the equipment is extremely frustrating, and it never ends. lifters who
don’t understand gear will often complain that the gear is doing the work for
you. I fucking wish. Most of the time, it feels like the shit is trying to kill you.
Simply executing a maximal effort lift in multiply gear requires an extraordinary
level of strength, skill and courage that few sports can match.

With weight cuts in the mix, you have another layer of unpredictability
because the stuff never fits quite the same way after a big cut. You can easily
show up at a meet stronger than you’ve ever been, only to bomb because
you couldn't find the groove.

The rest of the sport will mock you at just about every opportunity they get. If
you make a big lift “the gear did it for you”. Miss one, and “a good carpenter
never blames his tool”. The rest of the fitness community will ignore you
entirely. You’ll learn humility early and often.

But biggest difference is the crew.

What made raw take off in the first place is the internet. Tools like ebooks,
Youtube and online coaching have made it easier than ever to train on your
own, either at home or in a commercial gym. And since most people’s first
exposure to powerlifting now takes place on the internet, they tend to see the
version that most easily translates to an audience. Hence, the explosion of
raw.

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But if you want to lift in gear, you’re gonna have to find (or build) yourself a
crew. There’s just no other way to do it. And that’s when shit really gets
intense. Because now you’ll be surrounded by people just as fucked up as
you and you’ll feel more at home than you ever imagined a sport could
make you feel.

Have you ever felt like powerlifting just seems to mean more to you than it
does to everyone else? It’s almost like everyone else is just having fun with
their sport, but for you, it’s more, and it’s difficult to find training partners who
can match your level of dedication?

That won’t be a problem in multiply. Here, you will be surrounded by people

willing to die for this shit. Who you find more motivating to train around, lifters
who’d rather restrict their potential for some abstract sense of morality, or a
bunch of fucking lunatics who’ll do whatever the fuck it takes to put another
pound on their total? Back in the old days, just competing in powerlifting at all
made you an anomaly, but those days are long gone, and you’re far more
likely to meet Diane from Accounting in your gym’s squat rack than Big Gary
from the Morning Crew.

You’ll lose count of how many times you’ll have saved a training partners life
while spotting. You’ll lose track of how many times they’ve saved yours. You’ll
meet people you’d probably never say 2 words to out in the street, but in the
gym, they’ll become family. You’ll understand what it means to be a part of
something bigger than yourself. You’ll learn to give and receive trust.

Maybe for the first time in your life.

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Outside of the gym, people might or might not “get” you, if they even care to
try. But in multiply, people you barely know will literally give you the shirt off
their backs, and you’ll get 200lbs out of it.

I am not by any means saying that this is not present in raw powerlifting, but it
certainly isn't universal. In multiply, this kind of crew is a requirement, not an
option. And it’s this environment, combined with the pain and frustration of
multiply lifting itself that will bring on the change you’re looking for.

I said earlier that people get into gear because they want to see what they
can lift without any restriction. But that’s not what keeps them there. In the last
few years of my career, as I was contemplating how I’d like to end it, it started
to occur to me why I got into (and stayed with) the whole thing in the first
place. Spoiler alert, it had nothing to do with how much I could squat. I
thought about writing what my reasons were, but there’s no point as it’s
unique to me. But if you’re still reading, It’s time to admit that you know that
it’s not really about how much you can squat either.

Raw powerlifting is fucking awesome, and if your primary interest is in lifting

weights itself, then by all mean go raw. You’ll have access to way more
meets, the competition is far deeper, and the top level of the sport gets far
more attention.

But you know deep down that it isn't just about lifting weights and it never
was. You don’t train so that you can do well in meets. You do the meets to
give yourself an excuse to train. The meets are fun, but you’re trying to get to
something much more important. Maybe you want to learn something about
yourself, or conquer some flaw or fear so deep you don’t even let yourself

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think about it. Maybe you’ve just never really been tested in life and want to
find out what you’re really made of?

I’m not saying you can’t find this in raw lifting, or literally any other sport for
that matter. What I’m saying is that you WILL find it in multiply. It’s brutal,
frustrating, and one of the greatest highs you’ll ever experience. You’ll learn
what you’re really made of, and what your tolerances are. I didn’t retire from
multiply powerlifting because I stopped loving it, or lost interest. I retired
because I knew I was at the point where my body could no longer
accommodate the demands I was placing on it, and it would have broken
my fucking heart to do this at anything less than 100%.

Retiring wasn’t easy, but I was able to do it without regrets because I can look
back on my career and know that I looked under every fucking stone I could
to push my numbers up, and then some. I retired knowing that my numbers,
for better or worse represent my absolute best effort under the best possible
conditions.

And if you can’t yet say the same, maybe there’s one more stone you need
to look under.

Welcome to Multiply Powerlifting.

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 Why I Wrote This

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I’ve been around this stuff for a very long time. I first became interested in
lifting weights around 1990, and my competitive powerlifting career spanned
from January of 1997 to March of 2020. As I’m writing this I’m just now realizing
I’ve probably been lifting weights longer than many of you have been alive.

Fuck.

Anyway, I started writing this book with the intent to sell it. Now that multiply
seems to be enjoying a noticeable, however modest bump in popularity over
the last couple of years, it’s only natural for those of us with some sort of
expertise to try and cash in. But for some reason, I kept losing momentum. It’s
not that I had trouble with the actual writing of it, I just couldn’t keep my
interest up enough to sit in front of the damn computer.

I guess part of the issue was that even with a slight upswing in participants, I
wasn’t confident that multiply powerlifting was a popular enough topic to
make the project fiscally worth it. The ebook market is crowded and not
known to be particularly lucrative in the first place. But as I neared retirement,
I started thinking about what got me into multiply powerlifting in the first
place, and what kept me in it for all these years. And by extension, how can
we keep this sport growing into the next generation?

The funny thing about being involved in something like this for as long as I’ve
been is that when you’re done, it’s not the loss of something you enjoy that
bothers you, it’s the feeling that you’re somehow abandoning your
responsibility to it.

I started to think about how the sport has adapted to the times, specifically
regarding how information is exchanged now vs then. Back when I started,

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knowledge was passed on primarily in person. The powerlifting “media” was a
monthly black and white magazine called Powerlifting USA which somehow
always looked 20 years out of date, no matter how new the issue. We did
have a few powerlifting websites here and there, but nothing even
approaching what we have today. Youtube and social media didn't yet exist,
and training videos were exchanged by hand or by mail in VHS format.

I realize this sounds like a difficult environment to learn in, but that’s what
made it great.

If you wanted to learn about this sport, you’d actually have to find lifters to
learn from. You either had to join a club, or make regular visits to one. Since
there really wasn’t much of an option, we all accepted this process for what it
was, so us novices didn’t mind making the trips, and the veteran lifters
tolerated our punk asses because they saw it as their responsibility to pass on
what was given to them.

And that’s what this is.

The reason I’ve stayed in multiply powerlifting for so long is due to the time
and energy that was invested in me by those who came before. There were
so many lifters who helped me along the way that I came up through the
ranks with a sense of debt, both to them, and to the sport. I can never repay
those who helped me. I was never expected to. The expectation of me then,
and you now is to pass this shit on to the next generation when your time
comes.

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 My History in Gear… A Love Story

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I fucking love gear

I love all forms of strength sport, but my first love is and will always be multi-ply
powerlifting.

My first experience with powerlifting gear dates back to the early 90’s when I
was in high school. I had just acquired my first issue of “Powerlifting USA
Magazine” which was at the time, the definitive powerlifting resource. This
one had Anthony Clark on the cover, benching somewhere in the low 700’s,
which was in world record territory back then.

In that magazine, I saw an ad for the original Blast Shirt, from Inzer. I think Ken
Lain was featured in the ad. While I wasn’t competing yet, I was nuts about
lifting weights, and a shirt that could somehow add 20-30 pounds to my
bench seemed too good to be true. Of course, I had to have it (a pattern
that really hasn’t changed much over the years). Little did I know what I was
in for.

Never having used or even seen a bench shirt before, I had no idea how it
worked, but the promise of adding 20-30 pounds to my bench (the ultimate
measure of myself as a young man… and today as a middle-aged dad for
that matter) was too good to resist. When I finally got the damn thing, I
realized the mistake I had made.

I thought it would be something I could casually wear in the gym to impress

my similarly dumb buddies. When got the thing in the mail, I was immediately
convinced they had sent me the wrong size, as it seemed way too small.
Looking at the directions that came with it, I attempted to get it on with the
help of my confused, but amused father. About halfway into getting it on

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and losing all feeling in my arms, I wisely aborted my decision, and begged
Dad to help me get it off, which was easier said than done, since he couldn't
stop laughing.

Clearly this wasn’t a piece of gear for the casual lifter, and I sent it back,
forgetting about the whole thing for the next couple of years.

Following a short and unimpressive stint in bodybuilding, I became interested

in powerlifting once again in college. After doing a couple of meets raw (or
what would later be known as RAW, but more on that later), and seeing some
lifters wearing gear, I decided I was ready, and ordered a Z-Suit and another
Blast Shirt.

This time, I had a little better handle on what I was doing. My first “geared”
meet was at a small meet hosted by the gym I worked for. I totaled 1196 @
165 and never competed raw again. After a year of going at it alone, I met
my first training partner, a gentleman named Rocco Capoccia, who remains
a friend to this day.

Times have changed since the early days of gear. Back then, it was just
understood that the more serious competitors wore gear, and that was that.
While it was a much bigger pain in the ass to use, the stuff back then was a
far cry from what we have now. Most competitors wore single ply gear, which
for the squat and deadlift, wasn’t much more than a stiff, very tight singlet.

The bench shirt was pretty much just a tight polyester t-shirt with the sleeves
stitched on at a forward angle. Even multi-ply lifters wore basically the same
stuff, but in double ply. Denim and canvas were just starting to become
popular for suits and shirts, in the some feds, but for the most part, lifters didn't

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really know how to use these stiffer materials to their full potential yet, so the
difference in carryover was far less than today.

As times changed, so did our mastery of gear. Gear companies responded

by making beefier, more restrictive stuff which required many years of use to
master, but provided insane carryover if you were dedicated enough to put
the work in. In retrospect it was probably only natural that there would be an
eventual backlash against gear. It’s not like there weren’t already purists who
hated the stuff from the beginning, and the rapidly increasing numbers only
widened the divide in our sport.

Those who were around in the early 2000s might remember a stretch of a few
years where records were falling on a seemingly weekly basis. I distinctly
remember back in 2008, not one, but TWO men breaking the 4 x bodyweight
barrier in the bench press on the SAME DAY in separate meets. One was the
great Shawn Frankl, at 198, and the other was my friend joe Cheklovsky at
148, which I got to witness in person. Just a couple of years later, the mythic
3000 total barrier was broken by none other than Donnie Thompson. Gear
warfare was in full effect.

It was madness, and all we could wonder was “where will this end?” It wasn’t
long before we seemed to get our answer.

But as more and more established raw lifters seem to be trying the stuff out
these days, times seem to be changing, if slowly.

As of this writing, multi-ply seems to be on a bit of an upswing. As the CrossFit

and Instagram fueled wave of raw lifters ages and gains experience, more
and more are starting to experiment with gear, either to protect injuries or to

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take on a new challenge. The re-emergence of the World Powerlifting
Organization (WPO) has given multiply a level of exposure not seen in many
years, with a new crop of pros boasting numbers thought impossible during
our past glory days. Even suit and shirt design is back on an upswing, with a
new kind of bench shirt threatening to change the game once again, with
lifters crushing massive numbers in the feds that allow them.

Is the next big movement in powerlifting going to be back towards multi-ply? I

wish, but given multi-ply was always on the fringe of the sport, even in the
glory days (second of course to single ply), I’m not holding my breath. But I
sure as hell am going to do whatever I can to promote my little corner of the
strength world, and it starts right here with this book.

Multiply lifting is a completely different animal then any other lifting, and can
be dangerous if not learned correctly. It's a totally different sport then raw
lifting, and much more difficult. In my opinion, it's the most badass kind of
lifting on the Planet!

- Shawna Mendelson

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 Why did Multiply “Die”?

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As any old-timer (including this one) will tell you, raw powerlifting hasn’t
been the majority of the sport for very long. As of this writing, I’d put it at
about 10 years or so. When I first got involved in powerlifting in the mid-
nineties, the vast majority of lifters wore gear of some kind, with the most
dominant form being single-ply. In fact, even the idea of one federation
allowing multiple gear classifications is fairly new.

The USAPL/IPF as well as the USPF were designated as single ply feds, with
the APF/WPC/WPO and IPA catering to multiply. There were tons of other
feds of course, much like today, but these were the major players. Raw
powerlifting was always allowed in any fed, but raw lifters would usually
have to lift against geared lifters. As raw lifting became more popular, the
“geared” feds started to offer raw classes in order to meet the growing
demand and to avoid losing market share to the dedicated raw feds that
began popping up.

While single ply lifting has remained somewhat popular due to the vast
reach of the IPF, multiply, which was never the majority of the sport, even
in the glory days, multiply saw a drastic drop in participation.

But why did the tides turn in the first place?

Lots of reasons have been given for the “death” of multiply, and to be
honest, having lived through it, I disagree with most of them.

Here’s what DIDN’T kill gear:

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Cost

With the average cost of a top shelf bench shirt hovering around 300
dollars, and squat suit prices at around 400, it’s easy to assume that lifters,
especially young ones simply couldn’t afford to lift geared anymore. This is
nonsense for a few reasons.

First off, in my experience, when someone is really “locked in” to a goal or

hobby, most people (especially young men) won’t bat an eyelash at
price, and there are way more expensive hobbies than powerlifting.
Compared with more common pursuits like cars, motorcycling, golf,
hunting/fishing and photography, powerlifting gear starts to look like a
relative bargain.

Not to mention raw lifters tend to LOVE expensive equipment. When you
consider the cost of high-end squat shoes (which multiply lifters generally
don’t use), sleeves and belts, a raw lifters ensemble can easily break the
500 dollar mark without providing nearly the carryover that real gear
would.

And I’m not even gonna go into the online coaching that every young
raw lifter seems to pay out the ass for these days.

The cost explanation breaks down even more when you consider the fact
that most geared lifters of my generation didn’t buy their own shit initially.
Usually it was passed down to them from more experienced training

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partners. I know that from personal experience, as most of the gear I’ve
owned that didn’t work for me got passed on, free of charge.

Learning curve

Second to the cost argument is the learning curve aspect of gear. Simply
put, gear, especially multiply is a motherfucker to learn, and most lifters
coming into the sport don’t want to deal with it and would rather just lift.
Maybe true, but again, not the real reason in my opinion.

Gear use tends to be progressive in nature, so the lifters of the geared era
didn’t just throw on the most advanced suit on the market and have at it.
Most lifters started with the bare minimum and gradually advanced to
more supportive stuff as their strength and skill levels increased.

Plus, the gear of today isn’t all that much more restrictive than the stuff 10
years ago. In fact, the canvas squat suits of today are actually easier to
use than the older stuff because they’ve become more adjustable,
allowing less skilled lifters to reduce the support as needed.

Pride in “real strength”

Another B.S. reason that gets tossed around is that lifters became turned
off to the insane carryovers gear provided, and collectively started
pursuing raw lifting because it’s a better demonstration of “real” strength,
and began to see gear as a corruption of the sport. Needless to say, this

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explanation is popular with some of the more elitist raw lifters.

I shouldn’t have to bust this one, because it’s clearly revisionist history, but
here we go. The idea that this generation of lifters is somehow more
prideful than the previous is bullshit, and insulting to all those great lifters
that came before. Great athletes push boundaries, pure and simple. The
equipment advanced to the point it did because the lifters would do
whatever was within the rules (ok, mostly within the rules) to get every last
pound out of it. To bash the previous generation for this is silly, especially
when you consider that raw lifters will also push the boundaries of what’s
legal in their own competitions.

So what’s the real reason?

I don't think any of us could have predicted that multi-ply would see quiet as
big of a downward spiral as we had starting in around 2010 or so, and while
most of us were taken off guard, the signs were there. Just as gear had
pushed numbers to new heights, bombouts were on the rise as well, especially
in the bench press. Pro bench meets were often won by the only guy in the
flight who actually got a bench in, with the rest suffering spectacular dumps.
Previously great benchers soon became equally notable for how many meets
they’d go without a single successful attempt. The squat didn’t do us much
justice either, as the standard for depth in some multi-ply federations became
laughably loose.

Around the same time, social media, with more than a little help from CrossFit
brought in a large influx of new lifters, most of whom had no interest or even
awareness of gear. In retrospect, multi-ply lifting was on the ropes, just waiting

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for the final blow.

Although I hate how old it makes me sound, the Internet is probably what
killed multiply powerlifting.

As the Internet became a larger part of our everyday lives, it

fundamentally changed how lifters became involved in powerlifting.
Specifically, it allowed lifters to be less reliant on physical clubs and
training crews than the previous generation, while at the same time
exposing the sport to a much wider audience.

Ebooks, blogs, social media and especially online coaching, which didn’t
exist a few years ago have provided novice lifters with the ability to
receive guidance outside of the traditional powerlifting club. Most
younger lifters I run into these days train alone or in very small groups in
typical commercial gyms, receiving their programming from online
sources.

THIS is what killed gear.

Geared powerlifting didn't transition effectively to the internet because

the number one requirement to be successful is a crew of experienced
lifters willing to put the work into you. The useful attributes that the internet
can provide (programs, articles, coaching, support, motivation) don’t
mean a fucking thing if you’re not able to execute correct technique, and
building this requires live training partners who are invested in your success.

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While I have plenty of friends who do online coaching, and I do believe it
to be a valuable service, it can only go so far with regard to technique
because it rarely takes place in the moment when the lifter needs it the
most. And geared lifting is exponentially more technical than raw.
Manipulating powerlifting gear is unlike any other skill in strength sports and
without the guidance of more experienced lifters to learn from, it’s almost
impossible to learn this stuff correctly.

In addition to the coaching issue, geared lifting dramatically increases

your need for spotters due to the heavier weights and increased risk of
dumps. While I have seen a small number of experienced geared lifters
train alone, this is generally not optimal, and a next to impossible for a
novice.

A shirted bench session for example usually requires four training partners.
A handoff man, two side spotters and a board holder (depending on the
day). A squat session also requires four partners, but five is preferable
because aside from two side spotters, one back spotter and a monolift
operator, It’s Ideal to have one more partner kneeling at hip level calling
your depth because the intense pressure of gear makes it very difficult to
feel where you are.

Most lifters today seem to train either alone, or with 1-2 training partners at
most.

Training alone also makes it difficult to obtain cheap gear. Just about
every powerlifting club in the world will have a pile of old gear in the back,

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usually made up of shit that the experienced guys either grew out of, or
simply didn’t like. This stuff is kept around for the sole purpose of providing
newbies with stuff they can use to get through their first few meets. It’s
almost always well broken-in, saving a new lifter the frustration or waiting 3
months for a suit or shirt to break-in and become usable. A new lifter in a
club will also have the ability to try on many different types of gear, so that
by the time they’re ready to buy new stuff, they already have a good idea
of what works for them.

By contrast, a novice buying new gear alone is gonna get soaked for
about a thousand bucks up front, and with all the different types of cuts
and material available, is likely to learn the hard way that something they
bought isn’t going to work for them and will need to be altered or
replaced. While I did say the cost of gear didn’t kill multiply, I can’t
pretend it isn’t a major factor to contend with.

Gym equipment also plays a huge factor in geared lifting. Without a

monolift and meet quality bench with a handoff platform (both absent in
most commercial gyms) you won’t be able to push the poundages in gear
nearly as much as you’d be able to with the right equipment.

The Internet also seems to have changed the rate at which people enter
and leave the sport. Years ago, If I walked into a meet, I’d be likely to
recognize at least half of the participants, because the majority of lifters at
the average meet would be experienced, with maybe ten percent at the
novice level. Not true anymore.

Although there has been some obvious growth in the sport, today’s

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turnover rate seems to be much, much higher. Lately, when I walk into a
meet I’m surprised if I know more than ten percent of the room. While
social media may have helped generate a huge influx in new lifters, they
don’t seem to be sticking around very long. Maybe 1-3 meets and they’re
done.

In the old days, novice lifters would generally start out raw or minimally
geared, then add stuff as their skill improved. It might take a couple of
years to enter a meet in “full gear”. Many of today’s lifters don’t stick
around long enough to even try gear, let alone become proficient with it.

With all of these factors at play, is it any wonder gear fell so far from
popularity?

So how do we bring it back? Simple, bring back the local powerlifting

clubs. Why do I think so?? because we’re already seeing it happen.

My buddy from NJ Bob Merkh is the owner of Atlantic City Barbell was an
excellent raw lifter who decided to try his hand at gear (and has since
become one of the top multiply lifters in the world in a very short time).
Most of Bob’s crew was also raw, but as is usually the case, his lifters
followed the example he set and started using gear as well. Now the club
boasts a stable of skilled multiply lifters.

Same thing at my current gym, Hellbent Barbell in Stratford CT. My friends

Rob Tonini and Mike Skiba opened it specifically to cater to multiply lifters.
Needless to say, the club was first inundated with raw lifters simply

31
because that’s the majority of the sport right now. But guess what? As
members stuck around and gained experience, they started
experimenting with gear as well, and today the club boasts some
excellent geared lifters, including WPO pro Jenna Rowe, who took to gear
incredibly fast, totaling pro after only a couple of meets in gear.

In just the time I’ve been there, my training partner Andrew Pfefferle went
from being a very good raw squatter to Hellbent’s second 1000 squatter in
about two years. Now we’re seeing more and more established pros
making the trip, including my old friend, WPO pro Chris Della Fave who
travels from New Jersey to Connecticuit every week.

Not only are clubs like these introducing a whole new generation of lifters
to gear, but they’re also keeping lifters in the sport longer.

A large part of the current high turnover in powerlifting is due to the fact
that a high percentage of new participants seem to dabble in various
hobbies, and never really commit in the first place. My suspicion is that
more would stick around if they were a part of a real lifting club. Not only
does lifting with a team provide you with more support and motivation
than social media, but joining a club instills a sense of responsibility to your
teammates, making you less likely to pack it in on a whim.

And that’s just the start.

Somewhere along the way, the simple powerlifting club you think you
joined starts to become something more. Training partners become

32
friends, some become family.

If you’re reading this, then I’m assuming you’re currently using, or at least
strongly considering using powerlifting gear. If my assumption is accurate
but you are not currently training with a club of more experienced geared
lifters, then your first job is to find them. Period. No online resource or
coach can come close to the experience of training with a good crew.
Find lifters better than you to train with, commit to making them better and
they’ll make you better in return.

33
 Entering the World of Multiply

34
For the most part, multiply is just another flavor of powerlifting, and in the
grand scheme of things, isn’t much different than raw. But there are a few
subtle differences that may not be apparent to someone either
transitioning from raw to multiply or who is totally new to powerlifting in
general.

Unfortunately, I cannot speak with authority about transitioning from raw

to multiply, because I didn’t do it myself. Like most lifters of my generation,
I did a couple of gym meets raw, spent a couple of years in very
rudimentary single ply gear, and I then progressed along with the sport. It
was almost perfect, as we got better and stronger, newer pieces of gear
seemed to be introduced to the market at seemingly the same rate,
making for a relatively smooth transition.

A lifter trying to transition today are basically jumping right into the deep
end because they have 30 years of gear advancements at their disposal
right from the start, and I have no idea how to navigate a switch like this.

But do you know who does? My buddy Bob Merkh, so I’ll just let him take
this one.

35
“If you are reading this it is safe to assume that you already have at least a
foundational knowledge of what powerlifting is. It is a sport that I love
because its primary lesson is that: if you work hard you will get better - what
better life lesson is there than that?

For the sake of simplicity I will break powerlifting up into just two divisions for
the purposes of distributing this information, there is raw powerlifting (done

36
without supportive shirts and suits) and equipped (done with supportive shirts
and suits). There has been and will continue to be debates about what lifting
is “real lifting” or is better, but I will address some of the more common
arguments and share my thoughts as a whole.

First, though both raw and equipped are technically the same sport with the
same rules there are tremendous differences in how the lifts are performed
and how training is set up. The objective is the same: lift as much as you can
in all three lifts over the course of nine attempts, collect a cheap trophy, post
on social media. The means of achieving that objective, however, are what
make equipped and raw different and have appeal to different audiences.

I did not invent this analogy, but if you think of the high jump and the pole
vault they are two sports that although they are not the same share a
common objective - jump over the highest point possible are different in
many ways. The high jump, much like raw powerlifting is performed primarily
with the athletes own strength and speed as they attempt to excel in their
sport. The pole vault, like equipped lifting, allows the athletes to use the pole
or their supportive gear in order to jump higher or lift more. When I hear
people saying that the gear helps lift the weight I always have to remind
them that the gear is a tool, but without knowledge of how to use that tool
properly the gear is worthless (if they disagree hand them a pole and see how
far they can vault themselves… I doubt many will take you up on the offer).

I have never heard high jumpers and pole vaulters arguing so I do not
understand why powerlifters continuously do so. Different is not always better
or worse, it is sometimes just different. If you are just beginning your journey
into equipped lifting I urge you to ignore any negative things that people say
to you. People attack what they do not understand and just because “if it’s

37
not raw you didn’t lift it” will be said to you at times you can simply remind
them that the division you lift in is literally called equipped so you never
claimed to lift it all anyway.

Equipped lifting is great. It offers all of the benefits of raw, but also allows you
to work hard and learn new skills and strategies that will allow you to have
more success. In raw lifting you have to be strong to lift the weights, but
although form is important the real key is strength so minor flaws in form can
exist without always hurting the athletes total. In equipped lifting you have to
be strong, BUT being proficient in your gear or knowing how to maximize your
leverages will allow you to handle and lift more weight. The more weight you
are lifting the more important form becomes. It is a great genetics neutralizer
because not everyone is born to lift massive weights raw, BUT anyone can
learn the gear and makeup for some of the genetics that they were not born
with.

For my part I just always want to lift the most weight possible. There is a thrill
associated with handling weights that could literally kill you if you make a
mistake. I have become better technically and I have made so many friends
in the fraternity/sorority that is equipped lifting. I have also become practically
family with my training partners because if you trust these people with your life
enough times that is just the way it goes.

Lift how you want, where you want, because you want to. Do not allow
yourself to be swayed by anyone else.

38
Switching From Raw to Equipped

I will start by saying that you DO NOT need to start raw and “graduate” to
equipped lifting. That is a fallacy that I have heard repeated many times that
is just not true. You should start lifting in whatever division or federation you
want to. That being said if you are reading this there is a good chance that
you, like I was, are considering transitioning into equipped lifting.

Though you do not need to start raw the great news is that as you make the
switch, the functional strength that you acquired while raw will make the
transition easier. Like when constructing a building, a raw start most likely
helped you create a strong foundation that you will be able to build upon as
you move forward into your equipped journey. I always tell people when they
are transitioning to gear that “you are already strong, now it is time to get
better.” What I mean by that is you will have the ability to be singularly
focused and pay attention primarily to learning the equipment. There will
definitely be form changes and you will be frustrated, but trust me you are
ahead of the game.

The first thing I would suggest is to find a training partner or a training group
that is experienced with equipped lifting. There are so many reasons this is
important! They will not only be able to teach you how to use the gear, but
they will most likely have old stuff around that you can try before you invest
your money into new equipment. If you cannot find a partner or training
group DO NOT PANIC. The equipped community is welcoming and by and
large willing to help, usually for free (I mean you are reading this so you are on
the right track). Do not be afraid to reach out to any and every equipped
lifter, the worst they can do is say no, but trust me when I say that you will
need help on this journey so this step can not be skipped!

39
When you actually start lifting things will definitely get worse before they get
better. I started in squat briefs and believe that squatting in briefs is the easiest
raw to equipped transition. If you are a medium to wide stance squatter you
are in a good position to start, if you are a more narrow squatter you will in
most cases need to step your stance out a bit.

The form that you use when squatting will be similar to a raw squat, but with a
few key differences. First you need to be mindful of your shin angle as you do
not want your knees to travel forward. You will need to sit back into the
support and keep your knees out. Make sure that you video everything as you
are starting so that you can watch yourself and/or send out videos for advice
and feedback. I will not go into the specifics of the lifts here (that stuff is in
other parts of this book), but I do suggest starting with squats!

When it is time to bench I would suggest taking a deep breath and

accepting that this will not be something you can master in a day, a week, a
month, or in many cases years. To me as a raw lifter transitioning to gear this
lift was the most drastically different from raw and it gave me the most
frustration.

Try to find a shirt that is big enough to give support, but not overly tight. I
would suggest starting on boards (a 3 or 4) and working your way down to
your chest. Have spotters ready because when a bench goes bad in
equipment it happens in the blink of an eye and trust me things will go wrong.
When you work your way down to a 2 board I would spend a few weeks there
getting comfortable. Do some reps and get in a lot of practice. I would not
worry about touching for the first month or two. KEEP IN MIND this advice is
strictly for those who are transferring from raw to equipped.

40
My reasons for suggesting high boards early on are actually twofold. First I am
trying to minimize frustrations, but second and perhaps more importantly, that
is where you will be weak. A shirt helps most off the chest, but your raw
strength will be best there. The top end of an equipped bench will be foreign
to you as you are not used to handling weights that are literally hundreds of
pounds over your max bench. Spending time on boards early on will help you
close that gap and have more success later. I learned this the hard way, but
trust me you can only bench as much as you can lock out so make that top
end strong!

Deadlifting in gear is considered by many to be less important, but I for one

get close to 100 pounds out of my gear set up so you should definitely pay
attention to this lift and experiment with different combos. If you are a
conventional puller you can probably expect to get a smaller boost out of
the equipment than a sumo puller would, but I find that with equipped
deadlift trial and error are key. Do not write off the deadlift simply because it is
the lift where you will see the least benefit from the equipment, the goal is the
biggest total and these pounds in many cases are often ignored and could
be easily attained. As my boy Anthony Olivera often says “pick the low
hanging fruit.”

If you follow through with the switch to equipped lifting I promise your eyes will
be opened to a whole new side of the sport that you didn't know existed.
Watch every old video, read all of the old articles on elite and other sites, ask
the best lifters questions. Like most things in life you get out of lifting only as
much as you put in, equipped lifting will take your money, your sanity, your
time, your joints, and more… just imagine how much it will give back after
such a large investment.” – Bob Merkh

41
Setting Expectations

A few months ago as I was trying to figure out how to put this thing
together, I saw a great Instagram post that I thought should be seen by
anyone new to the sport. The post was by Val Oliveria, who I’m sure many
of you know as a WPO finalist, as well as Anthony Oliveria’s wife and
training partner.

The post caught my attention because it outlined a mental process that

almost all novice multiply lifters of today go through, but one I’m less
familiar with because my transition was more gradual due to the times. I
asked Val to expand on her thoughts and she came back with what I think
is some indispensible advice for any up and coming powerlifter.

Please enjoy, and for fuck’s sake, pay attention.

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There was a stretch early in my lifting career that I thought I should have hit
some milestones long before they came into my path. I thought I should
have squatted 600lbs a year and a half prior to doing so in competition. I
thought I should have pulled 500lbs 2 years ago (I still haven’t at this
current time, hopefully that changes soon!).

I remember squatting 520 on my third attempt at a meet in Tennessee in

2017. I had opened with a 5lb PR because of this exact mindset. In March
of that same year I had squatted 515 (already a 60lb meet PR squat) as an
opener at the Women’s ProAm. I took 545 on my second, got called for
depth, went up in weight to 560 and got absolutely obliterated. I
remember thinking I a) got robbed on my second attempt by the judges

43
and b) only missed 560 because I was “worried” about hitting depth and I
tucked my hips in the bottom.

In reality, I squatted high on my second. In reality, I had handled the upper

500s in training maybe twice and probably squatted them 2 to 3 inches
above parallel. I had no business thinking I had earned that squat. Not in
the “you gotta bleed the iron to earn the iron” way, In the “I had only
expected my body to manage this weight twice in training, how could I
expect to professionally handle it on the platform, at the biggest meet I
had ever done, after missing the second highest weight I ever had on my
back” way.

I had put this expectation on myself because in my head, I was destined

to squat 550+ at that meet (did I mention 515 was already a 60lb meet
PR?). I had put in the work (4 months of training) and it was my TIME. Fast
forward to August of that year in Tennessee, having been jaded from my
March squat performance, I agreed with those surrounding me that I had
not displayed my full potential.

We chose to open with 5lbs over my best and can you guess what
happened? I missed my first two attempts at it. I grinded it out on my third
and I was pissed going into the bench. Luckily, I managed to scrape
together a good meet for benching considering where my head was;
another wasted meet of not showcasing my fullest potential.

By now, I have relinquished the control of when I think I should hit these
milestones, but it took me a long time to get into that head space and I

44
think it is more common than we like to discuss for a couple reasons. One,
it's embarrassing. No one wants to admit that they thought they were
going to take the equipped powerlifting world by storm, only to go 4/9 in
their first meet, 6/9 in their second and feel like they constantly “leaving a
ton in the tank” as they write on their meet report for the next three years.

Here are some quotes you may recognize that I have pulled from my own
personal Instagram:

“Not the day I wanted as a whole...”

(From training) “A little high, but still the heaviest I’ve ever had on my
back...”

“Deadlift opener set at 360. This moved slower than I would’ve liked but it’s
the Monday after circa max and I ain’t worried about a thanggg.” (I
gutted out my opener and missed my second and third attempt deadlift)

In a sport so heavily laden with veterans, being humble at least in the

public eye is definitely a virtue. However, I’m not talking about the public
portrayal, I’m talking about what goes on in between your ears, and the
expectations that you put on yourself.

Getting into gear is exciting for many different reasons. Most obviously,
your numbers go up basically immediately. Putting on briefs in your first
training session gives you the “oh hell yeah, I’m going to BLOW THIS UP,”

45
invincibility bluff that lasts approximately until your first shirted bench
session that takes you below a two board. The first extra 50lbs of bar
weight suddenly opens up a world without limits. You may find yourself
thinking “If I got 50lbs out of my briefs in my FIRST session, imagine what I
can get with a whole suit, with wraps, with more practice...” etc. Or
perhaps, “my best bench is 225 and my FIRST time in a shirt I took 375 to a
two board...”

What they don’t tell you amidst the excitement and PR parades is that the
numbers you hit in your first geared training cycle will most likely not be
what you hit in your first meet. Pulling together the numbers on one single
day is a feat that evades the most experienced and technical lifters. When
it does happen, it feels like the Gods chose you to honor that day, but
more often than not you will miss on a technical error, or because you
didn’t time your knee wrap properly and so you rushed yourself to the bar
and didn’t pull yourself together mentally.

The equipped powerlifting meet is a lot more nuanced than its raw
counterpart, and there is a lot more that can go wrong rather than just
displaying what you have for strength that day. Another obstacle that is
hidden in the excitement of handling bigger weights is well, handling
bigger weights. Your body needs time to adapt to these 50-100lbs jumps
you are suddenly expecting of it every training session.

Inevitably there is the one, two, maybe three training sessions that you
walk into feeling like you got run over by not only a truck, but a fully
loaded semi. All of a sudden, even though the PR parade is still raging
hard in the background, you cannot help but notice that your body is

46
having a hard time keeping up. Give yourself a couple of years of this
without listening to the warning signs and not caring for your body, enter
injury and the everlasting excuse you will have in the back of your head for
underperforming meet after meet.

Directly following the abomination of a squat performance at that

Tennessee meet in 2017, I opened back up to training a few weeks later
with some raw box squats. As I attempted to sit back to the box, my hips
stopped about 4 inches from their starting position, halted in their descent.
Confused, I snapped my hips forward and started again, only to hit a
dead stop in the exact position I had before. I had unknowingly injured
myself at that meet, probably from blowing a gasket during the third
attempt at my opener, but truthfully I still don’t know to this day what
caused it.

This hip injury has plagued me for 3 years and I’m happy to inform you that
I have just recently employed the help from those with the smarts and
tenacity to get over my bullshit reservoir, accept that these injuries were
not going to disappear - and fix myself. It was an unseen obstacle. I found
myself thinking in the first two years, “if I was 100% healthy, what could I
actually be squatting.” But that’s the reality of it! I actually didn’t squat
600+ until 2018. I actually didn’t squat over 700 until 2020. The hypothetical
game is useless unless you are also going to hypothetical meets and
pouring over hypothetical rankings.

My point is, EVERYONE goes through this process. The idea that you have
not lifted to your body’s full capability is very common, if not unanimously
agreed upon by multi-ply lifters. Do not get discouraged when in your own

47
mind, you have had a tougher time reaching the milestones within your
projected timeline. Learning the skills of equipped lifting, plus all of the
challenges and unseen obstacles is a huge part of the fun, lifestyle and
looking back - what makes reaching those monumental lifts so exhilarating
when they finally happen. – Val Oliveria

48
 How to Reach the Top (For Real)

49
Alex Kovatch set an all-time world record in the squat at age 20.

Read that again.

20.

In a sport where lifters typically peak after 30, this dude squatted 903 at a
bodyweight of 165, at 20 years old.

How did he do it?

HE LISTENED TO HIS FUCKING TRAINING PARTNERS!!!

Sorry for yelling, but many of you out there would be a whole lot stronger if
you’d just shut the fuck up and listen to stronger, more experienced lifters.
Now to be fair, most of you younger lifters out there don’t have Dave Hoff as
a training partner, but I’m willing to bet there’s someone in your circle who
can teach you a lot, if you’d only shut the fuck up and listen every now and
again.

Just sayin.

50
Not too long ago I was a wild crazy obsessed high school powerlifter who
wanted to do nothing other than lift weights. I started at a young age and my
progression continued into my junior and senior year. Sadly for me they didn’t
end the way I wanted too with back to back 3rd place finishes at the state
meet. This is where I learned how to lose.

51
After high school I joined a small local powerlifting team that used "gear" at
this point I had no idea what that was all I knew was I had to wear this tight
ass fabric that left bruises all over me. I messed around for about a year didn’t
do much, didn’t train much, didn’t care. The thought of quitting came up in
my mind more than ever. Until one day, a former teammate of mine got in
touch somehow with Mr. Dave Hoff.

Dave had invited my friend down for a bench press workout. Something
deep in my mind and my heart had told me I need to do whatever it takes to
make it down there with him. I sneaked my way into the trip went down with
no expectations only to make sure they had some idea who I was. Dave
ended up giving us a try out at a meet In Detroit, my first multi ply meet, He
had told me if I had a good day then I would receive the invite. I went 3/9
had a shit day only got my openers almost bombed out twice. I then
received a message say I had the invite.

At that point my fiancée and I packed all our shit up and headed down to
Columbus. It was a rough couple months getting used to how everything
worked. I immediately felt obligated to give all I had and then some. Over the
next year I didn’t talk much and didn’t ask questions. I just listened to every
detail I was being told. I went on to break 2 world records the following year. I
broke my 2nd world record almost exactly 1 year after I thought my time was
over.

2019 APF nationals was my last chance to get into the WPO semi finals. I had
just come off a meet where I made my biggest total and broke my 1st world
record. It was also the meet i decided to move up to 165. It was one if the
hardest cuts of my life. Meet day came we started warming up. I knew my
body weight was not where it was supposed to be.

52
During warm ups I kept hearing a ripping noise. Usually this means the gear is
stretching and all is well. I asked Dave and Anthony multiple times if there was
a rip they both said no several times. I got my opener and put in for my
second attempt. 848 comes around and i got buried in the hole. I remember
yelling out to Dave "Just give it to me!" I had him tighten everything down as
hard as he possibly could.

I unracked 903 and stood up with it. Afterwards they all told me that I had a
giant hole in the ass of my suit.

This goes to show you that no matter what happens you can always get
through a meet. There will never be an excuse. I will always give a lot of credit
to Dave for the person and lifter I am today. He obviously knew something i
didn’t. The point of the story is this. Shut your mouth and LISTEN. Talk with your
ears. If you’re a beginner you don’t know shit anyway, so why have
something to say?

Don’t be afraid to reach out to someone who is a lot better than you. Most of
these guys care and they want to see people succeed. These people can
have a huge impact on your life and your career. All you have to do is LISTEN.

- Alex Kovatch

53
 Dealing with Trolls

54
Internet trolls (or ”haters”… whatever the fuck you want to call them) are
everywhere. But for some reason, multiply powerlifting seems to attract a
disproportionate number of them. Either that, or I just don’t notice it elsewhere
because I don’t really care about much else.

Having spent a couple of decades around this stuff, I really don’t pay them
much attention, and frankly, neither should you. I guess the most important
thing to remember about trolls is that they’re rarely someone whose approval
you’d actually seek in real life, because they’re rarely anyone with a lifting
career of their own to speak of.

It kind of works like this…

Trolls are usually younger or less accomplished because veteran lifters tend to
respect each other, no matter what flavor of the sport we prefer. Getting
strong in any modality is difficult, so there tends to be a shared respect
among those who’ve actually accomplished something.

Trolls on the other hand are usually newer to the strength game, and like most
people with a new passion, they want desperately to be respected in it. But
since they don’t have an actual body of work to speak of, the next best thing
(in their minds) is to try and tear down anything they see as a threat to their
new love. This doesn’t actually work of course, but people are complicated.

As far as my own experience, I haven’t dealt with a whole lot of trolling during
my career. I don’t have a huge Internet presence, and while I was in the mix
at the pro level for some time, I was never someone that a ton of people in
the sport paid attention to.

55
My buddy Anthony Oliveria on the other hand, has dealt with as much as
anyone in the sort right now, and it’s understandable why. First, he was a
member of Westside Barbell, which automatically puts a target on your back.
He also has the distinction of being kicked out twice. He also made it to the
pro level rather quickly (trolls fucking hate that), trains with Dave Hoff (trolls
REALLY fucking hate that) and by his own admission, he’s gotten some
questionable calls go in his favor which for some reason is unforgivable in a
sport where literally EVERYONE has gotten a gift or two.

But his greatest offence has been building a successful online coaching
business. If there’s one thing trolls (both raw and geared) fucking hate, it’s
seeing someone actually make money at this. So who better to contribute to
this discussion than the man himself?

“Hopefully this section can be read in the future and seem satirical as multi-
ply lifting will have regained its rightful throne as the coolest and most popular
style of lifting weights. Until then, this is sadly a real thing that happens. When
you get into gear, you will catch a bunch of shit. You will post a video of a
raw squat to a low box, and if you are known as a geared lifter... people will
figure out a way to call you a cheater.

Generally it will come from someone who’s social media handle is something
along the lines of GlenGary56402~ that has, and I know this is shocking, a
private profile. If you are lucky enough to find them with a public page, there
will be either many pictures of cartoon Marvel superheroes OR a plethora of
training videos in which they squat 225 about 4 inches below parallel. Since
these people don’t spend too much time getting strong, they can, will, and in
fact WANT to argue with you.

56
They live for the 100+ comment threads. Beneath the LAWLS and the memes,
what you find is someone who is scared to venture outside of moms
basement to actually enter the arena. It’s all fun and games and to be fair,
fun, to goof on these fools talking shit. However the constant berating can
take its toll.

You’ll start questioning your own ability. Was my squat high? Am I strong raw?
What exactly COULD I do in a raw meet? Am I wasting my time training for
something that is an “embarrassment” to the sport of lifting weights?
Personally I have experienced these things on a fairly large scale. Trolls have
gone so far as to comment on my wife’s lifts simply to talk shit about me. This
isn’t a “boohoo poor me” deal, though I did feel sorry for myself the first go
around.

As a geared lifter you are accepting the fact that people will not understand
what you are doing and therefor will talk that shit. There is no real way to
prevent it. It will happen. You most likely will not win these people over and
certainly won’t gain their respect or approval. The trick is to accept that.
Accept that you cannot fix stupid, and you’ll always win. When my second or
third squat that got decimated on the internet I get a message from Dave
Hoff ... he told me something to the effect of “the only people you need to
seek approval from are your family, your training partners, and your god”... he
also said to me “A king rules from the top”.

These really stuck with me and I implore you to utilize this attitude. You cannot
please everyone, so make sure you are happy and fuck the rest of what
anyone thinks. I’m sure people that know me are expecting this next line, but I
feel it is too fitting to not leave you with.

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People are going to hate you no mater what you do, so you are best to do
what you want to do in order to be happy and, you guessed it. Stay hated
motherfuckers.” – Anthony Oliveria

58
 Women and Multiply

59
Unlike the old days, when female multiply competitors were relatively rare on
the pro scene, Ladies now enjoy equal representation on the pro stage, and
even women’s-only pro meets

Many of you out there are too young to remember, but back during the first
run of the WPO, a few women, like the legendary Amy Weissberger would
have to reach the men’s qualifying totals and compete in the men’s
category if they wanted to share the pro stage.

Also, Amy Weissberger was, and is a fucking badass.

Times have changed, and I’m proud to feature some of today’s top female
competitors in this project to offer some guidance to tomorrow’s generation
that I cannot.

In addition to the obvious physiological differences, men and woman don’t

always process information the same way, which can present challenges
from a coaching/learning perspective. Please enjoy a few thoughts on the
topic from one of the best in the game, 2 time WPO champion, Tara Webber.

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Women vs Men in training

I have been powerlifting for 10 years now, but I had started lifting weights 5
years before that. I always really liked to be strong, and have always been
able to put on mass fairly easily. When I started powerlifting, I had a decent
base of strength to work with. This allowed me to make good gains right from
the get go. I did one meet raw, and then got into multi-ply gear within the first
year.

When learning how to use the gear, we realized the cues that seemed to
work for everyone else, just didn’t really work for me. The difference wasn’t as
apparent when I was lifting raw, since the weights are less and there’s more
margin for error.

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For example, when told to “push your knees out,” this makes me do a weird
thing that looks more like how you would snowplow while skiing. To actually
make the right thing happen, I need to think about pulling my knees and
rotating my femurs out to the side. It has taken a long time to figure out what
works for me.

Until a few years ago, I always took “arch your lower back as hard as you
can” to mean “arch as far as you can.” My husband and I went to one of
Laura Phelps’ seminars and she was trying to get me to arch less so I could
maintain a more upright position and have my butt stick out less. My husband
said that was what he had been trying to get me to do for years.

He was actually very frustrated since he had always been trying to get me to
stand up straight, but I always just felt like I couldn’t because the bar would
just roll down my back. I would try but give up, thinking there’s no way I can
stand up straighter and also arch as much as possible. Once I finally got it and
said to my husband, “but I’m not arching as far as I can.” He explained I don’t
need to, I need to squeeze my arch as hard as I can so it’s as tight as possible.
This made a huge difference in my squat.

Just the other day, I finally understood what was trying to be accomplished
when told to “break the bar” or “bend the bar” while benching. I had always
been trying to squeeze things as if I was actually trying to bend the bar. I have
realized it’s not meant to be so literal, and more just to get you to twist things
properly to keep lats and triceps engaged throughout the lift.

- Tara Webber

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Bench Shirts and Boobies

Let’s face it, every woman when faced with the prospect of benching in a
shirt has probably has the same thought.

What do I do with my boobs?

At least, I’m assuming they do… I certainly would.

So I asked Val Oliveria to send me a few words on this… uh…sensitive topic.

Basically the issue we face is pulling them all the way above the collar, thus
losing the entire pressure the collar provides and forcing us to put it all in the
shoulders - OR - having the collar too high (I’m sure I don’t have to elaborate
on the problem here). The compromise is basically pulling the collar so that it
sits halfway through the boob line. I think some have an easier time with this
than others, as they have higher sitting boobs.

But, if they are like me, some of us have low originating boobs and have a
harder time making the shirt stick. Once it is in place, I don’t think it’s much
different than how a man would use it. Fake boobies are entirely different and
from what I have seen, can’t have the collar directly on top and have to
resort to the collar beneath the boobs or the collar up high towards the neck.

As far as pain, I can’t imagine it’s much more painful than it is for a man,
maybe a little more because of the different type of tissue? I’m not sure I’m fit
to compare as I don’t know how it is to have pecs with the boobs attached.

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 Raw Gear

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Not all gear qualifies as “gear” from a rules perspective. Even raw lifters have
plenty of gear to choose from depending on the rules in their own
federations. We on the dark side of the sport often refer to this stuff as “raw
gear”, mostly to beak our raw brother’s and sister’s balls a bit. Kidding aside,
seemingly common pieces of equipment like the ones below can have a very
strong impact on your numbers, so it’s important to choose wisely.

Disclaimer: This section is intended for beginners to powerlifting in general. If

you’re already involved in the sport of powerlifting at any level, you already
know most of this shit. Feel free to skip to the good shit.

The Belt

The lifting belt is the most ubiquitous and probably most important piece of
powerlifting gear there is. While gym lifters often think that belts are to protect
the back, I tend to think of a belt as a performance enhancer rather than
protection. If you are lifting correctly, your midsection should be strong
enough to support itself through the vast majority of tasks you put it through.
You may be limited in how much weight you can lift, but you are not in any
significant danger of injury without it. The belt really comes into play when you
need the extra support to get after heavy weights.

Most people assume that a lifting belt supports your back, when is actuality
the belt is used to increase intra-abdominal pressure, which stabilizes your
entire midsection. This is why the design of your belt is very important. The
typical gym belts that are skinny up front and wide in the back do not cover
enough abdominal surface area to provide the support you need. For lifts
that challenge core strength like the squat and deadlift, you need a belt that
is wide all the way around and will support your abdominals and obliques.

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Since the belt is intended to support your entire midsection, I do not, for the
most part recommend tapered belts, which are skinny in the front and wide in
the back (the belt version of a mullet). These belts, although popular with gym
rats are not optimal for powerlifting. A good belt should be 4 inches wide all
the way around. Smaller lifters may opt for a 3-inch version, but that is the
absolute narrowest I would use for the squat and deadlift.

For the bench press, many lifters prefer a very narrow belt, not much bigger
than a dress belt. This is so that they can use the belt to hold their bench shirts
in place, but without the wide belt restricting their ability to arch. Personally,
I’ve never had a problem arching with a real belt, so I use my 4-inch belt for
every lift.

There is also a wide variety of belt thicknesses available, ranging from 6 ½

millimeters to 13. Smaller lifters often prefer something in the 6 ½ to 10 mm
range because they’re easier to break in, and allow for a bit more flexibility.
Larger lifters, especially multi-ply guys generally go for the full 13 because it
feels the most secure under heavy weights.

In addition to width and thickness, belts can also vary by materials. The most
popular type of powerlifting belt is leather, usually with a suede outer layer.
Just about every major gear company (Inzer, Titan, Metal,) makes one, and
they’re all good. Some belts like elitefts’s P2 belt come with a more natural
tanned look, which I personally like a lot. These belts are typically more
expensive than the traditional suede, which might be worth it just to have
something a little nicer, but it won’t change the effectiveness of the belt.

Types of Fastening Systems

There are two basic designs of fastening mechanisms for powerlifting belts.
They are the prong and lever. A prong belt looks has a traditional buckle, and

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looks like most other belts, albeit oversized. It’s extremely secure and
dependable, but can be a little bit of a pain in the ass to fasten on your own,
especially if you’re wearing a tight bench shirt that will restrict arm movement.

The lever belt, by contrast uses a lever system to tightly fasten the belt with
one small pull of the lever. It’s much easier to get in and out of, but the major
drawback is that you must take the buckle off with a screwdriver in order to
adjust the size. I’ve also found lever belts to be slightly less secure than a
traditional buckle. While I’ve seen several lever belts pop off of lifters due to
the extreme pressure of a big squat, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a prong belt
failure unless it was very cheaply made or worn out.

Personally, I prefer the prong belt. While I do like the tight “locked in” feeling a
lever provides, It would also mean having to re-set the buckle several times
per workout (more for a meet) since each layer of gear I put on changes the
size a bit. Plus, I like the ability to tighten or loosen my belt at the last minute
before a lift. A lever would not allow this without the possibility of being timed
out or an attempt.

As of this writing, SBD currently makes a lever belt that does allow you to
select the size on the go, just like a prong. The only problem with it is that it’s
very expensive (over 200 bucks at the time of this writing). I’m not saying it’s
not worth it, as a good belt can last your entire career, but it’s something to
consider.

If there is one buckle system that I do not recommend it’s the double prong.
These are a huge pain in the ass because you have to fit two prongs into the
holes, which means having to pull the belt twice at an odd angle to get the
damn thing in. A single prong is far easier and just as secure as long as your
belt isn’t a cheap piece of crap.

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All things considered, my favorite type of belt is the Pioneer cut prong belt,
which uses offset holes to allow much less space between sizes, and thus a
more precise fit. Elitefts.com sells a beautiful version which although expensive
is still about 100 bucks less than the SBD belt, making it my current favorite.

While you can easily use this belt for every lift, there are also special belts for
specific purposes. For deadlifting, you can get a thinner belt. The thinner
design makes it easier to get down to the bar. Some lifters will wear a
standard powerbelt backwards so the buckle does not get in the way. Most
just wear it the same. Spud Inc makes a line of vinyl deadlift belts which are
pliable, but very strong. Some lifters like them because they’re more flexible
and less cumbersome than a leather belt, but again, the vast majority use a
standard powerlifting belt.

Belt Cost

A good belt should run you about 60-100 bucks or so, which is pretty good
considering how long you’ll probably have it (unless you’re a scatterbrained
idiot like me and lose yours every few years). The nicer belts will generally run
you a little over a hundred.

