# Why lift equipped?



## Gadawg (Jan 31, 2019)

I can't for the life of me figure out why this even exists. Why the **** would I care how much your shirt can bench press?  Fill me in powerlifters.


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## DieYoungStrong (Jan 31, 2019)

It's a different sport. Think of it like drag racing. Raw lifting is street cars, Raw w/ wraps is slicks, and multi-ply is funny cars.

Lifting in gear is hard and using gear is a sport in and of itself. If you lose the groove at all in gear - you're in for a world of hurt. Raw lifting is much more forgiving technique wise.

That said, I'm still a much bigger fan of raw lifting.


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## PillarofBalance (Jan 31, 2019)

They don't compete against raw lifters. And until you put a shirt on and try and bench with it, don't talk shit. It's hard af.


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## maxmuscle1 (Jan 31, 2019)

Agreed.  Competition is not just lifting heavy weight with buddies.  It’s a lifetime(or years) if learning,training,goal setting, and involves all kinds of additions.  A 1 lb gain can take takes months but it can mean beating a WR.


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## Jin (Jan 31, 2019)

Because it’s awesome to say you bench 1,000 pounds.


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## DieYoungStrong (Jan 31, 2019)

PillarofBalance said:


> They don't compete against raw lifters. And until you put a shirt on and try and bench with it, don't talk shit. It's hard af.



I thought you were going to die multiple (or is it multi-ply) times when you were benching in the jean jacket shirt with the Metallica patch on it lmao


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## Iron1 (Jan 31, 2019)

DieYoungStrong said:


> I thought you were going to die multiple (or is it multi-ply) times when you were benching in the jean jacket shirt with the Metallica patch on it lmao




wut

10char.


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## snake (Jan 31, 2019)

Jin said:


> Because it’s awesome to say you bench 1,000 pounds.


I personally know the first guy to do just that. Just holding that kind of weight is bone crushing. I was in awe watching someone in my weight and age class bench almost 100 lbs more then me at a meet. This 1010 lb bencher put his arm around me and said, "You'd crush that with a shirt, no problem"


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## DieYoungStrong (Jan 31, 2019)

snake said:


> I personally know the first guy to do just that. Just holding that kind of weight is bone crushing. I was in awe watching someone in my weight and age class bench almost 100 lbs more then me at a meet. This 1010 lb bencher put his arm around me and said, "You'd crush that with a shirt, no problem"



Me too. And we both know he has neurological damage from doing it lol...


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## snake (Jan 31, 2019)

Gadawg said:


> I can't for the life of me figure out why this even exists. Why the **** would I care how much your shirt can bench press?  Fill me in powerlifters.



It's not for everyone G. There are even divisions within that division. Single-ply, Double-ply, I think they may even have a Double-ply denim. I tried a single ply shirt and found it's not for me. Shirts seem to favor guys with strong triceps. If you have lockout problems, the shirt, even with a wide grip is not going to do much. 

 If you commit to equipped competitions, you will probably go all in. That includes not only a bench shirt but a power/ squatting suit, dead lifting suit, erector shirt and grooved briefs. The question is when does it end and how much is really you?


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## DieYoungStrong (Jan 31, 2019)

Iron1 said:


> wut
> 
> 10char.



Mostly a joke, but some older fashioned bench shirts were made from denim. Pillar started playing around with one that was kicking around our gym. After a few sessions when he started adding stupid weight to the bar, he lost the groove a few times and had some scary near death experiences lmao. I've never been so scared spotting someone haha.


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## PillarofBalance (Jan 31, 2019)

DieYoungStrong said:


> I thought you were going to die multiple (or is it multi-ply) times when you were benching in the jean jacket shirt with the Metallica patch on it lmao



That denim shirt had zero forgiveness. What's ****ed up is the closer I came to eating the bar the more I wanted to do it!


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## PillarofBalance (Jan 31, 2019)

Iron1 said:


> wut
> 
> 10char.



Picture me benching in a denim jacket worn backwards and 4 