Some companies offer cheaper “economy” models that sell for less than 50
dollars but I wouldn’t personally recommend them. They’re simply not as well
made. And I’ve even seen cheaper buckles fail. If you’re serious at all about
the sport, you should be able to drop at least 60 bucks on a quality belt.

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How to Wear it

The belt should fit around the small of your back, with the buckle covering
your lower abdominals. It should be worn fairly low, but should not get
jammed in the crease of your hip when squatting or deadlifting. Because
you’ll be expanding your abs into the belt during the lift, you’ll want to wear it
one notch looser than all the way tight.

Belt Technique

In order to take advantage of your belt, it’s important to use the valsalva
maneuver. This means taking a big gulp of air into your belly, than trying to
exhale forcefully with a closed glottis (throat). The pressure should push your
belly into the belt and increase the pressure around your midsection. This
action should also force your lower back into an arch. Again, it’s really
important to push your abs out to get the pressure, not tighten the belt as
much as possible.

When to use it.

You shouldn’t wear your belt for every exercise because you still want to allow
your back and abdominal muscles to function normally. For heavy special
exercises, I’d work up without it, than put it on when you need it. For technical
lifts like squatting and speed squatting, I would get it earlier because filling the
belt up is an important technical cue that you need to practice.

Don’t wear it for assistance work, it shouldn’t be necessary.

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Unlike wraps, suits and shirts, which wear out over time, belts actually age
quite well. The longer you wear it, the more personalized the fit. This is why I
would never bargain hunt when it comes to your belt.

Knee Wraps

Knee wraps are another common piece of gear seen on most gyms. Not to
be confused with the thin, stretchy, bandage-like wraps sold at sporting
goods stores, Powerlifting wraps tend to be thick, with tons of elasticity. Like
the lifting belt, wraps are commonly thought of as a protective device but are
really all about performance enhancement.

Types of Knee Wraps

Although most wraps look the same to the average observer, the dimensions
and characteristics of a wrap will determine not only how the wrap performs,
but whether or not the wrap will be legal in your federation. 2 meter wraps
are popular with beginners and are permitted in any federation that allows
wraps.

2.5 meter and ever 3 meter wraps provide more support, but are only allowed
in multi-ply federations.

Knee wraps also vary in thickness and elasticity. A thin, stretchy wrap can be
wrapped very tightly (if preferred), and is good for either experienced lifters
who want tighter wraps with more rebound out of the hole, or novices who
aren’t ready for a ton of support and want something that will be more
forgiving.

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Thicker, stiffer wraps will provide more support, with a little less rebound. Stiffer
wraps are generally for more advanced lifters because they are difficult to
get on without an experienced helper to wrap you. I’ve always liked stiff
wraps because I’m kind of a pussy about tight wraps, and with stiffer material,
I don’t need them super tight to work, as the material practically stands up on
it’s own.

Also, little industry secret here… Many of the wraps on the market from various
brands are made in the same factory. So despite what most companies try to
tell you, there isn’t as much difference between the brands as you might
think.

There are too many brands and models to get into specifics, but the best
wraps in my opinion are Overkill’s

Wrist Wraps

Wrist wraps are an important piece of equipment for the bench, squat, and
even deadlift. Generally made of the same material as knee wraps, wrist
wraps also come in various lengths, primarily 60 and 80 centimeter (although
I’ve seen both longer and shorter). As with knee wraps, the longer ones are
not allowed in some single ply and raw federations.

Because they are shorter and much easier to reach, most lifters will put their
wraps on themselves. (having someone put your wrist wraps on for you is kind
of prima donna-ish, although there are instances where it may be preferable).

Most wrist wraps come with a thumb loop to help you put them on. Personally

71
I never use it because you can’t wear the thumb loop on the platform and it’s
kind of a pain in the ass to get it off. I’ll just pin the wrap to the bottom of my
hand with my fingers.

As with the knee wraps, everyone has their way of getting them on. Here’s
mine:

For the bench:

Start by either putting on the thumb loop or pinching the wrap against the
bottom of your hand.

Before wrapping your wrists all the way, check to make sure the Velcro will
face the right way. The strip sewn onto the wrap itself will need to face out
and the strip on the tab at the end should face in.

Start at the base of your hand, with the wrap covering the crease between
your hand and wrist. Wrap 3 lengths up your arm, with each length covering
about half of the previous length.

After my third length, I’ll wrap the remainder of the wrap around the crease
where I started, so I get a ton of support around the joint.

For the squat:

Depending on how you hold the bar, you may not need as much support for
the squat as you do for the bench. Personally, I’ll just take a light wrap, put it

72
around my wrist a few times and be done with it.

If your squat style places more stress at your wrist, use the same technique as
outlined for the bench.

For the deadlift:

This is an old trick that was popular back in the day, but I don’t see a ton of
lifters doing it anymore. I always thought it looked like a pain in the ass, and I
pulled with a hook grip, so I think I tried it a couple of times, but never
bothered sticking with it.

To do this correctly, you will need to have a training partner wrap your wrists
for you (the only instance in which this is not douchey).

For this to work, your fist needs to be held tight while your wrist is wrapped.
Probably the easiest way to do this is to make a fist, then push it into your
training partner’s chest which will keep your arm in place.

Then, your partner just wraps your wrist tight as hell.

Keep your hands in fists, opening them only to grab the bar. For this reason,
you should chalk up before applying the wrap.

When you try to grab the bar, it will be difficult to open your hands, which is
exactly the point.

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Shoes

Although often overlooked by beginners, Shoes are an important piece of

powerlifting gear because they make up a portion of your base of support on
all three lifts. Due to the different biomechanics of each lift (as well as the
various styles with which to choose from), there is no single ideal powerlifting
shoe and you may wind up using a different pair for each lift.

Squat Shoes

There are two main types of shoe that you will see worn for the squat.
Close to moderate stance squatters often use Olympic weightlifting shoes.
These shoes have a hard wood or compressed rubber/plastic mid-sole that
efficiently transfers power from your body to the floor. Weightlifting shoes work
well with closer stance squatters because they have a pronounced heel that
favors a more quad dominant squatting style.

While popular in raw, multiply lifters rarely use heeled shoes because they
make it difficult to push your hips back into the suit.

Wider stance squatters tend to prefer a shoe with a thinner sole and minimal
heel, which allows the squatter to push their feet outward and recruit the
posterior chain muscles like the glutes and hamstrings. The most commonly
used shoes for wide stance squatters are the classic Chuck Taylors. Wrestling
shoes and some skateboarding shoes also fit the bill.

Some companies like Metal make shoes specifically designed for wide stance
squatting, although they are quite a bit more expensive than the

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aforementioned options.

Mark Bell helped design a powerlifting show with Reebok called the Power
Lite a few years ago, and the feedback on them was mostly great, however
they were out of production for some time. They seem to be back (although
more expensive) and are still worth a look.

Bench Shoes

You’ll see a lot more variation in shoes for the bench press because it doesn’t
make as big a difference. Many lifters simply bench in a pair of regular
sneakers or the same shoes they squat or deadlift in. There are however a few
instances where shoe choice can assist the lift.

For shorter lifters who keep their feet flat, a shoe with a thicker sole (like a
boot) can decrease the distance between your feet and the floor, making
you more stable.

For arch benchers who tuck their feet, a flexible shoe with good grip is
important so that you can dig the ball of your foot into the floor. Personally, I
like to bench in either Chuck Taylors or wrestling shoes.

Deadlift shoes

To give you the best mechanical advantage, deadlift shoes should have a
very thin sole, which puts your feet as close to the ground as possible. The
thicker your sole, the more distance you will need to pull the bar to lockout.

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Conventional pullers sometimes wear deadlift slippers, which look like
gymnast’s slippers and only have enough of a sole to provide traction.

Slippers are not ideal for the Sumo deadlift however because the lateral
pressure on your feet can cause them to shift. Wrestling shoes or Chucks with
the insoles removed are ideal for sumo deadlifting.

For myself, I’ve had success with a pair of chucks with extra sole at the front
half of the sole (imagine a heel on the toe side.) These shoes make it easier for
me to lean back into the pull while still keeping my heels close to the ground.

Singlets

A one piece lifting suit is required in almost powerlifting competitions. The most
basic suit, and one that is allowed in all federations is the wrestling singlet. The
singlet is made of a stretchy spandex-type material and is worn simply to fulfill
the requirements of the one piece suit rule. It should not offer any support,
however in recent years, singlets seem to have gotten a bit tighter and stiffer,
much like the first squats from years ago.

As with anything else in life, what’s old will eventually become new.

The only consideration you need to keep in mind with a singlet (as with all
other gear) is the branding. Before trying to wear a singlet on a meet
platform, you may need to make sure that the logo will be allowed, as some
meets restrict certain brands of equipment.

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Wrist Straps

While not legal in powerlifting competition, wrist straps can be a useful training
aid. A simple device, wrist straps consist of a tough, usually fabric strap with a
small loop on the end of it. The point of using straps is that you can perform
pulling exercises like deadlifts and rows with heavier weights than you could
normally hold, which can be both good and bad.

Straps can be a good tool because you can train your back harder than you
would be able to without them, because you are no longer limited by your
grip. If you overuse them however, you could be depriving your grip of
training it needs, creating a weak link.

With conservative use (using them only when absolutely necessary) straps can
be a valuable training aid.

To put the strap on, just put the opposite end of the strap through the loop
and place the your wrist through the larger loop you’ve created. Wrap the
free end of the strap around the bar and then grasp the bar over it. By
looping, and not tying the strap around the bar, you are not actually
attached to the weight, and can still bail on the lift if need be.

Although they are not allowed in powerlifting competition, they are allowed
in some strongman events

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Chalk

As far as lifting aids go, chalk is as simple as it gets. If you’ve never lifted using
chalk, it probably doesn’t seem like all that much of an aid. Once you start
using it however, you’ll wonder how you ever lifted anything more than 225
without it.

Whenever I need to find out if a gym is lifter friendly, I look for chalk. If the
place is spotless, I know that I need to keep looking. If there’s chalk dust or
residue on the bars or floor, it’s a very good sign. If there is a chalk bucket
anywhere to find, I know that I’m home.

For the record, there is nothing sadder than a gym that has serious strength
equipment like bumper plates or a monolift and a no chalk policy. It’s like a
hot chick that just wants to be friends.

In most cases, you’re regulated to sneaking your own chalk into the gym like
a fat kid sneaking his own sour patch kids into a movie theater.

Using chalk is pretty simple, just rub some on your hands and go. It works
because it keeps your hands dry and helps the bar dig into your hands. Chalk
can also be applied to your upper back to keep the bar in place.

Baby Powder

When you watch deadlifters at a meet, it might look like they have chalk on
their thighs. They don’t, it’s baby powder. Because the baby powder is of a
finer consistency than chalk, it has the opposite effect, allowing the bar to

78
slide rather than dig in.

It’s worn on the legs during the deadlift to prevent the bar from digging into
your thighs, which can cause the bar to slow or hitch.

If you want to try deadlifting with baby powder, do not use your hands to put
it on. Just sprinkle it on and use the bottom of the bottle to spread it around or
better yet, have a training partner to it. If you get it on your hands, the bar will
slip out.

Ammonia

It’s pretty common to see a lifter at a meet or in training take a big whiff of
something before they go out to lift. This is generally some form of ammonia,
either in the form of smelling salts or ammonia caps that you crack and sniff.
In a pinch, we’ll even just grab a bottle of ammonia that you’d get in a
cleaning supply isle of the supermarket (although I find these a bit weak
because they are less concentrated).

It seems to have a positive effect because it clears your head and gets you
amped up. It’s hard to explain actually.

I can’t really go on record recommending you try this because…well…

sniffing cleaning fluids is probably not good for you, but then again neither is
lifting super heavy weights.

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Suit Slippers

Getting into tight gear sucks. The rough canvas or polyester scratches your
skin and pulls your hair out. If you’re sweaty, or it’s humid, you might not even
get the damn thing on. Enter suit slippers. A suit slipper is basically just a
spandex sleeve that you put on your arm or leg before getting your gear on.
It gives the gear a nice smooth surface to slide up against with out adding too
much thickness. Once your stuff is on, just yank the slipper out from under your
sleeve or suit leg.

In a pinch, you can also use plastic bags. This works better for shirts than suits.
Personally, I’ve found the thin produce bags used by fruit stands to be the
best.

Slingshots

In the last few years, there has been a growing number of shirt-like tools on
the market. The most popular is Mark Bell’s Slingshot, although other
companies have come out with similar products, including Metal’s
Catapult, The Titan Ram, and some extreme versions that rival (and even
exceed) the average shirt carryover, like the Benchdaddy and the bench
Freak Band

Although these products do offer slight differences, including material

stiffness and arm angle, the basic design and function is the same.
They are made out of a strong, but stretchy fabric, resembling a short,
wide knee or wrist wrap. There are loops on each side to slip your arms
through, while the band of material in between stretches over your chest.

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While you lower the bar, the chest piece stretches and provides elastic
resistance which assists you in lifting the bar.

While nowhere near as supportive as a good bench shirt, and not allowed
in meets (that I am aware of), These products can still be useful to both
shirted and even raw training. I had a lot of success with incorporating the
Slingshot into my warmups for shirted benching.

While I’d typically work up to 315 or so raw, I really can’t do much with less
than 455 in the shirt. Any less than that, and I pretty much just take it out of
the rack, look at it, and put it back.

The Slingshot works great for those in-between weights that are a bit too
much for raw, but not enough for the shirt.

So during my warmups I’d typically work up to 315 raw, take 365 and 405
with my Slingshot, and then get the shirt on at 455 to a high board.

For benchers who want to do overload type work, but either can’t or don’t
want to use bands or chains, these devices work great as a special
exercise of their own. I also like the Slingshot for non-shirted days where I
am beat up, and want to protect my shoulders without using a partial
range movement.

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 Initial Break-in Techniques for Multiply Gear

82
Sometimes a brand new suit or shirt will be too tight to even get into, let
alone handle big weights with. Novice gear users will often assume the
shirt is too small, and question whether or not they even want to give the it
a try. In many cases though, all the gear needs is some initial break-in.

Here are a few tricks you can use to start the break-in process before you
even put it on.

Levering

This method to stretch out a bench shirt came from the late, great John
Graube. You will need one helper, two barbells and a bench.
First, wet down the shirt.

Place the shirt over the bench with the sleeves facing up.

Place a barbell in each sleeve and make sure that the bottom of each
sleeve is braced against the bench
.
With one of you on either side, pull the top end of the barbells away from
each other so that they stretch the chest plate and sleeves of the shirt.

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Cutting

Most gear manufacturers make their legs and sleeves on the long side, so
it will accommodate the most lifters (it’s easier to take material away than
to add it). Often, this will make the suit/shirt much tougher to get on.

Sleeves or legs that are too long will catch on your thighs and forearms. If
you find yourself having a hard time pulling your gear on all the way, you

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may need to take some material off. You can either have them hemmed
by a tailor, or you can simply cut the material off yourself with a pair of
scissors.

Remember that when cutting your brand new $300+ bench shirt, it’s
ALWAYS better to cut too little than too much. Take off a half-inch at a
time, trying it on between each cut.

I would even recommend leaving the sleeve or leg longer than you think
you’ll need for the first few weeks of the break-in period. As the gear
loosens up around the shoulders or hips, you will be able to get a bit
further into it than when you first got it. The length that was “just right” the
previous month might now be too short, which can reduce support.

In the case of the Metal Ace and jack gear, the material is laminated
together so there is little risk of it coming apart at the seams. You might still
want to have it reinforced just for piece of mind. Most other poly gear and
all denim/canvas gear should be hemmed by a tailor.

You can also turn a closed back shirt into an open back, simply by cutting
the back. This is a simple fix that does not need to be performed by a
tailor, since the back of the shirt is not load bearing. Just make sure that
whatever federation you plan to compete in does not require a closed
back.

And although this should be common sense, make sure you are cutting the
back of the shirt, and not the front. I know this seems like a no brainer, but I
actually had a training partner make this mistake.

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Footballs

This trick works great for stretching out the bottom openings of your sleeves
or lags. All you need are a couple of cheap footballs (I get them for 5
bucks or so at Wal-Mart) and a pump.

First, soak the material you intend to stretch with water. Stuff the end of the
football into the bottom opening of the sleeve or leg and blow it up until
firm. Give it a half hour or so to stretch, then add a few more pumps.

Let dry overnight, then remove the football by deflating it.

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Soaking

Some lifters have even had success by soaking their shirts in fabric softener
overnight. I have personally not tried this, but I do know of a few big
benchers that have had success with it. Just make sure that you fully rinse
the shirt out, and air dry.

I have let my Ace soak in Woolite in a similar manner, but this was just to
clean it. I did however notice that the shirt was much softer and a little more
forgiving to touch in afterwards.

Although this is not a break in technique, I do know of some lifters that

have tightened up a stretched out Phenom bench shirt by boiling it in a
pot of water for about 10-20 minutes. They say that it tightens it up to
where it feels broken in but not totally stretched out.

I would not recommend boiling Metal shirts because the Ace and Jack are
laminated with a glue that might not stand up to the boiling.

You can combine break-in techniques, but I would use them one at a
time, trying out the shirt after each treatment.
Training Break-in

Even after you’ve used whatever break-in tricks you need, your gear will
still not be totally ready for action.

The more supportive the gear, the more meticulous the break in process.
While your geared squat and deadlift will mimic your raw form fairly
closely, a technically sound shirted bench is miles from the raw version, so

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out of the two, three, shirt break-in tends to be the most nerve-racking
process.

The best way to break in a squat or deadlift suit is to simply use it. If a squat
suit is too tight to lift in properly at first, you can simply use it without a brief
until it loosens up a bit.

One of the easiest ways to break new gear in is to simply have a slightly
smaller lifter do it for you. This is another one of the many benefits of lifting
with a real crew. This usually winds up being beneficial for both lifters as
the owner of the gear saves themselves some pain and frustration, while
the one breaking it in gets to try out a piece of gear they may not be
familiar with. This tip works very well with either suits or shirts.

If you’re using a deadlift suit with continuous straps, you may need to use it
with straps down for the first session or two so the bottom half breaks in,
which will make it easier to get your straps on after a session or two.

Benching is a different animal.

Setting Up

Not gonna lie, setting up with a brand new bench shirt sucks.

With the tight chest plate, you may have difficulty getting your hands all
the way out to your preferred grip. You can either have a spotter
physically push your hands out to the rings for you, or you can just use a
narrower grip until the shirt stretches a bit.

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You will probably have a tough time setting your back properly, because
the tension from the shirt will be pulling your arms together, making your
scapula protract. Again, a few reps will loosen things up and allow you to
get into your preferred setup.

Board work

When it comes time to start training in their shirts, most lifters will rely on the
board press, because it offers numerous advantages over the full range
bench for break-in.

The most important advantage to the boards is safety. In the event of a

drop, the board will displace the weight and protect you, as opposed to
dropping the bar directly onto yourself.

Another advantage to the board press for break-in is that, using various
board thicknesses allows you to reliably gauge how far you are able to
bring the board towards your chest.

There is no guessing with the board… either you touch them or you don’t.
Having a concrete target to aim for is much more comfortable for most
lifters than letting the bar hover in mid air while their training partners guess
how close they are to touching
.
Allowing weights to hover does have it’s applications in training, but for
the sake of breaking in your new shirt, keep it on the boards.

The third reason to use the boards is to protect the shirt itself. You want to

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stretch the seams and fibers of a new shirt gradually so that you are
breaking them in, with- out damaging them.

Since break-in takes time, I do not recommend starting a meet cycle with
a brand new shirt. You should already have at least one touch under your
belt before you enter a meet cycle.

For most lifters, I recommend taking about 8 weeks to break in a shirt. Since
I only recommend shirting up every other week, this totals out to 4 shirt
workouts.

Workout 1 should be a touch to a 3 board

Workout 2 should be to a 2 board

Workout 3 should be to a 1 board

Workout 4 should be a touch.

Shorter stroked lifters might be able to get away with only 3 workouts by
starting at the 2 board.

Depending on how often your program calls for putting on the shirt, you
should generally be able to touch within about 4 sessions. Less if your shirt is
big on you, or stretchy like the Bash, maybe more if it’s a tight fit, or a
particularly stiff material like the Ace or Evil Twin

Each time you shirt up, set a goal for a lower board. Start the session at a

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high board (a 3 board works well for most lifters) and work progressively
lower for each weight increase. Select a weight for each board that will
be heavy enough to stretch it, so that you don’t need to corrupt your form
to touch.

Use half-boards to make break-in an even more gradual process.

I also recommend wetting down the seams, collar and chest-plate during
the training break in process because it seems to make the seams a little
more forgiving. Wetting does not need to be used exclusively for breaking
in either. Sometimes it’s a great way to make a tight or stiff shirt easier to
touch in.

When I benched 628 @ 198 at the 2014 XPC Finals, my Ace shirt was so
soaked it was dripping.

Inside-out training

One of the less conventional break-in tips I’ve picked up over the years is
to wear your shirt inside-out for the first session in it. Wearing the shirt inside-
out places the seams on the outside, giving your arms just a bit more room
until it stretches out a bit. This tip by the way, comes by way of my former
elitefts.com teammate Adam Driggers.

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 Gym Equipment for Multiply

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There’s just no getting around it… much like a carpenter needs quality tools, a
multiply powerlifter has certain basic equipment requirements for productive
training to take place. You can get by with minimal stuff if you’re raw, but the
increased weights, and need for specialized movements mean your
equipment needs will be a bit more elaborate. The following pieces are what
I (and most other powerlifters) consider to be must-haves.

I don’t want the following chapter to scare you and make you think that you
need to but thousands of dollars worth of equipment just to get started. You
can probably find a private or even commercial club in your area with most
of what you need.

Since I want to be sensitive to the cost issue, I’ve refrained from turning this
chapter into my own personal wish list. Instead I’ve tried really hard to narrow
it down to the bare minimum. Buy (or join a gym with) the following pieces
before you even consider purchasing any other piece of equipment.

Full disclosure… I no longer have an official relationship with elitefts but I’m still
biased towards their equipment. I should note however, that I was a regular
customer of theirs for my entire career prior to my sponsorship. Their quality
and service is difficult to beat, so they usually get my recommendation.

The Power Rack

A quality power rack should be the centerpiece of any serious gym. If you
have a good rack, you’ll honestly need little else to get strong. Have you ever
seen those infomercials for shitty home exercise equipment, where the
spokesperson keeps repeating “it’s like an entire gym in one!”? A good power
rack is about as close as it gets to meeting this claim.

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With a good rack, you can do multiple variations of the squat, bench press,
goodmorning, deadlift, floor press overhead press, and pull-up, not to
mention the countless exercise variations you can make up. Combined with a
good quality adjustable bench, a quality power rack should take care of the
majority of your training lifts.

And by the way… Although the terms are often confused, a “squat rack” and
a “power rack” are not the same thing. A power rack is a multi-purpose piece
of equipment while a squat rack is designed primarily for squatting and will
not offer the same flexibility. Although a power rack can be used as a squat
rack. The opposite is not true.

What to look for in a Power Rack:

As with just about anything you can buy, not all racks are created equal, and
you generally get what you pay for. Still… you should not have to buy a
$3.000.00 rack to work out in your garage. Even an affordable rack however,
should meet the following requirements:

Close hole spacing

The holes that the pins fit through should never be more than 3 inches apart. If
the holes are spaced further than this, you will not have enough variation for
partial range movements like pin pulls and pin presses. The best racks have
the holes spaced an inch apart.

Sumo Base

Most racks have horizontal support beams on the sides that are too close to
the bottom of the rack, limiting how far you can place your feet. You want a
rack that has a few inches of clearance between this beam and the floor, so
that your stance width is not limited

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Rod and pipe pins

This style of rack allows for closely spaced holes, while still being resistant
tobending from drops.

Shallow J-hooks

Nothing is worse than having to do a quarter squat to unrack the damn bar
because the j-hooks are too deep. The lip of the J-hook should be just high
enough to prevent the bar from rolling out, but no more.

Squat Bar

Obviously you’ll want a quality barbell for your gym, and your first purchase
should be a high quality 45lb (or 20kg) powerlifting bar. There are plenty to
choose from, with two of the most common being the Texas power bar and
the Rogue Ohio bar.

These bars will be great for both the bench and deadlift (until you get a
deadlift bar, but a regular power bar is close enough in the beginning).

After that though, the next bar you should purchase should be a quality 60 or
65 lb squat bar. It won’t be cheap, but it will be worth it because this is the
current standard in multiply. There are a few on the market, but I highly
recommend the Mastodon from elitefts.

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Competition bench

The combination of a rack and bench will do the job, but there’s nothing like
the feeling of benching on a competition quality bench. Not only will it feel
more solid, but you’ll also be training on the same equipment that you intend
to compete on. As with the power rack, there are some things that you want
to look for in a good bench.

Adjustable uprights

Most gym benches have fixed uprights, which means that shorter lifters will
have trouble reaching them, and tall guys need to do a half rep to get the
damn bar out of the rack. I’ve even seen racks so low that an average height
guy could literally throw the bar over the uprights while trying to rack the bar.

Shallow J-cup

The higher you need to lift the bar to get it out of the uprights, the harder it is
to keep your shoulders set up on the bench. The best benches have a very
shallow lip on their J-cups…just deep enough so that the bar doesn’t roll out
when racked.

Hand-off platform

The two biggest issues I see with hand-off platforms is that they are either too
low, or two short. Too low, and your spotter does not have enough leverage
to give you a strong hand-off. Too short, and the spotter has to hand the bar
way past their center of gravity throwing them off balance. Yeah… that’s
exactly what I want… My spotter struggling to keep his balance while
handing me 600 lbs!

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A good handoff platform will be at least about 6 inches high and long
enough so that the you can stand over the lifter's head while they're laying on
the bench normally.

A quality bench will also be high enough so that you can get into an arch.
Typical gym benches are often too low.

While you can always use dumbbells for this, some benches, like the ones sold
at elitefts are available with band pegs.

Special Bars

Special bars are an important tool in the powerlifter's arsenal. They are useful
not only for addressing specific weaknesses, but also for avoiding chronic
injuries to the shoulders.

The Buffalo Bar

This bar has a slight bend in it, which makes it more comfortable across your
shoulders. Although the bar makes a big difference in terms of comfort, it's not
so radically different that you'll have a hard time adjusting back to a standard
squat bar.

Chris Duffin sells his own version of this bar called the Duffalo bar. It has a
slightly different angle, and goes for around the same price as the original
Buffalo bar.

You can find cheaper knock-offs, and most will work, butt the quality won’t
be as high.

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Safety Squat Bar

This is an odd looking bar with a large, padded yolk that sits high on your
shoulders. Originally designed for a goofy looking sissy squat, the safety squat
bar has become a staple in many serious gyms. Because the bar sits so high
on your traps, it puts you in a position of TERRIBLE leverage for squats and
goodmornings, challenging and building your back strength to the max.

By keeping your hands on the yolk, you greatly reduce the stress to your
shoulders while providing an even greater challenge to your back.
Elitefts.com even offers a model with handles built into the yolk.

If I had to choose one special bar, this one would probably be it.

Cambered Squat Bar

The cambered squat bar looks like a standard power bar with a 14 inch
camber. This bar challenges you in a few ways. With your hand position lower,
it takes stress off your shoulders, but also takes your upper back out of the lift,
making it harder to keep your chest up. With the plates in a lower position,
they have a tendency to swing, building stability.

Fat Bar

The fat bar is a bar that’s the same circumference at the middle as it is at the
sleeves. For pulling exercises like rowing and deadlifting, the fat bar builds
your grip because it's such a bitch to hold onto. For pressing exercises, the fat
bar displaces weight over a larger surface area of your hands, making it
easier on your wrists, elbows and shoulders. Although fat bars are useful, I
listed them last because the bars above are more of a priority.

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Monolift

While not a necessity for single ply or raw lifters, the monolift is the standard
squat rack for all of the multi-ply federations. It's essentially a rack with j-hooks
that swing in and out, so you do not need to walk the weight out. The major
disadvantage to the monolift (besides cost) is its size. Not only does it take up
a lot of room, but it only does one thing. If you've got the space and the cash
however, there's no better rack to squat from.

If you're going to introduce bands to your squat training, some sort of monolift
apparatus is a must. Constantly walking out squats with heavy band tension
will fuck your hips up like you would not believe. Personally, I would never
squat in multiply gear without one.

Mono attachments

It's basically exactly what it sounds like. It converts your power rack into a
monolift, without compromising the functionality of the rack itself.

Trust me when I say you will never want to walk out a set of squats with bands
again. I'd retire first! You want a fully adjustable attachment complete with
bottle jacks one to your own rack's specks by Crepinsek Strength Equipment
at www.1500lb.com. They function almost exactly like a full mono, with
handles on the ends so a training partner can swing them in and out for you.

I squatted out of one of these things for many years when I trained at John
Bott’s Eastside Barbell, and it was probably there for 5 years before I got there.
John’s now retired, but I happen to know that one of our guys bought it from
him and it’s still in use today, making it at least 20 years old.

In recent years, companies like Rogue (and Titan on the lower end… not the
gear company) have been making smaller gravity operated mono

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attachments that are significantly cheaper. The only issue is that they swing
independently, so to re-rack, you’ll need to lean further forward, but
otherwise, they seem to work well.

Belt Squat

A belt squat machine looks like a large metal platform with a low cable
attachment in the middle. By attaching the cable to your waste with a belt,
you can perform squats without loading your back. This is great for deloads
and working through injuries. While not really a must-have, the belt squat is
certainly a useful piece if you have the space and funds.

Chains

Accommodating resistance is a common technique that has been

employed by powerlifters for decades. Because you gain leverage over
the course the power lifts, the weight usually feels lighter at the top than it
does the bottom. This is especially true for geared lifters, whose gear takes
over much of the bottom portion of the lift.

Chains are one of the simplest tools used by powerlifters to accommodate

to this natural strength curve. By hanging steel chains from the sleeves of
the barbell, you can make the weight lighter as you get closer to the
bottom of the movement, and heavier as you progress through the press.

How they work is simple, as the chain links gather on the ground, the total
weight of the barbell gets lighter. As the bar ascends towards lockout, the
links are lifted off the floor and the weight becomes heavier. Because the

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chains can swing during the lift, chains also make it harder to stabilize the
weight. This can either be a benefit or drawback, depending on the goal.

Bands

Similar to chains, Bands allow lifters to take advantage of accommodating

resistance. Unlike the chains however, the bands are a bit more versatile,
and can be used for building bar-speed as well as top-end strength.

Another advantage of bands over chains is that they are way more
convenient to travel with, in case you are not able to leave equipment at
your gym.

Anchored low

The most common set-up is to anchor the bands under the barbell, either
to a rack, band pegs or dumbbells, so that the bands get tighter as you
press. Since the band tension is elastic, this set-up is great for building
speed, since the faster you accelerate through the lift. The more you
accelerate, the faster the band tightens up. This method is popular for
lifters on a Westside -type of program that uses speed work.

Anchored high (reverse bands)

Reverse bands have become increasingly popular over the last 10 years
or so because they give you the benefit of accommodating resistance,
but are not as taxing to your tissues or nervous system. To use them, just

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anchor the band to the top of the rack or mono and hang the barbell in
the band.

Depending on the band strength and rack height, you might need over 225
on the bar before you can hang it in the bands without it being pulled out
of the rack.

As you lower the weight, the bands stretch, taking over some of the weight
for you. As you ascend through the lift, you take over more and more of
the weight yourself.

Squat Box

If you plan to use a Westside based program, you’ll need a good squat box.
This can really be anything sturdy, including a homemade one, stacked mats,
or an adjustable squat box like the ones on elitefts.

Boards

Boards are an inexpensive, yet very effective tool to boost your bench press.
A powerlifting gym should at least have board press boards ranging from 1 to
3 boards thick. You can worry about high boards and half boards as your
training gets more specialized.

You can purchase pre-made boards from elite, or do what most lifters do and
make them from wood at the local hardware store or lumber yard.

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 Equipped Squatting

103
Editor’s Note

When I first set out to write this book, I figured I would fill this section with
pictures to demonstrate correct technique. Then I remembered I was
releasing it in the year 2021, and that this is not a personal training certification
textbook.

While pictures may have been marginally helpful, they’re probably obsolete
in this day and age. Not to mention tons of pics would make the file MUCH
bigger and insanely frustrating to edit and format, not to mention more difficult
to send.

So rather than choke this thing with images and shooting the page count to
600, I’d rather see you connect with my coauthors on social media and view
the hundreds of videos they’ve already posted for free. Read the descriptions
of the lifts and watch how each lifter executes the cues described here. Look
for commonalities, differences, and then apply them to your own lifts and see
how they work.

Oh, and get your ass in a good training crew.

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“It's great to be strong, but if your form and technique are off everything is off
and it's very hard to break bad habits. So work on practicing form, technique,
breathing, and pulling your body into position as much as possible.”

Shawna Mendleson

The squat is the single most important lift in multiply powerlifting, and don’t
let anyone tell you otherwise.

I’m not saying this to slight the other lifts, or talk shit about single lift
competitors, I’m simply going by the math. While out-deadlifting your
squat is relatively common in raw, and even single ply competition, this is
an extreme rarity in multiply. In fact, there are plenty of pro lifters whose
benches eclipse their deadlifts. In full power competition, no single lift will
make up more of your total than the squat, so if you want to be a
successful multiply powerlifter, you must master this lift above all

Although this book is focused on multiply, I will be going into some general
information about single ply stuff, as it isn’t uncommon for multiply lifters to
use it, especially in the deadlift. Sometimes the right amount of support
isn’t necessarily the most support possible (so I’ve heard) and while I
wouldn’t necessarily recommend you start with single ply gear if you know
you will lift multiply, it can often work better for beginners, especially since
it’s cheaper to acquire.

Single Ply Squat Suits

To an untrained eye, a basic, single ply squat suit looks just like a wrestling
singlet. Upon further examination however, you’ll notice that the polyester

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material is significantly thicker, with much less stretch. It will also feel much
tighter often painfully so once on. The first time you put on even a loose squat
suit, it’s common to assume that it is too small. In most single ply meets, the
straps will be continuous (not Velcro), and may need to be pulled over your
shoulders by a training partner.

A single ply suit works much like a slingshot (the weapon, not the bench press
apparatus). As you descend, the material stretches, storing elastic energy.
When you are ready to begin your ascent out of the hole, the elastic energy
will help to propel you to lockout. A basic, single ply squat suit tends to favor
lifters who squat with a narrow or medium stance and use more leg drive
because they offer less groin support than more advanced suits.

The biggest difference among the various brands is going to be the material,
since most single ply federations have tighter restrictions on what features a
suit can have. A suit with a springy material will tend to move with you, so that
your technique won’t vary all that much from a raw squat. The biggest
challenge will usually be the proprioceptive issue. Basically the tight suit
screws up your ability to sense where you are in space, making it difficult to
know if you’re breaking parallel or squatting in the correct position.

Another consideration is gong to be the cut of the suit. Suits that are long in
the legs tend to favor close/medium stance squatters because they lock
tightly onto the legs, offering great support and pop, but restricting how easily
you can drive your knees out. Wider stance squatters will be better off with a
suit that’s higher cut in the legs.

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How to get the damn thing on

Without question, one of the biggest “oh shit” moments you’ll have as an
equipped powerlifter is trying to get into a suit or shirt for the first time, and in
my opinion, single ply is worse than multi-ply. Since single ply suits are thinner,
with less stopping power, they need to be really tight to work. So tight, that
most first timers assume that their suit was mislabeled, and it’s actually 3 sizes
too small.

I’ve got good news and bad news. It’s not too small, It’s just gonna really,
really suck to get it on.

Note: Before even attempting to get a new suit or shirt on, please refer to the
“Initial Break-In” section.

Although suits vary in construction, generally the toughest part of putting on

most single ply squat suits is stuffing your thighs into the legs, especially if there
are any seams running across the legs, which tend to stretch less and really
lock onto your thighs.

For starters, sit down before you try to get the damn thing on. This is for two
reasons. First, you’re gonna look like a monumental jackass if you lose your
balance and eat shit with the suit around your knees. Second, sitting allows
the muscles in your legs to relax more, which will help you stuff them into the
suit.

Do not try to pull the suit from the top or straps because the friction of your
skin against the material will create too much friction and make the job damn
near impossible. Instead, pinch the material at the bottom of the legs and try

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to work the leg openings up first, as the suit will generally hang up the most
there.

Keep pulling that bottom seam up little by little. As you do, you’ll create
horizontal seams on the legs. Once these seams appear, start pulling from the
higher up on the suit to smooth them out, then repeat the process.

With a little patience, the legs should be all the way up after a few minutes,
but you won’t be out of the woods just yet. The next step is to pull the crotch
and seat up as high as they will go, so that if you stand straight up with your
legs together, you won’t notice any loose material on/under your butt.

The final step to getting your suit on is to pull the shoulder straps up as high as
they will go to get the rest of the suit seated properly. One of the preferred
methods to do this is to hang the strap on a j-hook, or something else stable,
and literally hang on it will all your weight. Don’t work about ripping it, the
material can take it.

If the suit is tight, you will probably have trouble getting your straps up by
yourself, so this is where a training partner will come in handy. Just depress
your shoulder while they pull that strap up and you’re done. Just make sure
they keep a good grip on the strap so that they don’t accidentally loose their
grip and punch you in the ear like I might or might not have done to a training
partner once.

Once the straps are up, you’ll be able to finish getting the suit all the way up by
simultaneously shrugging your shoulders and pushing your hips back into it. You’ll
also find that by shrugging and leaning side to side, you’ll be able to get the
outside legs seated properly.

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Multiply Squat Suits

Multiply suits come in various shapes and materials. The most basic multi-ply
suit is simply a thicker version of a single ply suit. A stock multiply polyester suit
(like the Inzer T-Rex is a perfect example. The Titan Boss is an excellent suit, but
by most accounts much more supportive (and quite a bit more expensive).
I’ve had a lot of success using a loose metal pro with newcomers to multiply
gear because its material is more forgiving than other suits. A good polyester
multiply suit will offer lots of springiness, but with much more stopping power at
the bottom of the squat. These suits are great for both medium and wide
stance squatters

An addition to the increased thickness and support, The biggest advantage a

multiply suit has over a single is the Velcro straps. Velcro offers two
advantages over continuous straps. The first is that it makes the suit easier to
get on because the straps are out of the way. The second, and more
important advantage is the ability to adjust the straps for more or less support.

Note: While a single ply suit can be altered to have Velcro straps, they are not
allowed at most single ply meets because the overlapping straps count as
multiple plies.

The most popular material for the multiply squat suit is the canvas. These suits
are designed with maximum stopping power in mind, and favor wide stance
squatters. Because of the amount of stopping power, canvas suits are almost
exclusively made with Velcro straps. The lifter needs to be able to set the
straps at different levels of tightness because if the suit locks up before you
make it to parallel, you’ve got nowhere to go with it. Most lifters will wear the
straps progressively tighter as the weights move up. Squatting effectively in a

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canvas suit is a skill that takes months, even years to build. If worn loose, a
canvas suit offers less support than a conservative multi-ply poly. For these
reason, I do not recommend beginners start out with a canvas or suit unless
they train with a very experienced crew.

Squat Briefs

A squat brief is an extra layer of support for the squat. A brief is simply a suit
without straps. The most basic briefs are made of a thin polyster that looks like
a speedo. I used one of these early in my career but never felt it made much
of a difference. Like suits, a brief can be made of single or multi-ply polyester.
They are generally not made of canvas although denims were popular a few
years ago. If you are using a polyester suit a brief will add support and tighten
the suit. If you are wearing canvas, the brief will offer some spring that the
canvas suit generally will not.

For beginners who may not be able to handle a full suit, a brief/singlet
combination can be a great start for a first meet.

Putting on Multiply Squat Gear

Believe it or not, I’ve always found that putting single ply gear on sucks worse
than multiply. The reason is that to get any real carryover, single ply gear has
to be really fucking tight, while multiply can have a little bit more breathing
room. Not much mind you, but it’s at least a bit more comfortable to stand
around in between lifts.

The first step to gearing up is to get your brief on. For this, simply follow the
same steps you would for the single ply suit with the exception of the straps. If

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the briefs fit well, you’ll most likely need a training partner to grab the back of
your brief at the top, and hold it while you sit back into it.

A multiply suit, although a bit more daunting looking, is actually fairly easy to
get on. The first thing you’ll notice is that unless you’re wearing a relatively thin
polyester suit, you won’t be able to work the bottom seam up the legs like you
would for a brief or single ply suit. It will simply be too thick. This is fine though,
because the bottom seam of multiply suits are rarely very tight, because they
are cut for a wide stance.

Most of us use the same technique of wrapping our Velcro straps around a
barbell in the rack and simply letting gravity do the work for us. After getting
the thing as far up as it will go by just pulling it on, just wrap your front straps
around the bar. Make sure that the strap is Velcro AND canvas/poly where
you wrap it, because some suits extend the Velcro strip past the thick part of
the strap, and if you wrap this alone, it will rip off.

Once you have the straps wrapped, bend your knees until the suit is
supporting your weight, at which point you should be starting to slide into it.
When you stop sliding into it, turn around and have a training partner wrap
the back straps around the bar and then sit back into it.

Repeat until it’s all the way up. Remember that multiply suits, especially
canvas will not appear as snug in the seat and crotch as single. Don’t worry
about this. It will need to be a little baggy because the material doesn’t
stretch much, and a little slack is necessary to accommodate wide stance
squats. Once the suit is up, a few warmups with the straps down will help it get
seated even further so that by the time you’re ready to add straps, the suit is
all the way up and a little warm from your body heat. The deeper you get into
your training session, the more it will seem to “settle” and work with, rather
than against you.

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Knee Wraps

In multiply, the wraps primary role is to balance out the crazy support you
already have at the hip. Think about it, if you’re trying to squat to parallel with
4 layers (or more) or restrictive material at the hip, it’s going to be normal for
your body to try and shift the weight to an unsupported joint, which will offer
less resistance. In the case of a multiply squat, this will generally result in your
knees shooting forward either killing your depth or making you lose the lift
entirely.

With a tight knee wrap on, the support to both joints becomes equalized,
making it easier to squat correctly.

While you can certainly put your own wraps, it’s far more effective to have a
training partner do it, especially if you’re wearing a squat suit. A training
partner will be able to get better leverage to tighten the wrap, plus, you want
to conserve as much energy as possible when you’re getting ready for a big
squat.

There are lots of opinions on how to properly wrap a knee. I don’t know if my
method is any better or worse than anyone else’s, but it’s worked well for us.

Here’s how I do it.

First, pre-load the wrap. This means wrapping it under tension so that is it pre-
stretched. This means less pulling on the lifters leg to get it tight. There are a
few crank-type apparatuses made for this, but I’ll just step on one end while I
wrap the other.

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When I wrap a lifter’s knees, I’ll hold the roll so that the loose end is above the
rest of the roll. This helps me apply more tension.

Start at the bottom of the quad, wrapping from inside-out. I’ll have the lifter
hold the wrap in place initially to avoid dropping it. Stretch the wrap BEFORE
you lay it over the leg. It always pisses me off when someone lays the wrap
down first, and then pulls real hard. It burns the shit out of my skin and distracts
me from my lift.

Lay down each wrap, covering about half of the previous length, until you
are about a length below the kneecap. This should take 4, maybe 5 lengths.

Wrap both knees inside out, So if you go right to left on the right knee, go left
to right on the left.

To really put pressure on the knee, I like to use an “X” pattern at this point.
From the bottom, I’ll lay down a length diagonally from bottom to top, go
around the back of the knee, and lay another one down from top to bottom
in the opposite direction.

If I’m wrapping a small guy and have a lot of wrap left over, I’ll do another
“X” pattern before pinning it. Otherwise, I’ll wrap a length or two straight
around and pin it.

To pin it, it helps to put your hand under the last length so it’s easier to pull the
wrap through. I like to pin it at the bottom, pulling the end of the wrap
upwards. This way, the loose end can sometimes make the top of your knee
appear a little higher to the side judge, making your squat look deeper. I
wouldn’t depend on this though!

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If you don’t have the patients to deal with the “X” pattern, just wrap the knee
back upwards after you reach the bottom.

Training the Multiply Squat

The multi-ply squat is similar to the single ply squat, but with a couple of
important differences.

In multi-ply meets, you will be squatting out of a monolift instead of squat

stands. This means no walk-out. Obviously you can squat out of a monolift in
single ply gear as well, but some federations that allow single ply (like the IPF)
still use stands.

Your stance is generally a little wider. This shortens the distance to parallel,
better recruits the posterior chain and allows you to take advantage of more
supportive gear.

One of the toughest parts of learning to use a suit is the sensation of not being
able to descend, despite the weight pushing you down. Consequently, this is
where most novices screw up. When the average beginner has trouble hitting
depth, most corrupt their form in order to squat around the support. Common
mistakes include rounding the upper back, as well as the knees drifting
forward and in.

Rather than worrying about breaking parallel, focus on keeping your

technique as locked in as possible. Never sacrifice your form to break parallel,
even if it means sacrificing depth (for now). As your suit breaks in and your
body adjust to it, you will hit depth more easily.

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The most important cue to remember when squatting in a suit is to push your
hips back into the support, otherwise, you’ll have a tendency to allow your
knees to drift forward. Once your knees go forward, it will be next to
impossible to break parallel. Keep your head and chest up, and push your
knees out for the entirety of the lift. As with a raw squat, your first movement to
initiate the squat is to push your hips back

With more support at the hip, it becomes possible to widen your stance,
shortening the distance you need to travel to break parallel. If you are
squatting in multi-ply gear, you should be lifting in a federation that uses the
monolift. The monolift is a squat rack with a swinging j-hook, so that the racks
can be moved towards or away from the lifter, eliminating the need to walk
the weight out. With no walkout, you can set your feet in your squat stance
before you lift the weight, making it easier to take a wider stance.

Suit adjustments

Unlike most single ply suits, many multiply suits have adjustable shoulder straps,
allowing you to get more or less support. As most lifters progress up in weight
over the course of warm-ups, they’ll typically start raw, add the brief at
around 30% of max, the suit (straps down) at 50-70% and ad the straps at
around 70 percent. As the weights progress from heavy to maximal, most will
tighten the straps to add support. Finding the right balance of strap tightness
comes with lots of practice. Too loose, and you could be giving away pounds
on the platform. To tight, and it will be impossible to hit depth in a well-fit suit.

When you’re ready for a straps-up attempt, I would also recommend getting
your knee wraps on. Knee wraps take on a different role un equipped
powerlifting, and this can be a difficult transition for raw lifters to make. In

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multiply, knee wraps don’t offer as much carryover as in raw because they
won’t be maximized the same way.

Not that you’re fully warmed and geared up, it’s time to get your straps up
and squat.

OK, so I had written what I thought was a great step-by-step guide to the
multiply squat, and then fuckin Bob Merkh goes ahead and submits a better
one. So I’m gonna put my ego aside here and let Bob take this one, as his
advice is fantastic.

“To me the squat is the king of the lifts. It should be your biggest number and it
sets the tone for your meet and your total. Building a big equipped squat (or
any equipped lift really) requires you to pay attention to your form in ways
that will border on obsessive. I will walk you through my checklist, but know
that trying to squat the same way as someone else is in most cases NOT the
right answer. While some lessons and techniques are universal your anatomy
will impact how you should squat to maximize your numbers.

Step 1 (Putting on gear): Put on your gear after you are warmed up raw. Gear
fit is often neglected and costs people pounds. Are your briefs tight in the hips
and legs, but loose in the torso? If so bring them to get altered or get
comfortable with a needle and upholstery thread. You want to pay attention
to how your gear fits and you should (if you are able to) have some extra
gear for those days where you are a little heavy from the all you can eat
buffet the day before. Make sure you are wearing the gear briefs, suit, wraps
that are best for you and that the fit is not ignored.

Step 2 (Approaching the bar): As you approach the bar you should have
taken care of every variable that you could have possibly controlled. This

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goes for training and meets. Is the weight loaded accurately? Is the bar
centered? Is the height correct? This is a game of inches and something as
simple as having to center the bar before you lift (as you wait wrapped and
ready) or trying to stand up out of racks set at 53 inches when you trained the
last 16 weeks with the hooks at 51.5 can be the difference between a good
or bad lift. Be obsessive, measure your monolift width, bring a tape measure
and make sure the height matches, bring a paint marker and mark the floor,
do whatever you can to make every squat the same. Excellence is a habit, so
develop the right habits.

Step 3 (Standing up): DO NOT (I will repete) DO NOT ignore this step. Squats
are won or lost before you have even been given the squat command in
many cases! When you put that bar on your back you need to build a wedge
and get as tight as you possibly can. It should actually be difficult for you to
set up under submaximal weights because your wedge lifts the bar out of the
hooks before you are ready.

You need to keep your back tight and chest big. Some people will say elbows
down as a cue I prefer push your chest forward and pry in. The rack height
should be set so that you clear by 1.5-2 inches. Do not fall victim to the lazy
habit of barley clearing the rack, this may make the stand up easier, but it will
make the squat harder. You need to earn the pick so that you are tight and
ready. If you want to squat the weight you better be able to stand up with it
from that rack position. Stand up strong by flexing your whole body and
pushing your hips through, settle that weight, do not rush the start, now you
are ready to squat.

Step 4 (The Descent): Since this is an equipped lift you should be getting as
much as you can out of the gear! The key to that is getting support as early as

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possible. You need to sit back hard into your gear from the start. An equipped
squat is more of a back and forth than a down and up so reach back into the
briefs for support and as you push back begin to “open up” or rotate your
femurs outward pushing your knees out and creating as much tension as
possible on your equipment. Control the negative portion of the lift, you are
winding up and storing potential energy as you wait to explode out of the
hole. I imagine a bow being pulled back and waiting for the “up” call where I
will release all of the tightness and drive myself upward.

Step 5 (“UP”): If you hear this word and not “take it, take it, take it” you must
have done something right. I always have my training partners call my depth
because it is one less thing to think about. I follow my step 4 cues and when I
hear the “up” I violently reverse my direction. You want to explode out of the
hole because that is where you have the most support, use that momentum
to help you finish the lift. When you are close to completion of the squat you
will have less support so take advantage of the support while you have it.” –
Bob Merkh.

Troubleshooting the squat

A lot can go wrong when you’re gutting out a squat with 100s of pounds above
your raw max, and there’s nothing worse than fucking up a potential PR and not
knowing why. So if you’re struggling with a technical flaw you can’t figure out,
take a look at this section covering some of the more common mistakes and their
usual reasons.

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Not being able to unrack

Every multiply lifter has had the uncomfortable sensation of wedging under a max
weight, standing up with it, and realizing the bar doesn’t have enough room to
clear the monolift hooks, even though you know you’re at your normal height.
What the fuck?

There are actually a few reasons this can happen. The most common is simple bar
flex. The heavier the weight gets, the more the bar will flex, and the more it will sink
into your upper back. Sometimes it will even be enough to prevent the bar from
clearing the racks.

This is a simple solution. Just remember to leave yourself an extra inch or so of

clearance when selecting your height at the start of the training session so you
don’t need to start adjusting the height of the monolift during the workout. Even
better, use a tape measure to record your height to make selecting rack heights
easier on unfamiliar monolifts or at meets

Another common reason for a bad unrack is foot placement. By placing the feet
too far apart you make yourself slightly shorter. You’ll also likely struggle with hip
stability if you unconsciously set your feet further than you’re used to.

Setting your feet either too far up or down will also screw up your unrack. Too far
up, and you’re likely to lose your balance backwards. Too far up and you’ll rely
too much on your back and not enough on your hips for a solid unrack.

In both cases, a super-simple solution is to measure your stance during training

(following a successful attempt obviously) so that you can mark the floor with a
piece of chalk. This way you’ll always know exactly where your feet need to go.

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When you get to the meet, use the measurement to gauge how far your feet
should be from the ends of the monolift stands. You might even be able to get
away with marking the meet platform if no one notices/cares.

You need to practice how to breathe correctly! You are pulling air in through
your mouth not your nose. Pretend you are sucking through a straw. When
you suck in, hold your air in your body(Diaphram) not your face. You need to
practice how to brace when under a squat bar, and lastly Mobility DO IT!! It
will save your body!! – Shawna Mendelson

Pitching forward

One of the worst mistakes you can make in the squat is pitching forward. Not only
will this almost always result in a missed lift, but the stress to your back could bean
a career threatening injury. Unfortunately, the risk of pitching forward in multiply is
high due to the difficulty some lifters experience in sitting back into the gear. On a
brighter note, once you figure out why it’s happening, pitching forward can be
easy to fix with some patients and a few technical tweaks.

Bar position

Holding the bar either too high or to low can both result in excessive forward lean
during the lift. If the bar is too high, it turns your torso into a longer lever, reducing
your mechanical advantage. Usually the result will be a squat that’s too vertical,
and difficult to break parallel with, but sometimes if you try to compensate by
pushing the hips back harder, the bar will drift in front of your feet and you’ll lose
balance forward.

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Holding the bar too low on the shoulders can also be problematic. If you carry the
bar too far down on your back, you won’t have enough trap and rear delt under
the bar to make a sturdy “shelf’. To compensate, you’ll usually find yourself leaning
forward and pushing the elbows straight back to avoid the barbell rolling off your
back. More often than not, the result is an ugly high squat with a high risk of
forward movement.

In each case, the solution is going to be a combination of finding building the

upper back and experimenting to create a perfect shelf. Remember that this can
be more challenging in multiply because of the tighter straps, so take your time
and get this right.

Foot position.

Sometimes the forward pitch starts before the bar is even out of the rack. Setting
up with your feet too far back will cause you to take the bar out with your weight
on your toes. If you feel yourself in this position the best bet is to re-rack and
reposition before trying it again. Trying to regain balance after a crappy unrack is
time and energy consuming, and unless you’re at a meet and have already
received the “squat” command (meaning the lift is live) a re-set is your best bet.

Once again, marking your optimal foot position once you find it is a quick and
easy fix.

Falling backwards

Losing your balance backwards isn’t as common as forwards, but it does happen
and always sucks. Although neither is good, falling back is actually preferable to
forwards because it at least means you’re trying to sit back properly, but you’re

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overdoing it.

Foot position

Foot position is often the culprit here once again. If your feet are a bit too far
forward, you may take the bar out a little too much on your heels and lose
balance backwards.
Hip placement

Pushing back into a tough multiply suit isn’t easy, and beginners often have
difficulty getting their hips into the proper position to keep the bar over the feet. In
order to “sit” back into your suit during a free squat, you must lean your upper
body forward while still maintaining a big arch and pushing your hips straight
back. If you don’t lean forward enough, the bar will drift past your heels, and you’ll
lose your balance backwards.

Box Squat

While I have a totally different section for special exercises, the box squat is
unique in that it is often used instead of the free squat in many conjugate
periodization-based programs. Louie Simmons made the box squat the staple
exercise at Westside Barbell years ago, and as a result, it’s a staple throughout
multiply powerlifting. So I thought it made more sense to include it here.

Also, after you read my lengthy description of the box squat and how great it
is, you’ll get to read a piece by WPO pro Brian Hill about why he doesn’t use
it.

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Few special exercises are as widely used as the box squat, and with good
reason. The box squat is an excellent tool for either teaching the free squat or
strengthening the necessary muscles in a similar recruitment pattern.

In addition to the barbell and rack, you will need a sturdy platform to sit on.
Plyometric boxes, or specially box squat platforms are best, but home-made
wood boxes topped with mats will also work well. The reason box squats are
so effective is that the sitting motion is essentially an exaggerated squat.
Another advantage to this exercise is that you will hit the desired depth every
time.

The box squat has been used most extensively for powerlifters by Westside
Barbell (both the original Culver City club owned by Bill West and today’s
owned by Louie Simmons). The classic Westside Barbell template written by
Louie called for box squatting each week, sometimes twice.

The box squat can be performed either raw, or with gear.

The Setup

Place the box or platform behind the squat rack or monolift and set up
exactly as you would for a competition style free squat. The box should be set
at a height that puts you at slightly below parallel when seated on it. Most
lifters will set their feet slightly wider for the box squat than they would the free
squat (assuming you’re wearing at least a brief). If you are wearing a belt
(recommended) wear it a notch loose to teach you to expand your belly into
it.

In all honesty, I would not perform wide stance box squats without at least a
brief on. The wide stance takes a toll on the hips, and I believe the box squat

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can be an effective tool for teaching you to load your gear by pushing your
hips back into it.

I do find the narrower stance raw box squat to be a great strength builder,
but they won’t do much for meet squat technique.

The Descent

When most lifters first learn the box squat, it looks like little more than a free
squat with their butts touching a box at the bottom. A true box squat however
has some significant differences from the free squat.

Start the box squat by pushing your hips back, your knees out, and your head
back, just like you would start a free squat. Instead of decelerating at the
bottom by yourself however, continue sitting back until you are actually
seated on the box. The idea is to sit further back than you would be able to
without the box being there. This places an enormous load on the hamstrings
and glutes. Once you are on the box, try to relax your hips while still keeping
your midsection tight. Following a brief pause (just long enough to stop
completely, stand back up.

The Ascent

To start the lift, push your belly into your belt, push your head back hard,
spread your knees and imagine jumping as high as you can from that stance.
Push your hips forward for the duration of the lift until you are standing up
straight

Variations

The box squat can be performed either for speed (as it is used weekly on a
Westside based program) or for a max effort movement. Additionally, the box

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squat can be performed with various stances and box heights (although the
wide stance box squat seems to have the best carryover to the meet squat)

Close stance, low-box squats are a great special exercise to build the deadlift
because they rely more on back strength, as opposed to the wide stance
squat which mostly challenges the hips.

Box squats can be performed with the straight bar or buffalo bar to mimic the
competition squat, or with the safety squat bar or cambered squat bar to
challenge back strength and stability, as well as protect the shoulders.

Box squats can be performed with chains, anchored bands or reverse bands.

Re-Thinking the Box Squat

Generally speaking, most fitness related (if you can call this fitness related)
authors aren’t very fond of material that contradicts their own. I’m a big
believer in the box squat, and I think they should be included inj every multiply
program to some extent.

Brian Hill disagrees with me, which is why I wanted him to explain why in the
book.

Why?

Because he’s fucking strong.

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I’m not writing this book to stroke my own ego. I’m writing this to help rebuild
multiply powerlifting. Brian is not the only pro out there that’s moved away
from the box squat. In fact, the box squat didn’t play nearly as big of a role in
my last couple of years in the sport than in previous years.

So rather than cherry pick writers who agree with me, I’d much rather give
you as many points of view as possible and let you make up your own mind.
Training should be about finding what works, not what supports whatever
dogma you’ve decided is right.

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Over the past few years I’ve become somewhat “known” within our little
niche community as being the Multi-ply guy, with a big Squat, who trains
Conjugate, but doesn’t Box Squat… what a calling card! The irony to all of this
is: it was actually the Box Squat itself that introduced me to powerlifting in the
first place and changed my life forever.

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I was an 18 year old kid training in a commercial gym in early 2006 when I tore
my LCL in my right knee while Squatting one morning. Even before
discovering powerlifting, Squat was always my favorite lift. So after a few
months of rehab and recovering my knee I still wasn’t able to Squat the same
as before without knee pain. So I posted a question on the bodybuilding.com
forums asking for ideas on how to Squat without knee pain. One of the other
members suggested that I try Box Squats and shared a link to an old Dave
Tate article from DeepSquatter.com explaining how to do a Box Squat.

I read the article and immediately start doing some google “research” on
Box Squats. As I slipped further and further down the rabbit hole that Saturday
night, I was introduced to Box Squats, Dave Tate, Louie Simmons, Westside
Barbell, and the sport of powerlifting all for the first time. To save time I’ll spare
you the step by step details of the rest of the story and just say that I spent the
next nine years fully absorbed in the sport of powerlifting and training the
“Westside way.” Which meant Box Squatting like a zealot, every single
workout.

Only free Squatting on meet day and maybe a couple of times per year
outside of the meet. I can’t say this didn’t work for me to some degree. I’m
not saying Box Squats don’t work. And I’m certainly not intending to discredit
Louie Simmons. All I’m trying to do is share my experience and hopefully help
some of you that may be in a similar situation. I took my Squat from 345 Raw in
my first meet in October 2006, to 455 single ply in my second meet in
December 2006, all the way up to 665 in September 2009 at my last meet in
single ply. I squatted 777 in my first multi ply meet in September 2010 and built
that into a 935 multi ply Squat in October 2015…. ALL while being a loyal
servant to the Box Squat! So why did I turn my back on my old friend that

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introduced me to powerlifting in the first place? Because it was a toxic
relationship that needed to end!

We’re told that to perform a proper Box Squat, you have to sit back further
than you would with a free squat so that the shins are past perpendicular to
the floor and you need to relax your hips and fully sit onto the box so that you
break up the eccentric-concentric chain. In theory, this is supposed to work
the hamstrings and the glutes harder than a free squat will, therefore making
our free squat progress quicker than if we were to actually just free squat.

We’re also told that the Box Squat is easier and safer to do on a regular basis
because it causes less muscular soreness and it’s easier to recover from than
free squatting… maybe it’s easier to recover from and doesn’t cause as
much muscular soreness because it doesn’t actually tax the squatting
muscles as much as a free squat? Or maybe most people just Box Squat
incorrectly? I can’t say for sure. But I can say that I developed a lot of bad
Box Squat habits over the years… and I see a lot of other people doing the
same things.

All in the effort of sitting back, getting our shins past perpendicular, and
releasing on the box like we’re told to do, you see a lot of people doing some
really goofy things on the Box Squat… Some of the most common ones that I
see on a regular basis are:

1. Sitting way too far back, while trying to maintain a tight arch and keep
the knees out

2. Losing your arch and dumping your hips under, while trying to keep the
knees out and chest up.

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3. Letting your knees cave in or shift forward, while trying to hold a tight
arch and keep the chest up.

4. Doing everything right on the descent to the box, only to sway

backwards and then rock forward to get some sort of momentum to stand
up.

5. Using the box as a depth gauge and only softly grazing the box with the
hamstrings before standing back up.

6. Bouncing off the box like a spring board to get a fast reversal, similar to
bouncing a bench press off the sternum.

7. Some horrible combination of any and all of the above.

Over the years, I was guilty of all of these at some point in time. Wearing briefs
only makes these flaws more exaggerated and more dangerous. But with the
box there to catch me and hide my flaws, I never realized how bad of a
Squatter I actually was and how inefficient my technique was. My PR numbers
on the various Box Squat variations continued to go up so I figured I was doing
everything right. Even though I often felt like a fish out of water trying to Squat
on meet day with no box behind me.

I never thought much of it because I was still getting stronger and it was
considered sacrilege if you didn’t Box Squat as a multi ply Westside disciple
like me. Besides, I hit an 865 Squat in November 2011 which was up from the
777 from September 2010 that I mentioned earlier. So in my mind the training
was perfect. It wasn’t until I went through a string of bad meets and bomb
outs from November 2011 all the way through June 2013, that I started to

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question my methods and finally decided that I needed to start practicing my
competition style Squat in the gym a little more often. This meant full gear,
with no box. I kept the Box Squat in on DE day every single week.

I would do a Box Squat variation in just briefs once per month on ME day and
once per month I would practice free squatting in my full gear. This method
led me to an 876 Squat in December 2013. This was my first time actually
making it through Squat on meet day in over 2 years and an 11 lbs PR to boot!
I knew I was onto something, so I repeated the same method for my next few
training cycles. Next meet in May 2015 I hit an 885 Squat. Then in October
2015 I finally broke the 900 lbs barrier with a 905 Squat on my second attempt
and topped it off with 935 on my third attempt.

That may sound like good progress to some and I was certainly proud of it at
the time. But I still knew there was more I could be doing to improve my
Squat. I was getting a little more comfortable and confident in my free squat
and I had added nearly 60 lbs to my meet Squat in a year and a half but in
that same time I had added 90 to 100 lbs to most of my Box Squat variations
on ME day. It was then that I started to go back and analyze all of my training
videos and realized that if the box would have been pulled out from under
me, without me knowing, on all of those ME box squat variations that I was so
proud of, that my training partners would have been scraping me off the
floor.

They weren’t pretty. Plopping. Rocking. Collapsing. Swaying. Swinging.

Crashing. All of the bad box squat habits I mentioned earlier. I wasn’t box
squatting like that on purpose. In fact, I thought they were good at the time.
But once I would get a heavy weight on my back and refer to default mode, I
knew that box was behind me to save me and hide my flaws. So I would

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squat down to the box as quickly as I could and fight the weight back up in
whatever terrible position I allowed myself to get into on the way down. I
decided the best way to remedy that problem was to completely toss the
box to the side for an entire training cycle and just get really comfortable free
squatting and see what would happen.

So that’s what I did! Initially, all of my DE work felt slower and slightly more
unstable in the bottom, using the same weights and band tensions as before.
All of those ME Box Squat variations were all down 40-50 lbs when I repeated
the same variations without the box. Most notably, my hamstrings and glutes
were more sore than they had ever been before after every single squat
session and I had a lot less back pain and discomfort throughout my regular
day life than ever before.

Considering we’re always told to find what we suck at and do it until it gets
better, I felt like I hit the jackpot! I find a simple way to take what I thought
was my strongest and my favorite lift and make it harder than ever before. So
I stuck with it, even though my numbers were down at first, and I didn’t use a
box at all for the next six months and over that time my ME free squat
variations started to catch up to and even beat some of my old box squat
variations. My speed work started to feel more natural and explosive.

My full gear Squat started to feel stronger than ever in the bottom and I was
on track to Squat 1,000 lbs when I herniated a disc in my thoracic 8 weeks out
from the meet, while picking 955 out of the rack when it was in a bad position
on my back. That kind of derailed my training. But I still went to the meet in
July 2016 and opened with 915 (only 20 lbs under my PR) and took 1,005 twice
and got turned down for depth on both of them. Despite the little setback

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that meet prep and despite missing the 1,005 on depth, I knew I had found a
key to unlock the next several levels of progress in my Squat.

I went on to Squat 1,005 again in October 2016 and this time it passed. Then
1,008 in April 2017. Then 1085 in April 2018. Then 1,107 in November 2018. And
most recently 1,124 in March of 2020. I haven’t box squatted once during that
time period. A lot of people would say that I’m one of the more consistent
and efficient multi ply Squatters in the world today and I don’t think that
would be the case if I had remained a slave to the Box Squat. There are
plenty of people who have had great success with Box Squats. So they can
work and they do work. But I, unfortunately, was not able to make them work
for me. So that is why I don’t Box Squat!

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 The Equipped Bench Press

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In my humble opinion, no single piece of equipment has altered powerlifting
as much as the bench shirt. There are two main reasons for this.

1) Shirted bench technique is radically different from raw bench technique.

While a suited squat requires reasonably similar technique to a raw squat,
shirted bench technique is nothing like raw.

2) A properly used bench shirts can inflate bench numbers by a higher

percentage than typically experienced in squat or deadlift gear. You do not
need to be a great raw bencher to put up world class geared numbers. Nor
will you automatically have a great shirt bench if you are strong raw.

These points are also why the bench shirt has historically been, and continues
to be the most controversial piece of powerlifting equipment.

Like it or not however, the bench shirt is here to stay, and it is only getting
more advanced each year.

The most basic bench shirt is the closed back, single ply shirt. The polyester
versions of these shirts are allowed in any federation that allows gear.
Because of the closed back, there is little room to adjust the fit of the shirt,
which is good for a beginner. These shirts will offer support, without excessively
shrinking the margin of error during the lift. Single ply, closed back shirts are
almost always made of polyester although you’ll occasionally see a denim or
canvas (not recommended, the risk of blowout is high).

Multi-ply shirts are almost always open back. The reason for the open back is
that it allows the lifter to wear the shirt lower or higher on the chest in order to
get more or less support. Many of these shirts will have heavily reinforced

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collars which support the majority of the load. Although denim shirts are still
popular, they continue to be phased out by the new generations of polyester
shirts, which offer just as much support, but with more rebound.

While you still see denim shirts around from time to time, theist majority are
polyester. Although the best multiply squat suits are made primarily of canvas,
canvas shirts, while popular in the 90s were already falling out of favor by the
early 00’s. While denim and canvas offer great stopping power, so do many
polyester shirts, but with much more rebound.

Types of Bench Shirts Single ply

The most basic bench shirt is the closed back, single ply shirt. Single ply, closed
back shirts are almost always made of polyester although you’ll occasionally
see a single ply denim or canvas, which I do not recommend due to the high
risk of blowout.

The single ply, closed back was the first bench shirt created and they are
still made today, although there are much better products out there that
fall within the same category of shirt.

These old-school bench shirts, while hugely influential when introduced, flat
out suck by today’s standard. Since they are made of the same material all
around, they are a bitch to get on, and the thin polyester will cut the hell out
of your triceps, without much carryover in return.

The new breed of singles are more comfortable, and offer far more sup-
port than their predecessors. In fact, one of these shirts, when worn by an
experienced bencher can significantly outperform the early generation

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multi-ply shirts. These polyester single ply shirts are usually allowed in any
federation that allows gear.

Because of the closed back, there is less room to adjust the fit of the shirt,
which is ok for a beginner, although most new single ply shirts have a stretchy
back, which allows more flexibility, while still fulfilling these federations’
requirements of a closed back shirt.

These new generation single ply shirts will offer a lot of support, usually with a
greater margin of error the margin of error than their multi-ply counterparts.
There are far more similarities between the new breed of single ply and
multiply shirts than there are differences.

Multiply Shirts

Multi-ply shirts are usually either 2 or 3 plys thick, although I’ve seen thicker
(that’s what she said). They are almost always open back because it allows
the lifter to wear the shirt lower or higher on the chest in order to get more
or less support. Most of these shirts will have heavily reinforced collars which
can be adjusted to support the majority of the load.

Although denim and canvas shirts are still around, they continue to be
phased out by the new generations of polyester shirts, which offer just as
much support, but with more rebound.

The new breed of bench shirt materials also gives lifters a wide variety of
characteristics from which to choose from. A shirt made from a stretchy
material gives beginners support while still allowing them a large margin of
error A stiffer shirt will offer more stopping power, but at the expense of

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rebound.

There are also stretchy shirts designed for advanced benchers, which offer
maximum rebound with great stopping power. Generally speaking, the
Inzer Phenom seems to offer the most desirable balance of stretch to
stopping power for most lifters (depending on material).

Getting It On

Despite obvious differences between open and closed-backed shirts,

there is not a whole lot of difference between how you will actually wear
them, but getting into the damn things is where open-backs reign
supreme. Just put your arms through the sleeves like a smock, and you’re
in. You might need to have a training partner help you pull your arms on all
the way from the back, but that’s about it.

Some shirts, like the Jack and Overkill even have tabs sewn onto the back
so that your training partners can help pull you into it.

Closed-back shirts, by contrast, are a flat-out pain in the ass. The best way
to get one on is to get the sleeves as far as you can before putting your
head through the neck-hole. You will need your training partners to work
the arms up, because you’ll pretty much be worthless.

Once the arms are up as much as they can go, put your head through,
and have your training partners (or whomever else you can coerce into
helping) work the shirt down your torso. Due to the friction of the material
against your body, they won’t be able to pull the shirt from the bottom,
but instead will have to pinch the material towards the top, and work

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down.

Chest Plate and Collar

The chest plate and collar provide the majority of resistance during the lift,
and where you set them on your chest will have a huge impact on both
your technique and the amount of support you get.

Generally speaking, the higher you wear the collar on your chest, the less
support you will get and the higher the bar will touch on your chest (higher
meaning towards your head. The lower the collar, the more support and
the lower the touch point

Some shirt manufacturers allow the option of a “scooped” neck, which

means you can get the support of a low collar without having to pull the
shirt as low.

Most shirt benchers will wear their shirt higher on opening attempts and
warm-ups, then pull it lower as the weight gets heavier. This is a skill that
takes a while to master, but when you get good at it, you will have much
more adaptability between attempts.

I know of one high profile lifter who actually had lines tattooed on his chest
to take the guesswork out of setting his collar. Tell that to your significant
other the next time they tell you that you’re too obsessed with powerliftng.
Also, I’m not sure why I’m being vague about the lifter, it was my old
elitefts teammate Chad Aichs.

Personally, I’m a little bit of an anomaly. I wore my Ace very high on all

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attempts so that the stress is on the chest plate rather than the collar. I’ve
found that in a tight, stiff shirt, benching on the chest plate makes the shirt
a little more pliable and more consistent.

On my opener, the collar is practically across my neck. By my third, it’s

about at the collarbone. This works great for me, but I don’t know of any
other pros who do it like this. Most use the progression I’ve outlined above.

Sleeves

The sleeves also play an integral part in bench technique. With your arms
all the way in your sleeves, you will get support, but not as much as
possible.

For the most possible support, many lifters will create a crease behind their
triceps by having their training partner pinch the material over the triceps,
and pull it down. The result will be the hem of your sleeves in the same
spot, but the top of the shirt pulled down somewhat with the crease
behind your triceps. The lower the crease, the more support, but the more
technical the lift becomes.

As with the chest plate, I have kind of an unconventional approach here. I

prefer a shirt with very tight sleeves and I keep my arms all the way in.
Creasing tends to work very well with either a stretchy or lose shirt.

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Fit

So how tight should a bench shirt be? Tight.

Most pros will wear their shirts tight enough to bruise, or even draw blood.

A good rule of thumb is that the stretchier the material, the tighter the shirt
will be. Since I’m short with good technique, I can get away with a stiff
shirt, worn very tight

The key to shirt tightness is making sure that it is tight in the right places.
Some lifters prefer a shirt that’s very tight in the arms, but has a generous
chest plate that they can tweak by wearing it high or low.

Others like the arms a bit loose, so they have a little more freedom to
tweak the arms. I personally like my arms tight, but the chest slightly loose.
A small chest plate tends to screw up my technique. For me, the chest is
too tight when I have trouble setting my hands on the bar.

Technical Mastery of the Bench Press

When you’re trying to move the heaviest weights possible, technique is

everything. Nowhere is this fact more evident than in the shirted bench,
where even the slightest mistake can be catastrophic. Not to mention the
fact that any movement that does not contribute to lifting the bar is
shaving pounds off your max.

When handling limit weights, efficiency is the name of the game. The one

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of the biggest differences between shirted benching and raw benching is
the muscles that you rely on. Raw benchers tend to rely more on their pecs
and shoulders to press the weight out of the bottom position.

Due to the resistance applied by the shirt itself, pec strength is less
important in a shirted bench. Instead, shirted benchers must build powerful
triceps in order to lock out the heavier weights.

Equally important is a thick, strong back. While back strength is important

for all benchers, Shirted benchers especially need lat strength to pull the
bar into the support and stabilize themselves during the lift. The majority of
bench shirts are designed to allow the lifter to tuck their elbows into their
sides during the bar’s descent. Tucking the elbows accomplishes two
important tasks.

First, the tucking motion reduces the support of the shirt somewhat, allowing
the bar to touch the chest/belly more easily.

Second, just like in raw benching, tucking your elbows causes the bar to
touch at the lower chest/belly, drastically shortening the range of motion
and alleviating stress on the shoulder joint.

The Set-up

When you start getting into heavy weights, what you do before the start of
the lift is just as critical as what you do during it. If you are not 100 percent
locked in before the lift starts, you will be far more likely to make mistakes
and miss the lift.

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From the time you begin the descent to the time you hear the “rack”
command, you want everything to be automatic, and this is only possible
with a bullet-proof setup. You DO NOT want to find yourself mid-lift with a
big weight, trying to make corrections.

When I teach new lifters to set up, I will generally start with the feet, and
work my way up.

Feet

There are two generally accepted ways to set the feet while shirt
benching. Tucked and flat. The right set-up will depend on the lifter, but I
recommend experimenting with both.

Tucked

This style of set-up was popularized by Bill Crawford, and is still used by tons
of elite and pro level benchers. The idea of the tucked foot position is to lift
the arch as possible, while staying tight and avoiding lifting the butt off the
bench.

Some lifters like to set their feet first, and then use a back-bridging
movement to get into position. Others will set their backs on the bench
first, then inch their feet into position while laying down.

In either case, the idea is to tuck your feet under the bench as much as
possible, at least until they are under your lower back. Basically you will
want to tuck them back until you can’t get them another inch further, at
which point you’ll have another 3 inches to go.

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Once you are in position, you should have the balls of your feet firmly
planted with your thighs at least a 45 degree angle to the floor. During the
bench, you will drive your heels down towards the floor as hard as you
can, which will drive your arch up, and stabilize you on the bench.

This is NOT a comfortable position, and you will experience quite a bit of
lower back soreness as you adjust. This will pass in time though. Some lifters
will have trouble getting into and holding the arched position.

A simple way to fix this is with the use of either PVC pipes or a foam roller.
All you need to do is lay on the bench with the pipe or roller in the small of
your back, and practice arching over it.

To avoid straining your back, start out with a small pipe or half roller and
gradually work your way up.

While the tucked position can be incredibly effective when performed

correctly, it will be equally ineffective if performed half-assed. The most
common mistake I see lifters make when attempting this position is lie on
the bench perfectly flat, with just the toes on the ground. This is sometimes
due to a misunderstanding of the technique, but is most often due to poor
flexibility.

If you lack the hip and back flexibility to get into a fully tucked position,
then you’d be better off using a flat-footed setup.

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Flat-footed

The flat-footed style works well for lifters who are either too inflexible, or
have big bellies, and do not need the maximum arch that the tucked
position provides. While most lifters won’t be able to arch quite as much,
the trade-off is increased stability from the wider base of support.

The key to benching with flat feet is to set them wide enough to provide
maximum stability while avoiding your butt popping up during the bench.
Your knees should be at about a 90 degree angle with your heels turned
out as much as possible, which tightens up the hip joint. Throughout the lift,
drive your knees out HARD, like you would in a squat, which will contract
your glutes, and improve stability.

Hands

Every serious power bar on the market will have a ring on each side so that
you can space your hands evenly. Use them. This may seem like a no-
brainer, but novice benchers screw this up routinely. Incidentally,
competition legal lines should be 81 centimeters apart.

I mention this because some bars (like Olympic weightlifting bars, which
suck for benching anyway) will be different. Other bars, will have the
spacing correct, but will also have additional sets of lines (like CrossFit bars,
which suck for both benching and Olympic lifting).

If you are unsure if your bar is meet legal, just take a tape measure to it
and find out. For bars with multiple sets of rings, mark the correct ones with

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some chalk so that you will know which ones to use when you’re on the
bench.

With a tight bench shirt, you may find it very difficult to set your hands up
by yourself. A spotter can be a big help here by pushing your hands out to
the rings for you. Shorter lifters can bring their hands in a little closer, but I
can put my hands all the way out, even though I’m only 5’5”.

As with the raw bench, you can use either a full or thumbless grip. I
recommend a full grip because of the increased chance of a drop that
comes with shirted benching. Granted, if 500+ lbs is gonna fall, your
thumbs probably won’t stop it. But I do feel that the thumbs around grip
allows you to squeeze the bar harder.

Upper Back

Setting the upper back is even more critical in a shirted bench than raw
because the shirt will oftentimes make it difficult to pull your shoulders
back. Not to mention the fact that when handling hundreds of pounds
over your raw max, the slightest movement can throw you off balance.

Before you even begin to unrack the weight, your upper back should be
tight, with your shoulder blades tightly pinched together. I will typically tell
beginners to try to grab the bench with their shoulder blades.

A good trick that a lot of pro benchers use to set their upper backs is to
pull their chests towards the bar to get the rear delts and rhomboids nice
and tight, then slowly lowering themselves back down to the bench
without loosening their backs.

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During the set-up process, you might find that your shirt slides up your torso
and out of position. This is easily fixed by having your training partner grab
the bottom of the shirt and pull it down. From this point, try not to move
around too much before unracking.

The Unrack

Once you are set, it’s time to take a deep breath and take your hand-off. I
generally do not recommend unracking a shirted bench by yourself
because the shirt can make it difficult to get your elbows under the bar
without losing the support of the shirt.

Unracking a big shirted bench starts with good communication between

you and your training partner. You’ll need to have some kind of agreed
upon cue or signal to begin the hand-off so that there are no false starts or
surprises.

Some lifters like to count off, some ask their spotter to count. I don’t like to
count or rely on someone else’s cue… instead, I will just nod as I take my
air and my training partners know what to do.

Your hand-off partner also needs to know exactly where you like to start
the bench from so they do not move the bar out too far or not far enough.
Some big benchers, use a 3-man hand-off, where the side spotters assist
the head spotter in lifting the bar out to you.

For this technique, you need a really good group of training partners who
know how much help to give and how far to hand it out to you. I

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personally never warmed up to this technique because I always feel a little
unbalanced when I take the weight, even though I train with an excellent
crew that knows exactly what to do

For me, nothing beats a single, strong head spotter. It doesn’t hurt that my
last hand-off man, Mike Skiba, Owner of Hellbent Barbell deadlifts 700.
Right before you actually begin the unrack, your training partner should
make sure that the bar is all the way forward in the rack. If the bar is too
far back, you may not have enough clearance to avoid hitting the racks
during the lift.

At arms length, I’ve found the ideal position to be with the bar directly
over my clavicles. Any higher and I have trouble maintaining shoulder
stability, and the bar path is increased. Lower, and I don’t have room to
bench with a slight arc towards my belly.

Once you have the bar where you want it, try to pull the bar down as
much as possible without bending your elbows. This helps set your
foundation. I find that it helps to take my last breath while I do this. I used
to unrack the bar and bench it on the same breath, in an effort to save
time and keep as tight as possible.

Once I started handling over 500lbs though, I needed the second breath
after the unrack or else I would start to black out during the lift. Getting
into the habit of the second breath is also helpful for meets where you
must wait for a “bench” command before you start your descent. If your
unrack is a little shaky, you might be waiting for a while before you’re
allowed to start the lift.
The Descent

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The toughest aspect of shirt benching is to actually pull the weight into the
support of the shirt. In fact, when big shirted benchers miss a lift, it’s just as
likely to be from difficulty touching as it is the inability to press it back up.

Since the bench shirt protects your shoulders, you can take a wider grip
shirted than you would raw. Most shirted benchers will take the widest grip
allowed in competition, which is your pointer finger on the ring. This will cut
down the distance you need to press, giving you one more mechanical
advantage.

The key to an effective descent is bar speed. Although shirted benches

look slower than raw, an experienced geared lifter is actually lowering the
bar as fast as possible under control. Otherwise, they would not be able to
get maximum rebound out of the shirt. This is generally counterintuitive to
beginners because your first instinct when lowering a heavy weight is to
slow it down and try to put on the breaks.

When you descend slowly, you are more likely to stall because with less
momentum, the barbell may not descend with enough force to stretch the
shirt.

Assuming you’ve done a good job of setting your upper back, your first
move is to break your elbows while simultaneously pulling them in. When
you see most shirted benchers lower the bar, you’ll typically hear a training
partner yell “lower, lower lower”. What they’re telling their lifter is to aim to
touch the bar at a lower point on their chest. In order to touch the bar low,
you must tuck the elbows in, otherwise you will dump the bar on your
chest. I always remind my lifters to lead with their elbows, not the bar.

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To illustrate the relationship between bar position and elbow position, look
at yourself in the mirror with you arms outstretched to your sides, then
about 45 degrees from your body, then finally, at your sides.

If you draw a straight line from elbow to elbow, you’ll notice that the lines
moves lower and lower on your torso the closer your elbows get to your
torso. If you were holding a barbell, this is where you would touch.

I also recommend trying to bend the bar as you lower it. If you try to bend
the bar into an upside down “U”, You will tighten up your lats and add
more stability at the shoulder girdle.

Some lifters will try to get the bar down by lifting their head and curling
their upper torso like the start of a crunch. This may make it easier to touch,
but it also decreases the amount of support you get from the shirt. Instead,
keep your head on the bench. As the bar inches closer to your chest/belly,
Drive the heels down hard and try to inch your belly up to meet it. If the
bar gets close but just won’t touch, you can then lift your head just a bit to
ease up on the support.

Generally the stretchier your shirt, the longer you should be able to keep
your head back. A stiffer shirt might require more head lift, because the
less the shirt stretches, the more you must manipulate your body in order to
touch.

The lower the bar gets, the more important it becomes to maintain upper
back tightness. Most benches that are lost on or close to the chest, are lost
because the lifter loses tightness and stability.

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Once the bar touches, you must hold it there until you get the “press”
command. This pause will usually be under a second, just long enough for
the bar to clearly stop, but sometimes a pickier judge will hold you there a
little longer. events like this will make you regret not training with a pause.

Alternate descent for stretchier shirts.

As shirt characteristics have evolved, so have the techniques used by top

benchers. For advanced stretchier shirts, some benchers have had success
by tucking their elbows later in the lift, as opposed to right from the get go.
This allows them to stretch the material as much as possible for maximum
rebound.

Basically you lower the bar with the elbows further out, like a raw bencher
until the bar slows, then tuck as late as possible in order to get the bar all
the way down. This method relies on the elastic properties of stretchier
shirts like the Phenom, creating more rebound. My friend Joe Ceklovsky
used this technique to become the sport’s first quadruple bodyweight
bencher, going 600 @ 148.

The Ascent

Following the “press” command, Its time to push the bar to arm’s length.
The start of the press is a critical moment because you are about to
capitalize on all of the elastic energy stored in the shirt. If you start the
press in a bad position, you will likely not recover. The most common
mistake is to mis-time opening your elbows.

If you flare the elbows out too soon, you’ll lose the support of the shirt and

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will struggle with the top half of the lift. If you do not open them early
enough, the bar can move past the support and you’ll dump it towards
your face. Not cool.

To get the bar moving in the right path, initiate the press and start opening
your elbows at the same time. Do not open them all the way right from the
start. It should be a gradual process so that your elbows are fully flared by
the time you reach the top of the lift.

Troubleshooting the Bench Press

When you’re handling hundreds of pounds above your raw max in a

backwards straight jacket, things can go wrong really, really quickly.

Missing a weight sucks, especially when it results in a dump. But by

analyzing how you miss, you can fix technical errors that are likely holding
you back from fulfilling your potential.

Here are a few common ways lifters miss weights, and how to correct the
associated flaws in technique.

Dumping towards your face

There is no scarier moment in the career of a powerlifter, than watching a

loaded barbell rapidly accelerate towards your pie-hole. Unfortunately,
this kind of miss is fairly common in equipped benching.
Usually, dumping towards your face is the result of the bar getting in front
of your elbows while arcing towards the racks. While some arc is

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necessary, it is ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL that your elbows are initiating the arc,
and not racing to keep up with the bar.

I often coach lifters to “steer with their elbows” which means allowing the
elbows to dictate the bar position. If you find yourself dumping towards
your face, first, make sure your medical insurance is up to date. Next, try
flaring your elbows earlier.

Dumping towards the belly

Almost as sucky as dumping towards the face, is dumping towards the

belly. While the face-dump usually happens on the way up, the belly-
dump usually occurs on the way down. More often than not, the belly-
dump stems from difficulty touching. Like the fact dump however, the
problem is the result of the bar not being above the elbows.

Sometimes, in an effort to touch the weight, the lifter lowers the bar too
quickly, and touches too low on the chest. When you touch too low, you
no longer have the support of the shirt holding the bar up, which causes
the bar to fall.

If bar speed is the culprit, all you need to do is exercise a bit more patients,
and give the shirt time to stretch and allow the bar to descend.

Other times, the belly dump results from too much support. When a shirt
gives too much support at the bottom, the bar may hover over the chest
and not touch. If it sticks there too long, it’s just a matter of time before it
drifts towards your feet and dumps. You can fix this issue with either a
larger shirt, a stretchier shirt, or just wear your existing one higher on the

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chest.

Missing at lockout

There are few more frustrating feelings than heaving a massive weight off
your chest, blasting through the transition point, only to miss just an inch
from lockout.

The traditional recommendation for lockout strength is lots of heavy board

work and lockouts in the rack to build triceps strength. I agree with this,
however the miss can also be technical, and not necessarily strength
related.

Your bar trajectory should be a nice gradual arc, with your elbows flaring
throughout the full range of the press. This allows you to work through any
sticking points you might encounter on the way. If you get your elbows all
the way out too early, you’ll have nowhere to go if you hit a stall.

The solution is a more conservative elbow path, turning them all the way
out right at lockout.

Missing at the bottom

If missing at the top is frustrating, missing at the bottom is fucking

demoralizing, especially if it’s on a first or second attempt. In many cases,
a miss at the bottom means the weight is just too damn heavy, but not

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always.

Sometimes the result is a poor bar path, usually too low. Just like with a
dump towards the belly, a miss at the bottom often results from touching
too low and losing support.

You might also be short changing yourself by not arching enough. Shaving
even a half inch off the bottom of the movement might be the difference
between a pr, and a miss.

If it is in fact strength related, there are a few muscle groups that could be
lagging. The obvious would be pecs and shoulders, which would be
addressed by more full range raw bench work and overhead pressing.

In my case, and with most of the lifters I’ve coached however, the issue is
usually with the upper back. If you are unable to keep a nice, tight
foundation, you will dissipate force on your initial press, and lose drive at
the bottom. Think about it… If you have two or more layers of thick
polyester or denim helping you get the bar moving, you should be able to
heave the bar right into lockout like a slingshot. unless of course your
foundation is weak.

Build a massive back with tons of heavy rows in multiple planes, and watch
your strength off the chest climb.

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Butt-lift

Regardless of how easily you press the weight, butt-lift is an automatic red
light. Butt lift is almost always due to improper set-up. If you are a tucked
bencher, butt- lift means your feet are probably not tucked far enough.
Your feet should be in a position where they can apply enough force to
stabilize you, but without enough leverage to buck your hips up.

If flat-footed your feet are probably too narrow. Set them wider and drive
the knees out harder. If you’re pushing your knees out as hard as possible,
you can remain tight, without the humping motion that causes butt-lift.
In either set-up, you must drive with your legs throughout the entire press. if
you relax on the way down and try to drive at the start of the press, you
can pop your hips up, even of your feet are in a good position.

Shaky hand-off

Nothing drains your confidence in a lift like a difficult, shaky hand-off. Not
only is a poor hand-off difficult psychologically, but it can make you start
the lift from a bad position, screwing the lift from the start.

Before you bitch at your hand-off man (who can very well be at fault),
make sure you are setting up far back enough on the bench. When you
set up too far from the racks, a few bad things happen.

First, you lose precious time and energy by pulling the bar further than you
need to.

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Second, you usually lose upper back tightness by reaching too far behind
you.

Third, you put your hand-off man in a position of bad leverage by forcing
them to bend over too far. It’s kind of like trying to start a deadlift with the
bar a foot out from your shins.

Since you should be ending the lift in the same position you start from, you
should only need a couple of inches of clearance at the start of the lift. If
you press the bar more than three inches from your start point, you will
likely lose it anyway.

I usually recommend lining the bar up with your clavicles when setting up
before the lift. This will insure your hand-off man is not over-extending to
get the bar out to you, and you do not have to loosen your upper back to
reach it. Additionally, make sure the rack is set low enough so that you do
not need to pro- tract your scapula to unrack it.

Uneven lockout

If one arm locks out significantly later than the other one, your lift will be
turned down, even if you eventually lock it all the way out.
While triceps are usually looked at as the culprit (often correctly) the
problem can also stem from your upper back loosening during the lift. This
might also be a skill issue, rather than a strength imbalance. I’ve found
that dumbbell work tend to ad- dress uneven lockout because it will force
you to work harder to remain balanced.

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Inability to touch

There was a period a couple of years ago where pro bench meets
became “bomb fests” with only a fraction of competitors actually getting
a lift in. Not only was it bad for them, but it was bad for multiply lifting as a
whole. Powerlifting sucks as a spectator sport to begin with, so who wants
to go to a meet to watch 25 of the sport’s best athletes fuck up?

You can point to specific issues here, like wearing shirts too tight, but it all
comes down to consistency. If you’re not touching weights in training, you
will not touch at the meet.

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Benching with Barzeen

Barzeen Vaziri is one of the best benchers in the world, with a meet pr of 964.
Although I don’t know him all that well, I often see him offering help to up and
coming lifters often on social media. When he heard that I was putting this
thing together he was gracious enough to offer a submission. I asked him to
put together some tips on benching, especially in Overkill shirts, as he’s been
sponsored by them for a long time.

He responded by basically writing an entire chapter on benching, which left

me with the awful decision of having to choose between his, or mine.

Then I remembered that I’m self publishing this for free and I can do whatever
the fuck I want, so I just went ahead and included his section in addition to
mine. This decision ultimately made the most sense to me for a few reasons.

First off, he’s a much different lifter than I am because I did my best lifting at
181, while Barzeen is fucking enormous. This is important because we are
coming at the same skill with two very different body types, So larger lifters will
likely relate to him more than me. He also gives clear, detailed instructions
which may resonate with some more than mine.

Barzeen has also worked with Rudy of Overkill for a very long time, so this will
be a great read for anyone considering their stuff

Either way, his submission was great, and I had no choice to include it in it’s
entirety.

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A little of my background just so you know where my perspective is coming
from.

I started on the Frantz team in late 2006 and because Ernie hadn’t made a
modern poly shirt, we were still all using denims to bench in. In 2008 or so, Rudy
Rosalles started making gear for other people on the team. He had been
involved in designing the TP5000 Frantz wraps and had always made his own
gear, but our not having modern poly gear pushed him to start Overkill. I think

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that I was the 2nd or 3rd person in his briefs and about the same in the original
black shirts.

I’ve been a test mule for every generation of Overkill shirt as well as several
prototypes that didn’t make it to market. In between Frantz and Overkill I also
had some experience in several titan shirts. As I write this, I’ve got 4 presses in
competition over 900 lbs, with a meet PR or 964 lbs. I stopped full meet
competition in 2014 after a car accident injury took a chunk of bone from my
knee, but I also had a half dozen squats over 1,000 lbs in competition and a
meet PR deadlift of 770.

Learning the shirt

Every brand/ model of bench shirt is different but the general idea is the same
- you can only get as much support as you have the strength and technique
to work.

Building strength is like adding power to the engine of a car, whereas building
technical efficiency is like improving the chassis. Knowing this, each lifter is
going to have to balance how they use their shirt in training a little differently.
A brand new lifter needs LOTS of reps to get used to the feeling of the shirt, to
learn the groove, and to develop the strength to stabilize geared benches.
So, we start new lifters off in the shirt every week. I’ll touch on how we wave
the weights later when I get to training programs. As weights get heavier and
a lifter gets more proficient in the shirt we go to every other week in the shirt
and shift the focus of the training and how we use the shirt.

In the beginning I use reps to descending boards to teach a lifter how to

move aggressively in the shirt. The first few sessions will be to high boards and

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every set is multiple reps to get used to the groove. Once a lifter looks in
control we start doing 2-3 rep sets where the first rep will be to a board they
are confident with and the second and third rep are to a lower board. I
always want a lifter to break for the descent with confidence that they are
going to touch whatever they’re touching.

A hesitant break is why so many guys struggle to get a touch in and rob
themselves of pounds from the lift by taking 10 seconds to fight the weight
before they even get to press it. By teaching lifters to use speed and descend
aggressively ( but in control) I’ve taken guys who felt like it took 800 lbs to
touch in their shirts, but they couldn’t always lock it, and gotten them to touch
with 365 in the same shirt after a month of work. Credit where it’s due, I got
this concept from Rob Luyando, and although I’ve changed his process a bit,
the idea came from him.

Breaking in a shirt

Every brand is different, but the concept is usually the same. Spray the shirt
with water, especially the seams and collar, this allows the fibers to move
more freely and will prevent some tearing. In general you break in a shirt the
same way you learn to touch in a shirt - by progressively taking it to lower
boards for several reps. Leave the collar all the way up and get some reps in
at each board. I like using really light weights for this, close to my raw max, for
really high reps (10 or so to each board).

Doing this, I’ve gotten a clean touch in my 3-ply red Overkill (the same spec
shirt that I did my 964 in) with 500 lbs. With Overkill shirts, as long as you don’t
just try to touch on your first rep the shirt pretty much handles breaking in as
fast as you can. While testing, Rudy wanted me to try to abuse my prototype

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shirt so I took 915 to a half board on my first day in it. The shirt held up great
and I did a meet in it 3 months later, but my forearms weren’t right for a solid 3
weeks.

Using the shirt in training

I look at every movement done in training as fitting in to one of 3 categories: it

can be a sport-specific movement, a strength builder, or GPP work. Using a
bench shirt in training can fit into any of the 3 categories and should be
programmed that way depending on the needs of the lifter.

Once a month I take a heavy single (90%+) in my shirt - that is a sport-specific

movement. In that moment I am training myself for how I want to compete.
On that training day I use the same warm up weights and boards that I will
use in the meet and my warm up sets always work down to my last meet
warm up at a 1-board. I worked down to a touch in the shirt every other week
when I was learning the shirts, but don’t do that as often now because I am
confident in it and because the weights have gotten big enough to where
the wear on my body isn’t always worth it.

Now, my working sets start after my warm ups and typically are to a 1 or 2
board because I typically miss at lockout and want to train that part of the
movement. That is where I start blurring the line between a sport-specific
movement and using the shirt to build strength. Although not much muscle
strength is built on a single rep, those heavy weights build tendons and will
microfracture a lifter’s bones. The bones then calcify and heal stronger to
adapt to the heavy weights.

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I learned this while trying to diagnose a forearm pain that I thought was a
possible fracture. X-Rays showed that my ulnas were straight, but my radius
bones had become curved and both bones were over twice the thickness of
what is considered the normal range. So, when I bench press, my wrists aren’t
bent, my wrists are straight now but my forearms have curved. Also, my wrist
bones are all different sizes and shapes than normal as they have adapted to
the stress of heavy weights.

Building strength in the shirt is done on my “medium” weeks where I’m taking
3-5 reps, usually to boards if I’m in my competition shirt. I also keep a few loose
shirts for training where I can touch 225 in them but have the adjustability to
go over 900 if I want. This lets me dial in almost any rep range and range of
motion I need for that training day.

Stability and the ability to control weights, especially at speed, comes from
strength and GPP work. A lifter has to have the upper back and forearm
strength but also the ability to keep that engaged throughout the lift. This is
where shirt training in the 10-20 rep range is valuable. I also use high rep sets
to train certain queues. For example, to teach lifters to keep their upper backs
engaged, I’ll do 5 sets of 20 reps ( in or out of the shirt - to boards if in the shirt)
where the lifter ONLY focuses on squeezing their upper back as hard as
possible.

Also in that GPP category but a little off in outer space is some shirt work I do
to address a very specific issue that’s really common. How many lifters have
you seen give up on a lift because “they thought they were going to pass
out”? In reality, they were nowhere near passing out, they just felt like they
were out of air and panicked. When I noticed this about myself rushing to
touch because of that same fear I addressed it through high rep sets on a

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single breath. I started in the shirt with sets of 10 on one breath and
progressed to sets of 20. Out of the shirt I started at 20 rep sets and got to the
point where I could go over 60 reps on one breath with 135 on the bar.

Training programs for the shirt

New lifters start in the shirt every week, with raw work being programmed
afterwards like an accessory movement. More advanced lifters are usually in
the shirt every other, or 2 out of 3 weeks depending on their needs and
preferences.

The overall structure for my training comes from the Frantz system. Ernie Frantz
used nothing but straight bars and straight weight, but waved the work load
every week.

New lifters start on a two week wave, a heavy and a light week.

Lifters progress to a 3 week wave (light/med/heavy).

I eventually got to the point where I went to a 4 week wave

(Heavy/Light/Medium/Light) because big weights take so much time to
recover from.

The light weeks can be taken as just going to 50% for a few singles and
actually resting, or if you feel good they can be a 10-20 rep max week.

My accessories are all in a 4 week wave. So I pick my movements to address

certain issues, and then every week for 4 weeks I’ll either add weight, reps,
sets, or decrease rest to progress.

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Different flavors of shirts

Different materials and designs of shirts change how the shirt loads, and thus,
how it is worn and used. Stretchier shirts like the Overkill Redline and the SDP
are worn low and designed to stretch more to give the same rebound.
Typically these shirts are dialed in with both the collar and the sleeves being
pulled up or down to adjust the support of the shirt.

Stiffer shirts like Titan shirts, Rage X, and Overkill’s Black shirts load a lot more
progressively and favor lifters with shorter ranges of motion. Typically these
shirts give a faster pop off of the chest, but taper off more at lockout than
stretchier shirts. The stiffer shirts are loaded more through the collar and way
less through adjusting the sleeves because pulling the sleeves down with this
stiff of a material makes it ridiculous to be able to touch in. I also put the
laminated Metal brand shirts in this category.

If you look at the material they use it’s stretchier, like the SDP, but because of
the layers of foam lamination between the layers of fabric the feel is much
more progressive, like an Overkill Black or Rage X, but the stop is a little less
defined - more spongy.

Adjusting a shirt

Lifters have two main ways to adjust the shirt; the collar and the sleeves.
Pulling a collar lower adjusts tension on the chest plate and changes what
part of the shirt a lifter is loading as they press - lower collar gives more support
but makes it harder to touch. I typically size my shirts so that I can touch my
opener with the collar set all the way up where it naturally falls, and then I can

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make adjustments for my 2nd and 3rd attempts (or if I’m down weight and
warm ups aren’t moving like usual).

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Pulling the sleeves of a shirt lower is a much more drastic change than pulling
the collar down. By reaching under the triceps of a lifter and pulling the top of
the sleeve lower onto the triceps you are doing two things - you’re changing
where on the lever (arm) the shirt’s force is acting, and you’re also pulling the
shirt in a longer range of motion - stretching the material further and loading it
up more.

Pulling the sleeves lower does the same thing that used to be common when
lifters would order a shirt with sleeves made shorter than normal. If the cuff of
the sleeve is at the elbow and the sleeve is an inch shorter, then the top of
the sleeve will be an inch lower.

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 169
Learning a bench shirt is more than just learning the groove and how to stay
tight, it’s also learning how to adjust it for different circumstances. For
example, if you come in lighter than usual and need more support you have
to know how much to dial the shirt in for that - that comes from experience.
Or, if you come in heavy at a meet, you have to know how high you can pull
the shirt and how much/where to wet the shirt down to get a clean touch.
There are also two schools of thought on adjusting the shirt for training.

One school of thought is that you set the shirt as though you were going to
touch with that weight, so the boards are just stopping you part way. The

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other school of thought is that you set the shirt so that you can barely touch
the board. This allows you to train with heavier weights, which can be
beneficial for some lifters, but also paints an unrealistic picture of where the
lifter is actually at full-range.

Bench shirt specific strengths

There’s the obvious “triceps strength/ lockout power” that needs to be

developed to bench big in a shirt, but there are two areas that are equally or
more important to me - the upper back and forearms/grip. This goes back to
the idea that you can’t lift a weight that you can’t control. Very early in my
career I saw a cover of Powerlifting USA with Scot Mendelsson and Ryan
Kennelly facing each other and from the side you could see their upper back
and rear delts were enormous.

Sure enough, on every big bencher I’ve ever met, they all have way bigger
upper backs than you’d expect. Any row variation you can do with your
elbows out is going to be bench press gold. You can also train this by doing
several high rep bench press sets with a very light weight, while isometrically
squeezing your upper back as hard as possible.

Forearm and hand strength is what got me from being an 800-class presser to
the 900+ club. I ran a year-long wave of pinch grip hammer curls using
olympic bumper plates, as well as two other rotating forearm movements or
grip training movements twice a week. The most blatant example of the
benefit of these came Spring of 2020 when I took my planned 935 opener for
my meet (that was canceled). I had someone new calling me in and

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because of a mix-up I ended up touching my belly, about 4 inches lower than
normal.

To most guys this would result in a 935 lb dump and losing control, but I was
able to reverse curl the weight slowly back over my elbows and carefully
press the weight to lockout. Because of my upper back staying tight and the
forearm strength I had built, I was able to stay in control of a weight at over
90% that had gotten horribly out of the groove. – Barzeen Vasiri.

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 Equipped Deadliftng

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The deadlift is an interesting lift when it comes to gear. On one hand, you
have far less potential carryover than the squat and bench press. On the
other, deadlift gear can be no less difficult and frustrating to use. Deadlift
gear tends to favor leaner athletes, while the squat and bench are almost
always improved with some girth added to the midsection.

Deadlift technique also varies more than the other lifts, since lifters have
the option to pull either conventional or sumo. A suit cut for the
conventional pull generally should not be the same as a sumo deadlift suit.
Deadlift suits can be so frustrating that I’ve known numerous lifters who felt
that they just aren’t worth the meager carryover and just pull without
them, either raw, or with a brief only.

While the biggest lifters tend to get the most carryover in the squat and
bench, a large waist can make it extremely difficult to get into the starting
position in gear, limiting the amount of carryover they can get. In fact,
most of the lifters I know who can’t seem to make deadlift suits work are in
the heavier classes.

The main reason for the smaller carryover is the deadlift itself. The deadlift
is the only lift that does not begin with an eccentric contraction (lowering
phase) before the actual lift. In both the squat and bench, you can use
much more support because you can rely on the weight to stretch the
gear and force you into a full range of motion.

The deadlift, by contrast, starts at the floor, so your gear must be forgiving
enough to allow you to lower your hips into the start position on your own.

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If your gear is too tight, you’ll never get your hips low enough and you’ll
never even get break the bar off the floor due to a poor start position,
even with all the support.

Even so, every pound counts towards your total, so although the deadlift
has the least potential for carryover, it is absolutely critical to learn your
deadlift gear inside and out so you can wring every last ounce out of it.
The last place you want to find yourself at the end of a meet is 5 lbs
behind the winner because you were too lazy/frustrated to tweak your
gear just a little bit more.

Deadlift Suit Variations

Most deadlift suits look like beefed up singlets. While Velcro straps tend to be
the standard in the multiply squat, many deadlift suits still come with
continuous straps, although Velcro is usually optional. Single ply deadlift suits
are common in multiply because the celling for too much support tends to be
low, especially in the conventional pull. Many multiply suits will have two plys
in the back, but only one in the front to minimize material bunching at the hip,
which can throw you off.

Not all geared lifters pull in a traditional deadlift suit. Some larger lifters find the
suit too restrictive and will pull raw, even in meets that allow gear. Many sumo
pullers, myself included have found that a squat suit will provide better
support than even a suit designed specifically for the sumo pull.

Still others will deadlift in a squat brief worn under a singlet. Lifters who make
this choice do so because they like the support at the hip, without straps

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pulling down on their upper backs.

To make the most out of your particular technique, you’ll have to find out
what variation works best for you.

Conventional Deadlift

Compared to the other competitive lifts, the conventional deadlift is

regarded by most lifters as the truest test of strength. While technique is
certainly important, It’s generally not quite as make or break as in say, a
shirted bench.

The Setup

The hardest time most beginners have with the deadlift suit is getting used to
pulling yourself into position, rather than letting gravity do the work. A good
suit will fit so tight, you may not be able to grab the bar with both hands at
the same time. In this case, try grab the bar with one hand, than use that
hand to pull yourself down to the bar and grab it with the other hand.

Your shins should be about 2-4 inches from the bar at the start of the pull, so
that your shoulder joint is not in front of the bar at the start of the pull. The
more bent over you are, the tougher the lift will be. Larger lifters, who might
have trouble getting into this position can start with the bar further out, and
then roll the bar towards them “catching” it in the proper position as they start
the pull. This method takes some practice to learn, but it can be very
effective.

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Most lifters will be strongest with their feet closer than shoulder width. Too
wide, and your hands will be too far out, putting you at a mechanical
disadvantage (you will have to pull a longer distance). Bigger lifters however,
may need to set their hands wider in order to avoid their hands catching on
their big midsections.

The most popular grip by far is the over-under grip. This means that one hand
takes an overhand grip while the other takes an underhand grip. This hand
position is stronger than a double overhand grip because it allows you to
torque the bar into your own hands as you pull. Just make sure that you are
placing your hands on the bar correctly. The pinky on your underhand side
should be in the same place (relative to the lines on the bar) as the pointer
finger on the overhand side.

Some lifters prefer a hook grip as used by Olympic lifters. The hook grip looks
like a double overhand grip except that you are grasping the bar you’re your
thumbs between the bar and your fingers. Although uncomfortable, this grip
can be advantageous because your upper body is more aligned and you
are reducing the risk of a biceps tear, which the underhand grip leaves you
more susceptible to.

Unlike the squat and bench, which have an eccentric (lowering) phase,
followed by a concentric (lifting) phase, the deadlift has only a lowering
phase. While this makes for a simpler lift, you do miss out on the elastic energy
that the lowering phase provides, especially in gear. With the right set-up
however, you can create this effect.

Before starting the lift, allow your hips remain high. When you are ready to
pull, start by actually pulling your hips down against the bar. This will create

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tension as well as a pre-stretch in your posterior chain as well as give you a
smooth transition from a dead-stop into the lift. This technique, while
important in the raw deadlift is absolutely critical in the equipped deadlift.

Without an eccentric component, the deadlift is actually the toughest lift to

start, because the suit is going to make it very difficult to pull your hips in. Most
of the deadlift’s I’ve missed due to technique have been lost close to the start
position because I was not able to get into an optimal position.

With a properly fitting suit, you’ll find that the bar flex is a great way to gauge
if your start position is correct. The best deadlifters will start the pull with a LOT
of flex already in the bar. This flex is one of the few reliable indicators you’re
pulling yourself in forcefully enough.

You will be ready to pull when your hips are down, lower back is neutral, head
is up and your shoulders are slightly behind the bar.

The Pull

Once you have pulled yourself into position, you have a very small window of
opportunity to begin the pull before you lose the stretch reflex. Only a second
or so. Be sure not to lose the tension you built up when you initially pulled
yourself down. Nothing makes me cringe like watching a novice deadlifter
literally snapping the slack out of their arms while starting a deadlift. The
transition from pulling yourself down to pulling the bar off the floor should be
seamless.

Keep your head up for the duration of the pull. Much like the squat, it helps to

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find a high focus point to stare at during the lift. As you pull, you want to keep
the bar as close to you as possible. The further from your body it gets, the
poorer your leverage. Most lifters will apply baby powder or water (if allowed)
to their legs, so that the bar can slide up their thighs with minimal drag.

Once the bar clears the knees, lean back as much as you can. The weight will
counterbalance you. Just avoid locking the hips before the knees you might
get red-lighted for a hitch. You’ll often hear handlers yell “hips, hips, hips!” to
their lifter during the second half of the lift. This is to cue their lifter to push their
hips forward to complete the lift.

As you lock the weight out, it’s a good idea to start letting out some air, but
not enough so that you lose all your tightness. This will help prevent you from
passing out.

Sumo Deadlift

The sumo deadlift is a competition legal variation of the deadlift that is

especially useful for stocky lifters, who often have poor leverages for the
conventional deadlift.

The sumo pull is also advantages to lifters whose hip strength exceeds their
back strength, essentially turning the lift into a squat. This use of leverage also
makes gear more effective for sumo pullers than conventional pullers. The
sumo deadlift is the true gearwhore’s deadlift of choice. In fact, if it were up
to me this sport would consist of squatting, benching then squatting again.

So until the powers that be come to their senses, I guess pulling sumo in a

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canvas suit is the next best thing.

The Setup

The sumo deadlift gets its name from the wide stance used, which mimics the
stance taken by sumo wrestlers while preparing for a match. Your sumo
stance will look much like your squat stance, although you can normally point
your toes out a little further.

The actual width of your stance will vary, but in most cases, you do not want
your heels to be much wider than your knees. While a super wide stance will
minimize the distance you need to pull, it can also disengage your hip flexors
and give you stability issues at the top of the pull.

Start the movement by pulling yourself down to the bar, much like you would
with the conventional pull. Push your knees out much like you would with the
squat. If you are pulling in a suit, Force your lower back arch hard, or else the
suit can cause you to round over.

This initial pull into the start position is even more important in the sumo
deadlift than in conventional. Being a more technical lift by nature, your start
position will make the difference between an easy lift, and barely bending
the bar.

Chris Della Fave probably has the best sumo deadlift set-up I’ve ever seen. He
also has a 900 deadlift, so it’s safe to say there’s a correlation here. When
Chris starts the pull, he doesn’t just pull his hips down to the bar, he cranks
them down so fucking hard that he flexes the bar up just as much as he pulls

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his hips down. The start of the pull is basically when his hips and the bar
basically meet in the middle.

By the time his hips are in position, he’s also planting his glutes into the support
of the suit, which helps him lever the bar off the floor. When he times all this
just right, It’s scary efficient, and it gives him the fastest start I’ve ever seen.
Chris’s sticking point is at the top, but I believe he could get 950 past his knees
before losing momentum.

The Pull

Try to find a focal point just above your eye line, and use it to avoid dropping
your head during the lift. The key to the sumo deadlift is keeping the bar as
close to your body as possible. With the wide stance and toes out position,
you have very little front to back stability, and any forward movement of the
barbell can pitch you forward and end the lift. While you’ll be trying to lean
back, the weight should follow a totally linear path.

Try to avoid leaning too far back at the top. It’s very easy to lose your
balance backwards in sumo. You also run the risk of unlocking your knees
before the down call.

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 Sizing up the Gear Companies.

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No gear book would be complete without going into the gear itself. Obviously
getting into every piece ever made would be a huge pain in the ass to both
write and read, but fortunately it won’t have to come to that. The fact is that
although there are tons of pieces of gear on the market, you’ll rarely see
many of them on a pro platform.

So in order to save space, I’m not gonna cover every piece from every
company. Instead, I’ll simply describe each company in general terms, than
go into a few standout pieces that you should check out.

The fact is that when you’re starting out in multiply, you’d probably be better
off starting with used gear. It’s cheaper and already broken in, which will
allow you to experiment and see what works for you and what doesn’t. So
please don’t read this and try to decide which piece will work for you based
on my description. Without actually lifting in something, you really have no
idea about it.

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Inzer Advance Designs

OK, I’m gonna have to lay this out before we go any further… I do not have
any sort of financial interest in, or bias towards Inzer. In fact, I spent most of my
pro career wearing Metal as part of my sponsorship deal with elitefts. But the
fact is that Inzer gear is immensely popular in multiply, and it is for a reason.
The stuff works, and it works with a wide range of lifters and ignoring Inzer’s
popularity just to appear impartial would be dishonest.

Inzer, or IAD has been the biggest player in the gear game since well before I
discovered powerlifting in the mid-90s. Founded by powerlifter John Inzer, IAD
was the first company to mass market a bench press shirt, and lays claim to
some of the most popular shirts and suits on the market.

While Inzer did not invent the canvas squat suit (Ernie Frantz did) the Inzer
Leviathan is by far the most popular canvas suit on the market. Similarly, the
Super Duper Phenom is the most sought-after multi-ply bench shirt. While
Inzer’s multi-ply gear is generally regarded as the industry leader, their single
ply line seems to be showing it’s age a bit and now lags behind Titan’s more
robust offerings.

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Looking at their website, Inzer’s product line probably needs to be paired
down quite a bit. A large percentage of products on the site are now badly
outdated, which makes things confusing for a new buyer who lacks
guidance. Looking at their bench shirt page a few minutes ago, most of the
shirts offered are completely out of date (including blast shirts which are 30
years old), and just not worth the money anymore.

If you just want a light, easy to use shirt to train in, a slingshot-type device
would be much more comfortable and provide more support.

Customer service

My own experiences buying from Inzer have always been very good, and
most of the lifters I know say the same.

The single biggest issue I see popping up time after time is the sizing of their
most popular shirt, the Super Duper Phenom. Although the shirt is fantastic
when it fits, there really doesn’t seem to be much consistency with the sizing.
Most lifters I know who buy shirts from them often go through multiple
exchanges/alteration before getting the damn things right.

The Gear

O.G. Leviathan

The O.G. Leviathan is one of the most iconic and influential pieces of gear on
the market. While Ernie Frantz deserves credit for introducing the squat suit to
the market, Inzer is by far the most used suit in the sport. Although newer,

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more innovative suit have popped up since it was first introduced (including
Inzer’s own Ultra Pro version of the same suit), The Leviathan more than holds
it’s own today with some of the sports greatest lifters (including the G.O.A.T.
Dave Hoff) sticking with what works.

The Leviathan was the first mass produced canvas suit to effectively
incorporate polyester in its design, making it technically a hybrid suit. In doing
so, Inzer produced a suit that was more forgiving than other canvas suits,
provided some polyester-like “pop” out of the hole, while still offering strong
support. Its relatively short legs make it a great choice for wide stance
squatters.

Despite being a proven winner (and immensely popular) the O.G. is not
without it’s disadvantages. Although not as stiff as a pure canvas, the O.G. is
no longer the most forgiving suit on the market. Adjustable options, like the
Ultra Pro and Metal Jack Canvas offer similar support, but withmore flexibility.
This means fewer alterations and less chance of growing (or bloating) out of it.

The O.G. also has very thick straps, which can make it difficult to feel the bar
on your back, which can make it a little more likely to roll off your back during
the squat.

Not really a disadvantage since it generally inconsequential, but the seams of

the outer layer of polyester on the sides generally will separate early on,
exposing the black layer beneath. This looks awful, but doesn’t ever seem to
make a difference, either in performance, or the life of the suit. It’s just kind of
a quirk that Leviathan owner just ignore.

All things considered, and despite it starting to show it’s age, the Inzer

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Leviathan is still a great choice for a multiply lifter of any level. It’s also among
the easiest to find used, as it’s now been on the market for close to 20 years.

Ultra Pro Leviathan

Just as the O.G. was an evolution in suit design (Although Frantz had made a
similar suit in small batches 10 years prior), the Ultra Pro may very well
represent the future of squat suit design. The most noticeable design element
of the suit is the paracord lacing up and down both sides of the suit. By
tightening the straps, you can achieve a more personalized fit, even if your
weight tends to fluctuate.

Another huge advantage of the Ultra Pro is that the adjustability makes it far
easier to get the correct fit without needing to exchange or alter it. Since
each size has more range than solidly constructed suits, Inzer doesn’t need to
stock as many sizes, making for a less confusing experience while buying. The
suit is very supportive, but users of both often report the Ultra Pro having a bit
more give than an O.G. This is not necessarily a bad thing, especially if you’re
a beginner.

The single biggest disadvantage of the Utra Pro is that it’s, for lack of a better
term, a fucking pain in the ass to get on. The laces are time consuming to
tighten and lock in place, so count on needing plenty of time to get into it,
both in training and at meets.

Overall, I think this is a great choice for beginners because it can literally grow
with you (especially if you buy it slightly big). Since most novice lifters tend to
get bigger in their first few years of training, you’ll probably save yourself a few

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hundred bucks by not needing to buy another one after a year in the sport.

One important note about the Ultra Pro... When this suit was first brought to
market, it had zippers down each side of the chest plate to make it easier to
get into. These did NOT work as planned, and blew out left and right. Inzer
quickly scrapped them, but. If you see a used Ultra Pro on the market and it
has the zippers, steer clear.

T-Rex

The Inzer T-Rex squat suit is Inzer’s lone multiply option in polyester (aside from
the Inzer Hardcore, which is just their flagship single ply suit with a double ply
option) The T-Rex is considered by most lifters to be more of a beginner level
multiply suit. While it won’t offer the same support as a canvas and isn’t
terribly popular among pros, The T-Rex is still a viable option for beginners due
to its relative ease of use, and low price tag compared to other multiply
offerings.

While hardly a flagship offering from Inzer, The suit is well made like all Inzer
products, and would serve the average beginner well, but I would plan to
trade up relatively early.

Predators

It would probably make sense that the most popular squat suit on the market
is usually paired with the most popular brief. Unlike the Leviathans, the Inzer
predator brief doesn’t offer features that other offerings don’t, Like most

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briefs, it’s basically just the bottom half of a multiply polyester suit. But what it
lacks in innovation, it makes up for in ease of use and performance.

Made of the same polyester as the Rage X shirt and the T-Rex suit, the
predator offers a surprisingly effective combination of elasticity and support.
Although I spent most of my later years in Metal gear, I did experiment with a
pair of predators leading up to my last meet and really liked them. I found
them to be very easy to squat in, but still got great support through the entire
lift. If you have your heart set on an Inzer squat suit, you probably won’t go
wrong by picking these up as well.

Since they’re obviously worn under the suit, it’s much tougher to speculate
how many records have been set in these things vs. suits or shirts. I would
guess however that the majority of big squatters out there wearing a
Leviathan are also rocking a pair of predators underneath.

SDP

Known throughout the sport by its initials, The Inzer Super-Duper Phenom is
essentially a maxed out version of the Inzer Phenom. Back when the Phenom
was introduced, it was among the new breed of polyester multiply shirts that
would soon render denim and canvas obsolete. It was good, but not great. It
was very stretchy, which was great for beginners, but it lacked the strong
support that elite lifters had grown accustomed to.

The first big bencher I remember having success with it was the late, great
Gene Rychlak. Gene figured out that by pulling it way down on his arms and
bunching the material behind his triceps, he could ride the collar, giving him
more support, but still allowing him to take advantage of the stretchy material

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to touch. Additionally, pulling the sleeves down on his arms would put the
support lower on his triceps, giving him more of a mechanical advantage.

Based on feedback from Big Gene and other pros, Inzer started making
alterations to the shirt to better reflect how it was being used on the platform.
Such changes included a significantly beefed up collar with a dramatically
scooped neck, so that the support would be where it needed to be without
having to pull the shirt so low.

This new Super-Duper Phenom became the most popular shirt on the market,
which it still is as of this writing.

The SDP remains popular because it works for a wide range of physiques and
benching styles. By pulling the collar and sleeves higher and putting more
emphasis on the chest plate, you can take advantage of the stretchy
material and touch weights much more easily than stiffer shirts like the Rage X
or Katana. By contrast, if you pull the collar low and bunch the sleeves up by
your triceps, you can get much more stopping power, albeit with a narrower
groove.

The single biggest knock on the SDP is it’s notoriously difficult to get the damn
thing sized right on the first try. While other shirts in Inzer’s line up are very
consistent in size, the SDP, due to its extreme alterations can be all over the
map with size and fit.

Something else to consider about the SDP is the material. Since it’s
introduction, the SDP has been available in a multitude of materials, each
offering different characteristics. This can be confusing to newer geared lifters
because… well, it can be confusing to veteran lifters also. I’m one such

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confused veteran lifter because I never wore the SDP. Instead of offering a
half-assed recount of what I’ve overheard over the years, I decided to reach
out to a couple of guys who have lots of experience in it, Anthony Oliveria
and Bob Merkh.

Anthony responded with a voice message that I listened to twice and still
couldn’t make heads or tails of. I played it for my wife and she just put her
head in her hands. He rattled off so many different colors and textures he
sounded like Bubba from Forrest Gump on an acid trip. To be clear, his
description was good, it’s just a TON of info and far too much for me to
process by ear.

Bob on the other hand wrote it all out, so to save myself the headache of
transcribing the whole thing, I just copied and pasted Bob’s description
(which was nearly identical to Anthony’s). So while I only printed Bob’s
submission, I have to thank both guys for coming through on a critically
important point that I had no clue about.

“The Inzer SDP is a great shirt with a design that makes it relatively "easy" to use
compared to many other multi-ply shirts. The groove of the shirt allows you to
touch low towards the belly or higher on the chest and still have plenty of
support. The shirt can also be jacked down allowing you to wear a less
aggressive fit that makes touching lighter weight easier while still allowing you
to take bigger attempts when the shirt is pulled down more.

Though the shirt design has stayed consistent there have been a number of
color/material changes over the years and the sizing and fit has also been a
little bit of a gamble. I own SDP's from size 54 through size 62 and they all fit
roughly the same. All SDP's will be good shirts, but some that I have used have

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been better than others and some people have specific favorites or
preferences.

The original black material was much more of a stretchy fabric. It had more
pop off the chest and the stretch made it easier to touch. It had to be worn
tight so that you could get the maximum carryover. These shirts are mostly
relics of a lost age and if you can find one consider yourself lucky.

The Red and Royal Blue SDP's are similar to the original black. I believe that
they are slightly stiffer, but they still have stretch and a lot of pop. These shirts
wear very well and mine have lasted a long time and are still going strong.
This material can take a beating and keep showing up for more PR benches.
They are not that common these days, but you will still see them occasionally.

The black material that came in after the original black was my personal
favorite, but many people did not like it as much. It looks like the
original black in color, but the material is much stiffer. These shirts were less
forgiving and tougher to touch in, but I loved the support especially
throughout the lockout. The down side to these shirts was that they did not
age well and would commonly blow out in the collar and / or sleeves.

The navy blue material was my least favorite of all of the SDP's. The shirt fit the
same, but it just felt dead on the chest. I have less experience in these shirts,
but I could never make it work. It almost reminded me of benching in a denim
with very little pop. I do not think these lasted long and the shirt material that
followed made up for this bad batch.

The next shirt I believe is sold as navy, but it is lighter and looks almost purple to
me. It has the pop of the old black, but lock out power of the stiff newer

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black. Mine have taken a lot of abuse and although they are showing signs of
their age they are going strong years after hitting my first 800 bench in one so
they will be a solid investment.

No matter what SDP you choose, make sure that you break it in slowly so that
you do not blow the collar. If you are a newer lifter reading this my strong
advice would be to buy a shirt that is big on you and have it altered to fit.
These shirts are very easy to tighten the sleeves on. If you are converting from
raw a shirt that is bigger in the chest, but tight in the arms will make the
transition of your raw bench to an equipped bench feel less foreign.” – Bob
Merkh

Rage X

Personally, I think the Rage X may be the most overlooked piece of gear in
Inzer’s lineup, especially for beginners. Much like the SPD, The Rage X is
actually an evolution of an existing shirt, the Rage. Made with beefier seams
and a more aggressive sleeve angle than the original Rage, The Rage X
boasts strong stopping power with less stretch, making it a good choice for
lifters who either have short arms, or strong lockouts.

Since it’s based on a single-ply design, the stock Rage X comes with a
stretchy back instead of Velcro, although it can be ordered with Velcro if you
choose. The most popular alteration is grid-stitching, which will improve the
stopping power of the shirt even more.

The Rage X is often overshadowed by the more popular SDP, but I think it
deserves a lot of consideration for a couple of important reasons.

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Ease of use

While the Rage X is a fairly advanced shirt, I found it pretty easy to use
because I didn’t need to pull it down very much. The stiff material meant that
the chest plate gave me enough support that I didn’t need to ride the collar.
This gave me a relatively forgiving groove, despite the stiff material

Consistent sizing

The Rage X sizing in my experience is much more consistent than the SDP. So
replacing your shirt or moving up/down a size will generally be a faster, easier
process.

For a shirt of its quality, the Rage X may be one of the best deals out there.
The double ply version is nearly 100 bucks cheaper than the double ply SDP,
and while it can be ordered in a triple, I think this is overkill based on how stiff
the material already is. I’ve also found the Rage X to last longer than
stretchier shirts, improving the value even more.

Fusion Deadlift Suit

The fusion deadlift suit is a great option for beginners because it’s known as
one of the more forgiving DL suits on the market. The suit is designed for both
sumo and conventional, however my preference for sumo has always been a
squat suit.

The Fusion is generally regarded as less supportive than Titan’s Velocity, but
this isn’t necessarily bad, especially in the beginning, as a suit that’s too tight
or too stiff will actually screw up your start position.

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Overall

Inzer has some very strong offerings for advanced multi-ply lifters, but also
offers some outdated products that should probably be retired. Their
customer service is generally good, but the sizing issues, especially with the
SDP can make ordering from them a frustrating experience if you are new to
gear and aren’t sure exactly how to fit the stuff properly.

If you are a seasoned multi-ply lifter and want some of the most tried and true
gear on the market, Inzer may be a great choice.

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Titan Support Systems

Titan has been the Pepsi to Inzer’s Coke for longer than I’ve been in the sport.
In recent years, Titan seems to have backed off on their multi-ply offerings,
and has put more of their eggs in the single ply basket. As of right now, Titan
boasts the most robust selection of IPF approved gear of any company out
there.

But while Titan may own the single ply market, they’re certainly not out of the
multiply game by any means. In fact, their Super Boss line is gaining fans with
its surprising support and durability for polyester. With WPO pros like Tara
Webber, and most recently Bob Merkh boasting Titan sponsorships, we’re
bound to see some ridiculous lifts posted in this stuff in the near future.

What makes Titan especially interesting is their single ply shirt line, which in
many lifter’s opinions rivals most multiply shirts. While these shirts are available
in multiply versions, depending on your preference, a single may be all you
need.

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So this is about where my knowledge of Titan gear ends. I just haven’t used
that many pieces from them, although I know their reputation to be excellent.
So in order to shed more light on the stuff than I can, I invited Tara Webber,
who wore Titan gear for her two WPO Finals wins.

When I asked Tara to talk about Titan, I sent her a few questions, expecting
some feedback I could use to enhance this section. Instead, she went above
and beyond and pretty much wrote it for me. So although I didn’t intend to
make this a Q&A format, I decided to leave my questions in along with Tara’s
responses, because my guess is that most beginners (or advanced lifters
thinking of changing) would want to know the same stuff.

1) What do you like about Titan gear vs. other offerings on the market? Why
do you prefer polyester over canvas for the squat?

“The new Titan material is amazing, unlike anything else available. I have used
Inzer, Metal, Ginny and Titan gear before I got all Titan gear.

The material has stopping power (with multiple plies) while also having a lot of
rebound. I like that feeling of the rebound, and the predictable stretch. That is
why I did not really like canvas. I had one of Ginny's canvas suits with poly
inserts and I liked that, just not as much as the Boss. When I say predictable
stretch, I found the metal gear would stretch, but almost more in some places
than others, so I found my descent would be kind of herky jerky. Not sure if it is
the cut or the material, but I didn't have this issue in any other gear.

The cut of Titan is really different now for the suits. My first suit was an old wide
stance Boss with the blue, yellow and pink logo. I bought it new but I'm pretty
sure it had been in Louis Levesque's stock room for several years. I really liked

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the suit, but it was a stock suit, so the waist was big enough I could have fit a
small child into it while wearing it, the chest panel sat just about over my collar
bones, and the straps almost didn't do up because they didn't think to extend
the velcro almost to the inside of the chest, haha. We had to cut about two
feet of the straps off so they wouldn't be dangling by my knees. I wore Inzer
Predators underneath. I can't say I noticed a big difference between the cuts
of the two pieces of equipment, but I also wasn't as experienced at the time.

When I got the new cut Titan Boss wide stance, there was a noticeable
difference. The new cut is where Titan started making the suits out of several
panels and laminating them together, instead of a front and back panel and
sewing them up the side. This results in an extremely strong piece of
equipment, of which I have never seen one rip open. I have definitely seen
this with other brands, right up the side seam.

The new Titan stuff gives all the support right through the crotch and butt,
instead of the outside of the hips like with other brands I have used. I believe
this makes it way more supportive, without needing to be so tight it is cutting
off circulation in the legs. The legs need to be tight enough to keep the suit in
place, but that's it. There also isn't as much place for the material to go even if
it is loose, unlike other gear where it will slide up the leg more until it is way up
in the hip crease and really really cutting off circulation. I think it is both due to
the cut and the fact the material is laminated and sits nice and flat.

The Evil Twin material has really changed the game. Often I see people on
the used gear sites searching for an "old" SDP that has the stretchy material.
Between my husband and training partners, our gym has had just about every
type of suit and shirt, including the "old" but highly sought after SDP. I can say

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that hands down, the Evil Twin material is better. Stretchy, but still has the
necessary stopping power.

Now, as far as the cut, the Psycho shirt is very similar to the SDP. It sits nice and
low, putting all the power of the multiple layers of that collar way closer to
where you will be touching the bar. I love mine, and I am only using a single
ply that is not very tight. I have had some shoulder issues for years that get
exacerbated when the shirt is tight and I can't get my shoulder back into
position. I now know what the problem is, so I will be able to experiment with
tighter shirts and different plies in the future.”

2) Boss vs. Super Boss - what’s the difference, and would Super Boss be too
much for a beginner?

“The difference between Boss and Super Boss is the crotch panel has four
layers instead of two laminated together. I don't think the extra layers are
laminated, so it is one double laminated layer, then two single layers I believe.

It means way more stopping power, more similar to the feel of canvas. I do
not have a lot of experience with canvas, but my husband loved his
Leviathan until he used the Boss suit and briefs.

For a beginner, it would be fine if they have good solid form. If they do not
already squat more upright with legs wide like we tend to do in multiply, this is
just going to throw them around more. If they decide to use it anyways, it
would certainly help if it was a little looser.

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Once they learn to manipulate the suit, and not be manipulated by it, is when
having the Super Boss will make a big difference. I think this goes for any
brand of gear though. You wouldn't want to throw a beginner in triple ply grid
stitched briefs unless they're really loose. I think Super Boss suits are always grid
stitched also, so that also adds to it. I have Boss that is grid stitched that I wear
in training on speed days. I can feel it stretch more, but not as much as just
regular Boss.”

3) The shirts seem to progress in difficulty It seems to go:

Fury < F6 < Katana < Evil Twin.

Is this a fair progression? Why would you recommend one over the other?

“I have only used the Katana and Evil Twin. My husband has used them all
though, and said they're just different. Every once in a while you will still see an
F6 at a meet, so I assume that cut just really works for that person.

The Katana does not sit quite as low as the Evil Twin Pyscho. I like that I don't
have to play around with the shirt too much to keep it nice and low. It also
seems to sit off the shoulders a bit more, so there is not as much material over
top of the shoulder to pull it forward. I also really like this, as I have actually
pinched the material together on top of the shoulder and sewn it this way
before.”

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4) Titan shirts are known for being extremely supportive for single ply,
(especially Evil Twin). Is the average novice better off sticking with single ply,
or should some consider double?

“Single Ply gear has to be tight for it to work. Multiply has stopping power on
its own.

I think of it like this: going from raw to geared is like going from a mountain
bike to a dirt bike. Going from single ply to multiply is like going from a dirt bike
to a crotch rocket. The principles are the same in all three, you're going down
and coming up in a good groove, there's just much less margin for error as
you get into gear as the weight you are lifting is getting harder and harder for
you to manipulate yourself.

If you have enough good training partners, going multiply right away would
be fine.

That being said, single ply gear has to be quite tight to get anything out of it,
perhaps the exception being the Evil Twin shirts. The bubble in a single ply shirt
is usually much much smaller than in a multiply shirt, because it is so tight.
Same goes for the suits. If you cannot manipulate the gear to keep the bar
over the bubble, the bar can just fly back over your face in an instant.
However, the less material, the less strength needed to manipulate it.

So to sum up, single ply gear that is tight, and multiply gear that is worn a little
loose, will likely yield similar results. They are just different, and I don't think
there really needs to be a progression from single ply into multiply.

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Keeping that in mind, whoever is coaching a new lifter needs to monitor
volume. Especially if a lifter has good form and can handle much heavier
weights right away, you need to keep in mind that the tendons and ligaments
also need to adjust to the new loads. Extra workouts should be done just to
work on connective tissues. Very low intensity, very high volume will build the
tendons and ligaments. I will do 1-4 sets of 50-100 reps per exercise. Easy
things like banded hamstring curls, band pressdowns and sled drags are my
go-tos.”

5) (From Tara) You didn't ask about this but I think it is worth mentioning.

“Titan has started to incorporate both single and double ply panels into their
deadlift suits. It makes the suit have far more power, without needing to be so
tight that getting down to the bar is difficult. I always wore a single ply velocity
before, but the new combo of single and double is even easier to use, more
comfortable, and most importantly, more power.”

I had used Predators for years under my suits before getting sponsored. I have
used a Metal Pro, Metal Jack, Metal Ace, Ginny canvas and Titan Boss suits. I
had always loved Predators, as I liked how the leg flared to really allow me to
push out and not get a charlie-horse in my quad. I could get around 200lbs
out of them. When I finally ordered new Titan briefs and suit at the same time,
Titan sized them appropriately, making the suit a little bigger than the briefs.
I'm not sure any of the other companies do this, based on my own personal
experience and the experience of our team of lifters. As a result, I was
absolutely sold after my very first lift in the suit/brief combo.

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They are made for each other and just work together better. The seams all sit
perfectly nested and the suit doesn't make the material of the briefs wrinkle or
crease unnaturally. I know a lot of lifters are wearing Boss briefs under other
brands, and I can all but guarantee that if you like the briefs, you will love the
combo. I just felt that the two were really working together, and I was
immediately able to get almost 50lbs more out of this combo than the
Predator/Boss. This was just Boss/Boss too, vs triple ply grid-stitched back,
double ply front Predators/Boss. I highly suggest anyone that can afford the
Boss combo purchases them both. I know it is easier for me being a sponsored
lifter, but if I had the chance to try this combo before being sponsored, I
would have saved up to purchase it.

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Metal

Metal Sport is a Finnish company with a broad line of mostly polyester gear.
Out of all the companies on this list, this is the one I’m most familiar with
because I wore their gear exclusively for almost a decade when I was
sponsored by elitefts, their American distributor at the time.

Metal’s polyester multiply gear is of a unique construction, with the material

being multiple thinner layers laminated together. This makes it thicker than
most polyester gear, and I remember it being compared to a wetsuit when it
was first introduced.

As of this writing, Metal is in a difficult position in the US market due to some

inflammatory public comments by the owner. Elitefts no longer carries their
gear, and they’ve been banned by a few (but not all) powerlifting

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federations. Despite the bans, Metal gear remains fairly popular at the
moment. Most of the feds that banned their stuff only require you to remove
or hide the logo, so you can still use it in most meets.

I’m not gonna weigh in on the politics of the situation, as it’s not what the
book is about. Instead, I’m just gonna talk objectively about some of their
more popular pieces so that you can make the best decision with regards to
your lifting you can. The fact is that the gear is solid, and there’s a ton of it on
the used market, so it would be a disservice not to include it.

Because Metal has several different lines of multiply gear, I’m going to first list
the general characteristics of each line, Then highlight a few individual pieces
that I think really stand out.

Metal Pro

The despite the “pro” designation, the Metal Pro line is actually their most
entry-level line of multiply gear. The pro squat suit, having continuous straps
rather than Velcro looks like just a beefier single ply. In all honesty, I wouldn’t
bother with the Pro line unless you just wanted some lighter gear to train in, or
you can get it super cheap/free just to have something to start out with. I
wouldn’t bother buying it new, as you’ll outgrow it quickly.

Metal King

The Metal King line is a definite step above the Pro, but this stuff never got
much traction except for the deadlift suits, which are excellent. The King
material is similar to what Inzer uses in the Rage X/Predators, except I found it
to be stiffer. I tried the King shirts but could never get them to work. I always

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thought the chest plate was way too small given the stiffness of the material.
Your millage may vary.

Now the king deadlifters are great, and easily the best offering in the Metal
King line. These suits are single ply, with the “Pro” model offering Velcro straps.
They come in both sumo and conventional and although I always pulled in
my canvas, the feedback I’ve gotten on these has been overwhelmingly
positive.

Metal Ace

The Metal Ace line of gear is known for being some of the most robust
polyester gear on the market. It’s quite stiff for polyester gear so it tends to
reward more technical lifters, and it may need a few alterations before
wearing.

One important point that lifters should be aware of is that there is more than
one Ace material floating around out there. While it all looks the same to the
casual observer, you can tell the difference by the inner of material. In the
new stuff, that inner layer is white, while the old stuff is black all the way
through.

I personally found a HUGE difference in the materials, with my preference

being for the older all-black stuff. The old material was fucking bulletproof,
and held it’s pop for years after initial break-in. I loved it, and put up my best
benches in my Ace bench shirt by a considerable margin. I liked it even more
than the venerable Rage X I wore for many years before switching.

Unfortunately I’m not a fan of the new stuff. I found it to be much stretchier

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but with very little stopping power compared to the old stuff. It also tends to
stretch out a lot relatively early. It works just fine for some lifters, but I’m not a
fan.

I should mention that this might not be a permanent switch. Sometimes gear
makers change a material simply because the old one isn’t readily available,
and switch back when it is. Personally, If you want to pick up some used Ace
gear, I’d hold out for the all-black stuff unless you just want it for
learner/beater gear. The reviews below are my reviews of Ace gear in the old
material.

Metal Ace Squat Suit

The Ace Squat suit offers surprising stopping power for a polyester suit. Despite
being polyester, I don’t consider this to be a beginner’s suit because it
requires a higher degree of skill than most other polys. The biggest issue many
lifters face with the Metal Ace is the tight seams at the leg openings. If they’re
too tight (which they often are) they’ll prevent the suit from seating properly in
the crotch, and will cause your knees to pin in during the squat.

Simply cutting the seam off the bottom of the leg makes a world of difference
because it will allow you to get it all the way up, allowing you to flare your
knees out properly. Some lifters choose to have a tailor add a stitch to
prevent the suit from unraveling, but since the material is laminated, this rarely
seems to be an issue.

If you’re just transitioning to multiply, the Ace would be a solid choice for a first
suit if you can pick one up used. It’s one of the more forgiving suits out there,
but is by no means a beginner suit. A LOT of 1000 squats have been taken for

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a ride in this thing so if you find it works for you, you could stay in it for a long
time.

Ace Bench Shirt

As much as I want to be impartial in this book, I can’t lie, I fucking LOVED my

Ace bench shirt. Metal bench shirts are not as popular as their squat and
deadlift gear, and you don’t see a ton of them at the pro level, but I thought
mine was damn near perfect, at least for me.

Be warned, as my buddy Vincent Dizenzo says, “The Ace is NOT for the feint of
heart”, and I 100% agree. For starters, the Ace has very strong stopping power
(in the old material) and a fairly narrow groove. Being a shorter lifter with
good technique, the Ace played to my strengths. I rarely had issue touching,
and since I tended to wear the collar high, I was able use the chest plate for
support vs. the collar, giving me a larger “sweet spot” for the touch.

I also think that I had an easy transition to the Ace because I learned to
bench in denim, and I found the Ace to be very similar in cut. So having
already learned to touch in much stiffer shirts, the Ace was no problem for
me, and I wound up benching 3x bodyweight in 4 weight classes in it.

In my opinion, this shirt would be best suited to a shorter armed bencher with
very precise technique.

As with the Ace Squat suit, I much preferred the older all-black material,
however I’ve found through coaching that the newer strechier stuff makes for
a pretty good first shirt, and I wouldn’t hesitate to put a new lifter in one. The

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original would not be my first choice for a beginner unless it’s loose.

Metal Jack

The Metal Jack line is in many lifter’s opinions, an improvement over the Ace.
When first introduced, The Jack material was more forgiving, and easier to
learn than the Ace, but retained much of the stopping power. Jack gear was
also made with some major changes to the cut.

Like the Ace, the Jack material has changed since first being introduced. Like
the new Ace stuff, that white inner layer is there, and the stuff just doesn’t
have the stopping power it used to.

Metal Jack Squatter

Personally, I think the Metal Jack is one of the best beginner squat suits on the
market. In addition to being a more forgiving material, the Jack squatter
offers legs that are a size better than the same sized Ace. This was a welcome
change for most of us, as our biggest beef with the Ace was the tight legs.
The Jack also boasts beefier seams giving you better stop, despite stretchier
material.

These changes are probably why you tend to see more Jack squatters than
the Ace at the pro level.

The Jack is a great suit to transition from raw to multiply in because it allows
you to use a more natural squat form. When Brian Carroll squatted his WR

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1185 in it back in 2011, he mentioned its ease of use as being a major asset. If
you already have a big raw squat, you might find the Jack Squatter offers you
an easier transition to multiply than canvas gear.

Jack Bencher

Like the Jack Squatter, the Jack Bencher combined a more forgiving material
with beefier seams and a different cut. Unlike the Ace, which features a
traditional chest plate with a beefy collar, The Jack boasts a similar collar with
an additional 3 bands of stitching that span across the collar, essentially
giving you 4 collars.

Another cool addition to the Jack is thick loops just behind the shoulders so
that your training partner can pull your sleeves up more easily.

Most of the lifters I know who transitioned from the Ace to the Jack back
when it was introduced found it to be easier to touch in, with more consistent
support to lockout. I really wanted to like this shirt, but I tried a couple of them
and both blew out right at the collar. To be fair, I don’t know of many others
who experienced this, and I would up giving one to a training partner who
fixed the blown seam and used the thing for years without issue, so maybe it
was just something about how I bench.

The most common complaint about the Jack is the oddly cone shaped arms
that don’t seem to be cut for any human arm I’ve ever seen. They make it
difficult to get your arms all the way in, and badly cut off your circulation
between lifts. Just about everyone who gets the shirt new has to shorten
them, and blow up footballs in them to stretch them out.

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Due to it’s relatively forgiving groove, I think the Jack would be a good first
shirt if buying used. If you’re looking to pick up something new, I think there
are better choices out there.

Jack and Ace Briefs

The Ace and Jack briefs compare to each other just like the squat suits. The
legs are bigger on the Jack, with a slightly softer material. Both work very well
under pretty much any suit, but they both tend to be a bit thicker than most
polyester briefs. If the suit you are using has a tight fit, you may want to go
with a pair of predators. If your suit has a bit of room to spare, then either
would be excellent.

Jack Deadlifter

Also coming in both conventional and sumo cuts, the Jack Deadlifters offer a
beefier option than the King, still taking advantage of the relatively forgiving
Jack material.

While the conventional suit may be worth checking out, I would probably
pass on the sumo model. If you want to pull sumo in a multiply suit, you might
as well just pull in your squat suit, with either a thinner brief, or no brief so you
can reach the bar.

“M” Briefs

These are a pair of single ply briefs that I sometimes wore under tighter suits.

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They’re a tough single ply material and work great as a light training brief, or
for something to wear under a tight suit when a double ply brief is too much.
When I dropped weight towards the end of my career, I would often wear
these for a little extra protection on my raw days.

Yes, I wore a brief on my “raw” day, because fuck you, this is multiply.

Metal Jack Canvas Squat Suit

This suit is a “Jack” in name only, as it’s mostly canvas in construction. For my
money, this is the best piece of gear in Metal’s entire lineup. At first glance, it
looks a lot like an O.G. Leviathan, and even shares the polyester panels down
the sides.

Unlike the O.G. however, the Jack is adjustable, with three Velcro straps down
each leg. Basically this suit attempts to take the best elements of both
Leviathans and incorporate them into one. It has the stopping power and
rigidity of a solid construction canvas, but with a bit more adjustability.

Personally, I didn’t really use the Velcro straps, and left them pretty loose. I like
my squat suits tight in the hips, but with enough room in the legs to allow me
to drive my knees out. Tight legs cause my knees to pin in. Lots of others
however like the extra tightness in the legs, and the straps seem to hold up.
Unfortunately the Velcro legs are not really enough to add much flexibility to
the sizing like the Ultra Pro, so finding the right fit will be about the same as any
other Metal suit.

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I did my absolute best squatting in the Jack Canvas, with an all-time pr of 843
@ 181 in it. During my last meet prep, I also worked with an O.G. Leviathan to
bring as a back-up. Out of the two, I found the Jack to be the more
supportive of the two. The legs on the Jack are longer than the O.G., which I
like, as long as they aren’t too tight (which was easy to manage with the
Velcro).

I would consider this to be an advanced suit, although a beginner would

probably do just fine by getting it a little big.

Like other pieces in this chapter, The Jack Canvas had some hiccups when
first introduced. Both the loops holding the leg Velcro and the seat both had
a tendency to blow out. The next gen suits had a black patch of polyester
across the seat to provide more give. If you see one on the used market,
don’t pick it up unless it has this patch.

Overall

Metal offers solid gear with several offerings that beginners typically do well in.
Due to their current public relations problem, the gear is being offered at
significantly lower prices than normal. I’m not sure if they are just trying to stay
afloat hoping this blows over, or if they are clearing everything out to close
shop, but the lower prices combined with an influx of gear on the used
market makes this stuff particularly attainable for newer lifters and should
definitely be in consideration.

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Overkill

Owned by Rudy Rosalis and based in Illinois, Overkill is kind of a hard

company to review because they focus on custom gear, and don’t really
have off-the-rack suits to break down.

Since I don’t know a ton about their process, I asked my buddy Mike Grasso
from Atlantic City Barbell. Mike has been in the sport for a long time and has
worn just about everything on the market. He currently lifts in Overkill and took
the time to give me his experiences with them. I chose Mike for a couple of
reasons. First, he’s a very good lifter and is extremely practiced with gear.
Second, Mike is not actually sponsored by Overkill, so he gave me his
feedback as an actual customer. The fact is that sponsored guys often get
treated differently than average customers, so their feeback may not apply
to the rank and file lifter.

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Overkill is currently worn by some of the best in the sport, and the current
world record squat, recently set by Brian Carroll was set in an Overkill. The
entire line of Overkill is known to be bulletproof. The stuff is extremely
supportive, and very durable. In addition to being well made, Overkill is also
innovative, offering cuts and material combinations unique to them, like
canvas squat suits with polyester upper portions to keep the stopping power
at the hips with more forgiving straps.

There have also been some massive benches put up in their shirts by guys like
Barzeen Vazari, Tony Carlino and Matt Minuth.

The stuff is truly custom, as Mike told me that when he ordered his brief, he
was asked to give 10 separate measurements, which for a brief, is insane. I’ve
ordered a few custom bench shirts over the years and was never asked for
more than 3 or 4 measurements, and a shirt is a more complex pattern than a
brief. Mike also told me that the default fit is fucking tight, so DO NOT lowball
your measurements.

From everything I’ve seen and heard, Overkill may just be the highest quality
gear currently on the market, but this doesn’t make it the best choice for a
beginner unless you can find it used. I generally don’t recommend custom
gear to beginners as there’s no point when you don’t even know what you lift
well in yet. Turnaround time is also going to be much slower for custom gear,
so you’ll likely need to wait a few months to get it, which isn’t ideal if you
don’t have anything else to lift in yet.

While I don’t think custom gear is ideal for beginners, Overkill is generally
regarded as excellent, so I would absolutely recommend checking them out
when you have a little more experience.

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On a side note, Overkill wraps are the fucking bomb. I didn’t bother
mentioning each companies wraps because… well… they’re just wraps, and
I’ve never found them to make a huge difference. But overkill wraps are
almost oddly supportive. They’re thin and stretchy feeling, but you don’t have
to pull them all that tight to get a painfully stiff cast-like wrap. If you like your
wraps tight as shit, get these.

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Ginny’s Power Gear

This is a small company (I think it’s basically it’s just Ginny making the stuff
herself), but I think she’s worth mentioning.

Ginny has been making canvas suits longer than any other company on
this list. I got one way back in 2000 and it was one of the best suits I’ve
owned. I squatted 705 @ 181 in it back in 2004. This isn’t a big squat by
today’s standards, but it was enough to give me an APF Nationals win that
year.

You don’t see many pros wearing her stuff, but I believe that’s partially
because she isn’t big enough to sponsor anyone. Her shirts are still made
of denim and canvas which is pretty outdated, so I wouldn’t bother with
them, but the suits are still great according to my buddy Greg Damminga
who has one.

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Ginny is also worth mentioning because she is an excellent seamstress and
has been working on multiply gear for over 20 years. She was used
extensively by the elitefts sponsored athletes when they needed their
Metal gear worked on, so she’s extremely familiar with that in particular.
I’m reasonable sure she could alter a suit of armor if she had to. I would
absolutely recommend her if you need stuff worked on and can’t find
someone local.

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“Band Shirts”

OK, this isn’t so much a brand as a category, but it’s one I feel needs a
mention. In the last few years, A new kind of bench shirt/apparatus has
caught the attention of multiply lifters throughout the sport. I guess these
things could best be described as maxed out Slingshots.

These new shirts are made of a knee wrap-like material rather than the
traditional polyester giving them unreal rebound and a very forgiving groove.
The most popular is probably the BenchDaddy, made by Mike Womack,
although there are other offerings, including Rich Putnam’s Bench Freak

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Band, and the Krueger by Rob Forell, which as of this writing boasts the all-
time highest bench at 1105 by Will Barotti. Incidentally, The very same meet
where Will put up this monstrous lift, Rich Putnam got his first official 1000 in his
Bench Freak Band.

Needless to say, two 1000 benches on the same day at the same meet
brought a LOT of attention to these shirts, both positive and negative. As of
right now, not all federations allow these shirts. The list changes too frequently
to bother, but currently the APF and WPO are the biggest holdouts.

I’m not going to offer an opinion on whether or not these shirts should be
allowed (which is the same conversation we have about EVERY new piece of
gear introduced). IMO, just as with every other piece of gear, the market will
decide. If lifters decide they want to wear them, and start pulling away from
the feds that prohibit them, eventually they’ll be allowed everywhere. It’s just
the way these things tend to go.

I have a little bit of personal experience with these things, but I’ve never
trained in one with any seriousness. So to offer some more in-depth insight, I
got my buddy Tony Carlino to lay out his experience with his Krueger.

Tony has been hitting some absolutely disgusting numbers in this thing in
training, so if anyone has an opinion worth hearing, he does.

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The most noticeable difference right off the bat is the design of the shirt, you
can tell its still a bench shirt but there are some big differences. First being the
sleeves. The band shirt sleeves are much larger in circumference and thicker.

- Pro for that would be the simplicity of getting the shirt on and off. It's much
easier for you to slide the band shirts on and off between attempts than it is a

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poly shirt, most people would just leave the poly shirt on the entire session for
that exact reason.

- Con for that is there is less support covering the entire upper arm. It leaves
most of bicep "exposed" if you will. The sleeve still covers it, but its not tight on
it, and as you decend the bicep become more exposed, leaving some
vulnerability there. I have not experienced any inconvenience from this
though.

Another difference is obviously the material it is made out of. The entire shirt is
made of a stretchy rubber/elastic, slingshot/benchdaddy type material, from
the arms to the chest on down. Most of them have a back that velcros like
the poly shirts.

- Pros are easier to get on and off (as stated earlier). much, much easier to
touch in. Doesn't have a strict or specific "groove" which leaves more room for
error and completion of the lift. There are spots where it is more ideal to touch
and bring down to make the lift have more of a chance to be successful just
like a poly shirt though. A big pro I believe is these shirts will allow older lifters,
lifters with certain long term injuries or limitations to be able to compete in the
sport again. One other is it does not beat you up like a poly shirt. You can do
reps and/or big weights and the shirt doesn't dig in you or give you that beat
up feeling which can possibly allow you to train more often in it.

- Cons would be how much more difficult it is to set up. If you get yourself one
that is made for your size, setting your hands and taking the hand off is much
more difficult. The elasticity from the shirt wants to pull your arms back in while
setting your hands and not be JUST tight like a poly shirt, its tight and wants to
bring your arms back in. Another is less shoulder support. Most of the shirts right

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now anyway, do not cover most of your shoulder so you carry a lot of the
load on the hand off there. I have not experienced any shoulder issues or
pain though, but be wary of that.

Technique and Training

Technique in the band vs poly shirts are actually pretty similar I have found. In
both shirts you still need to "break" the bar on the hand off, which is essentially
bringing out and setting in with your lats. The descent of the lift is where the
main difference comes in. In most poly shirts I always start my descent with
elbows tucked pretty hard. Its always worked well for me. Now in the band
shirt you want to stay a little more flared to get maximum stretch out the
material. Think in between raw and poly elbow position. You can pretty much
keep that position and line the entire decent where as in a poly you may
have to tuck even harder and bring it more towards your belly to be able to
touch.

I still bring the bar towards my belly in the band shirt as well, just may not be as
extreme as it would be in the poly. You want to push your belly up as hard as
possible in both shirts, but for those with no belly or not much arch, the band
shirt is still capable of touching, just be patient and it will get there. You need
to control the descent much more in the band shirt as opposed to a poly
because the poly material catches and supports the descent much more
than the elastic and rubber does in the band shirt.

On the press it is essentially the same, keep it in your triceps and start to flare
and "spread" the bar at the top for the lock out. Spreading the bar means to
act like you are trying to like a band pull apart to engage the inner tricep. The
band shirt does seems to have a little more pop at the top/lockout portion of

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the lift as the elastic and rubber are still working, where the poly material is
essentially done at that point.

As far as training goes, I'm still trying to figure that part out. I'm basically
training the same, a few things I found I'm doing different is using less boards.
I'm just taking what the shirt will give me and trying to touch when I can. I will
be doing more rep work as well as the shirt allows you do more reps with less
wear and tear on the shirt and the body. I will also be doing much more
shoulder work as the shirt has less support in that area. Make sure the rear
delts are trained heavy and hard as they take the brunt of the weight and
are huge for the descent of the bench.

Overall I think both band and poly shirts have an equal amount of pros and
cons to each. The best way to find out which one is best for you, or what you
will like best is to just try them out yourself. They are both relatively equal in
price from what I have found. I really hope this helps everyone out. The band
shirts are still relatively new so I'm sure they're will be more things to add later
on down the road, but this is just what I have come to experience so far.”

– Tony Carlino

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 Selecting your First Gear

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Back when I started using multiply gear, the stuff available to me was very
different than what’s offered now. So I thought it was really important to get
some thoughts from a younger lifter who started in today’s era, and
progressed much faster than I did.

You may not know Travis McKinney, as his tenure in multiply was fairly short.
But he accomplished a lot in a short amount of time, winning his class at the
XPC finals in 2017 at the age of 22. Obviously Travis figured out the right gear
for his body very early, so I knew his thoughts on the topic could be of use to
other beginners.

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“One of the most difficult parts of this side of lifting is gearing up
adequately. We will always have that mindset of having to get different
equipment because a different brand might add a few pounds. So how do
we make some educated guesses with buying our first set? In a sport where
it’s easy to spend $1000 on gear, most people can’t afford to make major
mistakes.

First, it is critical that a new lifter understands that equipment should feel right
to them. It doesn’t matter what every other pro level lifter has to say. If that
individual cannot groove the equipment properly, they may need something
different.

Taller lifters: Taller lifters, or lifters with a longer Range of Motion (ROM) will
need more forgiving equipment. This means the gear should stretch a little
more. Inzer has excellent, high quality gear that stretches, whereas Titan is
notorious for being stiff. Titan single ply equipment acts similar to multiply. If
the equipment is too stiff, the lifter will have a difficult time reaching depth, or
touching the bench press.

A major issue is getting gear that is too strong, which means the lifter doesn’t
have enough top end strength to lock out the required weight needed to
bring it down, i.e. not locking out what one can touch their chest with on a
bench press.

Do not take my word for gospel, but for a taller lifter I would recommend
starting with Inzer Predator Briefs or Overkill if found used. Squat suit would be
Inzer Ultra Leviathan (adjustable, so stiffness isn’t a big deal). Bench shirt I’d
recommend the Inzer SDP, 2ply Rage X, or a used Overkill. For deadlift suit I’d

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recommend semi looser (regular fit, not competition fit) Titan Velocity, an Inzer
Max DL 1ply or 2ply, or an Inzer Hardcore squat suit.

Shorter lifters: You lifters got it made. Grow that power belly, flex that 4” ROM
bench press, and thrive on you kings. 5’5’’ 220lb lifters rule the world! Short
lifters have a little more forgiveness. It is much easier to groove equipment
when the ROM is shorter. With this being said for new lifters, I would
recommend Titan Super Boss or Inzer Predators for briefs. For a suit it will still be
Inzer Ultra Leviathan. Bench shirt is a little different because single ply
equipment can be made to be close to multiply gear. For this, I’d
recommend a Titan Super Katana or Inzer SDP.

Deadlift suit recommendations stay the same, however the Velocity will be
easier to use for shorter lifters. Always get the APLIX or Velcro straps when not
in USAPL

. – Travis McKinney

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 Special Considerations for Big Weights.

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Something very few raw lifters understand is just how much the increased
weights in multiply changes shit.

When you're under a heavy weight, anything can happen, especially

when you're wearing stiff, restrictive powerlifting gear. When you're under a
really heavy weight, many variables can come into play than most novices
realize. Multiply powerlifting feels nothing like raw, and the reason is not
only the gear, but it’s the weights themselves.

Below are a few of the variables you need to be ready for when chasing
big weights.

Bar Flex

Powerlifting bars are generally much stiffer than the average gym bar.
Even so, they will still flex considerably under heavy weights. Even a good
bench bar will start to flex, however slightly at around 500lbs. At 600, it will
start to become noticeable. At 700, you might get so much flex that you
might need to lower the racks a notch or take a 3-man hand-off in order
to get the bar out.

Squat bars are thicker and stronger, but the weights are heavier, which tends
to cancel this out.

Another consideration with bar flex is that the barbell takes on a whippy
characteristic that it does not have with lighter weights. Your upper back
will need to be super-strong in order to stabilize the weight in both the
bench and the squat.

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You will also notice the bar bowing during the lift. Since it will bow from the
center, like an upside down U, there are a couple of issues you need to
be aware of. In the bench press, you will actually need to lower the bar
slightly more than you would if the bar was completely straight. This is why
low-end ROM training in the bench press will still be important.

In both the bench and the squat, this bowing will make it more difficult to
unrack, and the rack heights that seem fine on warm-ups, may need to
move down once you get to the top-end weights.

Spotter's skill level

The heavier your weights, the more critical your spotters become. While
it's great to have strong spotters, this is secondary to their skill level and
how many of them you have. While it's awesome to have big strong guys
to spot you, their strength level won't make a damn bit of difference if
they do not know how to give a proper hand- off, or do not pay attention
and drift off during the lift.

I would much rather have 3 weak but attentive spotters than 3 strong
dumbasses who don't take their rolls seriously. Good side spotters need
to keep their hands clasped under the sleeves from the beginning to
the end of the lift.

A good hand-off man will know your style of lifting like the back of his
hand, and know exactly where you start the lift and how much help to
give you out of the rack.

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Just in case I haven’t made this clear enough already, you need to find
yourself an experienced (or at least willing to learn) powerlifting crew if
you expect to maximize your potential.

Seriously, find a crew

Blacking out

Few instances will remind you how dangerous this sport is like falling asleep
while holding 600lbs over your face.

With the extreme pressure of the weight, combined with the additional
pressure of the gear, losing consciousness is a very real possibility. Your
spotters need to be ready for anything, and you'll need to know when it's
time to abort a lift. If you start to feel yourself slipping away during the lift,
don't try to be a tough guy and stick with it. Just say “take it” and move
on.

Passing out can result from trying to hold your breath too long. While
some lifters like taking the weight out of the rack and benching on the
same breath, You may find it better to take the time to breath in
between the unrack and the lift.

Fear

Powerlifters generally don't like throwing around the F-word, but I've seen
more talented lifters hit roadblocks due to fear than any other single

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factor. I have also seen average lifters go on to accomplish great things
because they were fearless, and had no hesitation about getting under
heavy weights.

Hoisting hundreds weights hundreds of pounds in excess of your raw max

takes heart and balls. Before you get under the weight, you need to do
whatever you need to get mentally ready. I can't tell you what will work
you, but when I approach a big weight, I remind myself that the risk of
getting under the bar is worth reaching my goals.

Better yet, take it from one of the most badass ladies ever to wear a squat
suit, the one and only Shawna Mendalson.

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“The mental aspect of lifting is so crucial, and I feel a lot of people don't pay
enough attention to this or really talk about this as much as they should. I
hammer this into my guys every workout.

After so many years of being a competitive athlete it's taken me 17yrs to

finally get my brain to understand FEAR! In order to truly be successful you
have to learn how to take fear out of lifting. Your mind is everything. You can
be physically ready then you have ever been for anything in your life. If at any
second you feel afraid or doubt yourself because of fear of the unknown you
are DONE!

You have to believe in yourself, you have to believe in and trust your plan,
you have to believe in and trust your team. If you can learn how to diminish
fear from lifting you will be unstoppable!

I always look at it like this. You have one job, bring the bar down and bring
the bar up that's it! Sometimes not everything goes as planned, do your best!
There is always another meet!! Mindset is very important believe in your
abilities! This will transfer over into other places in your life as well.

Most importantly have fun and enjoy every minute! I've traveled all over the
country and the world to compete. I've met and became friends with some
of the most amazing people in the world!! I wouldn't change this life for
anything.”

Shawna Mendelson

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 Special Exercises

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Editor’s Note

As with the main lifts. In lieu of adding a bunch of cheezy pics I’m opting to
refer you to more complete reference, in this case elitefts’s exercise index.
https://www.elitefts.com/education/exercise-index/

The following is by no means an exhaustive exercise list, just some very

common ones that are widely used in multiply. Head on over to the index
to see these shown in more detail and along with many, many more.

Technical mastery of the power lifts doesn’t begin and end with the squat
bench and deadlift. Equipped powerlifters generally use a multitude of lifts
in order to build the big 3. This is especially true on conjugate-based
programs, which are extremely popular in multiply.

The purpose of special exercises is to build strength and skill at specific

points in the meet lifts faster and more efficiently than just training the
meet lifts alone. I cannot overstate how important this is in multiply, where
the gear drastically changes the physiological strengths needed to gain
the most carryover possible.

Some lifts are used to strategically overload certain points of the lift (like a
suspended goodmorning), while others are used to allow you to train hard
while minimizing stress on other points (belt squat).

The thing about special exercises is that it’s going to take some time to

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learn which ones work for you, and which ones you can afford to skip. So
give yourself a few training cycles to really test some of these out and
learn what works for you.

Good-mornings

This old school exercise looks like a cross between a squat and a bow. Good-
mornings have largely fallen out of favor with the average gym goer because
of concerns for the lower back. Performed correctly however, they are a
brutally effective tool for strengthening and thickening the lower back,
hamstrings and glutes. Good-mornings are a particularly effective tool for
bringing up a lagging deadlift, because they load the same muscles, without
being as taxing to the nervous system.

The goodmorning can be performed either as a max-effort movement or as

an assistance exercise for reps.

The Setup

A good-morning is started in the same stance as a close-stance squat. You

can either walk the bar out of a rack or use a monolift.

Descent

To initiate the descent. Push your hips back just like you would for the squat.
Rather then bend the knees, continue pushing the hips back and tilt your
upper body forward in a bowing motion. Your legs should be straight, but with

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soft knees. If your hamstring flexibility sucks, you might need to bend your
knees a bit more. When your upper body is about parallel with the floor, it’s
time to reverse direction and come back up.

The Ascent

Once you’ve hit the bottom of the movement, Push your head back like you
would in the squat and push your hips forward

Variations

Good morning can be performed with either a round or neutral back. Round
back goodmornings are good for teaching you to fight through a bad
leverage position, but I would not use super heavy weights on them. When I
use round backs, I typically use them for an assistance exercise.

For more comfort, use the buffalo bar or cambered squat bar to reduce the
stress on the shoulders. To brutally work the lower and upper back, use the
safety squat bar.

Goodmornings can be performed with chains, anchored bands or reverse

bands.

Arched-Back Good-mornings

Arched-back goodmornings are a great exercise for building top end

strength in the squat. It is also a good tool to teach you to utilize your hips in

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the squat. Unlike the conventional good-morning, where your back can
round out some, the arch-back version requires you to maintain a significant
arch throughout. It looks kind of like a partial squat.

The Setup

Set the arch back goodmorning up exactly as you would the competition
style squat, either by walking out, or with the monolift. I prefer to perform
arched-backs with a loose belt, because it cues me to make my midsection
as big as possible.

The Descent

Take your air exactly as you would for the squat. Drive your head back into
the bar and push your hips back and your knees out until just short of losing
your arch. When you feel like you can no longer push back without losing your
arch, you’re deep enough.

The Ascent

To get back to the start position, just reverse direction by thrusting your hips
forward.

Arch back goodmornings seem to work best in the 3 to 5 rep range. Any
higher and the weights won’t really be heavy enough to provide the
overload you’re looking for.

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They can be performed with any special squat bar. The buffalo bar and
cambered bar increase shoulder comfort while the buffalo bar targets your
mid an upper back.

Arch back goodmornings can be also be performed with chains or anchored

bands. Reverse bands do not work quite as well due to the short range of
motion.

Suspended Goodmornings

Overall, the goodmorning is a superior exercise for building the deadlift. The
only problem with it is the fact that doesn’t teach you to produce force from
a dead stop like you need to when you pull.

Enter the suspended goodmorning. The suspended goodmorning is a

goodmorning that starts at the bottom of the movement, making it a much
closer movement to the deadlift.

To suspend the bar, you would use the same chains you’d use for a rack press
with chains or as a safety measure in the squat. Hang the chains from the top
of the rack so that the bar hangs at about waist level.

To perform the lift, just get into the start position with the bar across your
shoulders and just stand up.

Most lifters who perform this movement often have figured out a way to
cheat and make it easier. They get into position under the bar and before
starting the lift, they straighten their legs, swinging the bar forward. They then
drop back into position so that they can start the lift with some momentum.

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Unless you really need to do this because you’re exceptionally large, don’t do
it. This exercise works better with no momentum.

Variations

Suspended goodmornings can be performed with any bar, but are

particularly effective with the safety squat bar.

For accommodating resistance, chains tend to work best, although since

you’re targeting the bottom end in this lift, I prefer no accommodating
resistance at all.

Close Grip Bench Press

Although it’s often maligned by “functional” training advocates as an

unnecessarily dangerous ego lift, the fact remains that the bench press is
animportant piece of the puzzle for building upper body size and strength.
Not to mention the fact that it remains on of the competitive lifts and simply
cannot be avoided or replaced.

Short of wearing a conservative bench shirt (which were originally invented

for safety as much as performance enhancement) The best way to minimize
shoulder and pec stress in the bench is by benching with a close grip. In fact,
most multiply bench superstars will do little wide grip raw benching, if they do
it at all.

In addition to the safety aspect, the close grip bench press is an important
training lift because it strengthens your shoulders and triceps in the same

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plane that you would recruit them in for competition bench, with your elbows
in close to your sides.

The Setup

Setting up the close grip bench press is exactly like setting up for any other
bench press, with the exception of course, for the grip width. Since the close
grip creates a longer bench stroke, you will probably need to raise the
uprights on the bench so you can unrack the weight comfortably.

I consider a close grip anything in between the lines on a standard power

bar. (in competition you can bench as far out as pointer finger on the line).
The closest most lifters will be able to go is pointer finger on the border
between the center knurling and the smooth. Any closer and your torso will
actually force your elbows out, negating the favorable position the close grip
is supposed to give your shoulders.

The Unrack

Unracking the bar is actually easier in a close grip bench press than ia wide
grip bench. This is because you do not have to fight as hard to keep your
elbows in position (tucked and not flared out). As soon as the bar is over your
chest, pull your shoulder blades back hard before breaking your elbows.

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The Descent

Unlike with the wide grip bench, you should not have to work too hard to pull
your elbows in. hey should naturally track that way. If you are keeping your
elbows in and the bar over your elbows, the bar should touch right on the
lower chest/upper abdominal area fairly effortlessly.

Generally when a lifter has trouble tucking their elbows correctly, it’s from
years of pec benching and may take a few sessions to really correct.

The Ascent

A close grip bench press tends to travel in a straighter line than a shirted
bench, This is because you will not be flaring your elbows. Just press straight
up to lockout.

Variations

Close grip benches work great as a max effort lift, or as an assistance

movement. They can be used with a flat, incline or decline bench. Dumbbells
used with a parallel grip can be great for increasing the stress on the triceps.
The fat bar works well to reduce stress on the hands, wrists and elbows.

Close grip benches can be performed with chains, anchored bands or

reverse bands.

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Board Press

When you first start taking the bench press seriously, you shouldn’t worry about
specific movements as much as getting stronger overall. As you get more in
tuned with your own strengths and weaknesses, however, you’ll most likely
start to see consistent sticking points in the bench.

A sticking point is a point in the lift where the bar stalls, causing you to miss the
lift. A sticking point can either be technical or physiological (and sometimes
mental). Whatever the reason, the board press is an effective tool for
strengthening these weak points.

The board press is performed by laying anywhere from 1 to 6 stacked boards

on your chest while benching. Instead of touching your chest, you settle the
weight on the board before pressing it back up.

The board press differs from a traditional bench press in two important
respects:

Much like the box, you know exactly how far the bar is traveling on each rep,
making the process of addressing a sticking point simple.

The board allows you to momentarily take the load off your musculature,
requiring you to start from a dead stop, improving your explosive strength
from whatever point in the lift you’re trying to improve.

The Setup

Set up for the board press exactly as you would for the raw bench press with
the addition of the board. While in a pinch, you can hold the board to your

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chest with a band or bungee cord, the best option is to have a raining
partner hold it firmly to your chest.

You can use a wide, medium or close grip. Make sure you record separate prs
for each grip as well as each board.

The Unrack

Same as a raw bench press.

The Descent

Most mistakes in the board press come when the bar actually touches the
board. You should not bounce or touch-and-go from the board. Instead,
allow the weight to settle on the board before pressing it back up to lockout.
This will build your ability to strain through your sticking point. While you should
be allowing the board to take some of the weight, do not relax your torso.
Stay tight on the bench.

The Ascent

When the bar has stopped completely, press it back up to lockout. Because
the bar will be at a full stop, press it back up as explosively as possible.

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Variations

As mentioned earlier, board presses can be performed with several heights

and grips. Low board presses (half boards, 1 boards, 2 boards) work your pecs
and shoulders harder, and will generally have the most carryover for raw
benchers.

2-5 boards will train the triceps harder and are often used by shirted benchers
to address lockout strength. Only the tallest benchers will need a 5 board.
Most shorter lifters will not need more than a 4.

In addition to boards, you can also perform the board press with foam, roles
of carpet or sections of wrestling mat. These surfaces make the lift tougher
because the soft surface absorbs the force of the barbell and reduces your
ability to use elastic energy to heave the bar off your chest

Board presses can be performed with chains, anchored bands or reverse

bands as well as the fat bar.

Shirted Board Presses

A shirted board press is exactly what it sounds like, a board press while
wearing a bench shirt. Although generally not applicable to beginners, there
are a few reasons why this exercise would be used:

Breaking in a bench shirt - Using a board to limit range of motion is a great

way to break in a tight bench shirt without damaging the fibers or seams.

Learning to bench in a tight shirt - The board adds a level of protection and
serves as a target when you’re learning the groove of a particular shirt.

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Working a weight down to progressively lower boards is easier than just letting
the weight sink as low as possible and guessing as to how far you need to go
to touch.

Overloading your lockout – The combination of a bench shirt and a boards

allows lifters to work with much more weight than their full range shirted
bench, sometimes by over 100 lbs. This gets the nervous system used to
handling heavier weights.

The setup, descent and ascent are all identical to the shirted bench with the
addition of the board. The biggest difference between the shirted boards
and a raw board press is that you want to touch the board and not let it sink
in as much as you would without the shirt.

Shirted board presses can be performed with chains, anchored bands or

reverse bands.

Pin Press

The pin press is another method to work specific sticking points in the bench
press. The pin press differs from the board press in that you are starting the
movement from the bottom, in a true dead stop.

To execute the pin press, set the pins in the rack to anywhere within the top
half of your bench range of motion and lay the bar over them. Lie down
under the weight and press the bar the rest of the way to the top

The pin press is a tough movement, designed to build grinding strength and
get you used to heavier weights. Since you’re pressing from a completely
deloaded state, this can be a very hard movement on your joints, especially

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your shoulders. I do not recommend doing pin presses any lower than halfway
into your stroke. Personally, I’ve always done them for top-end lockout work
only.

This movement is for heavy weights only. No point in ever going below 5 reps
with it.

The Setup

Unlike most other forms of benching, you do not need to unrack the weight
before commencing the lift, in fact, the unrack IS the lift. Instead of setting up
with the bar over your forehead as if you are about to take a handoff, set
yourself up so that the bar is where it would be relative to your body just
before you lock it out.

Before pressing it off the pins, Make sure your shoulders are locked together
and your body is as tight on the bench as possible. If you do not nail the initial
press, you will rarely be able to recover and finish the lift

The Ascent

Press the weight up. Seriously, just press as hard on the damn thing as you
can.

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Variations

You can perform the pin press with any grip, although because it is so triceps
intensive, it tends to be best performed with a close grip.

Some lifters will hang the bar from the top of the rack with chains rather than
lay it on the pins. This variation is easier on your joints because you have more
control over where exactly you press the weight from.

Pin presses can be very effective when combined with anchored band
tension. Due to the short range of motion, reverse bands and chains do not
work as well.

I’ve always liked using the fat bar for rack presses as it’s less stressful to my
elbows and shoulders.

Floor Press

The floor press is an odd looking movement to most casual gym-goers

because it’s basically a bench press without the bench.

Instead of on a bench, the floor press is performed lying on your back, on the
floor with a rack set about 2 feet or so from the floor. The floor press helps
build brute pressing strength because it eliminates the lower body from the lift,
thus doing away with strong leg drive and extreme arching. It’s also valuable
as another partial rep bench movement because most lifters’ elbows will
settle on the floor before the bar reaches their torso.

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The Setup

Setting up a floor press actually feels kind of strange, especially if you’ve been
working hard to learn proper bench form. At first you won’t know what to do
with your feet. And may find yourself kicking and jockeying to find a
comfortable position. Your upper body should be set just like it would be for
any other bench press, with your shoulder blades squeezed together as if you
as if you are trying to grip the floor with them.

The Unrack

Make sure your training partner knows what they’re doing when they hand off
to you. The bar will be much lower for them than with a traditional bench
press. Their first instinct may be to pull the bar too high, which can screw up
your setup.

The Descent

Lower the bar in exactly the same path you would use for a traditional raw
bench press, including trying to push your chest and belly up to the bar.
Control your speed on the way down so that your triceps settle on the floor
instead of plopping down to it. Hitting the floor too hard can injure your
elbows and wrists or cause you to dump the bar. Never bounce your elbows
off the floor. Instead, allow your upper arms to settle just enough to lose
momentum before pressing the weight back up.

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The Ascent

From the bottom position of the floor press, Drive your head back and press
the bar from the bottom just like you would for a standard bench press. If you
have a particularly good arch when you bench, you might find that the floor
press requires you to lower the bar further, even though you’re not quite
touching your chest with the bar.

Variations

The floor press can be performed with dumbbells for repetition work, as well as
with a barbell for heavy/max effort training. If you’re careful with the lowering
phase, you can even use the floor press for speed work. Special bars like the
fat bar and football bar are great for the floor press.

Chains work really well with the floor press, although you’re better off just
draping them over the bar than using the small chains to hang them.

Deficit Deadlifts

Since there is no lowering phase to the deadlift, you must have enough back
strength to overcome the static inertia at the beginning of the lift. Bottom end
strength is crucial to a big pull. If you find yourself missing deadlifts right off the
floor, you probably have weak spinal erectors/lower back. The deficit deadlift
works your back hard by requiring you to begin the lift at a lower point than
you would in competition.

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The Setup

To set up for a deficit deadlift, you'll need some kind of low platform,
anywhere between 1 and 4 inches. Most lifters will use rubber mats although
in a pinch, an aerobics step will work. Set the mats up directly under the bar
so that when you step onto it, your feet are just below the barbell. Your shins
should be at about the same distance from the bar as they would be for the
regular conventional pull.

The Ascent

As far as technique, try to pull exactly as you would a traditional deadlift. Due
to the awkward starting position, it's easy to get bent over at the start. Keep
driving your head back and trying to lean back against the weight.

Variations

If you don't have anything that will work as a platform, you can get the same
effect by loading the bar either 25 or 35 lb plates and pull from the floor.

While it is possible to do deficit deadlifts with a sumo stance, I wouldn't use

more than an inch high platform. Deficit sumo pulls can really eat up your
hips.

You can add accommodating resistance with the band platform, by draping
chains over the bar or hooking a reverse band up to the top of the rack. Go
light on the accommodating resistance on these. Remember that the goal is
to load your bottom end.

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Pin Pulls

Sometimes a lifter will have a strong deadlift off the floor, but lose it towards
the top. This may be due to weak glutes, or an inability to transition the stress
from their back to their glutes/hamstrings at the mid point of the lift. This is
where pin pulls come in.

Much like rack presses in the bench press, pin pulls allow you to work the
deadlift in a limited range of motion, allowing you to focus on different points
of the movement as well as get your nervous system used to holding heavier
loads.

The Setup

Set the pins in the rack at the height you want to pull from. If you feel you
need to work the transition point in the lift, set the pins at about knee height or
below. If you want to simply overload the top of the lift, set them above the
knee. High pin pulls are hard on the hands, and you might want to use a set
of wrist straps. The goal of this movement is to overload the back, not the
hands.

Set yourself up with your shoulder joints slightly behind the bar and arch your
back before beginning the pull.

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The Ascent

Think of the pin pull as a big hip thrust. Drive your head back and lean back
right from the get-go. Generally, if you can break the bar off the pins, it's a
matter of holding your position to make the lift.

Variations

One popular variation of the pin pull is the block pull. Rather than setting the
bar up on the pins, you would lace the actual plates on mats or blocks. The
biggest difference between the pin pull and the block pull is that you can role
the bar, making it more similar to a pull from the floor.

For accommodating resistance, you can double mini-bands around the base
of the rack, drape chains over the bar or use reverse bands.

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 Programming

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“What’s the best program for ____?”

Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer, and with the abundance of

information out there, there’s literally thousands of pages of programming
available on the internet, choosing the “right” program can be an
intimidating decision. The truth is, this might not be as critical a decision as you
think, at least not for the reasons you might expect.

I thought that rather than try to answer an almost unanswerable question, I

would try to give everyone the tools they need to evaluate programs
rationally and make the decision for themselves.

The Great Debate

If you go on social media and ask “what’s the best program?” The first page
of responses will mostly be posts from anonymous lifters (or at least we’ll
assume they really lift), chiming in as to why the program they’re currently on
is the best and why you should do it too.

At around the page two mark, the thread will devolve into a full-scale assault
on each program, the author of said program, and all who follow it. In the
end, there’s rarely any useful info to take away from these exchanges. I’d bet
that few, if any of the people doing the flaming have more than a couple of
years of serious training under their size-M belts.

The funny thing is, you’ll rarely ever see Elite/Pro lifters get into pissing matches
about programs. This includes lifters who have published successful programs
themselves. Higher-level lifters tend to be more open minded about training

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because they care about being successful more than they care about being
right.

If a lifter tells them that program xyz put 50 pounds on their squat, an elite lifter
is not going to argue, they’re going to see if there’s anything there that they
can benefit from.

If you’re one of those lifters who argues until you’re red in the face for your
favorite arrangement of sets and reps versus someone else’s, it may be time
to take a step back and see what else people are having success with.

Training ADD

Training programs are normally divided into cycles. A micro-cycle or “training

week” typically lasts for 7-10 days.

A meso-cycle will be made up of 4-5 micro-cycles, or about a month.

The macro-cycle is the program in it’s entirety, generally 8-16 weeks, although
they can be much longer.

Most programs are designed to show progress over the course of the macro-
cycle.

Without question, the most effective way to sabotage progress on ANY

program is to not stay on the damn thing from beginning to end. It seems
obvious, but I’ve known plenty of lifters who decide to try something new,
only to shit-can it four weeks later because they didn’t see any improvement.

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Unless you’re one of the few genetic freaks in the sport, four weeks is not
enough time to make significant progress on ANY program. I’d say that 12
weeks should be the minimum. If it’s a conjugate program like WSB, which will
require you to learn a lot of new exercises, you will probably need quite a bit
more time.

I’ve told clients and training partners before that you’re better off doing an
"ok" program for 12 weeks, than you are switching between three great
programs in the same amount of time.

When I first switched to a conjugate periodization style of training, it was

months before I made any progress on my contest-style lifts. After pushing
through this initial learning curve, I was able to enjoy consistent progress on
the exact same template for the next 10 years.

Essential Components of a Program

When you’re trying to decide between programs, you’ll need to pay

attention to the basic elements essential to ALL successful strength programs.
If the plan you are evaluating does not contain each of these components,
than it’s not even worth considering.

Progression

The single most important component is progression. Without progression,

there is no point in even training. Progression is not always as simple as just
adding weight each session. Many programs have both light and heavy days

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within the same cycle. What you’re looking for is an overall increase in
workload (resistance and/or volume) from beginning to end.

Specificity

Specificity is an important, yet often misinterpreted element of program

design. When the term sport-specific became a buzzword among coaches,
many took this to mean that weight-room exercises needed to replicate
athletic skills as closely as possible. I can clearly remember being in a
weightroom watching pitchers being instructed to perform a throwing motion
while holding the end of a weighted cable.

Specificity simply means that the program will translate to increased

performance in the chosen discipline. If you're a football player trying to gain
size and strength, your program should reflect it with compound movements
(squats, overhead presses, deadlifts, bench presses, cleans, etc.) If your goal
is to total 2000 pounds, your program damn well better include variations of
the squat, bench and deadlift, consistently performed with heavy weights.

Variety

To avoid stagnation, a program must include a certain amount of variety.

Simply adding 5-10 pounds each week to a given lift will work for a while, but
your nervous system will eventually stop adapting and your progress will stall.
Different programs address variety in different ways. Percentage-based
programs like Sheiko address variety by changing the percentages from week
to week. Conjugate peridozation-based programs like the old WSB template

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keep the percentages fairly static but change special exercises often.

Recovery

If you are unable to recover from your training sessions, you won’t get very far
without stalling or getting hurt. A worthwhile program will address recovery,
either by limiting the amount of sessions per week, or by prescribing lighter
workouts geared for restoration. Some will include both. While there are some
programs out there that call for an enormous amount of volume (such as
training heavy every day) these protocols are rarely practical for all but the
most serious and genetically gifted lifters.

If you look at the most popular programs of today you’ll see that they ALL
address these 4 components. In fact, if you look at the big picture, most
programs have more similarities than differences.

It’s Not the Map, it’s the Driver

Imagine two drivers taking a trip cross country, each with an identical map.

Driver A carefully reads the map before and during the trip. He also takes
frequent breaks, sleeps in comfortable hotels each night, and has the car
serviced before the trip.

Driver B stuffs the map in the glove box and instead relies mostly on directions
from high-school kids at gas stations. He pulls all-niters while pounding coffee
and energy drinks, texts while he drives, and leaves the car in third gear on

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the highway.

Who do you think is more likely to reach the destination in one piece?

You see the same scenario played out with lifters all the time.

Lifter A carefully reads the program and works out the percentages based on
recent personal records. He trains hard, eats healthy foods, sleeps at night
and doesn’t miss workouts. If he has a question, he’ll seek out an expert to
answer it, maybe even the author of the program.

Lifter B doesn’t even buy the $15 e-book to get the program. He picks up
whatever info he can on the forums (probably from swolebro89), then plugs in
numbers he’s “pretty sure” he can handle. He sleepwalks through training
sessions, eats like crap, stays out drinking three nights per week and doesn’t
even stick with the program for a full cycle before he’s on to something else.

Now who do you think will have more success with the program? Given these
two examples, does the program even matter?

I vote no, and for that matter, I don’t think which program you choose is
nearly as important as how you execute it. A program is basically a tool to
add structure to your time in the gym. How well it works is most often
determined by your execution rather than what’s on the page.

If you are young, or relatively inexperienced, you’ll probably make progress

on ANY program mentioned in this article, even if you aren’t quite sure what
you are doing yet. Just eat well, sleep at night, work hard and try in the gym.
Most of all, be patient enough to see it through to the end.

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Logistics

So does it matter which program you use? Yes, but not for the reasons you
might think. There is one factor that can easily determine your best choice,
but it has nothing to do with the sets and reps themselves. For a strength
training program (or any program for that matter) to work, it absolutely needs
to fit your current life situation. In other words, your best training program is
often decided by logistics unrelated to the training itself.

For example:

If you can only make it to the gym three times per week for an hour at a time,
you probably won’t benefit from a volume-based program like Sheiko. You
could however, manage to fit a 5/3/1 or WSB template into your schedule.

Conjugate periodization-based programs like WSB thrive on variety in

movements. If all your gym has in the way of equipment are two squat stands
and a bench, you probably won’t get as much out of it as someone with
more tools at their disposal. In this case, you would be better off with a
percentage based program which uses little more than the competition lifts in
training.

If you have no spotters, you might be better served on a percentage based

program than WSB, which requires working up to an all-out max every week.

If you are a strength coach that needs to train multiple athletes at a time, a
conjugate periodization program might be easier to execute than one that
sticks to specific percentages because your athletes will most likely be all over
the place in terms of their strength levels. With a conjugate program, your

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athletes can just take turns working up, rather than changing the weight for
every single set.

If you have little experience on the competitive lifts, you’re probably better
off on a program that lets you practice them than you are with conjugate
periodization, which relies heavily on special exercises. As your technique
improves, a conjugate-type program will be more beneficial because it will
let you target specific weaknesses more effectively.

Whatever program you pick, you need to be sure that you will be able to
devote the required time and effort for the entire duration of that macro-
cycle. Otherwise, the program has not failed you, you’ve failed the program.

As you gain experience, you will learn how to alter programs to fit your
training arrangements, without sacrificing the essential elements of them. Until
then, you’re better off doing what’s on the page So if there’s a take home
message here, it’s that there are lots of ways to get strong, and one isn’t
necessarily better than another.

My advice to anyone ready to try something new would be to pick your

program based on which one fits your training arrangement best, than apply
yourself to it 100%.

The program included in this book are by no means better than any others
out there, but they are battle tested by lifters just like you and they’ve
produced consistent results year after year. Check them out, but don’t be
afraid to find your own path when the time comes.

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 16 Week Conjugate Program for Novices

Few powerlifting programs have generated as much interest as conjugate

periodization (AKA Westside). While the program is certainly effective for a
vast population of lifters, it’s not exactly the easiest to follow correctly for lifters
with a limited training history.

The following is a variation that I’ve used successfully for some of my clients
that limits some of the variables that can derail inexperienced lifters. Is it totally
idiot proof? Nope, but it’s a great introduction to one of the most popular
strength programs in the world.

What’s in a Name?

Since conjugate periodization was popularized for powerlifting by Louie

Simmons of Westside Barbell, my first instinct when writing this program was to
do what everyone else seems to and call it “Westside for Novices”. Why not?
We already have:

Westside for Raw lifters

Westside for Natural Lifters

Westside for Skinny Guys

Westside for Fat Guys

The list goes on…

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I decided against using the Westside name in the title of the program for two
reasons:

1. Respect – It’s not my club, nor do I train there. I do not like the idea of
misrepresenting my program as something Louie has somehow signed
off on.

2. Accuracy – While this template is based on Louie’s, they have not, to

my knowledge ever used it as written here. In fact, I’m almost positive
they haven’t. Only those who train at the club can really claim to know
what they do day in and day out. And for that matter, the template
itself is a small part of why the club is so successful.

In fact, having visited, and spoken to some of the members at length, I would
say that the coaching and environment are probably more crucial to the
club then the template.

Basically, unless you are actually training AT Westside, you are not “training
Westside”.

Conjugate in a Nutshell

This article is written for those out there who want to start a conjugate
program, but are unsure where to begin. If you are a regular reader of elitefts,
you are probably at least casually familiar with the original conjugate
template written by Louie. If not, there is a TON of information on the
Conjugate System on Westsidebarbell.com and elitefts.com.

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Additionally, any exercise named below can be looked up in the elitefts
exercise index.

The classic conjugate template calls for 4 training days per week:

Monday – Max Effort Lower

On this day, you will perform an exercise similar to the squat or deadlift, up to
a 1-3 rep max. Exercises can include various forms of the box squat, rack pull,
deficit deadlift, and good morning, performed at a 1-3 rep max. This
movement is usually rotated each week. The meet-style lifts are not
performed until the meet.

Wednesday – Max Effort Upper

On this day, you will perform an exercise similar to the bench press, up to a 1-3
rep max. Exercises can include various forms of the board press, floor press,
close grip bench press and rack press, performed at a 1-3 rep max. This
movement is usually rotated each week. The meet-style bench press is usually
not performed until the meet.

Friday – Speed Squat

Speed squats are performed as a wide stance box squat, in order to teach
you to sit back in the squat and to fully recruit the hamstrings, glutes and
lower back. Additionally, box squats build strength out of the hole and assure
that you are squatting to depth.

The weight is kept at around 50 percent (often waved from 45 to 55 over 3

weeks), and use of bands and chains for accommodating resistance is

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common.

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed benches are performed with a closer-then-competition grip, in a touch

and go style (no bounce). Like the speed squats, the weight is kept at 50
percent and can be waved over the 3-week wave.

As any experienced lifter can tell you, there is a LOT more to the program, but
the above is a basic breakdown.

Problems for Novices

Conjugate is a GREAT style of programming but presents some challenges to

the beginner, all of which are addressed in my template.

Variety – Conjugate thrives on variety in exercises, especially with regard to

max effort exercises. This is why tools like special bars, bands, and chains are
used.

Most beginners do not have access to these toys, which limits their options.
Hell, in today’s Planet Fitness inspired fitness industry you are lucky if your gym
has a quality barbell and rack.

On this template, the exercise selection is limited so that all you need are
a barbell and rack.

Coaching – Most novices, unless they are lucky enough to train with an
experienced group, do not have the benefit of coaching, making it tougher

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to learn technique in the competition lifts. In this template, there is a skills day,
where you will be practicing the meet lifts in place of a special exercise each
month.

Exercise selection – Experienced lifters know how each special exercise

carries over to their meet lifts, and what the general correlation should be
between lifts. On this template, exercise selection is limited, with each special
exercise repeating every month. With fewer exercises in the mix, it will be
easier to note the carryover from the special exercises to the meet lifts.

Note, this program is written as a MEET CYCLE and is designed to be

completed with a competition. I’ve always been of the belief that beginning
powerlifters should compete early and often, in order to gain meet
experience as quickly as possible.

Special Exercises

This template calls for only 3 special exercises per 16 weeks. You will be
working up in each exercises once per cycle/month. In month one, you will
go to a 3 rep max. In months two and three and four, you will go up to a 1 rep
max. I like keeping the first week to a 3rm in order to reinforce technique.

For the squat/deadlift, pick a version of the goodmorning, deadlift and low
box squat.

For the bench, use a close grip full-range bench, rack press and floor press.
Board presses also work if you are able to get multiple training partners to help
you. If you are just going at it alone in a commercial gym, you know how
tough it can be to find a good spotter so stay away from exercises requiring

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more than one.

Speed Work

Speed work will be just about the same as on the traditional WSB template.

For squat/deadlift perform 8 sets of 2 on the wide stance box squat. Wave
the weight from 45 to 55% of your 1rm free squat over 3 weeks, then start over
at 45.

Following the squat, hit 6 singles on the deadlift waving the weight from 65-
75% of your 1rm.

Rest intervals between lifts should be kept to about a minute.

For the bench, use 9 sets of 3. Changing your grip every 3 sets, I tend to go
from pointer-finger at the smooth, to between the line and the smooth, to
pinky on the line. Wave the percentages from 45-55% of your 1rm.
Before you even ask, I do NOT recommend using bands and chains for your
first conjugate cycle. Not only are they unnecessary for beginners, but they
are one more variable that can muddy the waters while you are trying to
learn a new training protocol.

Assistance

Following your max effort or speed work, you should be doing at least two
assistance movements.

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For your squat/DL days, you should be hitting at least one posterior chain
(hamstrings glutes, lower back), and one abdominal exercise.

Posterior chain lower body assistance movements include:

Glute ham raises
Reverse hypers
Straight leg deadlifts
Cable pullthroughs
Back extensions
Band goodmornings

Abdominal exercises include:

Sit-ups over the glute-ham/back extension machine
Cable pulldown abs
Band pulldown abs
Hanging leg raises
Planks
Spread eagle sit-ups
Incline bench sit-ups
Dumbbell side bends

For the bench days, at least one upper back movement and one triceps
exercise.

Upper back exercises include:

Bentover barbell rows
T-bar rows
Dumbbell rows
Shrugs

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Pulldowns
Pull-ups
Rear dumbbell raises

Triceps exercises include:

Lying dumbbell extensions
Lying barbell extensions
JM presses
Cable triceps extensions
Bend triceps extensions

The Template

As mentioned earlier, this template consists of 4 cycles, each lasting 4 weeks,

for a total of 16 weeks (17 if you include the deload for the meet).

IMPORTANT NOTE!!!
The exercise selection is really up to you, based on what you think you need.
You do not need to use the exercises as written. I actually encourage you to
experiment so that you will find what works for yourself.
For the sake of the demonstration, The Squat/DL Max Effort exercises I’ve
selected are the Low Box Squat, rack pull (lowest setting on your rack) and
the low box squat (2 inches below parallel).

For the bench, we’re using the close grip bench (pointer finger on the
smooth), floor press (your choice of grip, but stick with the same grip for the
entire program), and rack press (close grip, same height thought the whole
program)

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Cycle 1
Week 1
Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL
Low box squat – work up to a 3rm
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Close grip bench – work up to a 3rm
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 45% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 65% 6 x 1
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 45% 9 x 3
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Week 2
Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL
Rack Pull – work up to a 3rm
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

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Wednesday – Max Effort Bench
Floor Press – work up to a 3rm
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 50% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 50% 9 x 3
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Week 3

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Goodmorning– work up to a 3rm
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Rack Press – work up to a 3rm
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

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Friday – Speed Squat
Box squats 55% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 75% 6 x 1
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 55% 9 x 3
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Week 4

Monday – Squat/DL skill day

Free Squat - work up to 85% of 1rm
Deadlift - work up to 85% of 1rm
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

Wednesday – Bench skill day

Bench Press – work up to 85% of 1rm
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 45% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 65% 6 x 1
Straight leg deadlifts 4 x 8
Incline bench sit-ups 4 x 15

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Sunday – Speed Bench
Speed bench 45% 9 x 3
T-bar rows 4 x 8
Lying DB extensions 4 x 12

Cycle 2

Week 1

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Low box squat – work up to a 1rm
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Close grip bench – work up to a 1rm
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 50% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 50% 9 x 3
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

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Week 2

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Rack Pull – work up to a 1rm
ïBack Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Floor Press – work up to a 3rm
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 55% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 75% 6 x 1
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 55% 9 x 3
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Week 3

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Goodmorning– work up to a 1rm
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

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Wednesday – Max Effort Bench
Rack Press – work up to a 1rm
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 45% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 65% 6 x 1
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 45% 9 x 3
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Week 4

Monday – Squat/DL skill day

Free Squat - work up to 90% of 1rm
Deadlift - work up to 90% of 1rm
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Wednesday – Bench skill day

Bench Press – work up to 90% of 1rm
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

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Box squats 50% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Back Extension 4 x 8
Cable pulldown abs 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 50% 9 x 3
Bentover barbell rows 4 x 8
Lying BB extensions 4 x 12

Cycle 3

Week 1

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Low box squat – work up to a 1rm – Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Close grip bench – work up to a 1rm– Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 50% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

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Sunday – Speed Bench
Speed bench 50% 9 x 3
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 12

Week 2

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Rack Pull – work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Floor Press – work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 55% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 75% 6 x 1
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 55% 9 x 3
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 12

Week 3

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Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL
Goodmorning– work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Rack Press – work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 45% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 45% 9 x 3
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 12

Week 4

Monday – Squat/DL skill day

Free Squat - work up to 95% of 1rm
Deadlift - work up to 95% of 1rm
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

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Wednesday – Bench skill day
Bench Press – work up to 95% of 1rm
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 1

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 50% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Cable pullthroughs 10 x 8
Spread eagle situps 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 50% 9 x 3
Dumbbell Rows 4 x 8
Cable Pushdowns 4 x 1

Cycle 4

Week 1

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Low box squat – 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Close grip bench – 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

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Friday – Speed Squat
Box squats 55% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 75% 6 x 1
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 55% 9 x 3
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

Week 2

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Rack Pull – work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Floor Press – work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 45% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

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Sunday – Speed Bench
Speed bench 45% 9 x 3
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

Week 3

Monday – Max Effort Squat/DL

Goodmorning– work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Wednesday – Max Effort Bench

Rack Press – work up to a 1rm - Try to beat previous cycle's pr
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 50% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 70% 6 x 1
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 50% 9 x 3
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

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Week 4

Monday – Squat/DL skill day

Free Squat - work up to 85% of 1rm
Deadlift - work up to 85% of 1rm
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Wednesday – Bench skill day

Bench Press – work up to 85% of 1rm
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

Friday – Speed Squat

Box squats 55% 8 x 2
Speed deadlift 75% 6 x 1
Glute ham raises 4 x 8
Hanging leg raises 4 x 15

Sunday – Speed Bench

Speed bench 55% 9 x 3
Machine rows 4 x 8
JM presses 4 x 12

Week of the Meet

Light assistance work only Monday – Wednesday

Rest from Thursday until meet.

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Notes

On days where you break a pr, don't get too aggressive and keep going until
a miss. If you break a pr, it's an indication you are on track, so don't beat
yourself up more than you need to.

On a day where you miss a pr, consider doing some extra assistance work for
the muscle group you believe is your weakness.

Extra workouts are fine, even encouraged. Keep the weights light and the
movements small. This is a great time to add in some extra ab, upper back
and hamstring work.

The speed work weights might feel too light. DO NOT RAISE THEM. The point of
speed work is to produce lots of force on a sub-maximal load.

Feel free to make exercise substitutions if needed, but make sure the new
exercise is similar enough to accomplish a similar purpose. For example, a
board press is a great substitute for a floor press. A lying triceps extension is
not.

Take great notes. Conjugate requires you to listen to your body and to look for
indicators. Learn which exercise carry over to the meet lifts and which do not.
Adjust accordingly next time you run the program. Different lifters will notice
different lifts work better for them than others.

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 The Eastside Squat Cycle

For the about 7 years, I had the privilege to train at Eastside Barbell in
Palisades Park, owned by my old friend John Bott. The following squat
cycle, put together by John, was a meet preparation cycle we often used
with a lot of success.

This program has worked exceptionally well, enabling all 7 members at the
time to squat at least 700, with 5 of us surpassing 800, including John’s 905.
The reason I wanted to share this program is that it worked for lifters with
various levels of experience and a broad range of physiques/squatting
styles.

As you can probably tell by the name, this cycle is an adaptation of the
Westside Barbell template. The most significant difference is that we squat
once per week as opposed to twice. Despite the lower frequency, we are
still able to address speed, maximal strength, special exercises and suit
work, all within the same month.

To start, a few points to note about this cycle:

• This is a one day a week squat cycle. We all do extra work on our
own, but this is left up to the individual. Do whatever extra work you
think you need.

• This cycle is intended to be used by competitive powerlifters, training

and competing in gear.

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• This cycle is intended to follow an off-season training program. You
should already be in relatively good shape before starting this meet
cycle.

• It’s recommended for intermediate level lifters and up.

The program is divided into 3, 5-week cycles, each consisting of the

following days.

Week 1 – Dynamic with accommodating resistance

Week 2 - Max with accommodating resistance

Week 3 - Deload

Week 4 – Full gear squat

Week 5 – Special exercise (optional)

Repeat

Following each workout, we'd perform assistance exercises. These include

reverse hypers, glute-ham raises, straight-leg deadlifts, back extensions,
goodmornings, pulldown abs and various sit-ups. Pick at least one posterior
chain and one abdominal exercise to do after your main exercises.

Week 1 - Dynamic With Accommodating Resistance

We’d start the cycle with a dynamic effort squat session. For the last cycle,

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we started with a strong band for accommodating resistance and
squatted to a box with a foam pad. The foam builds strength out of the
hole and keeps the hips strong. We’d wear a brief and use around half of
our max squat. We’d typically increase the weight every two sets for a
total of six work sets.

For example, a 750 squatter training for 800 might go:

315 x 2 x 2

345 x 2 x 2

365 x 2 x 2

For our second exercise, we’d use a heavy deadlifting movement to

balance our speed squats. This can be a deadlift from the floor, standing
on mats, or rack pull, with or without accommodating resistance

Week 2 -Max Effort with Accommodating Resistance

Following the dynamic day, we would work up to a max using the same
accommodating resistance as the previous week. This time, we’d use a
hard box and wear our suit bottoms. Following our normal warm up, we’d
work up to a heavy single.

Since we'd already worked up to a big strain, we’d speed deadlift,

typically with bands.

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Week 3 - Deload

This is a light workout, usually a speed box squat with similar training
weights as week one, but without bands. I liked to do this workout raw
because I found it helped my bottom end strength and gave me extra
muscle work. If you do wear gear today, a light brief tends to work best.

We wouldn’t pull on our deload day in order to preserve our central

nervous systems. Instead, we’d do a goodmorning, usually for sets of five.

You can also free squat if you feel you need the practice.

Week 4 - Full Gear Squat

We were firm believers that you must practice the lift you are going to
perform at the meet. This was especially true for us because we often
worked with novice lifters, who might not yet be good at the squat. On
week 4, we'd work up to our last warm-up at the meet.

For example, if my planned attempts were 720, 760 and 800 pounds, for
my week 4 workout I worked up to only 675 pounds. Following our last
squat, we’d put reverse bands on the bar and do one or two more squats
to get our nervous systems used to heavier weights. With bands, we’d go
up to either a first or second attempt.

Since this was our day to practice in gear, we’d also work up to a full gear,
contest style deadlift, also to a last warm-up.

Week 5 - Special Exercise

Although this day is optional, (we did it to fill a few extra weeks) I'm
including it because straight bar squatting week after week is tough on the

289
shoulders, and special bars are great for giving them a rest. Plus, you can
use this day to focus on your specific weaknesses.

Use either a cambered or safety squat bar and work up to a heavy 5 or 3

off the box. We generally would not do a deadlifting movement on this
day, but this is up to you.

Week 6 - Dynamic With Accommodating Resistance

Same as week 1 except we’d switch the strong band for five chains. Bands
can be very draining, especially for some of our taller lifters. Switching to
chains allows us to keep hitting our top end with less stress to the CNS.
While bands ground you, making you more stable, chains challenge your
ability to stabilize by swinging.

Week 7 - Max Effort with Accommodating Resistance

Same as week 2, except we’d continue with the five chains instead of the
strong bands.

Week 8 - Deload

Same as week 3. We might go a little heavier but not much.

Week 9 - Full Gear Squat

For this squat workout, we'd go up to a projected first attempt. Following

our goal weight, we'd use the reverse bands to hit a second, or maybe a
third attempt. We deadlifted up to a first attempt.

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Week 10 - Special Exercise

Same as week 5, although we'd use a different bar.

Week 11 - Dynamic With Accommodating Resistance

For our last dynamic day, we’d switch back to bands, this time with a
strong and an average band. Remember that this is a speed day! You may
need to lower the weight to keep your bar speed up.

Week 12 - Max Effort with Accommodating Resistance

Same as weeks 2 and 7, continuing with the strong and average bands.

With the increased band tension, it's even more important that you use
your suit bottom and a hard box today. You'll want to keep your hips
healthy for your suit squat in two weeks.

Week 13 – Deload

Same as weeks 3 and 8. Once again, you can make a small weight
increase, but remember that this is a deload day.

Week 14 - Full Gear Squat

This is your last and heaviest squat day before your meet. The goal here is
to hit your projected second attempt. Next, use the reverse bands to
make your third. You can also make one more jump to get used to the
overload. We’d shoot for about 4-5 percent over our third atempt.

Work up to a second attempt deadlift.

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Week 15 - Deload

This is a light workout with either a squat bar or special bar. Keep the
weights at 50 percent or below and keep your speed up. I like special bar
work on this day to give my shoulders a break. No more pulling at this
point.

Week 16 - Off

Only light assistance/restorative work today only.

Week 17 – Meet

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 Progressive Conjugate Overload

This next program came from my friend Greg Damminga, who in addition
to having a famously huge stash of gear, is also the owner of Twin Cities
Barbell, home to none other than the ageless Debbie Damminga, who I
had the pleasure of sharing the WPO platform with. Their son Dave is
incredibly strong has well.

Greg is a huge supporter of multiply powerlifting, so when he offered me

some of the programming he’s used for himself and his lifters, I jumped at
the chance to include it.

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Progressive conjugate overload

This is a combination of traditional old style progressive overload, and

Westside

Barbell conjugate method, with the added twist of wave progression inside
each session.

Progressive Overload:

A program whereby at the beginning of a cycle, the reps are relatively high,
and weight lower. Something like 5 sets of 8 at 60% of your max. Over time,
the reps drop per set, and the weight increases down to two weeks before
the meet a single at say 105% of your previous max. There are million
different rep and set and percentage programs available to use.

Conjugate Method:

Rotate major exercises for a lift every 2/3/4 weeks, always trying to max out a
triple or double each week. The theory here is that your body acclimates
itself to a new exercise after a few weeks and the exercise needs to be
changed to keep your body guessing. Plan backwards from the meet such
that the last 3 weeks of workout are the actual squat, bench, and deadlift as
you would perform them in the meet.

Example:

Major exercises for deadlift: deadlift off blocks, rack pulls, pull into bands, pull
in to chains, etc.

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Example for the squat: box squat, box squat into bands, box squat into chains,
free squat with hanging bands, cambered bar free and box squats, etc.

Example for the bench: slingshot, full range raw into bands, raw with boards
into bands, ditto with chains, boards only raw or shirted, etc.

Here at Twin Cities Barbell in Eagan Minnesota, we like to work on the

following schedule:

Monday PM – squat/legs, plus assistance like reverse hyper and glute ham
raise

Wednesday PM – shoulders and other assistance like triceps isolation and

core

Thursday PM – deadlift/lats, plus other related pulling motion assistance like

curls

Saturday AM – bench and triceps pressing assistance

The rotation is set up this way for the following reasons:

• Most people don’t like to squat in the mornings, too creaky, so bench
must be on Saturday

• Most people like to have Sunday off

• All other days thus must be at night

• I like my CNS to be fresher for squats, so on a 7 day week the

we deadlift 3 days after squatting, but squat 4 days after deadlifting

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 • Shoulders and assistance separate between the squat and dead days

• Usually we take every other week off on deadlift day, just doing the
assistance stuff not the main movement, to recover

Progressive Conjugate Overload (PCO) combines these two methods into a

training cycle that ideally follows 14 weeks:

3 weeks exercise A, 3 weeks B, 3 weeks C, 3 weeks competition movement,

then 1 week for openers, 1 week deload

If you have less than that to prepare for a meet, just work backwards from
the meet and insert yourself into the program at the appropriate point.

Here are examples of exercises for each of the major lifts that I like to use:

A B C

Squat Box squat into bands Free squat into chains Hanging Bands

Benchpress Raw boards with bands Slingshot Shirted boards

Deadlift Speed pulls into bands Defecits off 3” block Rack pulls into chains

There are many other major exercise variations: with and without gear, good
mornings, free raw squats (I can’t do these much anymore because of my
hips) full range raw paused benches, etc. It all depends where you think
your weaknesses are in your lifts: work the weaknesses, not the strengths.

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For each “wave” A, B, C, you can do triples, or doubles (save singles for the

Last 3 weeks of competition movements), but you must do at least 3-4 work
sets, increasing weight each set by roughly 3-5% such that the last set you can
BARELY get, occasionally miss. This is the “wave” inside each session.

Here is an example of a squat sequence I have used in the past:

A: box into bands with loose briefs (+75 at the bottom, +200 at the top)

week 1:

3x360, 3x380, 3x400, 3x420

week 2:

3x380, 3x400, 3x420, 3x440

week 3:

3x400, 3x420, 3x440, 3x460

B: free squat in briefs with 200lbs chains

week 1:

2x500, 2x530, 2x560, 2x590

week 2:

2x530, 2x560, 2x590, 2x620

week 3:

2x560, 2x590, 2x620, 2x650

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C: full gear hanging band (-30 top, -80 bottom) overload

week 1:

2x700, 2x740, 2x780, 2x820

week 2:

2x740, 2x780, 2x820, 2x860

week 3:

2x780, 2x820, 2x860, 2x900

3 weeks of competition singles (% increases are smaller due to singles)

week 1:

1x740, 1x760, 1x780, 1x800

week 2:

1x760, 1x780, 1x800, 1x820

week 3:

1x780, 1x800, 1x820, 1x840

Each week follow the squats with 2 assistance exercises 3-4x10 like Reverse
Hypers, Glute Ham Raise, leg press, pull thrus, etc.

Then there is 1 week of performing your opener on each major movement

day.

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Then 1 week do essentially nothing, maybe a couple of days of light sets of 8
for each bodypart to pump.

Then GET ON THE PLATFORM!

On back/lats day would be the same type of sequence but with different
main movements. Then some kind of lat pull like machine weights, back
totter, chest supported row (CSR), 4-5x10. Then some hammer curls or straight
bar curls 3-4x10.

On bench day, we would do a similar progression, but the exercises would be

very different raw vs. shirted. Raw might be something like this:

A: paused, B: boards at weakness height, C: boards w/bands.

Shirted might be something like this:

A: raw, B: slingshot, C: decreasing boards

Then some kind of shoulder isolation movement, triceps, and abs.

On Wednesday assistance day, we will normally do some kind of shoulder

pressing movement: straight bar, log, hammer machine, 3-4x6 with slightly
increasing weight each set. Then some kind of abs like slant situps, hanging
leg raises, ab wheel, 3-4x15 with added weight. I also like to do side bends for
my core, 120 up to 150 dumbbells 3-4x10 each side. Then some kind of triceps
isolation movement like banded push downs or lying extentions (Kennellys) or
lying fly-outs (Frankls), or skull crushers with a curl bar.

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 How I Programmed the Bench Press

Even the best bench shirt on the market isn’t worth a shit unless you know
how to incorporate it into your program. By contrast, with the right
approach, a smart lifter will be able to wring 100 lbs out of even the most
basic piece of gear on the market.

When power lifting “purists” talk about the effect of gear on the sport, they
often point to advancements in design and material as the reasons
today’s lifters are getting so much carryover. I can tell you with pretty
good authority that this is complete bullshit.

The truth is that today’s gear isn’t all that different from the stuff from 10- 15
years ago. I know, because I was there. Canvas suits have remained
relatively unchanged since their introduction. My Ace bencher, while a
top of-the line shirt, isn’t all that different than the denim I wore over 10
years ago which I got 80 lbs out of.

Sure, there have been some advancements here and there, but not
enough to DOUBLE the carryover that most lifters are getting compared to
just a few years ago.

The real key has been the training. While the gear itself has been tweaked
here and there over the last decade, the athlete’s mastery of it has been
the real key to the monster carryovers. The days of staying out of your shirt
until the meet are long gone. Unless you are adjusting your training program
to accommodate your shirt work, you will be left in the dust by those who
are.

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For the past couple of years, I’ve been tweaking my own bench training to
get the most carryover I possibly can come meet day. The resulting
program allowed me to put almost 100 lbs on my bench in about 3 years.
30 lbs a year may not seem like much, but consider I was already
benching 3x bodyweight when I started this program.

Following my success with it, I started implementing it with some of my

training partners (both veteran and novice), who’ve experienced similar
results.

The following program is NOT what I would do to break in a shirt, or to

improve raw strength in the off-season. This is a meet progression, designed
to get an OBSCENE carryover come meet day.

This is a 2 day per week program.

Day 1 is dedicated to top-end strength, both in and out of the shirt.

Day 2 is really whatever you need it to be. You have your choice of 3
suggestions based on experience level and goal.

If you’re more experienced and already have a decent raw bench, but
don’t have the necessary technique, you are going to want to follow the
“Strong but Spastic” scheme, outlined in Program 1. Since you already
have a decent raw bench, your raw work will take a backseat to your shirt
training, at least for the duration of the meet cycle.

3 out of 4 of the day 2 sessions will be 5 singles at between 75 and 85

percent or your raw max in whatever special exercise is prescribed.

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For the record. If you can’t decide If you are a good enough raw bencher
for this template, I would consider a “decent” raw bench to be at least in
the 315 range if you’re under 198 lbs, 365 if you weigh less than 242 and
405 if you’re 275 or more.

Obviously these are not world class numbers, but they are high enough for
you to make your shirt work the priority for 12 weeks.

If you’re new to power lifting or your bench is below the numbers above, I
recommend Program 2, which I call Weak as Piss (sorry, but you know it’s
true). This program is designed to address raw strength and muscle mass as
much as possible, while still preparing you to shirt bench big at your meet.

The sets and reps are a 3x5 scheme at the same 75-85 percentages as in
Program 1.

If you’ve been around the block a few times and/or are banged up, I
would suggest “Beat to Shit” or Program 3. This version scraps the bench
work on day 2, in order to preserve your shoulders and elbows. Some light
to moderate assistance work is fine here, but you won’t want to do
anything heavy.

Although all three programs are appropriate for full lifters, this one in
particular works well for powerlifters whose shoulders take an additional
beating from squatting week after week. I’ve had success in the past by
scrapping the Day 2 bench work altogether and making day 2 an upper
back day.

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In all three programs, refer to the chapter on assistance work and plug in
whatever exercises you want. Select at least two “primary” movements -
one for the upper back and one for shoulders or triceps. Then plug in 2
from the “secondary” list (your choice which).

Make sure you’re picking assistance exercises that address your

weaknesses, not exercises you just like doing.

Program 1 – Strong but Spastic

Week 1

Monday – Shirted bench - If you haven’t touched in your shirt yet (or in a
long time), go to a half board today. Weight should be around a last
warm-up for your meet.

Thursday – Full range raw bench 5 sets of 1 @ 75%

Week 2

Monday – Raw special exercise

Thursday – Full range raw bench 5 sets of 1 @ 80%

Week 3

Monday – Shirted 3-board max – Work up to the heaviest single you can

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Thursday – Full range raw bench 5 sets of 1 @ 85%

Week 4

Monday Deload – Assistance only

Thursday – Deload – Assistance only

Week 5

Monday – Shirt bench – touch your prospective opener for your meet.

Thursday – Floor Press 5 sets of 1 @ 75%

Week 6

Monday – Raw special exercise

Thursday – Floor Press 5 sets of 1 @ 80%

Week 7

Monday – Shirted 2-board – Try to match your best 3-board from Week 3

Thursday – Floor Press 5 sets of 1 @ 85%

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Week 8

Monday – Deload – Assistance only

Thursday – Deload – Assistance only

Week 9

Monday – Shirted bench - Touch your prospective second attempt.

Thursday – Close grip bench 5 sets of 1 @ 75%

Week 10

Monday – Raw special exercise

Thursday – Close grip bench 5 sets of 1 @ 80%

Week 11

Monday – Shirted 1-board opener only!

Thursday – Close grip bench 5 sets of 1 @ 65% - focus on speed off the
chest.

Week 12

Deload week – Assistance only, then MEET!

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Program 2 – Weak as Piss

Week 1

Monday – Shirted bench - If you haven’t touched in your shirt yet (or in a
long time, go to a half board today. Weight should be around a last warm-
up for your meet.

Thursday – Full range raw bench 3 sets of 5 @ 75%

Week 2

Monday – Raw special exercise

Thursday – Full range raw bench 3 sets of 5 @ 80%

Week 3

Monday – Shirted 3-board Max – Work up to the heaviest weight you can

Thursday – Full range raw bench 3 sets of 5 @ 85%

Week 4

Monday Deload – Assistance only

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Thursday – Deload – Assistance only

Week 5

Monday – Shirt bench – Touch your prospective opener for the meet

Thursday – Floor Press 3 sets of 5 @ 75%

Week 6

Monday – Special exercise raw

Thursday – Floor Press 3 sets of 5 @ 80%

Week 7

Monday – Shirted 2-board – Try to match your 3 board from Week 3

Thursday – Full range bench 3 sets of 5 @ 85%

Week 8

Monday – Deload – Assistance only

Thursday – Deload – Assistance only

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Week 9

Monday – Shirted bench – Touch your prospective second attempt

Thursday – Close grip bench press 3 sets of 5 @ 75%

Week 10

Monday – Special exercise raw

Thursday – Close grip bench press 3 sets of 5 @ 80%

Week 11

Monday – Shirted 1-board - Opener only!

Thursday – Close grip bench press 5 sets of 1 @ 65% - Focus on speed off
the chest.

Week 12

Deload week – Assistance only

MEET!

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Program 3 – Beat to Shit

Week 1

Monday – Shirted bench - If you haven’t touched in your shirt yet (or in a
long time, go to a half board today. Weight should be around a last warm-
up for your meet.

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 2

Monday – Special exercise raw triples

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 3

Monday – Shirted 3-board Max - Work up to the heaviest single you can

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 4

Monday Assistance only

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Thursday – Assistance only

Week 5

Monday – Shirt bench – Work up to your prospective first attempt

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 6

Monday – Special exercise raw triple

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 7

Monday – Shirted 2-board – Try to match your best 3 board from Week 3

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 8

Monday – Assistance only Thursday – Assistance only

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Week 9

Monday – Shirted bench – Work up to your prospective second attempt.

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 10

Monday – Special exercise raw triple

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 11

Monday – Shirted 1-board opener only!

Thursday – Assistance only

Week 12

Deload week – Assistance only

MEET!

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 How the Best Get Better

This next section isn’t so much a program, as it is a series of adjustments to an

existing one. The reason I think it’s significant is because of whose program it
is. 2020 WPO winner Tara Webber. Some of this may be applicable to you,
some of it may not be, but I think there’s incredible value in learning how the
best in the world figure out how to get better.

So please enjoy a rare look into the training process of a World Champion

WPO 2019 Training

For training for the 2019 Superfinals in Chicago, I didn’t do too much different
from my normal training cycles, aside from adding in some extra stuff on off-
days and increasing band tension and volume for lower body speed work.

I had been talking to Louie regularly about training, and had been to
Westside for a week in spring 2019. He told me I had to work on my glutes as I
“had a flat ass.” We had never really thought of this before, but relative to the
rest of my lower body, my glutes really were small. I added in sets of 50-100
good mornings with all different bars several times per week. It taught me to
actually contract gluteus maximus, which I realized I was never really doing.

I also increased the band tension on lower speed days from an average
band, up to a strong band. That is an increase from ~140lbs of tension to
~250lbs. Louie said that unlike chains, bands seem to work the same for lifters
of very different heights. Obviously there is more tension for a taller person, but
they also have a much longer range of motion to complete a lift, and the

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bands seem to account for this. He had two lifters with the same max squat,
one short and one tall, use the same bar weight and same bands, and both
had the same increase in squat number at the next meet.

This worked really well for this meet prep, and I had major increases in my
squat. However, in prepping for the semi-finals only about 4 months later, I did
not see the same increase. I think it was a combination of not having any
down-time between meet preps, and also a plateauing of the effects from
the increased stimulus.

I also did a lot more conditioning for the Superfinals, sled dragging at least
every second day. I think this really increased my stamina for the competition,
allowing me to stay relatively fresh right through the deadlifts.

2020 Superfinals

For this year’s Superfinals, I waved the intensity on lower speed days. I am
feeling great at this point and really feel things are coming together. I am
using strong bands choked around pegs that are about eight inches apart as
my moderate tension. Easy tension is heavy chains of 280-340 total weight (of
course using chains is difficult, I try to set them so all but a couple links are off
the floor at the top, but almost impossible to get them also fully deloaded at
bottom.

Then one almost impossible wave where I use the cambered bar and set the
band pegs as far apart as possible (I think around 12 inches) and then put
one loop of band around the bar, then around both pegs, then back around
the bar. Looking from the side, it makes a triangle. I use an average and a
light band. With this wave, I’m just trying to make it through. The reps aren’t

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pretty, and I even miss a couple here and there. This amount of tension is
definitely bordering on max effort. I believe this has its place, but it certainly
cannot be maintained wave after wave. I don’t worry about the bar weight
with this heavy wave. For the first week, I choose something that I consider
“really hard” but doable. Next week, I go up 10-20kg, and then for the last
week, I go up to a weight that is so difficult I can barely make it through.

When I said before I miss reps, it is because if I am not set up in the perfect
spot under the bar, the reps are so much harder. You learn really quick where
the correct groove is. I know lots of people do not like bands because of that
anchoring feeling, but I like that it makes me figure out and feel where the
right spot is for each bar and band set up. That is also why I switch it up with
the chains as well. They all have their merits when you’re talking about
different types of accommodating resistance and even straight weight. I
believe the most valuable thing is being forced to adapt to each little
difference.

That is why my training is conjugate through and through.

Tara Webber

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 Your First Multiply Meet

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If you’re considering multiply powerlifting, there’s a very good chance you’re
already competing in raw powerlifting. But maybe you’re not, and have no
idea what to expect. Your first meet can be a nerve racking experience on
it’s own, but adding multiply gear to the mix push the stress level up
significantly higher.

This is how a meet will typically go.

Travel to the meet site:

Unless the meet site is within an hour of your home, I highly recommend
driving out the day before and staying in a hotel. Shit happens, and a traffic
jam or breakdown should be the last thing on your mind the morning of your
meet.

Weigh-ins

Different federations have different rules regarding when you can weigh in.
Just about all the multiply feds I know of will allow you to weigh in the day
before, but you can do it the morning of if you choose.

I don’t recommend beginners attempt cutting weight. Even raw, weight cuts
can royally fuck up your performance if things aren’t perfect, and your first
meet is never perfect. It really doesn’t matter when you weigh in. If you are
close to the class limit however, you may want to weigh in the day before just
to be sure you are in the expected class.

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At the weigh-in you will probably be asked what your opening attempts will
be. If the weigh-ins are at the meet site, you may also be asked your rack
height. I recommend using a tape measure to record how far the bar is from
the floor at your gym rack. Then you will know exactly where to set the meet
racks (most racks are marked differently).

Checking your flight

Within an hour of lifting, the flights will be posted. A flight is a group of 10-15
lifters that are grouped together based on bodyweight and attempts. There
may be anywhere from 1 to 3 (sometimes 4) flights at a single meet.

General Warm-ups

If you are in the first flight, you should start any general warm-ups (foam
rolling, stretching, mobility) before the rules briefing. That way, you will be
ready to warm up on the squat bar immediately after the briefing. If you do
not normally do a general warm-up before you lift, skip this part. The meet is
no time to try something new.

If you are in the second or third flights, start your general warm-ups while the
flight before you warms up on the squat racks, and start squat warm-ups
when they are called to the platform.

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Rules briefing

About 30 minutes before the lifting starts, the athletes will be taken through a
rules briefing led by either the head judge or meet director. They will go
through the rules of each specific lift, as well as some general conduct rules
and

regulations. If you have any questions at this point no matter how trivial, go
ahead and ask.

Warm-ups

Normally you will have between 30 and 45 minutes to warm up for each lift. I
recommend getting your lighter warm-ups out of the way quickly so that you
do not feel rushed for your heavier ones. You want to have at least 5 minutes
between each or your heavier warm-ups.

In order to preserve your energy, go right to singles early. If you are wearing
gear, get it on early so you have more practice in it. Before I hit my first 800
squat, I started putting gear on and went right to singles after 225.

A few keys to warm-up etiquette:

The warm-up room at most meets is a crowded, chaotic place. While the
other lifters are generally going to be accommodating to you, they’re there
to get their pr’s, and if you start distracting everyone by screwing up the
warm-ups, they’re going to get pissed after a while

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Get into the rotation

Well organized warm-ups run a lot like the flight. Remember the guy who went
right before you and keep following him/her. Otherwise you might lose your
place.

Know your rack heights.

Try to get into a rotation with lifters of a similar height so that the handlers
don’t have to adjust the damn rack for every set.

Know what your warm-up progression is.

If you stand there, scratching your head when someone asks you what weight
you need, you’ll have 5 other lifter rolling their eyes while you make up your
mind.

Use the appropriate rack/bench

In warm-up room that have multiple racks, try to stick to the rack with more
lifters close to your strength level. If you try to warm up with the big boys,
you’re going to feel rushed, especially when the handlers have to unload 3-4
plates so you can go after their guy.

Now here’s where things can get hairy for multiply lifters

Years ago, multiply lifters competed in multiply meets. On rare occasions

someone would compete raw for whatever reason, but they would be

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lumped in with the geared guys. Now, most meets are raw, and if you’re
lucky, there may be a full flight of geared guys.

This is an important difference because raw lifters tend to warm up and lift
faster than geared guys.

If you’re a lone multiply lifter in a sea of raw, I HIGHLY recommend starting

your warm ups TWO flights in advance if possible. So if you’re in the third flight
(which is likely, since geared guys generally lift more) you’ll want to start
warming up with the lifters in the SECOND flight, meaning you’d start warming
up while the first flight guys are up.

This will allow you to blow through your warm-ups while the first flight lifts, then
you can take your time and do your suited warm-ups with the second flight.

Attempts

Your flight will generally lift in the same order that you see posted in the warm-
up room. It’s a good idea to know who some of the lifters in your flight are so
that you have an idea where you are in the flight based on who is on the
platform.

The announcer will use specific terms to let you know how the order of the
flight is moving. If you hear yourself called out as “in the hole” this means you
are two lifters out from being called to the platform. This is when you need to
start getting your wraps on and straps up. If you are announced “on deck”
you are up after the current lifter. When it is your turn, you will hear your name
along with “bar is loaded for____” This means it’s go time.

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From the moment the bar is loaded, you have 60 seconds to begin the lift,
otherwise you may be “timed out” and forfeit the lift. Many local meets do
not strictly enforce the clock however you still want to be ready when called
because it inconveniences other lifters and makes the meet drag on if you
are not.

Following your attempt, you will be asked to submit your next attempt to the
scoring table. In the event of a miss, you may request the same weight over
again or an increase (not recommended for beginners). You may not request
a lighter weight. This is why choosing conservative attempts is important.

There is generally a break in between the lifts to set up the platform and give
the judges/platform crew a break. Pay attention to how much time you will
be given so that you can plan your warm-ups for the next lift.

When the lifting is done

There is typically about 30 minutes from the last deadlift hitting the floor to the
trophy presentation. This is generally how long it takes to figure out the
placings and calculate the best lifter awards.

Congratulations, you are officially a Multiply Powerlifter!

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 Spotting the Strongest

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While you rarely hear it mentioned, Adding multiply into the mix not only puts
a greater demand on the lifter, it also puts an incredibly amount of stress on
the spotters.

Robert Bain is not a competitive multiply powerlifter (yet), but he has the
distinction of leading the platform crew at the WPO, where the biggest lifts in
the world get posted. Keeping everyone safe is an absolutely herculean task,
and I asked Rob to contribute because new multiply lifters need to know just
what goes into this.

Some feds that like to consider themselves the more “respectable” in the
sport have done very little to protect the actual athletes, filling their platform
crews with inexperienced kids. It’s kind of funny to me that a group of lunatics
like multiply powerlifters are the ones actually taking this shit seriously.

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When I first heard about this project of creating the "definitive guide to multi-
ply lifting", my first thought was, FINALLY!!! A resource for people like me, who
love the sport of powerlifting, who want to take whatever it is we have, and
take it to the most extreme level of the sport. I've had the unique opportunity
over the last 4-5 years to train with some of the best equipped lifters in the
midwest, and it's always fascinated me.

Making the jump from Raw/Raw (no knee wraps) lifting to multi-ply, I thought,
excellent, now I'm going to have this source I've been looking for alongside
the knowledge of guys I train with. What a time to be alive! As Dave looked to
have a comprehensive, 360* view of multi-ply, one thing that gets overlooked
is once you're ready to hit the platform- Spotting/loading/platform
management. This is where I was asked to contribute as I have had the
unique opportunity to spot and platform manage for the 2019 WPO super
finals, the 2019 Midwest Equipped Open, and the 2020 WPO Semi Finals.

This has afforded me the chance to spot for some of the biggest lifts of all
time, and execute on arguably the biggest stage in powerlifting. To
understand that, let me give you a brief(ish) history of how I got there, and
what brought you to be reading my thoughts on it.

I got into powerlifting to do what most do- I wanted to be strong, I wanted a

hobby I could enjoy; and I wanted, desperately, to be different. I played
soccer my whole life, and as that chapter of my life closed, I needed
something else to pursue, as I knew my internal wiring was not designed to just
work and pay bills. I discovered this sport, and in the summer of 2015, I walked
into the Monster Garage Gym in Waukegan, IL for the first time.

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I saw these enormous humans pushing insane amounts of weight, and then I
also saw a crew of people around them. Pushing them. Screaming for that
extra ounce of energy. That one last push to lock out. Then putting them,
safely, back into the hooks. Wow. If I could somehow have recorded that
moment with my inner monologue, I would play it for every person I meet that
asks "Why do you do that weird ass sport?". I was hooked on this idea that one
day, I could be that person.

Fast forward to 2019. I at that point had changed jobs and was only at the
Monster Garage a couple times a week, also training at 2XL in Lombard, IL. I
had been afforded the opportunity to travel to meets all over the country
and the world, enjoying a fun community and meeting amazing people. But I
wanted to give back. I consistently thought about that moment walking into
the MGG, seeing the guys spotting their teammate, waiting their turn, and
everyone being at "100" for the whole session. I had spotted training sessions
hundreds of times since that moment, but I often thought- what if I could
bring that to a meet? What if a lifter could have that same comfort,
excitement, and confidence on the platform as they did in their home gym?
What would that take? So I asked Eric Stone the question- can I help at a
meet?

I asked specifically to spot at the "Pressing the Pieces Together for Autism"
Meet that 2XL puts on annually. Its a meet that benefits my family directly, its
a great cause, and is a really fun atmosphere all around. The 2019 edition,
featured some HUGE lifters, and none bigger than Barzeen Vaziri making a run
at a 1003 lb bench. In training one morning, I mentioned that I would be on
the platform for the meet and he said "awesome, just like home!" It hit me
then- I may be able to create that atmosphere I'd been wanting to for so
long.

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He was able to hit a 960+ lb bench that day, and I knew I was on to
something. 2 others hit 600 lb benches that day as well, and they did so with
spotters whom they had never met, but based on how we were managed
and executed, they the lifters felt confident in their ability to push to the limit.

Shortly after this, it was announced not only were the WPO Super Finals going
to be in Chicago, but they were also going to be a part of the ESPN platform.
The biggest stage in sport, and in my view, our time to shine. I asked again to
help for 2 reasons. I (selfishly) wanted the best seat in the house for the likes of
Dave Hoff, Crystal Tate, Bob Merkh, Matt Minuth, etc, and I wanted to help
create that atmosphere on the platform. In my mind, this was powerlifting’s 1
shot- do it, do it right, do it big, and do it perfect. To see how that went,
watch the replay on YouTube.

Great story right?

I tell you that because in MY view, spotting is a privilege in a meet

environment. First things first, its HARD FUCKING WORK. You’re up there all day,
under light sometimes, but in front of everyone, moving, loading, counting,
squatting, catching, etc. This isn’t to say meet directors are tyrants and don’t
take care of spotters, but there’s still a significant amount of physical and
mental work being done. I equate it very much to like being a goalkeeper in
soccer or hockey- you may got the whole day without being tested, but oh
boy, you better be ready for the 3 seconds you’re needed most.

I say its a privilege to spot at a meet because the lifters, via the meet director,
have entrusted you with their safety and their lives. As a spotter, its your job to
understand that, respect it, and act like it. For the 4-20 seconds from the time
they initiate the lift until they get the rack or down command, that lifter is

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100% YOUR responsibility. Heady stuff right? If I’m being honest, even though
there are humans involved in this equation, human error is essentially never an
option. This is not to say it won’t happen. It is the responsibility of the spotters,
meet director, and judges to ensure lifters have the safest platform possible;
so they can then go lift the unsafest amount of weight.

Its important to have this thought process and understanding before anything
else regarding what to look for in a lift while spotting. Respecting the weights,
the art, the environment; taking control of all those things so that the lifter can
take control of the bar are all ESSENTIAL to creating the proper lifting
atmosphere.

Load the plates, with a platform manager calling out the loading scheme (ex-
1 green/50KG, 5 red/25 kg, 2), each side confirms their side is properly loaded,
the platform manager then checks tightness of the plates/collars, confirms
the counts again, signals to the head judge that the bar is ready. I feel this is
imperative to have these check points as we’ve seen many mishaps in recent
years of bars being loosely loaded or mis-loaded, and in big meet
atmospheres, that not acceptable.

Have that plan in place prior to the meet that is agreed upon by the meet
staff so you’re all on the same page. Someone misses a step, start it over.
You’ll fall into a rhythm through the day, but don’t follow a blind pattern,
check yourself between each lifter and each flight.

This next bit is the part that I think is part of MY obsession with the sport, and
probably will NOT be done except by those that are prepping for the biggest
meets of the year. I take time to study lifters body patterns prior to the WPO.
When we found out that I would be the platform manager for the 2020

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Semi’s, I searched social media for as many of the participants as I could find
and watched.

What’s their “good” squat look like according to their captions? What about
a bad one? How do they deal with straight weight? Accommodating
resistance? If they post a miss (which is rare), how did that look? I watched
meet videos, how were they in those environments compared to training with
speed down, up, set up? Lastly, what cues were their teammates giving them
(more on that shortly)? I found all these things VITAL to our ability to lifters
being able to push their limits, not have the spotters take lifts to early, and in
the event that things went awry, we could quickly control the bar and lifter to
safety.

What am I looking for when I watch these? To put this Into a stream of
consciousness style: Head, chest, hips on a squat, do they shake out of the
hooks, how do the descend, how do they ascend (fast, steady, slow), what
color do they turn; on a bench how low do they touch, how long do they
average come down, how quickly do they press, have they had issues with
their butt coming up in past meets, what does the bar path look like coming
up(specifically hear, if the bar begins to come back over their face too early,
it turns into a face crusher and we usually have to act fast so they don’t eat
the bar).

Dead’s are a little easier, I watch which arm they supinate if using opposing
grip, are they a sumo or conventional puller. Most importantly, on squats and
deads, do they have a history of passing out? This to me is critical as I will keep
my hands just a hair closer without touching a lifter if I know they do, simply
because I will have less time to react if the lights go out.

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Lastly, I try to listen to on training videos, as well as when they approach the
bar, the lifters cues. This is my choice to help the lifter and to help create the
atmosphere of their home gym under the big bright lights. I try to repeat those
cues as they set up for their attempt, just as a training partner would, and as
the meet goes on and the lifter responds to this I throw in some of my go to
phrases as well (gotta earn your way to the WPO stage to hear those).

An additional wrinkle that gets thrown into the mix is the lifter themselves. The
set up for a lifter is going to depend on their height, weight, leverages, etc. An
example would be setting up to spot for Stacia Al Mahoe of Hawaii. At barely
5 feet, I set up in a high squat once her handler sets her into the bar, as this
allows for maximum safety. My arms come under hers as she sets up and will
move to under the bar as she descends in order to 1- refrain from touching
the lifter, 2- to allow me the ability to react fastest and keep her safe in the
event something happens. Here I’m watching a lifters upper back to see
looseness or unevenness or if the bar is rolling and pulling them out of
position.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B9Xyv2rJcMZ/?igshid=ubmo5rkgu1jy

Another unique set up is again for a shorter lifter, Cosette Neely of Cincinnati.
A video of this is attached

https://www.instagram.com/p/B9fRaZWArqA/?igshid=q9gqjfvmgfq1

Here again, I set up in a mid squat, but with hands underneath as she’s on a
platform and in even more a precarious position. Here you can see she stands
up “into the hooks” meaning she leveraged the hooks of the monolift to pick

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up the weight. When the hooks were pulled away, it pulled her forward,
causing her to tip and the spotters to have to react.

Conversely, when setting up for an individual who is larger, I will position myself
more erect, though with the arms underneath their armpits, keeping them
there throughout the lift. I get a better position should anything go wrong to
wrap the lifter and weight up in a bear hug to pull them up while the side
spotters will engage with the weights on each side. When watching, I’m
looking at their mid back, head, and in my peripheral vision watching their
hips/knees to watch the path and speed of descent/ascent.

Attached is a link to a video of positioning behind WPO runner up Bob Merkh.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B9cQvefHN6_/?igshid=12htbtcbfzfbq

Notice how I’m in close proximity to but never in contact with the lifter. This
allows for the shortest amount of time possible to react to a lifter failing the lift,
and in order to keep them safe. Good rule of thumb, if people in the crowd
think that you’re touching the lifter, you’re in good shape.

Side spotters- see above when it comes to loading. Each side is responsible for
loading the scheme called out by the platform manager, and verbally
confirming it back to them. If 2 side spotters, I HIGHLY recommend one load,
the other count (checks and balances). When setting up to spot, the crux of
the outside elbow goes under the bar, approx. 1-2 inches below the barbell.
Other hand goes under the plates again, 1-2 inches MAX away from them.

Instinctively we pull our arms towards us when they are extended and we are
surprised, this locks up the weight in a hug on both sides, with the back spotter

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wrapping up the lifter and making it less likely they fall on a squat. Similarly on
bench, 1 spotter has their arms set up as above, side spotters (typically also
for a 3 man lift off) keep BOTH hands under the barbell, fingers interlocked. All
spotters move WITH the barbell and lifter, doing what you can to maintain
those distances throughout the duration of the lift.

Lifters. Yes, Lifters have a role in the spotting process as well. The 3-8 individuals
on the platform have a single job for the 40-115 seconds you are on that
platform- ensuring you walk off it under your own power. What can you as the
lifter do to help spotters? #1 is to communicate. When approaching the bar, if
you have a unique set up, remind the spotters.

Seeing the previous video of Cossette- her handlers ensured they reminded us
before the bar was called loaded to set up the boxes for her, in order that she
would have maximum time to set up, vs us taking part of her 60 seconds to set
up the lift. If you have a history of passing out and the spotters don’t know you
personally- make sure to remind them. Lastly, and in my view the chief role of
the lifter in the spotting process- as best you can, stay with the bar. The
spotting crew will do everything in their power to ensure your safety, this is
how you ensure ours.

Dumping a bar backwards puts not only you, but the spotters, judges, and
other support staff in jeopardy. There will be occasions where you as the lifter
do not have control over that, but the absolute best of your ability, staying
with the bar until the spotters release you in paramount.

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Final thoughts

At the end of the day, this is a hobby for all but a few. NO ONE right now
makes a living strictly off powerlifting. They do it via sponsors, training others,
opening/running a gym, etc. Knowing that, as a spotter, its your job to ensure
everyone makes it home safe. It’s also your job to ensure that the lifters feel so
confident in your ability to execute on that, they throw caution to the wind
and go for it. When you’re asked to spot at your gym, its not a chore, its those
you train with saying “ I trust you”. If you’re asked to help at a meet, its a
person who is running an event saying “I trust you”. Earn that trust, keep it,
and as I am so fond of saying, LETS FUCKING GO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Robert Bain

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 How to Handle a Multiply Powerlifter

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Multiply powerlifting is really about one thing, and one thing only. Putting up
obscene weights at meets. That’s it. We certainly don’t do this shit for our
health.

But contrary to popular belief, multiply powerlifting is NOT an individual sport.

Not only does it take a great crew to get you through your workouts, it also
takes experienced handlers to make sure your day goes the way it’s
supposed to.

A few weeks prior to writing this, Brian Hill put up a great social media post
documenting some of these responsibilities. I thought it was great, so Brian
sent it over to me to publish here.

One of the most important things that goes into making it through a multi ply
meet as smoothly as possible is to make sure EACH lifter on your team has a
designated handler. Being a handler is a lot of responsibility. So it’s important
that your handler is someone you trust. Someone who knows your personality,
your preferences, and someone who can understand your verbal and non
verbal communication.

It’s also preferred that this person has thick enough skin that they won’t be
offended if you’re short or snappy with them as they try to help you. That’s
NOT an excuse to be rude to them. But during the sometimes stressful rush of
getting all of your gear set, while trying to get hyped up for a lift, it’s not
uncommon to bark out orders like, “Chalk!” instead of “Could you please
hand me the chalk, friend?” Your handler needs to understand this and be ok
with it. The handler also needs to know which coaching cues you need to

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hear before and during each lift. They also need to know when/why/how to
fire you up and when/why/how to calm you down.

The handler‘s responsibilities as they pertain to each lift are:

SQUAT

- loading all of your warm up weights

- helping you get your briefs on
- helping you get your suit on
- wrapping your knees
- helping you stand up after wrapping your knees
- setting your suit straps
- putting your belt on
- walking you to the squat bar
- helping you setup and center under the bar
- coaching/cueing you through the lift
- calling your depth from the side
- unwrapping your knees
- taking off your belt
- taking off your suit straps
- sitting you back down to rest
- turning in your next attempt
- rolling your knee wraps back up
- repeat for each attempt

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BENCH PRESS

- loading all of your warm up weights

- helping you get your shirt on
- helping you get your singlet on over your shirt
- putting your belt on
- setting your shirt and belt
- handing you your wrist wraps
- helping you setup on the bench
- adjusting your shirt and belt after you setup
- lifting/handing off the bar to you
- coaching/cueing you through the lift
- unwrapping your wrists
- taking off your belt
- sitting you back down to rest
- turning in your next attempt
- repeat for each attempt

DEADLIFT

- loading all of your warm up weights

- helping you get your briefs on
- helping you get your suit on
- putting your suit straps on
- putting your belt on
- applying baby powder to your legs
- coaching/cueing you through the lift
- taking off your belt
- taking off your suit straps

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- sitting you back down to rest
- turning in your next attempt
- repeat for each attempt

If possible, your handler needs to have an assistant. If you have multiple lifters
in the same meet, you can maybe get by with one assistant to assist all of the
handlers on your team. But if you have enough people, it would be ideal to
have one assistant per handler. Because the handler needs to be by your side
all day long, the assistant is there to assist the handler with things like:

- loading all of your warm up weights

- adjusting rack heights in squat and bench
- rolling up knee wraps
- holding knee wraps until handler needs them
- having a spare set of knee wraps on standby
(*in case the handler loses his grip midway
through a wrap and it all comes unrolled*)
- holding the boards during bench warm ups
- having ammonia/chalk/baby powder on hand
- having sweat towels on hand
- fetching food and drinks for the lifter/handler
- picking up any and all slack that the handler
needs help with throughout the day

-Brian Hill

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 Judging

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I’m not gonna say that judging tends to be more of a hot-button topic in
multiply than raw, but it sure seems that way if you spend any time on the
internet. In fact, for each big multiply lift posted, I would say that judging
occupies more space in the comment section than any other by a
considerable margin.

Let’s just get this out of the way, multiply judging tends to be more generous
than raw, especially when it comes to squat depth.

There, I said it. Are you fuckers happy?

In all seriousness, though, the difference probably isn’t as big as social media
would have you believe. In fact, for the average lifter, there really isn’t much
of a difference at all, so don’t expect to get away with squatting high just
because you’re wearing a suit. Most multiply feds adopt a “lifters first”
mentality, which basically means that in the event a judge is unsure, they’ll
give it to the lifter.

Having sat in the judge’s chair many times over the last decade or so, I’ve
judged thousands of squat attempts, both raw and geared, and the truth is
that most raw and geared powerlifters tend to squat to about the same
place.

Right on the line.

The real “gifts” tend to happen when high level lifters do smaller meets with
either friendly (or just plain inexperienced) judges, who may lack the
confidence to hold the pro to the same standard as anyone else. Sometimes
it happens as a gradual philosophical shift in the fed, with standards loosening

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over time. Usually this continues until one of their meets gets destroyed on
social media, which is followed by a massive tightening up, which makes the
next meet a bomb-fest because the lifters who are now used to squatting 2
inches high didn’t get the memo.

The way to deal with inconsistent judging is to always squat to depth. That’s it.
If you’re used to going to depth, you’ll have the ability to go in either
direction. If the meet is tight, just execute your plan and you’ll be fine. If it’s a
free for all, you can either stick to the plan, or loosen up accordingly.

Personally though, I’ve always tried to go to depth no matter what the

standard. When you start cutting squats simply because you found a weak
judge that will squeak you through, it starts to fuck up your training, because
you’re now basing expectations on a lift performed under conditions you may
not be able to replicate.

This means either adjusting your numbers to account for judging, or believing
your own bullshit lift, planning your training around it, then bombing out of the
next one because you either tried to squat sky high and got called for it, or
you tried to squat to depth with a weight you had no business even stepping
under.

My advice on judging is to never let it dictate your training. Squat to a

standard that you know will pass anywhere (in multiply) consistently, and
understand that judges are human.

And on the topic of judges being human, at some point, you’re going to get
red-lighted on a lift you know in your heart you deserved. As a guy who has
sat in that chair a time or two, I can tell you that the judges didn’t screw you

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over. Judges are human and will obviously make mistakes from time to time,
but try to remember that you are ALSO human, seeing as the judges actually
saw the lift, and you did not, the odds are good that you may be the one
who’s mistaken.

I’d be lying if I said I liked every lifter I’ve ever judged. I would even go as far
as to say I’ve had to judge people I couldn’t stand. I’m not sure how others
handle it, but my first instinct was always to double-down on the objectivity
because my reputation was too important to me to hurt it by abusing my role.

And in case you’re wondering, the worst red I ever had to give was to my
friend, legendary bencher Joe Mazza, and it was on a world record bench
attempt (he pressed the weight, but his butt came off the bench). Fortunately
Joe is a pro, and he not only brushed off the setback, but came back on his
next attempt and got it.

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 How to Survive a Major Injury (or Two)

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It goes without saying that multiply powerlifting can be a rough sport, but few
can really understand just how fast things can go south when you’re lifting
hundreds of pounds over your raw max while wearing a straightjacket.

When gear whores get defensive about the sport, we often point to the
protective characteristics of gear as a selling point, and there is some truth to
this. With sensible use, powerlifting gear can absolutely take stress off joints like
your hips and shoulders, which can prolong your career. But let’s face it, we
don’t do this shit to be sensible, we do this because raw lifting isn’t fucking
scary or dangerous enough.

Don’t kid yourself.

Multiply powerlifting will fuck you up more than you can ever imagine, and
none of us get out fully intact. Injuries are gonna happen, and what often
separates the legends from the also-rans is how well they can deal when shit
goes off the rails.

In over 20 years of powerlifting, I’ve never seen shit go as off the rails as it did
for my friend Chanel Nolet Slater at the inaugural WPO meet in 2018. But
don’t just pay attention to what happened at the meet. Pay attention to
what she did from there.

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 If you're gonna be dumb, ya better be tough: How to come back from a big
oops

A chapter explaining my personal experience of a two year journey from a

broken Radius and Ulna, and a torn ACL in the same day to coming back
stronger than ever.

“BAR IS LOADED!”

That familiar phrase, we all know it.

2nd attempt.

A 5lbs PR.

Knees wrapped, straps set, lock my belt in place. I’d spent the last few months
training for the return of the WPO, and the biggest multiply meet of the year.

I approach the bar, and even with the commotion everywhere, I feel myself
go into autopilot. I’ve done this a million times before. Right foot out, left foot
out, chest pressed against the bar, even out my feet, get my stance. Tighten
my lats down, scoop under, slide back into the bar, big air.... Unrack.
Back...
Back...
Back...
UP!
POP

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My right knee gave out on the way up. What was this? This isn't what we had
practiced!! The bar fell back and a rush of people and friends darted in trying
to assist me. “My knee hurts! This sucks! Am I going to be able to try this weight
again? Is this it for today?” After being taken off the platform, I realised
something bigger than a break in my form had occurred.

I was taken to the hallway of what was at the time the biggest meet of my
life, the WPO. Begrudgingly I had my suit cut off and I was taken to the
hospital by car. Once accessed by the on staff physician, I was told it was
probably a tear somewhere in the knee, but that we couldn't be sure of that
or the extent of it until the swelling went down and would be able to go for an
MRI in the following 2-3 weeks. SWEET. They wrapped me up and after a quick
1-2 lesson in the hospital hallway on how to use crutches, I was sent on my
way.

"Have they started benching yet?" was the first question I remember asking
leaving the hospital, almost tripping over my crutch. I had it already in my
head that I wanted to try and keep going, at least to take a token bench
and deadlift, to secure a total in the meet I had moved countries to train for.
(Toronto, Ontario to Cincinnati, Ohio.) You only live once anyway and who
knew, maybe my knee wasn't so bad?!

Once I arrived back in the warm up room with plenty of time to spare until the
start of bench, I only had one thing on my mind; Get in my shirt and Keep
going! I was going to take my original opener as a second after a token first
attempt to secure a run at deadlifts. I received quite a few stares as I was
limping around trying to warm up in my shirt and crutches. I felt as though
people assumed I was being dumb for coming back to keep lifting. They
weren't completely wrong: I knew what I was doing was risky, but I wasn't

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going to be completely taken out by just a little bum knee. And in the words
of Roger Alan Wade; If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough! This is
who I am!

Despite my right leg not being able to fully cock back into my normal bench
set up, my first attempt went great. I put my shirt on for my second and again,
right knee being out of position, I was able to get my original planned bench
opener. After being on the fence about taking a third, and possibly getting a
2lbs PR over my best bench in competition, I decided to go for it. I was here to
do my best, and in my head at the time, the worst that could happen was
dumping the bar and the spotters having to catch it. At that rate a deadlift
PR would have not been a thing, as my knee had started to hurt more and
more.

Do you know what the sound of a broom makes when it cracks in half? That's
kind of what I and I think a lot of people heard when I realised my arm was no
longer doing normal arm stuff. "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?" I was in so
much shock I walked off the platform gripping my left wrist and forearm
without a limp in my step anymore. Fast forward through the fit of anger in the
back hallway on the way to the hospital (this time in an ambulance!), I asked
to not be taken to the same one as last time because I was embarrassed the
lady at the front desk would recognize me. Thankfully the doctors took care of
me quickly and pushed for immediate surgery the following morning. I left
with a thick plate in both my Ulna and Radius, held in with 7 screws each, and
two impressive scars on both sides of my forearm.

As you can see, the bench shirt stayed on. We were able to pull it off without
damaging it and I still use it to this day.

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 347
 348
 349
All this may seem a little sensationalized, but this is really the gist of what the
day was and felt like. I've left a lot of personal details out, and highlighted
what I think was needed to be shared in order to explain my
headspace/mentality. Now, to get into how someone can come back from a
day like that. Tons of people have broken bones and torn muscles and

350
ligaments before, in and out of competition, and this is just one of those
stories.

The healing process for injuries can differ from person to person. Depending
on age, fitness level, overall health, and sex. It’s assumed that a young,
healthy, athletic male could have an easier time healing from major injuries
than a little old grandma. So for reference, at the time of the injuries, I was 27
years old, nesting comfortably in the "maybe she'll come back, maybe she
won't??" group.

The first 2-3 weeks were rough. I couldn't walk down a set of stairs (butt
walking was a thing), walk with my crutches for more than a few minutes
without major arm pain. Sleeping was a no, getting in and out of bed caused
immense pain, getting in and out of cars was a 10 step process, the list goes
on... Day to day tasks we take for granted had now become a huge chore. I
couldn't even

shower, wash my hair or sit on the toilet without having to worry about how I
was going to do it and who I could ask for help. How's a girl supposed to
poop around here?

One of the best things I did for myself was start loading up on Calcium and D3
right away. I found good results from a good diet filled with protein as well.
Water was essential as always, about a gallon a day or more. My diet was
pretty much what you would expect it to be while trying to make muscle
gains during an off season or heavy training cycle. I gained a little extra
weight, but ultimately I really wanted to make sure my body had everything it
needed to heal.

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Around the 3 week post op mark I had started going to the gym and doing
anything moderate I could to get blood flow into my leg. At the time I was still
giving my arm a little more time. If it hurt, I shut it down or tried something else.
I never pushed through the pain. I did a lot of simple knee stabilizing exercises.
Heel elevated step ups to a very low step, high box squats with minimal
weight (if any), zercher harness conventional deadlifts from pins above the
knee, stiff leg deadlifts with light weights, ect..I did these for another month or
so, increasing the weight if it didn't hurt.

I will mention to anyone going through a similar situation, you're going to

need to be patient with yourself. The amount of times I wanted to stop, cry
and crawl home we're weekly if not sometimes daily events. I didn't get an
MRI until about 5 weeks in, where the doctor told me it was in fact a full ACL
tear as well as some medial meniscus damage. I opted to not go for surgery
because at that point I was already feeling stable again from the exercises I
was doing, and didn't want to be out for another 6-8 months.

The first time I benched the bar again was around 4 weeks post op. I would
be lying if I said it was easy to get under the bar again. I knew if I wanted to
get back to the past time I loved the most I needed to remove all doubt in
myself. A wise training partner once said to me "Powerlifting is 90% mental,
and the rest is just in your head.(ha ha)" and this was no exception to that
statement. From there, once or twice a week I was able to take a bit more
weight than the week prior. I started to throw 2-4 accessories into my sessions,
mostly consisting of isolating and controlled vertical movements. Things like
single arm dumbbell floor presses, single arm pulldowns and rows, light tricep
pushdowns on the assisted dip machine, and high straight bar cable rows.
With time the weight started to build back up but I would shut any movement
down that hurt deep into my bones.

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Around the 2 month mark I decided it was time to focus on a new goal. I
chose to sign up for a raw meet about 6 months post op, feeling confident if I
focused on having fun and not pushing past my comfort zone this time, it
would ultimately also help my mental game. The idea at the time was the
sooner I got back up on the horse the better...

During this time, I was still eating extra protein and taking calcium every day
and had massage therapy done on my arm at least once a month. I also had
at least 2 more x-rays done of my arm to ensure progress and new bone
growth was taking place. I started including other exercises in waves and
stuck to more of a 5 x 5 style program. When it came time to peak for the
meet, my plan was to phase out volume and work up to moderate singles on
main movements. At the time deadlifting conventional was my best option
because the pressure on my knee to perform sumo was simply too risky. I also
switched from right hand over/left arm under to right arm under/left arm over
because my arm just didn't want to supinate like that yet.

If you're coming back from a major injury and want to find a meet to do, do
one that is close to your heart. The amount of love I have for Laura Phelps and
what she has done for me as a lifter meant one thing: The meet I do every
year, surrounded by and competing with all my friends and sisters would be
my comeback meet. Laura’s annual Women’s Pro Am. The emotional build
up was real. I cried getting my rack height, and I was terrified of people
watching me. “What if I broke something again? What if my knee blows out
on squats?” These thoughts sometimes still haunt me to this day, but are
almost completely gone now. I’m proud of how I performed at my first meet
back, nine for nine only six months post op.

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Getting back into my gear after a big break was a mindfuck, but wasn’t
impossible. I took my time and sprinkled just a little bit of “crazy” on top. I’m
not suggesting throwing on a suit and havin' at er with some reverse bands
right out of the gate, but I would suggest listening to your body and not
always to the fear in your head. The mind has evolved to keep you safe for
longer than any society has existed. Sometimes it’s up to us to determine
when the fear is valid, and when it is in the way of the bigger picture.

What seemed to be a good progression for me was a slow build up in my

gear. Here is the general outline of how I introduced my gear back into a
conjugate style program:

Squat

I started in briefs for a few weeks (2-4) to a high box, then progressed to a
regular box, then no box. Suit straps down, with the box progression. Suit straps
up, same box progression again. We added wraps at the very end of all of
this. I never used any accommodating resistance and would just build up to a
heavy single before my form felt like it would break and shut it down.

Deadlift

Sumo came back steadily with less and less pain but with both squat and
deadlift stances I came in a touch to decrease shearing on the knee from
being ultra wide. Ultimately this was a blessing in disguise because it's also
added 70lbs to my deadlift.

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Bench

I started in a slingshot for a few weeks, then went to single ply for a few
months. Again, no overloading with the shirt, no chains or bands, just full
range straight weight for the first while and maybe a board press here and
there if I was feeling confident. Eventually I transitioned back into a multiply
shirt in the same fashion.

Having a good team is key to getting comfortable back under any kind of
significant weight. If it weren't for my training partners I don't think I would
have had the confidence to trust just anyone with spotting me. I am forever
thankful for the crew I had during this time.

I competed in my first geared meet almost one year after the injuries. At this
point, I had been very mindful with my incoming thoughts and how I
responded to them. I knew coming back would be more of a mental win for
me than a PR. It was one of the scariest and most rewarding days of my life.

As I write this I am getting ready for my 4th meet back since the injury almost 2
years ago and am finally back to the numbers I was at pre injury. What I can
say I have learned from all of this is that despite what is happening around us
or in our heads, we can always be in control of our reactions. How you chose
to react to a bad situation is either going to build you stronger or inevitably
break you. In my life I have been through some rough times as many of you I
am sure have. From sleeping on the streets, drinking and fist fighting at a
young age, to losing both parents within 7 months in 2018, and surviving an
abusive relationship.

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Practicing gratitude for what you do have, practicing a positive mental
attitude, and surrounding yourself with friends who are positive and
motivating in the same things as you is the key to any story of success. I owe a
lot of my recovery to the people who showed up and travelled this road with
me. I love powerlifting with my entire soul because it has given me a purpose.
Breaking my arm and busting my knee really could have taken that purpose
from me, but every day I chose that this life, and next total, are mine to
create.

Chanel Nolet Slater

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 The O.G.s

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Being old as shit, I’ve been involved in multiply powerlifting since before the
Internet was much of a factor. We had the basics, like dial-up modems and a
few very basic message boards, but nothing like what we have now. For a
reference, I’ve been lifting since about 10 years before YouTube was created.

Back then, most of the information we got was from PowerliftingUSA!

Magazine and Louie’s video tapes that would usually be bought by one guy
in the crew, then copied, re-copied and passed around so everyone knew
what was up.

Aside from that, information was generally exchanged in-person, either at

meets, or by visiting other clubs. I was lucky in those days because I was
driving distance from both the legendary Iron Island Gym in Ocenside NY,
and Bill Crawford’s Metal Militia in lake George. I was also able to piggyback
on my training partner’s friendship with Dave Tate and Louie and got to visit
Westside a handful of times.

It was an amazing time in the sport, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything, but
looking back, I kind of wish more knowledge had been preserved for the
current generation, as much of it now exists only in the memories of those who
were there.

When I set out to write a book on multiply powerlifting, I knew I wanted it to

be more than just a simple how-to book.

It was extremely important to me that readers came away with more than just
the X’ and O’s of multiply. I wanted people coming away with some sense of
what it took to get us here, and who led the charge for my generation.

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Some of you may be surprised I didn’t include more info on Louie Simmons or
Westside Barbell. I assure you this is not out of disrespect.

The main reason I opted not to talk about Lou extensively is because his story
has already been told far more brilliantly than I ever could. Michael Fahey has
put together a phenomenal documentary called “Westside vs. the World”
and if you are interested in powerlifting on any level I recommend you watch
it. It’s available on most streaming services

Having known the guy for 20 years now, I can say the doc is about as real as it
gets, presenting a raw, unflinching look at both the man, and the lifters that
have passed through the club over the past few decades.

With a piece like this already out there, I felt it would be much more
appropriate to refer readers to Michael’s work, and devote more ink to a
couple of equally important figures you may not know much about, but
should.

To be fair, there are countless lifters who built this sport into what it is today,
and devoting ink to them all would make this very long book way too long. So
I decided to highlight two of the most important men responsible for the
advancement of gear.

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 Fred Hatfield

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Fred Hatfield is a name that most powerlifters are probably familiar with, at
least to some degree. Known as “Dr. Squat’ Hatfield loomed large in the
strength and fitness industries for decades, and made some extremely
important contributions to our sport, both as a competitor and innovator.

Although he wore, and even manufactured gear, Fred never competed

multiply as it really wasn’t around yet. But many of his innovations can be
seen in our little corner of the sport to this day. You probably take advantage
of a few of his legacies and don’t even know it.

I never got to meet Fred before his untimely passing in 2017, so I can’t speak
about the man from first hand experience. But fortunately my good friend C.J.
Murphy had a long-standing friendship/mentorship with him, and was more
than happy to share some stories for the book.

For those that don’t know him Murph is a longtime powerlifter/strongman, and
owner of TPS Malden, one of the premier strength training facilities in the
country. I’m extremely grateful to Murph for taking the time to share stories
about Fred for this project, especially since he wrote it as he was in the midst
of re-opening his facility from the Covid-19 shutdown.

Please enjoy, I did.

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Remembering Dr. Squat

“I’d like to begin by saying that I was honored when Dave asked me to write
a chapter about one of the most legendary figures in Powerlifting, Dr. Squat-
Fred Hatfield.

Dave knew that Fred and I were very good friends and he figured I would be
a good resource to tell you about some of the things that Fred brought to our
sport, even though he didn’t compete multi ply.

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I met Fred, to the best of my memory in the late 1990’s at an ISSA seminar.
Without bothering you with the details, we spoke, hit it off and became good
friends. But we became more than that. Fred mentored me along my journey
as coach for decades. I am actually getting sad as I write this chapter
because I miss him greatly every day. Fred was an amazing athlete, a gifted
author, a sports science researcher, a legendary powerlifter, but most of all, a
good man and human being. That is far more important to me than any
athletic accolades one can get.

As I did research for this chapter, I really could not find much information with
dates and such on what he brought to our sport, so most of what I am going
to tell you is from memory of the thousands of conversations we had over the
years in person and on the phone. Yes, we talked on the phone and didn’t
text like people do now!

Most people know Fred for his 1014 squat, and many incorrectly credit him
with the first 1000 pound squat.

Fred was however, the first to squat such an enormous weight at, if I recall, 45
years old, and at a relatively low body weight of 255 pounds! While 1000
pound squats may not be uncommon today, they were as rare as hen’s teeth
when he did it, and the young kids may not realize, at his age it was an
unbelievable accomplishment. Not to mention the speed at which he
executed the lift.

Fred’s approach to training was very scientific.

He had a plan laid out well in advance and adhered to it ultimately leading
to success. Fred’s training philosophy has been covered in over 100 books, e

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books and was the core curriculum for the International Sports Science
Association (ISSA) which he was a co-founder of.

The ISSA is a personal training certification agency and Fred did everything he
could to educate trainers to be knowledgeable, professional and to
consistently deliver excellence to their clients. Today, the ISSA still stands after
his passing and is known as a leader in personal training education and
certification. This is due to the tireless work that Fred did over the years. He
was like a rock star on tour.

Fred went all over the country for years teaching weekend seminars in hotel
conference rooms and in the gym on Day 2. Getting in the gym with Fred
personally teaching you how to be a coach was an amazing experience for
those lucky enough to have been there. I was lucky enough to have been
there countless times! To tell you I learned a lot from this man is the
understatement of the decade!

Some things you may not know about Fred:

Fred was an incredible trainer and he was the Strength and Conditioning
Coach for Evander Holyfield in his prime.

He was also a brilliant nutritionist and creator of the Zig Zag Diet.

This was developed under a contract/competition with the WWF/WBF.

The WBF was Vince McMahon’s pro bodybuilding organization that he came
out with during the big steroid scandal. The idea was to show that
bodybuilders could compete without drugs, and they hired three nutritionists

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to come up with the best strategies for them. Fred, Dr. Mauro DiPasquale,
and for the life of me I can’t recall the other name….anyway.

Fred’s Zig Zag won and it led to the line of ICO PRO bodybuilding
supplements that stormed the market in the mid 90’s.

Let’s move on to some of the things Fred is well known for.

I’d say the thing that Fred contributed to Powerlifting that had possibly the
most impact was the use of the Safety Squat Bar (SSB). Fred is again,
incorrectly credited with inventing the SSB (maybe because it is also known as
the Hatfield bar). The SSB was invented and manufactured originally be a
man named Jesse Hoagland.

While Fred didn’t invent the SSB, he certainly popularized it’s use. Fred was a
firm believer in the bar for many reasons, but his primary reason for using it
was because of how easy it was on the shoulders. He explained that he loved
it because it took all of the stress off of his shoulders and allowed him to train
his bench harder due to the rest it got from not using a straight bar.
He was also fully aware of the other benefits such as increased strength and
size in the upper back.

Fred told me that he didn’t use a straight bar in meet prep training until the
last few weeks before the competition. He used the SSB exclusively and did:

· Hatfield Squats
· Squats
· Bottom Up Squats

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Now on the Hatfield Squat, this to my knowledge was invented by Fred. And it
is a killer quad exercise. Surprisingly, as I listed above, Fred used Hatfield
Squats as one of his primary (and off season) meet prep squat patterns. He
did not agree with today’s “experts” that it was too different than the regular
squat pattern to be of benefit. Rather, he felt it so valuable for the shoulder
saving portion alone that it was a main movement. And as I mentioned, he
did transition to straight bar squats a few weeks out to re-groove his pattern.
To do the Hatfield Squat correctly you need a 90-degree angle at the ankle,
knee and hip. This 90-90-90 setup does a few things better than just about
anything:

· Minimizes damaging shear force on the patella

· Overloads the quads

I’ve got a few articles and videos about it on Elitefts.com if you’d like to learn
more on how to do them. What I teach you in the videos is exactly what Fred
taught me.

Even tough Fred didn’t invent the SSB, he did have input on some new
designs, and I don’t know if they ever made it into production. He gave me
three prototype bars about 15 years ago that Jesse made for him that did not
get produced, and I am glad to have them.

The first design had a much longer Yoke to make it more comfortable, and it
also had a longer drop. The drop is the portion of the bar that “drops” down
from the main straight portion that goes on your back.

The second design is sort of a cross between an SSB and an Elite FTS
Cambered Bar. The drop on this one is massive, about 15”. He called it a

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Monster Bar, and to my knowledge, I have the only one in existence. And the
bar is a monster!

He called me up one day and asked if I wanted one of his power racks. This
leads into the next topic but I’ll finish the story; Fred had an equipment
company as well. Anyway, I told him that I had not room, but asked how
much he wanted for it.

He proceeded to yell at me and if you know Fred, you know I am not

kidding.

Bottom line, he had no room for it at his new house, he got a new truck and
said he wanted to go for a drive. Delivery would be tomorrow. When he said
he was giving it to me but I had to pay for dinner and drinks, I said I’d get out
cheaper if I paid for the rack. I was right. Fred showed up the next day with a
beautiful power rack that he designed and built and the three prototype
SSBs!

I’ll keep the drinking stories to myself.

The story of Fred’s equipment company is also partly one of his gifts to
powerlifting that needs to be mentioned. Fred spent a fair amount of time in
Russia studying Soviet training methods and he brought the back
here. You’ve got to think about the time this happened to fully appreciate
what he did here.

There was no internet and getting great training information was not easy.
Fred wanted to know about what the Soviets were doing as they were
destroying people on the platforms, so he went there and learned.

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 The main things Fred brought back were the methods and the Glute Ham
Raise (GHR).

According to Fred in many tellings to me over whiskey and beer and at

seminars, GHR’s were a staple of Soviet training. They were a “Secret”
exercise. The lifters would bring a Pommel Horse over the gymnastic rungs on
the wall and do the GHR.

As most gyms in the US didn’t have the wall rungs, Fred decided he needed a
bench, so he made his own with his company, SportsStrength.
SportStrength equipment was all designed by Fred and much of it was
revolutionary for the time.

He made the GHR, a very nice rack with Quik Lok safety pins and j cups, a
scap pad bench, and Ab Bench and the Twin Stack Pulldown/Row combo
and the Hatfield Strap.

Let’s talk about the equipment!

The scap pad bench had two small pads on rollers under where your upper
back would go that allowed your scapula to move freely on supine pressing
exercises. If you ever get the chance you use one, do it. I don’t think you will
though, they are like the Unicorn. Rare and Beautiful.

The Twin Stack was the predecessor of much of the modern day equipment
with two weight stacks.

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Using two weight stacks on the pulldown and low row allowed you to deliver
force equally almost like using dumbbells for presses does. This technology
simply didn’t exist at the time he made the first ones!

His seated row attachment for it also reduced shear force on your spine
because the bench is on rollers. This allows you to roll forward and get in a
good and safe position to use your legs to drive out in order to row a ton of
weight safely. The bulk of injury risk on seated rows in getting into the start
position with a twisted, rounded spine. This set up eliminated that!

I’ve had one of these Twin Stacks for over 20 years in the gym as well as his
GHR bench and they are as good as new. And they take a beating every
day!

Fred also designed the Ab Bench. This is also a pretty amazing piece of
equipment for training the rectus ab. The Ab Bench was basically an incline
bench with an arched pad that stretched out your abdominal wall as you lay
back. It has a pulley and loading pin to add weight so that you can do
seated crunches with weight. Sounds silly, but it smokes your abs.

The Hatfield Strap may have been his best piece of equipment, yet it never
took off. Mostly because he didn’t market it much.

I got a call from Fred one day and he said he was sending me a strap to try
out for weighted back raises and Hatfield Back Raises (I named them that
because he didn’t have one for them).

This strap when used properly absolutely destroys your erectors! I tortured him
to market it for years, but as he was winding down in his semi-retirement he

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didn’t. I also tortured Marc Bartley of Spud Inc straps to reproduce it, which
he finally did after Fred’s passing with permission from the family.

This strap has been a best seller for Spud for good reason. It’s simple, effective
and it works. Grab one yourself, it’s called the Dr. Squat Strap. For more info,
look it up on YouTube. Spud and I did a video on it.

Fred designed many more pieces of equipment, but these were the truly
groundbreaking ones.

Going a little sideways here, Fred’s trip to the Soviet Union allowed him to lay
the groundwork for his modern training methods, namely CAT training.

CAT is Compensatory Acceleration Training. This type of training was not

something we did in powerlifting, or virtually anything else in the US at the
time. It is now even if you don’t know the name.

CAT training in a nutshell means that you apply more force as your leverage
improves. Of course it is more complex than that, but the general idea is to
move FASTER as you approach lockout.

If you can’t understand what I mean, think Westside Barbell style Dynamic
Squats with bands.

This is a great example of CAT!

This also may be one of Fred’s most important contributions to American

powerlifting.

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Fred always said you can’t shoot a cannon out of a canoe. He was right. You
need to be strong, stable and FAST. CAT training does all of that. I’m not
going to explain it much more, but you really should look up his methods.
Grab one of the many books he wrote, such as POWER. It’s explained by Fred
far better than I can.

Let’s talk lifting now shall we?

We all know about Fred’s legendary squats, that’s why he’s called Dr. Squat,
not just because he was a PHD.

Fred also contributed greatly to the sport in equipment development and rule
creation.

First up is “if you ain’t cheating, you ain’t racing.

I’ve heard that a million times from hot rodders, but Fred said it too.
In the early days of powerlifting there were not a lot of rules and people did
things to win that may not have been illegal, they just weren’t in the rule
book. This was explained to me by Fred many times.

Knee wraps for example were not against the rule book, and they didn’t exist.
The old timers would wrap their knees with Ace bandages to give them
support and pop. Of course this was nothing like the wraps we have today,
but they pioneered what we have now. Fred also told me that he, and many
lifters used to stuff a tennis ball under the wraps, behind the knee for more
pop.

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It wasn’t against the rules, but it is now! Probably for the better, this does not
sound like a good idea orthopedically.

In their quest for higher totals lifters experimented with suits for the squat and
shirts for the bench.

Today it is commonplace but back then it was the wild west. No rules.

Fred came out with his own suit to compete with the best and called it the
Outlaw Power Suit. I remember talking many times with him about it, but
details on the internet to verify my memory are sparse at best. Let’s just say
he made it and used it, but my memory of the details does not allow me to
give you a good story. Suffice to say he was one of the first to make a REAL
squat suit that added pounds to your total.

And, I remember the first time Fred saw my original double ply Metal squat suit
and double denim Karins’ bench shirt at the first TPS location so many years
ago. He said if he had that shit he would have squatted 1500 pounds. I
believe him!

And back to rules and equipment.

The Hatfield Rule was instituted because of Fred looking for every
advantage.

Fred decided at one meet (and continued until they changed the rule) to
have the spotters pull the racks out from under him so he didn’t have to walk
the weight out. They shoved them back in when he was done.

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“If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t racing.”

While this was not cheating according to the rules, it was an effort to taking
every possible advantage to a bigger total and isn’t that what the sport is
about?

A rule was quickly added that stated the lifter had to walk out.

Many believe that the Hatfield Rule led to the invention of the Monolilft.

There you have it. A nowhere near complete accounting of one of the most
influential and legendary lifters and pioneers in American Powerlifting, Dr.
Squat Fred Hatfield.

I am proud to have been his friend and to have been mentored by him.

Rest in Peace Old Man.

Murph

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 The Legacy of Ernie Frantz

I’m not even gonna try to sound professional here, this last entry blew my
fucking mind.

I first met Eric Maroscher in 2014 at the WPC Worlds in West Palm. He was there
with his lifters from Monster Garage Gym. I had just bombed out (in bench-
only no less) and spent the evening with them getting drunk on girl drinks by
the hotel pool.

Eric doesn’t know it (I mean, I guess he does now) but I had probably known
who he was for about 15 years prior, as the Maroscher Powerlifting Team was
one of the first teams with a website, which I had come across when I was
trying to learn everything about the sport.

Fast forward to a few months ago.

When I started putting the book together, I knew it would be impossible to tell
the story of multiply gear without telling the story of Ernie Frantz, as not just
many, but damn near every piece of gear on the market owes it’s
introduction to Ernie’s legacy in some way.

It’s safe to say that at least in terms of the gear itself, Ernie is the single most
important figure in Multiply. But despite his MASSIVE influence, you really don’t
see a ton of info about the man, and I thought it was time his story was told in
full to the new generation. Having mentored under Ernie longer than anyone I
know, I knew Eric was my go-to for this chapter, and I asked him to put a few
pages together for me.

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What Eric came back with took my breath away.

What you are about to read is a truly loving portrait of a powerlifting legend,
written by one of the few who know him best (and a great powerlifting coach
in his own right).

I’m both honored and humbled to be able to include this piece.

I really wish I had more to say about this but I’m having trouble finding the
words right now. It’s simply awesome and I’m eternally grateful to Eric for
allowing me to re-introduce one of powerlifting’s living legends.

Ernie Frantz

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 ERNIE FRANTZ AND THE HISTORY OF FRANTZ MULTI-PLY GEAR
BY
ERIC MAROSCHER
About the author:
Eric Maroscher:
2-Time WPC World Powerlifting Champion
WPC North American Powerlifting Champion
Elite total: 181, 198, 220 class
Columnist: elitefts
Owner: Monster Garage Gym
Frantz Powerlifting Team Alumni

PART I: INTRODUCTION:

Over the past 30 years I have had the opportunity to humbly train with and
alongside some of the giants in the sport of powerlifting, the vast majority
while training at the legendary Frantz Gym in Aurora, Illinois.

So many great men and women of strength and power who each alone
have contributed to the mighty sport of powerlifting.

The greatest of them all however is the legendary Ernie Frantz, the Godfather
of powerlifting. I have been blessed and highly favored to have trained with
and mentored by Ernie Frantz. That said, of most importance to me with
regard to Ernie is my coveted friendship with him approaching some three
decades now. I am a better lifter, a better coach, a better person, a better
man and better human from knowing and learning from him.

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To those familiar with the history of the sport of powerlifting, Ernie Frantz is a
name that is synonymous with power, strength, muscle, vision, innovation,
originality and invention. Ernie Frantz is known for producing as well as inspiring
some of the greatest powerlifters ever to compete and for his creation of
what today is modern powerlifting gear. From concept to design to creation
to production to refinement to improvement to re-creation, Ernie Frantz is the
resolute visionary behind multi-ply powerlifting gear. Anyone finding success in
producing multi-ply gear in contemporary powerlifting does so by standing on
the mighty shoulders of Ernie Frantz.

For those newer to the sport reading this material, the name Ernie Frantz might
ring familiar but perhaps only through more global bullet points. During his 80+
years on this good Earth, Ernie Frantz has earned those familiar bullet points,
but each one of them could stand alone as a major accomplishment in any
man’s life. Combined, the collective of his achievements have served to etch
his name deeply into and all throughout the proverbial granet tablets that tell
the storied history of powerlifting. Ernie Frantz is one of those rare humans who
has accomplished more than most could in several lifetimes.

Among other things, Ernie is a Korean War veteran, and with that statement
alone come volumes of untold stories. He is a father and a husband and as
such, a deeply respected family man. Within the world of strength and power
and muscle, Ernie Frantz is a multi-time world powerlifting champion, a multi-
world powerlifting record holder, the founder of the American Powerlifting
Federation and is the only man to compete in the Mr. American bodybuilding
contest and a world powerlifting championship on the same day (placing
2nd and 1st respectfully). Ernie Frantz’ powerlifting family tree is the mighty
oak whose branches number in the thousands. Branching off the very trunk of

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this legendary tree are massive branches with names such as Ed Coan and Bill
Nichols.

Ernie Frantz possesses in great quantity something that is allusive to the vast
majority of powerlifters, and that is staying power. Ernie did not merely post
massive numbers, but he posted massive numbers for decades. Ernie Frantz at
64 years of age and weighing under 100KG was still competitive and still
routinely squatting 820LBS.

Ahead of his time in so many ways, Ernie was a gym owner who opened his
first gym in 1962 and closed his last gym in 2011. Nearly 50 years as a gym
owner is also a testament to his staying power, as he has over these decades
worked with generation after generation of powerlifters. He has spent time
working with the newest of the new to the most seasoned of powerlifting
veterans, sharing with them all his most valuable gifts, his experience,
knowledge and time. Achieving greatness is as rare as the most precious
jewel. Selflessly sharing that greatness is exponentially rare and is the
separator between great and legendary. Ernie had the knack for meeting
people where they are and building them from that point, a rare ability that I
find becoming more scarce as time continues to pass.

To borrow from the words of David Goggins, Ernie Frantz is the type of man
that is uncommon amongst the uncommon. He was and is a leader of
leaders and a shepherd of shepherds. Ernie Frantz to this day is the
powerlifters, powerlifter and a coaches north star with regard to finding and
staying on the right path.

To understand the Ernie Frantz mindset as it relates to multi-ply gear, one must
first have an understanding of the legendary Frantz Gym. This is essential

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knowledge as it was his own lifters with whom Ernie would often use to beta-
test his single-ply, double-ply and multi-ply gear concepts, not to mention his
subjects utilized for testing and providing feedback with regard to his gym
equipment prototypes. Equipment such as his hydraulic powered monolifts,
monolift extension deadlift eccentric hook-arms, his monolift bench press
design and so many other pieces of gym equipment. Gym equipment
fabricated decades ago which in many ways is still far ahead of the curve
compared to some equipment being designed and built to this day.

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PART 2, FRANTZ GYM:

From the street the building could be described as sturdy, well-built,

somewhat gothic due to its vintage. That said, the reality of what was
happening inside defied description. Legendary powerlifters whose training
feats remain mostly unknown to the world today except for in the retelling of
the stories from those who were there. They were unknown, as this was a time
prior to social media, a time prior to the smartphone and a time prior to the
Instafamous.

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Inside of this building, this fortress of solitude, were powerlifters who were laser-
focused on their training as well as the training of their partners. These
powerlifters competed during an era when the chance of someone being
aware of their achievements was remote at best. That said, all the better, as
none of these lifters sought any attention but rather sought to live a life of
mental and physical discipline that was requisite to achieve success in a sport
that most had at best vaguely heard of.

These were power athletes who were all cut from the same cloth. A cloth that
was steeped in anonymity, silence, and power. A cloth that was saturated in
work ethic and the battle cry of “train hard, train with immediacy, train to
become strong, then train even harder.”

The legendary Frantz Gym was the place where these powerlifters trained,
where the collective whole was greater than the sum of its parts. But rest
assured, each of these parts was unearthly strong. That phrase, “The whole is
greater than the sum of its parts,” can often be tossed around, but that was a
large part of the magic that was Frantz Gym. The reality was one could never
reach their ultimate zenith of strength without the symbiosis of the Frantz
Power Team around them.

This was based on the simple fact that this amazing training environment
surrounded them and permeated who they were and who they were striving
to become as a powerlifter. The lifter was enhanced by the power of the
team, and the team as a whole was enhanced by the power of each
individual lifter. As the centuries-old saying goes, “a rising tide lifts all boats.” In
this case, the collective Frantz Power Team was the mighty tide that lifted
each of its lifters, and Ernie Frantz was the visionary who was captain of this
mighty vessel.

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The aforementioned building was originally opened in the early 1960s, as the
Frantz Health Spa.

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At that time Ernie Frantz was coming up during that same era as many of the
famous bodybuilders from the golden age of bodybuilding. The age of Robby
Robbinson, Zane, Franco Columbo, Dave Draper and Arnold.

Outside of his renown for creations and innovations with regard to multi-ply
gear, Ernie Frantz is probably most famous for his 1974 accomplishment of
winning the Powerlifting Worlds and placing second in the Mr. USA contest on
that very same day. Both of those sports’ venues were located a few miles
apart that year; one in the a.m. and the other that same evening. This would
be akin to competing in Major League Baseball and the NFL at the same
time, which has only happened seven times since the 1970s.

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Opened in 1962 and ultimately closing 49 years later in 2011, Frantz Gym was
a launching pad to a litany of powerlifters synonymous with success in the
sport. I can’t speak to the time prior to the 1990s, when I trained there, but I
can tell you what I remember about his legendary gym during that amazingly
transformational era. I remember that time quite well as those memories are
burned into my mind as they are for so many others who trained under
Frantz’s roof and under his watchful, seasoned, and mentoring eyes.

You entered Frantz Gym from Broadway Street in Aurora, Illinois. Upon
entering the main level where the entrance was, there was an area that
served as a holding place for some selectorized equipment. It was vintage
‘60s and ‘70s, yet pristine in condition, extremely well maintained and usable
that day as if it had been trapped in amber.

The main area of the first floor was well lit by the natural sunlight that filled the
room through the huge windows looking out onto Broadway Street. On the
inside of those windows was a large counter area; behind it were gym
supplies; chalk, vitamins and nutritional supplements, including protein
powder that was designed by Ernie Frantz himself, manufactured at NOW
nutrition and sold exclusively at Frantz Gym. There was a large magazine rack
stocked full of powerlifting magazines of that era, Frantz workout book, as well
as Ernie’s book, the original Ten Commandments of Powerlifting, all available
for perusal and purchase.

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And then there was the gear. Ernie Frantz’ conceptualized, designed, sewn,
tested, modified, improved and ever evolving gear. The canvas squat suits,
canvas and denim bench shirts, 1st generation poly briefs, the first double-ply
and multi-ply gear; briefs suits, shirts and the TP5000 knee wrap.

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Ernie, a gifted carpenter, was also a talented and highly skilled seamstress
and his early prototypes as well as many design alterations decades later
were sewn with his hands, hands and fingers made thick and powerful over
the decades of hoisting tremendous weight.

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During those years the demand for Frantz gear was so great that Ernie had
(during the time I was at Frantz) three seamstresses constantly working with
him on making, altering, repairing, augmenting, and strengthening his squat
suits, bench shirts and deadlift suits as Ernie was also busy running the gym,
running the American Powerlifting Federation, holding meets all over the

387
country and world, training, training his team, competing, developing
powerlifting equipment and maintaining a life at home as well. With regard to
the multiple irons his powerlifter fire, Ernie burned the powerlifting candle from
both ends.

Working behind the counter at Frantz Gym was the APF’s Amy Jackson,
Ernie’s secret weapon and the organizational force behind the sales of
thousands of canvas squat suits, canvas and denim bench shirts, the often
imitated but never duplicated, TP 5000 knee wraps, not to mention Ernie’s
homemade ammonia. With regard to the ammonia, I’m not saying that the
gym had to be emergency evacuated now and again when there were
issues with the production of the most potent nose tork ever created, but I will
say I have never seen so many 308’s run that fast since that time.

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In the back of this multi-story building was Ernie’s office. Ernie’s office was
home to a very heavy, sturdy, wooden, and presidential-looking desk.
Powerlifting’s version of the Resolute desk. Behind it, a throne of a leather
office desk-chair befitting a man of such power, renown, prominence,
respect, and gravitas within the powerlifting community.

On the office walls were large and ornately framed photos of Ernie with so
many legendary lifters of the time, along with photos of Ernie and Joe Weider,
Clint Eastwood, and other celebrities of that era who were involved in the iron
game. That whole first floor was quite impressive, to say the least... And then,
there was the upstairs.

A walk upstairs took you into a large room. A large room that, like the first
floor, was flooded with natural sunlight shining through the very large floor to
ceiling windows which comprised the entire wall that looked over the street
below. In this room, there was more equipment, some selectorized, some
plate-loaded all with sparkling padding, not unlike a banana-seat bicycle,
which was popular during the 1970s.

There, in that room, was a tiny and clearly added-on bathroom. It was barely
large enough for the massive athletes in the gym. Then, in the very back of
that top floor, there was a benign, doorless opening in the wall. An opening in
the wall leading to a small room that, at first blush, appeared as an
afterthought perhaps. Appearances can be deceiving, as this opening didn’t
lead to a different room. This opening was the threshold to a completely
different world. A world where the powerlifters of that era of Frantz Gym
trained and helped to hone the powerlifting gear that has directly given rise
to any multi-ply gear one can find produced today.

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When you walked into that room, to your right was a deadlift platform built up
to some eight or so inches off the floor. Straight ahead was an old pair of
squat uprights bolted to the floor, and to your left were three monolifts and a
single bench press.

On my first day walking into Frantz Gym, this hugely inspiring and life-changing
gym, I was greeted by Ernie, and in the place of greetings and typical
pleasantries, Ernie immediately inquired about my goals for that day, my
intermediate goals in the sport, and ultimately, my vision for my powerlifting
journey.

Ernie spoke in a manner that was pressing and imminent. In a way that
conveyed his ever-present philosophy of “The time is now” and “Each day in
the gym is solely and individually important, solely and individually essential,
and solely and individually critical.”

Ernie expressed, with a passion, a conviction, a confidence, an authority of a

man who had achieved by his own hand virtually everything in this
magnificent sport, that each workout is built solidly on the last. That ultimately,
the clock was relentlessly, ruthlessly and unforgivingly ticking away. That as
time quickly wound down, the meet date was simultaneously and rapidly
approaching, regardless of whether you were ready or not.

There was an aura around Ernie, an energy, a presence that would take you
out of your own head and help you to see beyond the here and now. I have
written in the past about Eleanor Roosevelt's famous statement, “Great minds
discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, and small minds discuss people.”
Ernie was and is a great mind, as he discussed ideas — not just big ideas, but

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enormous ones. This was his approach to training, to competing and to his
vision with regard to powerlifting gear.

Ernie never dwelled on problems; rather, Ernie created solutions. He espoused

about vision and mission and purpose, and how one need only compete with
themselves, as self-improvement throughout the individual’s powerlifting
journey will ultimately take care of all of one’s other goals. Ernie believed in his
lifters more than they might have believed in themselves as he had the
uncanny ability to see what one could aspire to be if they were fully
committed to the process of improvement.

During the week, powerlifters in the Aurora area would train at Frantz Gym,
and I would train during the work week at a gym near my home. On the
weekend I would make the 90-minute drive to train squats and deads and to
learn all the aspects of my Frantz gear from the man who created it from
nothing more than his imagination.

I was truly favored to be training in this amazing place and with amazing
lifters. Lifters like Bill Nichols, Ray Rodriguez, Jose Garcia, Maris Sternberg, Rudy
Rosales, Paul Urchick, Stephanie Van de Weghe, Noel Levaro, Tom Carnaghi,
Mike Goldman, Mario DeBenedetti III and Ernie Frantz himself, just to name just
a few. Some of these great lifters have sadly passed, but many of whom I still
run into at meets.

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Frantz Gym was an environment where Ernie was working on constantly
improving both his lifters and their powerlifting gear. It was his passion and his
gift and he was a master at improving both.

There is substantive information lost in translation when something is viewed

out of context, when a chapter is missing from the book. This is the case with

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regard to multi-ply gear today and something I hope these historical pages
and ultimately this material helps rectify by filling in the important backdrops
of context and adding back perhaps that missing element, that missing link,
that missing education as it relates to modern gear and multi-ply powerlifting.

Having Ernie Frantz creating, sewing, altering and then teaching you the way
to best utilize your multi-ply gear is as advantageous as, say, learning the
conjugate method from Louis Simmons himself. Dave Tate states on occasion
that if you are not training at WSBB you aren’t really training the WS method.
This is a parallel with regard to Frantz single, double and multi-ply gear. If you
were not working with Ernie on the nuance and subtle aspects of his
powerlifting gear, you were missing absolutely critical pieces of information
designed to help you get the very most of his single, double and ultimately his
multi-ply powerlifting gear.

Stated another way, when a lifter works with their multi-ply gear without that
mentor, or in mine and the case of those lifters at Frantz who actually had
their multi-ply gear designed specifically for them and their specific leverages
and body types, there are all too often critical pieces of information missing
and that can mean that instead of the gear working for the lifter the lifters
ends up fighting the gear. Gear should be tight fitting, but not so much so that
it inhibits the capability of the lifter to properly execute the lift toward the
ultimate end goal, which is lifting the absolute most weight possible. This is
something that is seen over and again today. But this occurrence is not so
much the lifter’s fault as they have no teacher to point out these nuances.
These nuances of multi-ply knowhow, which are sometimes subtle are quite
critical. Critical as the line between a world record or a catastrophic injury is
razor thin and that is where the guidance is absolutely indispensable.

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PART 3, CREATION & EVOLUTION OF MULTI-PLY GEAR:

When I speak of creation and evolution I am not referring to Darwin or On the

Origin of Species. Rather I am referring to the term, convergent evolution. In
biology for example, convergent evolution is the term used when non-
monophyletic living organisms develop similarly.

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Similarly, when I speak of creation and evolution, I am also referring to the
concept of multiple discovery. Multiple discovery being the hypothesis that
inventions can be made nearly at the same time, but independently and
without either of the inventors being aware of the other.

The creation and evolution of powerlifting gear has instances of both

convergent evolution and multiple discovery as there are several who claim
to have given birth to the rise of powerlifting gear. Of this there is some haze,
and there is no one person, no first and second. Rather, as is the case with
both convergent evolution and multiple discovery, there are like minded
individuals working in isolation on their own vision of what something could be
if when created. This is the case with regard to supportive powerlifting gear in
general.

Historically, the Russians and American were both simultaneously working on

their collective space programs. Russia’ Sputnik, America’s Gemini program,
Russia’s Yui Gagarin, America’s John Glenn. Both countries independently
working to develop their programs. At the end of the day, the Moon
belonged to the United States and the astronauts of Apollo 11.

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With regard to powerlifting gear, there were isolated individuals working on
the concept of supportive powerlifting gear. But at the end of the day, what
is crystal clear is that the origin, invention, creation and production of multi-ply
gear as the forefather of all multi-ply gear produced to this day, is the
brainchild of only one man, and that man is Ernie Frantz.

PART 4, THE JERSEY:

Be it fear of a Russian controlled Moon, our innate calling to learn and explore
or one of countless other reasons that the US landed first on the Moon, the
Greek philosopher Plato’s saying holds true and that is, “necessity is the
mother of invention.”

1975 Ernie was training his wife Diane Frantz, a trailblazer in women's
powerlifting. While training her and working on her bench press Ernie had a
vision and that vision was the concept for a supportive shirt that would in
theory protect the portions of the shoulders that would often fall to injury with
heavy benching and at the same time help, in this case, Diane press more

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weight. This concept came to fruition plainly and simply in the mid-1970’s with
a very tight football jersey.

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The concept was that with a tight fitting shirt, more weight could be benched
while protecting the shoulders and this proved to be the case. Ernie worked
on this jersey, the tighter he made the shirt through alterations, the more
Diane could press, the safer her rotators and shoulders would be. That said, as
more weight was benched the jersey material could only handle so much
load and ultimately, it would tear at the seams. As all visionaries do, Ernie
plays this scenario out further and further realizing the concept of the support
shirt had meret, but the shirt material did not.

As with the case of computers attaining faster and faster processing speeds,
smartphones becoming smarter and smart cars becoming safer and safer, so
was Ernie’s mindset with regard to this shirt concept. So rather than stop with a
shirt that successfully served as protection as well as to press more weight but

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had a finite point when confronted with X amount of pressure, Ernie began
the process of keeping the shirt concept intact but honing in on how to keep
the shirt tight but not have it compromised at the seam. This challenge boiled
down to material. Enter the doeskin bench shirt.

PART 5, THE DOESKIN SHIRT:

What, you have never heard of the doeskin bench press shirt? That is
understandable as doeskin was still part of the beta-testing as Ernie kept these
prototypes to the confines of Frantz Gym.

For those unfamiliar with doeskin, it is a leather made from a female fallow
deer. It is often used for the manufacture of gloves. It was more durable and
rugged than the material that the football jersey was made of, it could be
sewn and reinforced, it had some natural play and give to it and it could be
designed to have sections (chest area, shoulder area, arms, back) all sewn
together with the seams reinforced with a more industrial type thread and
more sophisticated and durable stitching pattern.

All the while Ernie is working on designing, and fabricating these prototype
shirts he is continuing to train himself, train and nurture his growing team of
powerlifters, build his gym and refine his vision of how the concept of this
lifting gear could translate to the squat, the deadlift and how it would or
would not be accepted into the powerlifting federations of that time period.
This is how visionaries think and work and try and fail and try again, overcome
and succeed and how they see that pattern repeat itself over and over
again.

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PART 6, THE ORIGINAL POLY:

From the doeskin bench shirt prototype enters the first Frantz poly type bench
shirt. This is a tight fitting shirt that the lifter could pull over their own head and
with some difficulty, pull down over the shoulders, snug between the torso
and armpits, and pull down to the waist. These shirts were made of a
polyester type material that at the time was slightly thicker than a lifting
singlet, with less stretch and with a respectable rugged durability. The word
stretch is generous, the better word is “give,” as the material was slightly
thicker than a singlet but with a little bit of “give” to it. Think about it in terms of
a winter leather glove, it doesn’t so much stretch but over time it has some
give and thus becomes, with use, looser. Watch the 1985 Hawaii Record
Breakers meet footage (some is located on YouTube).

The 1985 Hawaii Record Breakers meet was the Woodstock of powerlifting
meets with lifters like Ed Coan, Ted Arcidi, Ernie Frantz, Jim Cash, Doyle
Kenady, Dr. Fred Hatfield as well as other figures from the Mt. Rushmore of
powerlifting. In that meet Ted Arcidi benches his famed 705LBS in this style
shirt, what most today would consider not much more than a tight fitting shirt,
but was and is the impetus behind the modern shirts of today

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The trick to getting this shirt on was to lift your arms high over your head. That
said, prior to the shirt going on, your training partner would get a handful of
baby powder and rub and spread that powder on and over your shoulders,
lats, chest, upper arms and under your armpits. You might think your current
training partner has your back, but you will really know who has your back
when you are all sweaty from warming up for the bench and you need to
have someone rub baby powder all up and into your underarms.

The purpose of the baby powder was to get a material that is too tight to pull
over one's skin without tearing into the skin, or getting stuck on the skin as it
would bunch up, but also allowing the material to be set into place in the
crevices of your underarms and properly over your upper arms and shoulders.
Once the shirt was finally in place from the use of the baby powder, it would
be locked into place from the tightness of the shirt once settled into these
areas of the body.

For those who have a modern bench press suit this might be difficult to
visualize, after all, today you put your suit slickers on over your arms and you
put the open-back bench shirt on like a straight jacket with your buddies
pulling on the back of the shirt to help you get the sleeves in place as you
make that, hammering a nail, motion with your arm. Keep in mind, at this
time, there was no such thing as a suit slicker, the shirt is all one piece (no
open back) and it is a thin poly material that was unforgivingly snug over the
upper arms and into the armpits.

This same shirt would come off the lifter in the following fashion. The lifter
stands in between his/her two training partners. The training lifter would again
hold their arms up high over their head, the training partners would pull up
from the bottom of the shirt that (one from the belly, one from the back) and

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as the partners would pull the bottom of the shirt upward, the lifter would, with
their arms up and torso nice and straight, bend their knees and lower
themselves to the floor so the shirt could slowly peel off of the body as the
lifter dropped down to the floor and his/her partners pulled the shirt up at the
same time.

This version of the bench shirt personally made me feel claustrophobic as it

would often take a great deal of time to pull over the person's forearms,
especially if the lifter had thicker forearms, and then over the upper arm and
finally tugged down snugly into the underarms.

So while the lifter’s arms are straight over their head, the shirt is being pulled
and tugged and tugged and pulled and is stuck on the arms, slowly, inch by
inch being pulled down onto the lifter. The lifter's face and head are very
much trapped in between the tight chest material in front of their face and
the tight back material of the shirt behind the lifter's head.

So there you are, sweating, covered in ever clumping baby powder while you
stand between two lifting partners with your arms over your head, your face
and head being suffocated between the shirts chest material and back
material as both lifters pull mightily at the bottom of the shirt and that shirt
bottom has only been pulled down to your chest level. Try to picture this if you
can. Writing this brings back vivid memories with equal amounts of fondness
as well as anxiety.

As these shirts were over the head, they had to be tugged and pulled with
the material inching down little by little and the powder would be the
substance that kept your skin intact. That said, you skin was still being pulled
down so for the lady lifters at the gym, these shirts were a different story

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altogether as the sports bras were also getting pulled down and the material
of the shirt, regardless of baby powder being on the sports bra, would get
snagged by the shirt being pulled down and that would result in the female
lifter having to readjust that area after the shirt was finally pulled all the way
down and into place.

In powerlifting nobody cares who puts a brief on in front of whom, male or

female and the same goes for the adjustment of the anatomy and the sports
bra. There was someone on the team whose job it was to either reach down
into the bench shirt to pull the sports bra straps and contents back up or
reach in from the bottom of the tight bench shirt and then shove the contents
of the sports bra up toward the chest.

For the female benchers this shoving or pulling of anatomy was done for two
reasons, first for some sort of “comfort.” The other and primary reason was to
simply bench more, which was the reason for the shirt and gear in the first
place.

These poly shirts were just that, shirts. Just tight, tight shirts. There was
compression but only compression. There was no chest plate, there was no
groove to find, you basically benched like a RAW bencher and the tightness
of the shirt helped some build kinetic energy while protecting the shoulder. A
shirt that has no chest plate and has arms sewn like a tshirt with merely
compression….but this shirt was an evolutionary step beyond doeskin and a
step toward the next evolution.

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PART 7, NASA ARMS:

With regard to the bar hitting the chest like a RAW bencher, let’s look at how
Ernie’s poly arms were sewn during this time. As Ernie was working on materials
and constantly striving to create a more durable material he was also looking
at the shirt design.

A bench shirt is after all, a shirt and a shirt has its arms hanging down from its
sides, under the shoulders. Why? Because, a person's arms hang from their
sides directly under their shoulders. Look at a tshirt hanging from a clothes
hanger in your closet. The hanger is like the person’s shoulders and the arms of
the shirt hang down from the shoulders just like one’s arms hang.

Nobody would sew arms in the front of the shirt because people don’t sit nor
do they stand with their arms out in front of them like Frankenstein’s monster,
or like Will Robinson’s robot friend (Rodney the Class M3 Model B9 General
Utility Non-Theorizing Environmental Control Robot aka G.U.N.T.H.E.R.) from
Lost in Space (Google it).

However, when you lay on the bench to bench, your arms are in fact sticking
up and sticking out in front of you. This is something that contemporary lifters
who are gear wearing lifters take for granted every bench day. It is just a
given that a bench shirt has arms that stick out in the front and do not hang
from the sides. But in the 1980’s and early 1990’s this was not the case, and it
was never the case until Ernie Frantz looked at the engineering of the NASA
astronaut and the NASA space suit and juxtaposed it with the concept of the
bench press shirts. You talk about “one giant leap,” think of the mental leap it
takes to see the practicality of the engineering of the space suit, a suit that
has its sleeves sewn in front for all of the utilitarian needs an astronaut on a

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space walk and how an astronaut laying on his/her back looks like a bencher
laying on a bench. Add to that leap the insight, the vision of how, if the bench
arms were sewn more in the front of the shirt, they could be reinforced and
present more of a path for bar travel as well as still serve as protection for the
shoulders and allow for more weight to be pressed.

Ernie Frantz would ponder this as his shirt design concepts began to merge
with one another and evolve. The concept of tightness, the concepts of more
rugged material and now the concept of a NASA like arm design on the front
of the shirt more so than under the shoulders collided in the most spectacular
and innovative ways. In other words, like the clap skate modification in speed
skating, where one single element of the skate’s design revolutionized speed
skating, resulting in the shattering of Olympic records, or the Olympic pole
vault pole evolved from a stiff non-bendable material like bamboo or
aluminum to a bendable carbon fiber, Ernie’s material evolution combined
with a change in arm angle created a totally new shirt design altogether.
Where materials and design became synergistic and with that synergy came
exponentially greater bench press numbers.

PART 8, THE DENIM:

As Ernie continued to experiment with this design idea it became clear that it
was not so much how tight, but how rugged the material was that would
allow for the front placed sleeves to work and work with tightness. But with
regard to tightness, not being so tight as to take away from the full potential
of the bencher. This is a nuance that one would hear Ernie state often. Ernie
realized that to do this he would need a different material altogether and
that material would give rise to the first denim bench shirt.

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The denim shirt was just that, a bench shirt made of denim material, thick
rugged denim like an old 1977 blue jean jacket but with the thickest denim
material one could get their hands on.

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Much like the earlier gear, the lifter would load up the shirt with baby powder,
turning the shirt inside out and sprinkling powder over the now inside out shirt
sleeves and underarms, so the shirt could be “easily” slipped on. “Easily,” as in
“easily” painting the outside of the third floor of your house on a rickety
ladder, in a thunderstorm and 50 mph wind gusts, during an Earthquake
“easily.”

The combination of the denim material, the tightness of the shirt and the arm
location on the shirt equated some additional protection for the shoulders,
but it also equated to much, much bigger bench numbers. Bigger as in 40-
60LBS bigger. Not so impressive when contrasted to today’s standards of the
200-400LB shirt gains from some of the top benchers in modern shirts that
won’t blow out, but, put in context with the times in this era, 40-60LBS on your
bench is a mind blowing percentage increase. Keep in mind, this is still a one
piece, closed-back shirt, so there was not the ability to pull the shirt down
further to the check when adding more weight to the bar. These shirts still just
had that one speed, that one gear to shift into it at this stage in the
development of the shirt, the arm angles and material were the major design
aspects.

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The modern 200-400LB shirt gains and subsequent improvements to squat
gear has subsequently caused a change in what an elite total is. For example
to total elite in the 220LB class a lifter needed to finish the meet with an 1824
total. That has subsequently changed to 1875LBS, which some have
postulated should be raised in light of even an average bencher picking up a
hundred pounds or more from a modern bench shirt….but that is a story for
another time.

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PART 9, THE OPEN BACK:

As the bench shirt wars were taking place, a competition of design, material
and the powerlifters wearing them, there was a whole sub-text to this going
on surrounding what actually constitutes a bench shirt. Specifically, does a
shirt have to be closed in the back in order to be a bench shirt.

Up to this point, bench press shirts were that, a number of pieces of a specific
material stitched and Frankensteined together to comprise what constituted
what looked like a shirt, or a straitjacket of sorts.

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This was a major issue during this time as an open back changed the
leverage of the bench shirt now made of a far more rugged material and
that equated to an exponentially larger bench. Problem being, an open
back violated the rules of some federations thus a conflict between
advancing designs and rules working counter to that design.
As to get the shirt to pass the closed back Ernie created the back flap. His
ever rapidly evolving shirts had velcro straps to bring the sides together but
the back flap served to cover the back skin of the lifter thus making the shirt a
“closed back” shirt.

As the APF (American Powerlifting Federation) was founded and owned by

Ernie, APF and ultimately WPC (World Powerlifting Congress) rules were
changed thus now reflecting the open back as a legitimate bench press.
Ultimately other federations followed in kind but to say this was a point of
contention in the powerlifting community during that era is analogous to
saying that in 2020 the political parties do not see eye to eye.

In the end, modern multi-ply bench shirts are all open back and the massive
bench numbers we see today are in part due to the foresight that Ernie Frantz
had in how to get the absolute most out of a shirt’s material, the most out of
the shirts leverages and the most out of the powerlifter.

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PART 10, THE SPRAY BOTTLE:

Now that Ernie Frantz had sewn shirts that were made from a more rugged
material, sewn them tight and had arms facing more forward from the chest,
a good deal of pressure could be put onto the shirt. But with pressure emerge
limitations. Limitations in the form of the shirts getting compromised as the
seams between the torso, neck and the sleeves.

I can personally recall traveling to meets with my bench press shirt(s). Shirts,
plural, as in my primary shirt and at least one but more often than not, two
back up shirts. There is nothing quite like holding your maximum weight over
your chest and neck and as you bring the bar down hearing a loud pop, like
a thick wooden board being snapped in half, then feeling the weight coming
speeding down because the shirt that was assisting in supporting the weight
just blew out on one or both side seams. There was that moment too when
you sat up on the bench, after the bar was removed off of you, where you
took a quick inventory. “Was that the shirt popping or was that a tendon?” “Is
my pec tendon or tricep tendon still attached?” “What was that sound?”

Such a relief when you find the gaping hole in the shirt but your tendons,
ligaments and muscle are all intact. In the contemporary multi-ply world with
shirts comprised of the most amazing materials, blowing a shirt is less frequent
than blowing that pec, or snapping the forearm. But in this era, the extra
travel shirts was part of the procedures and as multi-ply lifters would roll up to
the meet, they would pile out of their cars and trucks with the suitcase on
wheels, packed to the brim with their gear which include the spare bench
shirt(s).

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To help reduce the possibility of the shirt blowing by a few percentage points,
the powerlifters benching in their denim shirts would get a spray bottle full of
water and with the setting on mist, vs stream, the lifter would saturate the
area of the shirt on the shirts seams. The idea was to allow for that material to
have a little more malleability, a little more give, a little tiny bit of stretch while
under pressure in hopes of the shirt not blowing, or minimizing the blow to the
first seam of stitching as Ernie Frantz and his seamstresses would always over
stitch the seams for this very reason. Ernie’s motto with the extra seams was
built in redundancy begets built in durability.

As benchers would warm up at the bigger meets, you would see the banquet
room of the hotel where lifters were warming up all with sprayer bottles,
spraying one anothers shirt like some pre-battle ritual.

With the arms more so facing forward then under the shoulder, after the
spraying and warming up, the lifters’ two folding chairs would be set up...one
to sit on, and the other sitting in front of them for the purpose of resting their
forearms on due to the right angle of the arms and torso. With a little
saturation of the seams the opportunity to exceed the 40-60LBS was
increased as the new arm design was now ultimately limited by the amount
of pressure this newly designed shirt could take before the shirt ultimately blew
out.

PART 11, THE CANVAS:

Practically before the sewing machines had cooled off with Frantz’ advent of
the denim shirts, Ernie had begun to experiment with the first canvas shirts. To
this very day, I still see some of the young and hungry champions from back

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then, now the old, highly knowledgeable, grizzled veteran guard’s of today,
pulling out their original Frantz canvas shirts to bench in the masters division in
contemporary meets.

A patch here, a repaired seam there and those original canvas shirts are still
seen at meets today. No chest plate, no futuristic polymers, no rubberized
materials, just an ingenious design that stands the test of time.

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Just as those now battle savvy warriors of the platform back in the 1990’s are
today the voice of knowledge, history, education and perspective for the
new crop of new powerlifters, so is the Frantz canvas bench shirt the
forefather of all the supershirts today and in years to come.

Based soundly on the Frantz design, the powerlifting shirt of today is a souped
up version of this true original. And as souped up as the shirts are today, the
design is roughly the same, but the modern material is nearly indestructible.
We joked with Ernie after a training session at Frantz Gym back then that one
day he would make a bench shirt out of kevlar so it would never blow out.
Turns out, we weren’t far off the mark as now the shirts don’t blow. Thus the
weak point is now the body, the forearms, the upper arms, the wrists. More on
that later, so hold that thought.

PART 12, THE BRIEF:

As the Frantz bench shirts were evolving and the advent of the open-back
shirt was right around the corner, so was the case for Frantz briefs, Frantz
deadlift suits and Frantz squat suits.

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As Ernie Frantz was a full powerlifter vs a bench only lifter, his goal was for the
powerlifters numbers to go up for the collective purpose of a larger total.
Toward that end Ernie worked along the same evolutionary scheme with the
squat and deadlift suit as he did with the bench shirt.

Starting with a light weight poly material Ernie fabricated his first generation
single-ply briefs that were designed to be worn under either the poly deadlift
or the poly squat suit. That era's single-ply brief was and frankly, is, one of the
best and most enduring creations of the legendary Ernie Frantz. The brief was
nothing in the way of kinetic energy build up like a modern brief, but what it
lacked in thickness and sheer weight stopping prowess, it had in its ability to
keep the hams and hips tight, warmed-up and supported in the most modest
yet practical and utilitarian sense.

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As per Ernie’s training methods the vast majority of the training cycle for both
squat and deadlift was done without the suit, but with the brief on. This
achieved two things for the Frantz lifters; first to continue to build what was
essentially RAW strength, continue to build the joint, tendon and ligament
strength and durability, as well as to provide that Goldilocks zone of stability,
hip and ham warmth, and feeling of tightness that helped keep the lifter keep
in the front of their mind, “stay tight.”

This single-ply brief could be crumbled or rolled up like a tshirt or bath towel
and stowed away in one’s gym bag.

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For a contemporary lifter, that original poly brief would not even remotely be
recognized as a lifting brief as today’s multi-ply briefs are the equivalent of this
brief and the first canvas suits combined, plus something extra.

That said, as unrecognizable as it is as a brief by today’s standards, the

function was outstanding for that 8-16 week span of time leading up to the
meet when the suit went on over the brief. Said another way, you trained
RAW except for the brief and wraps during that strength building time prior to
those last few weeks when the suit would come into play. In trying to
understand these first poly briefs, think rehband shorts plus some compression
and some tightness.

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PART 13, THE MISSING LINK:

Moving forward along the timeline that was powerlifting during the years
when Ernie Frantz’ single, double and multi-ply gear was being invented,
manufactured, sold, refined, improved and used by powerlifters breaking
powerlifting records all over the world, provides those powerlifters who were
competing in that era a totally unique perspective. During those times, the
world of multi-ply gear was a metaphorical arms race, and Frantz gear was
the superior nuclear power.

A perspective of having evolved along with powerlifting equipment as gear

completely transformed over that amazing decade of its evolution. It provides
the 1990’s- early 2000’s gear wearing powerlifter with a perspective unique
and exclusive to that era and a historical and more comprehensive
perspective that can help educate today’s powerlifters as they train and
compete in this world of contemporary powerlifting equipment.

Training back in the late 1980’s, early 1990’s through that decade and into the
start of the next decade and a half, those of us of that vintage simultaneously
evolved along with the gear. As the bench shirt evolved from the innovative
but sub-par poly material to denim, then to canvas, so did the geared
bencher evolve. With each passing year, the same ravenous group of
powerlifters were competing in the same cut-throat geared meets, all with
the latest and rapidly evolving gear. The advantage for this generation of
geared powerlifter was we as a collective from that decade were all on the
same page of understanding of the equipment as it was changing and we
were changing with it. The lifters at that time were linked with one another
through Frantz gear, traveling up along the learning curve with one another,
all sharing tips and little gear tricks with one another. The sport at the big

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meets were hosts to two and three platforms going at once, each and every
flight packed with geared lifter, after geared lifter, after geared lifter. During
that era the question was never posed, “do you compete RAW or geared,”
as virtually all the lifters were geared and the name Frantz was emblazoned
on the gear of an exponentially large percentage of the powerlifters,
especially in the WPC and the APF.

The evolution of training with the Frantz bench shirt was also a slow upward
learning curve that lifters during that time were all on together. It was like
growing from a bicycle to a 300cc motorcycle to a 600cc motorcycle to the
1990’s Kawasaki Ninja ZX-11. The collective of multi-ply powerlifters were all
learning then mastering the multi-ply gear and implementing subtle technical
changes as the gear slowly but constantly evolved, with the Frantz team
leading the way as they were the beta-testers of the equipment prior to any
other lifters. Thus the Frantz team was always a year or so ahead of the
masses.

The lifters today like those in the early 1990’s also start off as RAW lifters, but
when contemporary powerlifters take that inevitable leap to the “dark side,”
the multi-ply side of the sport of powerlifting, there is no longer a slow upward
learning curve. There is instead in the place of this curve a 90 degree angle, a
line straight up and down. Today the powerlift goes immediately from the
aforementioned bicycle but then immediately finds themself straddling wide
legged onto a Dodge Tomahawk motorcycle with a top speed of 350mph.
The gradual period of adjustment from a soft ‘malleable’ poly to a sturdy
denim to thick and sturdy canvas has been replaced with the complexities of
ultra-durable polymer material and chest plates that come with a rabbit hole
of technicality as deep and vastly tunneled as anything the sport has ever
seen.

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Thus the challenge for the contemporary lifter going from RAW to multi-ply is
very challenging and especially so for the newer lifters who are still learning
how to powerlift RAW. In the 1990’s benching had subtle changes from RAW
to single-ply, to double-ply to multi-ply, but the single-ply today quite honestly
is far more demanding and technically demanding than any multi-ply canvas
shirt from the prior era. The lifter today no longer progresses slowly along with
evolving gear but goes from an uphill walk to trying to control oneself while
sprinting down the steepest of hills into a free fall. Not only do they need to
learn the difference in a technical RAW bench press vs a technical shirted
bench, they often have to do this while using near maximum weights due to
the sheer and colossal nature of the shirts unforgiving material.

What was a slightly imperfect press that caused the lifter to struggle under the
weight of the bar in a 1990’s shirt is now an issue that can cause a loaded bar
to dump forward or dump over the face and neck of the bencher. This poses
a challenge to the newer geared lifter that was not the case for those
evolving with the gear. That said, it also adds a technical element to the sport
that modern day multi-ply lifters relish in. It adds to the already alluring flavor
of massive weights being involved and the absolute thrill involved with
attempting to control these barbending weights. Control through the
technical expertise absolutely required to successfully dominate the soulless
steel weights is an element unique to modern day multi-ply powerlifting.

Adding to these challenges to the new to multi-ply powerlifter is the fact that
the lifters from the Frantz multi-ply era of the 1990’s and into the early 2000’s
who possess and freely share their expertise, experience and knowledge are
becoming fewer and further between and consequently, those lessons they
learned along the evolutionary path of the gear that could be shared are
also becoming fewer and further between.

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Further compounding the challenges, powerlifting is about 95% RAW as of this
writing, so the chances of finding a group of current multi-ply lifters who
learned from that Frantz era of multi-ply lifters is remote at best. To add insult
to injury, because there are so few multi-ply lifters, the lifters who are
interested in this most technical arm of powerlifting have to go it alone and as
the learning curve is so steep, the sport loses many of those potential multi-ply
powerlifters even before they get started. Something that this writing hopes to
in some way correct as multi-ply powerlifting is as thrilling as it gets.

Aside from these obvious challenges for the lifter considering the sport of
multi-ply powerlifting lie the not-so obvious challenges. As mentioned before,
the limiting factor of the Frantz shirt was that they would eventually, given the
right pressure, blow out at the seam of a panel. The modern multi-ply bench
shirts are fabricated with materials that will not “blow” as previously
described. To the contrary, modern multi-ply bench shirts are constructed in a
way where the weak point is now the composition and physicality of the
bencher. Contrary to the shirts evolved for protection and thus allowing for
great weight to be lifted, the contemporary shirt has no weak points and thus
the injuries associated with these shirts are injuries that the sport has not
previously seen.

The first time I started to see forearms break was around 2004. This was the
time when shirts could be loaded up past the capacity of any prior materials
and now the weak point was the wrist and forearm. Add to that the advent of
open back shirts, and even greater leverage and kinetic energy, the weight
that could be pressed up was exponentially large.

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PART 14, STEALING FROM PETER TO GIVE TO PAUL:

This was the time frame that powerlifters experienced the beginning of a shift
in how totals were constructed. A long armed deadlifter who was once at an
advantage to win if he/she had a great squat was now challenged as the
new materials could allow for big benchers to add in the neighborhood of
200-300lbs to their total with a massive bench, where as a deadlift suit adds
relatively little weight, perhaps 30lbs if the lifter is a wider stance sumo puller.
Theoretically, with the squat being equal, a long armed 242LB lifter who would
win a meet by pulling a 100lbs more in a meet then their big benching
counterpart could, yet with this evolution of the shirt material that dealifter
would now lose that same meet by over 200lbs. In other words, a fantastic
deadlifter can lose to merely a good bencher when squats are relatively the
same. The reason being the vast difference between the huge increase one
gets from a bench shirt vs the modest increase one gets from multi-ply
deadlift gear.

These are aspects of our sport that have changed or evolved as multi-ply
gear has also changed and evolved. Which road to victory is better, a total
dominated by big squatters and pullers, or a total dominated by big squatters
and benchers? Well, that is really a moot question as the sport will always
continue to progress and where it lands is anyone’s guess.

Ultimately, the question is the wrong question altogether. Ernie Frantz would
answer it by saying, the road to victory is when you as the lifter have a larger
total than before as ultimately it is always a competition you today against
you yesterday. It is always the pursuit of a larger total, chasing down and
capturing the next larger number. If the powerlifter’s total continues to grow,
likewise will their victories on the platform as producing one’s largest total

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within the parameter of a sanctioned meet is the hallmark of true multi-ply
powerlifters.

Multi-ply gear has evolved from adding to the total of a great RAW lifter and
keeping them safer, to adding to a total where the margin of error due to the
technicality of the equipment used and the massive numbers involved, makes
the fine line between being a champion and being injured razor thin. Is that
bad, is that good? I submit again, it is neither, it is again a moot point as
geared lifting from the 1990’s was always about lifting more and bigger
weight and that is the same goal today, it is just the dynamics toward that
end that have changed.

Ultimately there is a finite end to the evolution of gear as once the body is the
weak point, improved materials and designs will no longer make a difference.
It is like a stereo system. You can have a system that blasts out a volume of
70dB, so loud that over time hearing loss can occur, and then you can have a
system that can play at 200dB. You can play at that volume, but what is the
point the ear can’t take it so it becomes a useless improvement. Same with
the gear, once the body is the weak point what difference does it make if the
multi-ply gear is made from these current materials or some malleable or
flexible titanium. That said, one could argue with the newer shirts coming out
that their elasticity allows for even more of a rebound effect thus this mental
exercise in forecasting can be drawn out to the absurd where hydraulics get
put into the sleeves and the bencher becomes a hydraulic operator, but
those are scenarios painted by the brush strokes of the ill informed.

Multi-ply gear always has and always will have components of muscle,
strength, power, speed and mental relentlessness combined with a
demanding technical element added to it. That combination of muscle and

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materials is the challenge as well as the eventual reward to those who work at
it.

Multi-ply gear is like a ravenous lion that is trained to perform circus tricks. It will
jump through a hoop of fire on cue for its master, but at the drop of a hat that
same trained lion can tear its master from limb to limb, and that is the case
with regard to any technical sport. Ultimately, understanding the nuance
between learning the gear and fighting the gear is the key, but more on that
later.

So the missing link for many new to multi-ply powerlifters today is maximally
having the opportunity to evolve with gear and minimally having exposure to
a group of lifters who know gear. One of the bottom lines in this great sport is
that multi-ply gear is in fact a team sport and nothing is more glorious than
training with a group of multi-ply lifters, helping one another with the gear,
learning all the technical aspects of the gear together, working symbolically
towards p.r.’s, titles and all the glorious stops along the way during this journey
we call powerlifting. To this very day I look back with the fondest of memories
at those years with Ernie Frantz, at Frantz gym and with the best powerlifters I
ever trained with on the Frantz Power Team.

My hope is that with any resurgence in multi-ply powerlifting come the

potential for the new multi-ply wearing powerlifter to also work on a team of
like minded powerlifters as they work symbolically to sharpen one another’s
metal as the rising tide of multi-ply potentially can be the rising tide that lifts all
ships.

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PART 15, AUTHENTIC TRAINING VS SNAKE OIL SALESMEN

Within the historical perspective, the missing link that is the most glaring is with
regard to training. Understanding multi-ply gear and training in it is one thing,
but understanding when not to train in multi-ply gear has become lost over
time. Lost as gear innovators and teachers like Ernie Frantz are often lost or
drowned out amidst the noise created by the social media snake-oil selling
voices of those touting their modern “how to” training methodology. Heed
the teachings of those who created the gear and coached the “how-to’s” of
gear for free vs those selling “the secrets” but have yet to step foot on the
platform or whose meets can be totaled merely on one hand’s worth of
fingers. Or as I have stated to those new to the sport looking for guidance,
learn from those who are OG not IG.

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As Ernie Frantz’ powerlifting materials evolved from doeskin to his final canvas
and denim combined squat suits, what remained a constant was the RAW
training. During the time I was training at Frantz there were many, many squat
sessions utilizing only the single-ply original poly brief and there was a reason
for this. Ernie wanted his lifters to use the multi-ply gear, not depend on it. Take
a moment, to hit the pause button, and think about that for a minute. He also
wanted his powerlifters to work with the multi-ply gear, not fight it. Think about
that as well as we have all seen lifters whose proper form has been mightally
compromised due to the gear instead of the multi-ply gear being controlled
and used symbiotically with power and technique to put up massive
numbers.

Regarding training, there were many weeks leading up to the meet with just
the brief for squats. This was followed by time with the brief and squat bottoms
(straps down), then the final few weeks with the full suit and brief, straps up
and knees wrapped. This crescendo of equipment and the de-crescendo of
being fully RAW meant that the lifter maintained their total strength while at
the end of the training cycle, being used to the gear and thus having
exponentially prepared for the meet. Total strength and power, a complete
working and understanding of how to compete in their multi-ply gear and no
loss of RAW strength. Without this complete RAW strength and multi-ply
understanding and without the appropriate amount of time in the multi-ply
gear to learn those extreme weights and how to move them the totals will
ultimately be compromised.

Too much RAW time and the lifts will suffer under maximum load and
technical prowess will be stunted. Too much time away from RAW training
and the lifter is strong at the points where the equipment is supportive but
lacks the RAW strength to reach the full potential of their capabilities and the

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weights will ultimately be compromised. It is this aforementioned approach
that Frantz found to be that sweet spot, that goldilocks zone where one’s
greatest RAW strength was combined with their greatest equipped power. It
was that precise combination which would yield the ultimate best results
during the competition.

As an illustration, take that 350LB RAW bencher that is always in their modern
multi-ply shirt and they can press 500LBS with the shirt. Have them fully
develop their RAW power by training a far greater percentage of the time
without the shirt and as long as they maintain that technical expertise, which
a good and smart multi-ply gifter should be able to. You are thus looking at a
415LB RAW bencher pressing 600LBS in the shirt. Your approximately 65 RAW
pounds yields you 100LBS in this case. It is like compounding interest with
regard to weight lifted vs money made.

The learning curve is one reason why the multi-ply lifters today often negate
the all important RAW training. It is the fighting of the multi-ply gear, that
misunderstanding of very tight is right with multi-ply gear but failing to
understand that too tight transforms into fighting the gear and Ernie Frantz
would say you are now moving backwards while simultaneously risking injury.
To this end, the visual you see are multi-ply shirted lifters training week after
week, month after month with boards as they have not mastered the
understanding of correctly sizing the shirt and come meet day, well, there are
no bench boards. Subsequently, those multi-ply lifters fail to be able to touch
the bar to their chest at meet and the day is over. An entire training cycle
wasted and for those who fail to learn these Frantz fundamentals, in their
wake is a series of meets where not a deadlift has been attempted. How
does that Bruce Lee saying go when his opponent tries to impress him by
breaking a board….”boards don’t hit back.” Same with the big board presses

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at a gym, all that is show but the meet is about go, and there are no boards
at the meet.

PART 16, FIT DON’T FIGHT THE GEAR

When it comes to the understanding tightness aspect of multi-ply gear, that

frequently comes from the incorrect measurements being taken in the first
place. Frantz Gym in the 1990’s was not only a place where weights and
barbells were everywhere on the third floor, but measuring tape was laying
around all over the first floor as well. Ernie was constantly measuring lifters for
their gear and alterations were being scheduled and altered suits were
constantly being shipped all over the world by Amy Jackson.

A powerliter’s body constantly changes. Gained twenty pounds here, lost ten
pounds there and Ernie Frantz was about precision. There were times when I
would travel internationally to a meet and lose 15 pounds during the long
flight. Ernie had solutions for that. A canvas patch to quickly sew onto the
inside hips of the suit so it was just that ¼ inch tighter on each side and the suit
would fit at the meet just like it did at the gym. Just like football is a game of
inches, the sport of multi-ply gear is a game of ¼ and ½ inches. A quarter of
an inch difference in a bench press shirt sleeve can be the difference
between the inability to touch the bar to the chest or a personal record.

Stuffing a ten pounds of sausage into a five pound bag is the multi-ply
strategy of the uneducated and highly myopic or misinformed powerlifter.
Nuance and precision and understanding fit and measurement are the
details required in the highly technical sport of multi-ply gear.

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This is similar to seven different squatters of seven different heights ranging
from 5’5” to 6’4” all training off the same one-sized-box for squats. In
successful multi-ply powerlifting, one size has never fit all. Ernie was heard daily
saying either, “pinch an inch or let it out an inch” to all three of his
seamstresses as Frantz gear was being always shipped to and from Frantz
Gym every day. His gear wearing customers of that time knew that fit and
nuance really mattered in order to get the best performance out of the gear
and ultra-tight for just the sake of ultra-tight was the amateurs shortsighted
was vs the highly calculated approach of those who actually understood the
gear.

This attention to nuance has been lost to no fault of the modern multi-ply gear
user as they only know the equipment company today by email address or
web site. Those from this missing era now gone by had the luxury of not only
knowing Ernie and training with him, but they knew Amy Jackson, saw or
spoke with her on the phone regularly.

Frantz Gym and Frantz single, double and multi-ply gear was more that a
business that made money, it was one of Ernie Frantz’ life goals to help each
lifter he worked with to become the strongest version of themselves and that
goes beyond customer service. That entails personally becoming involved
with the lifter to the point where you can tailor their gear so it is tight and
effective and the lifters benefit from the gear vs the suit being too loose and
useless or too tight and the lifter then fights the gear. Gear should always be a
struggle to get on, as it is incredibly tight. But there is a difference between
incredibly tight and too tight to where one fights the gear. Fighting the gear
to the point where one’s power and technique are compromised is a rookie
mistake.

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The lesson here from the legendary Ernie Frantz is in powerlifting, ½ LB plates
serve a purpose and are nothing to scoff at. To that end, a ¼ inch or ½ inch
alteration on a shirt or squat suit is the attention to detail needed, and the
absolute responsibility of the multi-ply lifter. There is a precision to the gear,
and constant alterations are not something that we see anymore and a large
part of that is that companies, not individuals like Ernie Frantz, are the multi-ply
fabricators. Lost are the tweaks still needed in order for the squatter with 32”
thighs but only a 31” waist to be properly fit into a squat suit.

Maris Sternberg, was a Frantz alumni and a pioneer in women's powerlift. She
was one of the first women to squat over 600LBS and pull over 500LBS during a
time when there would be all of 3 women competing during a full weekend
powerlifting championship. Maris was a woman with a build that fell into the
category of “one size does not fit all.”

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Maris had her measurements taken and based on her unique measurements,
Ernie Frantz created for her a powerlifting suit made of canvas material but
the leg material could be made tighter or looser with long laces. Laces that
were laced from the two sides of the legs, and as the laces were pulled
tighter the two pieces of canvas constructing the leg(s) material were
brought closer together. This was in the late 1990’s early 2001 or 2002. This was
a great suit that served Maris well and is an example of not only Ernie’s
creativity but of how a great idea lasts the test of time. I mention time as now
a couple decades later, a lifter can purchase virtually this same suit design for
$400 from a powerlifting company with sizes ranging every 40 or so pounds.

This reminds me of something Dave Tate said to me during a workshop we

were coaching sometime around 2014. We were sitting outside eating a meal
during a break in the seminar and during the conversation Dave stated that
as a company “you can either be the fastest, the cheapest or the best.” Ernie
Frantz falls into that last category as with his attention to detail with regard to
measuring and re-measuring and altering then re-altering, doing everything
he could to make the gear fit so you could use it vs fight it. Other companies
might have been faster, or cheaper or bigger, but Frantz gear was arguably
the best.

One more quick note on fit and gear. When fitted at Frantz gym, before any
measurements were taken, say for a squat suit, the lifter would do their warm
ups, then a few working sets, then put on their brief and then and only then
would they take a measurement for their squat suit. Why? Because a leg can
expand (pump-up) an inch when being worked and the brief can also add a
¼” to the leg. So being 1 and ¼ inch’s off in your measurements for an
already super tight multi-ply squat suit is a huge difference. A great lifter
knows their monolift height and that is to be precise for the obvious reasons.

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They know their attempts down to the kilo. Measurements were important
then, but with today’s sophisticated materials, accurate gear measurements
are exponentially important. An imprecise measurement equates to not
merely an ill fitting piece of gear, but one that the lifter will have to fight and
ultimately will lose to as for today’s multi-ply lifter, the human body is the part
of the equation, not the gear, that will fail or be compromised first.

One final note with regard to the fit of the brief and the uniqueness of each
human’s body type and build. Just as Maris has an unique proportions with
regard to her legs vs torso, other lifters had larger thighs and struggled with
pulling their briefs up snug into their crotch and up over the hips. Ernie would
cut the binding cuff at the bottom of the brief off, that portion that was
doubled up like a cuff at the bottom of a pair of jeans. He would keep intact
the thin seam above it so the material would not fray. The purpose for this in
lifters with heavily muscled quads was to keep the brief tight where it needs to
be, the hips, but not over the quad where the material would be too tight
and prevent the brief from being fully pulled and subsequently locked into
place around the hips and in the crotch area. Who would take a pair of
scissors out and cut the cuff on a brand new pair of powerlifting briefs, Ernie
Frantz, that is who.

One last point to consider with regard to measurements as it relates to multi-

ply gear and how that impacts the lifter's squat stance at the meet. Within the
bulkyness of multi-ply, it is oftentimes the subtle things, however, that can set
the stage for your best lifts to take place. Be it the right fit of the brief or that
extra patch sewn into a squat suit, that allows the multi-ply lifter to get every
morsel out of their gear.

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Multi-ply lifters during this time period of the 1990’s through the early 2000’s
trained RAW albeit for the single-ply brief, to build strength and power for their
multi-ply lifts. Consequently they had in essence two squat stances. One squat
stance for RAW with the single-ply brief, which was narrower and the other for
their brief, and multi-ply squat suit. Keep in mind the important fact that the
singly-ply Frantz brief was a very modest poly type material that was snug on
the hips at best. A modern brief can, when placed on either its open waist or
open leg openings, can stay propped up on its own due to the thick and rigid
materials. The Frantz single-ply brief was thin material and you could easily roll
it up in a ball or fold it in half and in half to toss into your gym bag. That said,
its purpose was really to provide a little protection to the hips and make the
squat suit tighter when needed.

So as there are two squat stances, and the latter, the multi-ply stance would
be used in the meet, measuring the squat rack or monolift height ahead of
time, prior to arrival at a meet is a practice that the modern multi-ply lifter
especially should follow.

Picture in your mind’s eye the following: It is 30 minutes prior to the meet, and
the monolift (APF meet) is all set up and ready to go. There is a line, a long
line, of lifters starting in the warmup area and snaking around the lifting area
to end at the monolift. In this line are powerlifters, just standing and waiting.
They are standing in this seemingly motionless line so that they can go up to
the monolift and try to figure out what rack height they need for their squats.
(They do this because each lifter has to report his rack height/monolift height
to the head table so that during the meet, the bar will be loaded with the
correct weight at the correct height for that powerlifter. Note for non-monolift
users: much like there are pin holes in squat racks, there are also pin holes on
the monolift. And just like there are different squat racks, monolifts are all a

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little different, and what is pin hole 13 on one monolift might be pin hole 17 on
another. At Frantz Gym in the 1990’s there were three monolifts on the third
floor of the gym, each monolift with a different height per pin hole on the
rack arm lever.

That said, although I always used monolift number 3 at Frantz, it would not
matter what monolift was used as you should not go by the hole to measure
your monolift height but rather the measurement of a tape measure from the
ground up to the bar. This goes for a squat rack or power cage as well.
Regardless of which Frantz monolift, my bar height is always 52 inches from
floor to the bottom of the squat bar.

Why does this matter? It matters because a multi-ply lifter’s squat stance,
especially a modern day multi-ply lifter's stance is vastly different than a RAW
or even a single-ply squat stance. More on that in a moment, but here are the
specifics:

When you measure your bar height, do it during a training session with your
competition weight on the bar, and while also wearing what you are going to
wear during the meet. Here is why: For one, the gear makes you stand wider.
The more gear, the wider the stance, and the lower you are going to need
the bar height to be. Furthermore, if you have a good amount of weight on
the bar, the bar bends some. 600LB squatter, a little bar bend, 800LB squatter
a little more bend, 1,000LB squatter like a Bill Nichols, the bar will bend a great
deal. You want to make sure that when you are standing with a loaded bar
on your back in your squat stance, the monolift hooks can clear under the
bar once you have stood up in preparation to squat. Remember, the bar on
the monolift hooks or in the squat rack lays straight. A loaded barbell once on
the lifters shoulders, a narrower surface than the monolift or squat stands, will

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cause the heavily loaded bar to bend at the ends, meaning the bend might
be so great as to prevent the bar from being brought out from either the
squat stand or from the out-swinging monolift hooks.

I am sure that you have seen this at meets yourself—the lifter stands and
either the hooks can’t get out from under the bar and they have to lower the
monolift height, or once the lifter squats and comes back up, the hooks
cannot get back under the bar. Remember also, with big weights not only
does the bar bend but the spine gets compressed. So, a half an inch of
vertebral pad compression and two inches of bar bend can make it so the
hooks on the monolift's arms can’t get under a bar. This can spell tragedy for
the multi-ply lifter.

Keep also in mind that most RAW lifters walk the bar out, so they begin with
their feet together or if they use the monolift, the nature of that squat is
narrower due to the widening of the stance from the multi-ply gear, thus the
bar has more clearance than for the multi-ply lifter who will most likely be
lifting greater weight.

The point being, multi-ply lifters historically had made the switch from RAW to
geared, but as the gear evolved over time, their stance evolved over time. So
as these changes were constantly being made, they readied themselves for
their meets with the devil’s in the details mentality. This included traveling with
the extra gear should it blow and making sure all of their gear is perfectly
fitted. So why take a chance on guessing the proper height of the barbell?
That position, the perfect barbell position, is the launching point and landing
point for the competition squat. The squat sets the tone for the meet. Having
control over this variable is well within the control of the multi-ply lifter as they
bridge the massive gap from RAW to modern day multi-ply gear and the

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significant change in their squat stance, thus the need for the most accurate
height measurement for the monolift.

PART 17, SQUAT!

Frantz squat suits in the early 1990’s followed the same basic pattern of
development as the bench shirt evolution did. Frantz squat suits began with a
thin, single ply of light poly type material, and were cut, shape wise, not unlike
a singlet is cut today. From there some Frantz modifications began, the first I
recall was the widening of the material that fit over the shoulders. This material
was, like the early bench shirts, thin but snug and didn’t serve so much as an
assist with the lifting of greater weight due to a build up of kinetic energy like
the contemporary multi-ply squat suits that require immense weight in order to
get the squatter to “parallel.” But it did provide stability, a physical reminder
of posture position, (not dissimilar to the effect of the old erector-shirts for
those powerlifters who have used that piece of equipment) and a modest
amount of protection around the hip area. At the same time a brief of the
same material was fabricated and used to be worn under the poly squat suit.

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 440
Over time, double layers of this thin material were both placed within the
framework of the briefs and poly suits thus creating a thicker brief and a
thicker suit. That said, the material was still very thin and lacked a rigidness like
the modern suits and briefs. Unlike the bench shirts, the squat briefs and squat
suits would not blow, primarily as they would not “load” under pressure, but
instead served as some foundational protection for the lifter. Best of all, you
could both squat and pull with this suit and brief. What remained the same for
the lifter was the essence of their stance squatting and their technique when
pulling as this equipment would allow for the same angles as for those lifting
RAW. Thus not much of a learning curve and if you wanted the suit a little
more snug you tossed them into the dryer for 40 minutes or so and that
temporarily snugged them up a little as the poly material temporarily shrunk a
bit. Low tech as seen by today’s standards, yet absolutely cutting edge when
you one realizes this something was developed from nothing.

Let me use this analogy for a moment. There are a number of guitar players
who can now finger tap on the fretboard like the late Eddie Van Halen, but
immulating Eddie Van Halen’s technique is a far cry from creating that
technique and then writing music based on that technique he created,
honed, formed and perfected. Creating a squat suit and brief when there
was only knee wraps are quite the creations, so before one gets too high and
mighty looking down on this early equipment when juxtaposed with modern
gear, give the credit and respect deserved to an Ernie Frantz for not only
having this vision for equipment but bringing it into existence. Frantz not only
set world records in his gear, he literally created that gear. To use a different
analogy, it is easy for some to scoff at the early flip phones, but they try
coming up with the technology of that phone and the technology to get a
satellite into orbit first before casting aspersions on what appears to be out of
date and passe` technology.

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There were no real adjustments needed for this gear as the suit and brief were
one piece of material. That said, Ernie did make the shoulder material, the
straps that went over your shoulders wider and then cut the length of the
straps so they were a little shorter thus keeping the lifter a bit more erect. The
wider shoulder straps were to stop the strap from digging into your shoulders
as the suit was now putting some much appreciated pressure on the
shoulders as the lifter was squatting or crouching down to the bar to deadlift.
With the straps shorter, even with this modest poly material, as the lifter you
could now build some kinetic energy, some pressure, some tension in the suit
and thus some rebound from the floor when pulling, or when driving up from
the hole while squatting.

With this as the physical dynamic, the squatter and dealifter’s form could stay
the same position and technique frame as when they trained RAW, but with
that added tension from the suit, there was a noticeable bit of drive you
could get coming out of the hole. Although not an Earth shattering amount of
leverage or lift or rebound (you pick the term), but enough that your p.r. went
up and that is the name of the game, bigger squat, bigger deadlift, bigger
numbers, a bigger total.

The sewing of layers of poly material into a single suit and/or brief, the
widening of the shoulder straps and shorting of the straps added some
leverage. With regard to the shoulders, your training partner would stand on a
bench and pull up on the strap as you bent your torso to the side he/she/they
was pulling up on and that is how you would wedge yourself under the strap.
Similar to how one’s lifting partners helped with the over-the-head bench
shirts, but in reverse, pulling up vs down. This was repeated for each shoulder,
then the straps were pulled by the training partner, together, so they would
lay properly between the shoulder cap and base of their trapezius muscle.

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As with Ernie’s pattern of materials getting thicker and better, so was the case
with the squat and deadlift suits. Enter the canvas suit with velcro straps…….

PART 18, STRAPS UP:

Powerlifters of this era and those who were in the camp of Frantz multi-ply
gear, a camp that spanned throughout the states and also several countries
overseas, were being fitted for and shipped the newest Frantz canvas squat
suit.

Much like the Frantz bench shirt comprised of that same canvas material, the
Frantz canvas squat suit was designed for the same purpose, to somewhat
protect the strength athlete, and toward the end goal of a heavier squat,
thus larger total. With the goal being the same, the method was somewhat
different. With the poly type squat suit, there was some compression, some
build up of kinetic energy that would serve to help the lifter drive out of the
hole. In contrast the canvas suit was a much thicker material and there was
little rebound, but had the benefit of stopping the weight at the bottom of
the squat. Stoppage vs rebound if you will, for the purpose of moving more
weight.

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Think about it this way, poly is slightly like pushing into a large slightly moving
spring coil and getting some rebound. Canvas is like being next to a wall of
bricks that you can’t push into so there is no spring effect, but that said, you
can get leverage off of that wall and push off of it hard. So with the canvas
squat suit, the squatter gets to parallel and the suit when fit to the lifter
correctly and used correctly with the wider stance, can halt (to a point) the
squatter's descent, and the squatter can then push up from this static position.
Obviously there is a lot of technique and nuance to get this effect but that is
the gist of why this material was experimented with as a better or minimally,
alternative to the poly material.

With the thicker material, the squatter could utilize a wider stance and a
quad dominant movement became a full body movement and much more
weight could be lifted. Before the Frantz canvas the wide squat was not
something you would see but the Frantz canvas suit fundamentally changed
the way powerlifters squatted from that time and this continues today with
any of the multi-ply squatters pretty much regardless of weight class. Add to
this the dynamics of the monolift and not having to take a step or two back,
the lifter could start and finish their lift in this wider, canvas squat suit provided
stance and the result has been and continues to be, even decades later,
much much larger squats.
Besides the material difference from the Frantz poly suit, Ernie Frantz
experimented with the straps on the canvas squat suit. Squat suit straps that
velcro is something that the multi-ply squatter today never thinks about
because it just is what it is. You squish and push and pull and tug yourself into
the multi-ply squat suit, get in there nice and tight, and your lifter pulls up the
straps, nice and tight and then they lock you into place with the two-piece
velcro straps. A no brainer for powerlifters today, but prior to Frantz’ velcro
straps you had a one piece squat suit and you pulled the suit up, and had

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one strap pulled over your shoulders at a time….one size fits all with the
manufactured straps. Long torso, the straps might be too tight, short torso, the
straps might be a little too loose. The ability to adjust the straps to the exact
needs of the lifter was a game changer. Again, “use” the suit, don’t “fight”
the suit.

Want the strap a little looser, put your balled up fist against your chest and
then have your partner pull the strap up and over your fist and fasten the
strap, then remove the fist from under the strap. Want the straps a little tighter,
put the open palm of your hand on your chest, then have your partner pull
the strap up and over your open hand, then velcro the strap together, then
remove your hand. Want the suit as tight as possible, don’t put your hand on
your chest and have your partner pull the strap up and fasten the velcro and
you have that suit as tight as can be. Nuance matters with multi-ply gear.
Again, tight or function not tight for the sake of tight. The means to the end is
a must or one goes the way of the amature who just puts all the dials on ten.
Those with that mindset look in their rearview mirror at a career of inconsistent
meet results and a history of bombouts. These are the poor meet performing
lifters who give multi-ply powerlifting a bad reputation and serve to bring
hesitation to those interested in entering the fantastic world of multi-ply
geared lifting.
As the canvas suit was a much thicker and sturdier material, an adjustment to
the suit could still be done but for the most part Ernie would have his
seamstresses use a canvas patch for those seemingly subtle, but actually,
critical size adjustments to the suit. Again, think “use” the suit, not “fight” the
suit.

If the suit needed to be let out, the Frantz seamstress could literally split the suit
into two halves, then add a canvas strip in between each half, and stitch

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those three pieces together and add a canvas patch onto the outside to
ensure that the suit would not split at the seams under the incredible pressure
of the squat.

Similarly, if the suit needed to be taken in, a canvas patch or a couple

canvas patches would also be used. Ernie would turn the canvas squat inside
out and at the hips he would sew in a 6”x6” or so patch on each side of the
suit and that material would serve to snug up the suit at the hips if the lifter
had dropped a little body weight. This again is an illustration of how important
the fit of the suit and really all multi-ply equipment is. Again, it is the difference
between using the equipment and fighting it. We adjust our belts all the time
when we gain or lose 10-15LBS or more (depending on the size of the lifter) be
it a single pronged, double prong or lever belt. That said, adjusting the suit is
not a simple process as a belt adjustment, but of equal importance. Sewing in
the patch was a very common alteration during this period of time. Once
Frantz Gym closed and as memories fade, this practice quickly became
extinct except for those few lifters who continued to do this alteration on their
own.

Back to the brief for a moment; as the brief material went from single to
double-ply the seams/cuff at the end/opening of the legs would become
thicker. For the thicker quaded powerlifters this would pose a problem as the
brief when being pulled up onto the leg and over the quads, the cuff would
get caught by the overdeveloped squad and getting the brief all the way up
became an issue.

Ernie would have some of his lifters cut away the stitch to the cuff, and let that
inch or so of material unfurl. Then Ernie would put a single stitch at the bottom
of that loose cuff just to keep it from fraying and unraveling. With the brief, the

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leverage and utilitarianism is not in the tightness of the brief on the quads, but
the tightness around the thigh and hips. I recall watching Stephanie Van de
Weghe, a pioneer in women’s powerlifting (who routinely squatted over
700lbs in the 165 and 181LB class) deadlifting a couple decades after this era
with a modern thick poly brief, but using that same trick of cutting those cuff
seams and allowing for the brief to be pulled up completely, up and over the
quads but with it very tight on the thigh and hips.

That trick worked then, it works today, it will work tomorrow. Some reading this
will try it and it will make all the difference in the world so they can get their
brief over their over-developed quads, and use the brief instead of constantly
fighting it.

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I recall watching this at my gym (Monster Garage Gym) and as others used
suit slickers, Stephanie pulled out her baby powder from her gym bag, poured
it into the brief and onto her hips and pulled her brief up and locked it into
place. So if I may, a moment here on baby powder and suit slickers... I think
we all know where suit slickers came from but for those who don’t the simple
version is that baby powder is messy and just like most non-powerlifting gyms
don’t allow gym chalk, they likewise don’t allow baby powder, thus the suit
slickers. An attempt to solve one of the corporate gym woes for those

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powerlifters trapped in that corporate gym world vs those few old school
gyms that provide the baby powder and chalk to their lifters.

Speaking solely from my own personal experience, baby powder is the way
to go when putting on the squat suit (even the modern ones) for a few
reasons. First, it works much better than the slicker and for that reason, the suit
goes on much quicker, thus saving time and more importantly, energy. We all
see lifters pulling and hanging from squat racks trying to get squat suits on and
the baby powder simply does the trick as the powder grains roll over one
another not unlike tiny ball bearings, allowing the material to slide on quicker
and easier vs ultimately still having to pull it over the slicker material. The slicker
is more forgiving than the skin, but lacks the fine powder grains to allow more
ease of movement of the gear over the bolus quad and hamstring muscles of
the legs.

Once the suit is on, it is on and because the powder is much slicker than the
suit slickers, the fit is far more snug and locked into place. Second, when the
lift is over and it is time to move onto the next movement, the suit also comes
off much easier, as the mechanics of the powder grains is the same coming
off as when putting the gear on. None of that pulling and tugging and energy
expending effort to get the other lifter out of the suit. Lastly, because of the
baby powder, when the suit is tossed back into the gym back, car trunk,
suitcase, gym locker, the next week it doesn’t come out smelling like a rotting
corpse. Don’t know what I am talking about, lift multi-ply for a while with other
multi-ply lifters and you will.

As Ernie honed his canvas suits he made modifications as needed. Some suits
would eventually blow at the outer thigh area thus Ernie would begin to add

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a denim patch on the outside, over the canvas or sometimes actually make a
portion of the leg denim as well as combinations of these variables.

Additionally, Ernie would experiment with the length of the velcro straps. What
started as just enough strap and velcro to close the strap eventually became
a very long strap that went down past the shoulder blades almost to mid
back. The straps in the mid-1990’s also became much wider as over time
straps would get torn up from the process of the suit being taken off the lifter
as their lifting partners would put their knees on the straps and eventually their
shoes as they were working the suit off the lifter. Although the suit comes off
easier with the baby powder, it is still virtually a workout to get the Frantz multi-
ply suit off of your lifting partner, and the thicker strap would hold up to this

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wear and tear better, but would also serve to provide a thicker material for
the squat bar to lay on, vs the lifters bare shoulders.

These seemingly little adjustments, some that worked extremely well, helped
to serve as the equipment template for some of the best multi-ply gear made
and worn by powerlifters today. Many ideas worked in concept and a few,
not so much when tested in training. It was that relentless trial and error, that
patience and succeeding from past failures which were the traits that
continued to propel Frantz’ ingenuity in gear design and that propulsion
provided the forward momentum for his equipment to pave the way for multi-
ply gear for literally decades to come.

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I recall Frantz lifters beta testing straps that went all the down the the glutes
and the velcro on the suit also going all the way down the suit. This was used
on the suits to keep the back erect, almost like the old erector shirts of the
past, but as part of the suit as a whole. It turned out to be a modification that
served well those extremely straight up sumo stanced deadlifters at Frantz
Gym. A modification that worked for a specific body type, a specific stance,
and a specific movement.

He worked with lifters on the details, the nuance, those little aspects of multi-
ply gear that make all the difference with the big lifts. Getting the legs just the
right length for the deadlift suits as to not allow for the fingers to get caught
on the suit for those short armed benchers as they attempted to pull sumo
and with a hook grip is another example of Frantz understanding of the Devil
is in the details. A far cry from today’s cookie cutter, one size fits all over-
generalization of gear that large corporations belch out to its multi-ply
customers. Ernie was as dedicated to his customers as he was to his sport as
he understood that those two entities march symbiotically with one another.

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Ernie was strategic in his approach and he would run out every ground ball to
every one of his hundreds of ideas to the benefit of his lifters, their equipment,
their total and ultimately to the sport of multi-ply powerlifting.

The key again for lifters today who are thrust into the gear of today is that
nuance matters, detail matters and even in the brutality of multi-ply
powerlifting, subtly matters. Use the suit, don’t fight the suit! Tight as a drum is
good but too tight, inhibiting tight, works against you! If you go up or down
significantly in weight, then you need to adjust the suit or you are missing a
huge component and understanding of how multi-ply gear works. A properly
fitted multi-ply suit will work with your leverages and pivot points, whereas a
poorly fit suit, will work against those key exact same factors.

Over my going on 30 years in this sport, I have seen the stark difference
between those lifters who use the suit vs fight the suit. It is the difference
between entering the room by turning the knob and opening the door or
entering the room by breaking down the door. Both methods gain you entry
but multi-ply gear today is the equivalent to a steel door and trying to knock it
down only results in your failure to gain entrance or at the meet, the result is
typically bombing in the squat or the bench. These are the universal truths of
multi-ply gear that are lost today due to all of the aforementioned gaps in the
educational timeline that lead to day. Heed these truths and success can
follow. Ignore these and be one of the countless many who bomb out of the
meet so many times that they come to actually expect future failure.

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PART 19, THE STRATA BETWEEN RAW AND MULTI-PLY:

Those new to the sport of powerlifting often and mistakenly do a comparison

and contrast of RAW and geared lifting. They then tout which aspect is the
better or truer form of the sport of powerlifting. What I would submit to you is
that RAW powerlifting and multi-ply powerlifting are very similar, but actually
two different sports altogether.

Looking at this debate through the historical lens and a perspective of some
30 years taking part in and additionally observing the evolution of powerlifting
gear, I submit to you that the comparison of the two is a moot point. The
bottom line is that RAW and contemporary multi-ply powerlifting are two
heads of the same coin and one can more liken this to Indy car racing vs
drag racing. Both sports are centered around very fast vehicles, skilled drivers,
big engines, four wheels and audiences that appreciate the smell of burning
rubber and the roar of mighty engines. Both are racing on a race track and
against other drivers but the equipment, skill set, the technique and so much
more make them uniquely individual and although similar, more different then
the layperson might understand. The choice of RAW vs multi-ply powerlifting is
not a choice of which is better or worse, more or less authentic, but simply
two similar but different choices for the strength athlete, for the powerlifter to
choose from as he, she, they put their best effort forth in the attempt to
become as strong and powerful as possible and in the process working to
achieve victory while lifting the most weight in the three requisite lifts.

There is brute strength, power, muscles, weights, squats, bench presses and
deadlifts in both, but within the world of modern multi-ply, there is an addition
of technicality that is more than a line of strata creating a layer in the history
of the sport. This layer of the technical strata requires a sophistication and

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technical prowess absolutely requisite for the athlete to not only utilize
modern multi-ply, but to avoid injury as well as the weights lifted are far
greater. Said another way, multi-ply powerlifting is RAW powerlifting with the
added layer of the understanding and successful use of the undeniably
technical aspects of multi-ply gear.

Perhaps a better way to illustrate the difference, as most making this debate
have never competed in multi-ply gear, and who wrongfully but
understandably assume that the gear does the larger portion of the lifting for
the lifters, is to examine the contrast between bodybuilding and competitive
bodybuilding.

Most powerlifters have at some point in their lives trained for hypertrophy.
Gaining muscles is a challenge for sure. If it were easy, lifters all over the world
will have shirt sleeves bulging with 20” biceps. That said, of that vast majority
of lifters who have worked to build their muscle mass through a
bodybuilding/hypertrophy program have not taken their body through that
extra challenge of dieting for and bodybuilding competition. The competitive
bodybuilder has that extra element of not only building the body, but has to
understand and then successfully implement the layered nuances of diet and
nutrition to then strip the body of any filter that obstructs the muscles and
vascularity from being displayed at their best. Both bodybuilding and
competitive bodybuilding involve building the skeletal muscles of body, but
one, the competitive bodybuilder has that task, yet the extra challenge of
dieting, nutritional perfection, and all that goes into contest prep, toward their
goals. This is not unlike that extra challenge the multi-ply powerlifter faces with
regard to their powerlifting.

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Fortunately, those who tend to bring up this comparison are the weekend
warriors of the sport and rarely last, and as they leave the sport so does their
myopics. Bye, Felicia.

PART 20, PROGRESS, RECORDS AND HISTORY:

A perspective on multi-ply gear and those non sequitur arguments; non

sequiturs such as, “powerlifters are stronger now,” or “the gear does all the
work,” or well, you get the point. Here is how I have explained this in the past,
for as powerlifters we can be myopic. Thus a larger perspective looking at the
Olympics, progress, records and history….

Before he was a part of the crazy Kardashian family, Bruce Jenner was literally
the World’s Greatest Athlete, as Olympic winning decathletes are titled as
such. Bruce was in the 1972 Summer Olympics, placing tenth. Over the next
four years, by all accounts, he trained like an absolute madman. A man
possessed with winning the Olympic Games as the winner of the Olympic
decathlon. When Bruce Jenner won gold in the 1976 Summer Olympic Games
he was 26 years old and when he won he not only beat the best in the world,
but broke the Olympic decathlon record by scoring a record 8,634 points.

In the eighties through nineties, the Winter Olympic name everyone knew was
Bonnie Blair. An American speed skater that decimated opponents and
records along the way. It was said that Blair’s records might stand for the next
fifty years, she was that dominating. Since their time, both Jenner’s record
and even Blair’s records have been surpassed. Interestingly, Blair’s records
over the next couple of years of her establishing them, were being broken by

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skaters who were not even ranked in the world. How can that be? We’ll get
back to that in a bit.

While watching the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia in 2014, there was a
theme for me. A theme that, as a powerlifter, was loud and clear. I was
watching the events and I noticed the world records being broken had just
been broken. In other words, these were not records from the Olympics of
yester-year, nor from the last Olympics, but as recent as last year or even the
heat prior. There were records falling in both old and new Olympic sports.
What I noticed were the super light-weight guns of the Biathlon. I noticed the
sleds that were designed by the engineers of the BMW Company. I noticed
the snowboards with this $3000 an ounce substance that when applied to the
snowboard made the board practically float above the snow and removed
nearly all of the friction. I noticed the specialty sunglasses that enhanced the
flags even in the most blinding snow. I noticed sports technology everywhere.
I noticed further that these sports were fast moving and constantly building on
their prior success and this was done in large part via technology.

Back to Bonnie Blair. The reason Blair’s records were being beaten is because
of the clap skate. A skate designed with a high-tech hinge so even though
the skater's shoe comes off the ice, the skate at the toe, does not, allowing for
a much, much, much faster time. Now, here is what I didn’t notice. I didn’t
notice people saying, “Well, Bonnie Blair would still be the best if the
technology wasn’t there and the skates hadn’t changed. Why? Well,
because then an older person would say, sure, but if Liselotte Landbeck back
in 1932 had digital timers and the ice was smoothed by a superior Zambonie
type machine, she would have gone faster. Fact is, the Women’s 500 meter
speed skating record in 1932 was 58.7 seconds and in 2013 that same
distance was covered in 36.36 seconds.

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Has human genetics changed so much in 81 years that people are twice as
fast? A large part of this is technology. Sure Eric, but what about a low-tech
sport like swimming? That is just a man or a woman and a pool. Well, not
really. I think most people know of or have at least heard of Olympic Gold
Medal Swimmer, Mark Spitz. He won gold in the seventies and over the years
set the world record in the men’s 200 meter butterfly seven times, his fastest
time being 2:00.70. In a pool with H2O just like Spitz, Michael Phelps swam the
same exact distance but at 1:51.51. Did the water get slicker? Did Mark Spitz
mustache cause him to swim nearly 10 seconds slower than Phelps. Did the
human body change so much so that a man could shave off nearly ten
seconds off the best time ever in just 40 years? So how did technology help
Phelps? Well, for one, after each race Michael Phelps has four trainers work
on his body, one trainer per limb.

After virtually each workout he receives micro-current therapy, electronic-stim

therapy, active release therapy, ultra-sound therapy. His workouts are filmed
and that film is digitized into stick figure type drawings showing Phelps and his
team of coaches every nuance of his form, kick, arm motion, drag in the
water, every aspect of his start, turns, and stretch at the end of the race. He
has access to a hyperbaric chamber. He travels first class in a jet while icing
with a Game Ready type machine, supplementing his diet with the best
supplements and nutrients (Subway was just his sponsor friends). So, you have
a couple of freakish genetic athletes with a killer instinct to win, a vicious work
ethic, and the best technology known to humankind and yes, you can get
ten seconds out of that.

As with Blair and Landbeck, the question must be asked...are comparisons

made between these two, best of their era swimmers? Not so much. They are
both champions of their era and Michael Phelps is not frowned down upon

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because of his use or exposure to technology and neither is the Russian
bobsled team whose bobsled of 2014 is practically a rocket ship compared to
the bobsled sliding brick of the 1960s. These four guys in the Russian bobsled
are simply crowned the best because they won against their peers and they,
along with the technology that helped propel them to the top, are now a
part of the history of the Olympic games...end of story. These Olympic sports
continue to grow in audience and sponsorship and they continue to get more
exciting as the numbers get smaller or bigger depending on the sport. What
these sports all have in common is the fact that they are evolving and also
fully and unabashedly embracing technology. Let me say that again:
evolving and unabashedly embracing technology. This is where powerlifting
can take a lesson from these Winter Olympic events and where Ernie Frantz
and his multi-ply was so far ahead of its time as was his thinking.

Does a bench shirt, once you have worked hard to master it help you bench
more than you can bench raw? Of course. Can I bench more in a modern
bench shirt than I can in my 1993 Double Denim bench shirt (that would blow
out every other meet)? Without a doubt. You are using technology with
equipped powerlifting to try to produce the biggest bench press you can. Will
the modern bench shirt, once you have worked hard to master it help one’s
total? Absolutely. Does my modern bench shirt take away the significance of
any of the meets I won wearing my old school bench shirt? Hardly. As a lifter
who has competed both equipped for years and raw for years,

I want to touch on this before all the RAW lifters thinking about trying multi-ply
throw a fit get turned off by these changes. To those moder RAW lifters, I
submit to you this….if you think the deadlift bar, your 27mm super whippy bar
with knurling that really lets you choke that bar tight, is the same bar that John
Kuc used when he pulled his 870-pound pull some thirty plus years ago...think

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again. In fact, ponder it while sipping on your high-tech whey protein isolate
shake. Say it with me, “Don’t be scared of technology.”

Ultimately, as I have stated before in this project, technology can only go so

far, as the weakest link is the human link. A bobsled can only go so fast until
the human reflexes can no longer control it. A race car can only go so fast
until the human driver can no longer steer it from hitting the wall. A bench shirt
can only have so much resistance and then the weak link, the radius and
ulna, break. I have seen that in the gym and at meets several times, so yes,
we are at that technological breaking point with the multi-ply bench shirts as
too much shirt requires more weight to get down to your chest than you can
physically drive up. Remember, even with the best squat suit, the lifter has to
lift the weight and if the suits were the total answer, everyone would be a
1000 squatter. The point being, technology moves a sport forward and
sometimes I hear powerlifters bringing their own sport down by comparing
powerlifters of differing eras or trying to compare apples to oranges with the
raw versus equipped arguments.

Raw versus equipped is like playing baseball with a wooden bat versus an
aluminum bat, meaning that with the technology of the aluminum bat you
can hit further and the ball comes off the bat with greater speed but keep in
mind, you still have to be able to hit that 94 mile an hour fastball to see the
difference. Too often that ultimate aspect (actually hitting the ball and
actually lifting the weight) is forgotten.

With regard to the baseball analogy. When folks look at career home runs, we
can often forget that player X hit 500 home runs and player Y hit 600, but
player Y’s right field fence was closer. Does that make either of them less or
more of a home run hitter? What if that were the case in powerlifting. Okay,

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my 700-pound pull wins because your 700-pound pull was really 715 pounds. If
the issues of home run fences is not the end-all, be-all of the home run
discussion, why should we as powerlifters today care about equipment or
technology from the 1980’s or 19990’s or 30 years from now? As a powerlifter
who had his first meet in 1989, I have seen the changes in powerlifting gear,
bars, etc.

It is okay for powerlifters to embrace technology, embrace these

aforementioned changes that innovative powerlifters like Ernie Frantz
conjured up and brought to life. it is okay for our sport to progress, it is okay to
compete RAW, it is okay to compete with multi-ply because you are
competing with like individuals. It is okay to want to use the latest technology
and have the best gear. I know when I pick out my protein powders, I want
the one that via technology gives me the best results and that is definitely not
my chalky-tasting, took-hours-to-digest milk protein shakes from 1983.

By the way, before someone tries to blame all of the Olympic progress on
performance enhancing drugs, think again. They have always been
pervasive and always will be. In fact, historically there were more athletes
passing tests because the drugs have changed little, but the testing has
changed dramatically, through, of course…technology. Prior to 1968, there
was no testing in the Olympics, yet synthesis of testosterone was reported as
far back as 1935 and Dr. Ziegler (US Olympic Team physician by the way)
developed and marketed the original Dianabol back in 1958.

I have heard all the points to these arguments over my 25 competitive years
and what I see are other sports moving forward, embracing the
advancements of their sports equipment and they are sports that are
advancing. Hell, even the titanium golf clubs that Tiger uses compared to the

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clubs Arnold Palmer used back in Palmer’s day don’t detract either man’s
greatness, so why should we as powerlifters put so much time and negative
energy when it comes to technology and powerlifting? I can’t help but
wonder if our internal squabbles and self-inflicted wounds as a sport caused
by our unwillingness to fully embrace technology/change in the sport is one
of the larger factors keeping powerlifting out of the spotlight it so much
deserve as it is truly one of the greatest sports on the planet.

PART 21, THE FRANTZ IMPACT:

As Ernie was training, competing, and constantly improving and refining his
single, double and multi-ply gear (briefs, squat suits, deadlift suits) he was
making, selling, shipping his gear all over the world.

Big purchasers of Frantz gear in the decade of the late 1980’s through the
early 2000’s were Russia, Great Britain, Japan and Canada.

At any serious WPC or APF meet during that era, the lifters were virtually all
wearing Frantz gear. It was the best gear being made and it was created
and improved and refined by Ernie Frantz himself at a time when Ernie was still
a competitive powerlifter and a significant force in the sport of multi-ply
powerlifting, and during a time when lifters were known by their actual
accomplishments, gravitas and positive impact rather than followers, “likes” or
subscribers or petulant online rants.

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Ernie knew all the presidents of the foreign affiliates in the WPC and they all
knew him. There was a respect not just for Frantz gear, but for the man. When
you would travel to a national or world meet you would look out over the
venue and behold a virtual sea of powerlifters all donned in Frantz multi-ply
gear. Of equal importance, at the end of these national and international
meets the award stands where the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place would stand, more
often than not, those lifters were all wearers of Frantz multi-ply gear.

Lifters from Russia, Canada, Japan and so many other countries were
corresponding with Frantz Gym on a regular basis, and the organizer of this
shipping and receiving chain was Amy Jackson (who is still an organizational

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force in powerlifting with the APF and WPC to this day). I asked Amy about
the typical day back during that time. Amy recalled, “I'd probably send out
12-20 packages a day. Japan used to buy in bulk 20-50 pieces at a time.” At
the time Ernie had upward of three seamstresses working for him sewing,
repairing and altering Frantz gear five days per week as Frantz Gym was
ground zero of the multi-ply world at that time.

Modern day multi-ply powerlifting gear is a direct and absolute pure

descendant, a branch off of the tree that is Frantz imagined, Frantz
fabricated, Frantz used and improved and refined.

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PART 22, FINAL THOUGHTS:

When we started off with regard to multi-ply history, we spoke of creation and
evolution, specifically convergent evolution and how things develop similarly.
Similarly, when we started we spoke of the concept of multiple discovery.
Multiple discovery being the hypothesis that inventions can be made nearly
at the same time, but independently and without either of the inventors being
aware of the other.

We discussed how creation and evolution of powerlifting gear has instances

of both convergent evolution and multiple discovery and that there were
several who claim to have given birth to the rise of powerlifting gear.

There were only a few companies back in the late 1980’s and 1990’s who
manufactured powerlifting gear. Of those few most have long since gone
extinct and with them any impact on the sport they might have had. But it is
Ernie Frantz alone who debatably has done more to bring forth what we now
recognize as modern day multi-ply gear.

As the saying goes, imitation is the highest form of flattery. If that is in fact the
case, then Ernie Frantz has been flattered by them all, as his gear ideas and
designs have been replicated, in some cases stolen by others who ended up
producing gear exactly like his with the only difference being the name
stamped or embroidered on the front.

That said, those who were competitive powerlifters in the late 1980’s and
throughout the entire 1990’s and into early 2000’s know that Frantz was the
innovative locomotive engine moving forward that mighty train that was the
era in powerlifing when multi-ply was King of that almighty powerlifting throne.

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When gear was King sitting at the top of the multi-ply throne was in fact, Ernie
Frantz, The Godfather of powerlifting.

Innovator, powerlifter, gym owner, team builder, federation owner, family

man, friend, coach and mentor, Ernie Frantz is the name you now know and
need to remember as one of the essential aspects toward being a well
rounded powerlifter is knowing where your sport came from. For those who
train within the framework of powerlifting gear or who are thinking about
wading into the shark infested waters that is the gloriously brutal world of
multi-ply powerlifting, Ernie Frantz is your north star, your beacon of light in the
darkness. Frantz multi-ply gear is the genesis, the history and the holy grail of
multi-ply gear that exists today. The branches coming off of the storied multi-
ply family tree all travel back to the deep roots and massive trunk that is
original Frantz multi-ply gear.

As I said in the opening, I say in this closing; from concept to design to

creation to production to refinement to improvement to re-creation, Ernie
Frantz is the resolute visionary behind multi-ply powerlifting gear. Anyone
finding success in producing multi-ply gear in contemporary powerlifting does
so by standing on the mightiest of shoulders, the shoulders of Ernie Frantz.

Wishing you the very best in your multi-ply pursuits!

Ever Onward,
Eric Maroscher

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 467
 Epilogue

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Several years ago I decided I wanted to write a manual on how to use a
bench shirt.

I worked on it on-and-off for a few years, getting distracted with other

projects along the way, restarting, and leaving it again. A couple of years
ago it became a full-scale powerlifting gear book, but I still couldn’t bring it
on home.

Then I retired from powerlifting.

Something about retirement must have flipped a switch somewhere and put
the book into a new perspective. It ceased to be a side project for some
extra cash, and became something I felt I owed the sport. So I buckled down
once again, and realized that I didn’t know nearly enough to write the book I
would have wanted to read. So I dropped my ego (for once) and called a
bunch of my gearwhore friends who could give me the info I lacked. And
since the project was no longer mine alone, I decided to forget about the
money, and make it available for free, just like it was given to me in the first
place.

If I can pass one piece of information on to you as you make your way in the
sport, it’s this:

We didn’t write this to give you something, we did it to LOAN you something.
And when the time comes, it will be your responsibility to pass it on to the next
generation.

That’s how this multiply shit works.

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 Special Thanks

This book would not have been possible without the dedicated help of a LOT
of great powerlifters.

Truth be told, I had been sitting on this project for YEARS, half-finished, with no
idea where to go with it. It wasn’t until I put my ego aside and opened it up to
everyone here that I gained enough momentum to actually finish it.

In no particular order:
Bob Merkh
Shawna Mendleson
Tara Webber
Anthony Oliveria
Val Oliveria
Robert Bain
Brian Hill
Greg Damminga
Chanel Nolet Slater
Alex Kovatch
Travis McKinney
Tony Carlino
Barzeen Vaziri
C.J. Murphy
Michael Grasso
Tone Barbaccio

I do need to offer special thanks to Eric Maroscher, who went above and
beyond with his Piece on the great Ernie Frantz

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In addition to the submitted pieces, I also put a survey up on social media to
try and get more of an idea of what the current trends in gear were to make
sure I was in tune with what is currently going on in the sport.

Not everyone used their full name, but all were helpful.
James Wakefield
Jake
Josh Sutelman
Denkis Riihimaki
Jessie Jackson
Jonna Priester
Brian Hill
Mike Taylor
Henrik
Lucas Sigwards
Denise
Tara Duncan
Alex
Yael B
Kelly Duffy
Louis Imperatrice
Debbie Damminga
Franklin Clark
Jason Veach
Edwin Nash
Jake West
Samuel Colgan
Chris Skaroupka

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Travis McKinney
Greg Damminga
Justin Herder
Cory Schutter
Keeten Jones
Austin Patkos
Tommye Arnold
James Blair
Rhys
Valerie Oliveria
Rene Bernier
Roy Somers
Brianna Desrochers
Sara Eichstaedt
Stanly Rodrigues
Nash Kegley
Tyler Roy
Will Moose
Nick Hillman
Steve Diel
Matt Brooks
Corey Smash
Eric Sirois
Anthony Oliveria

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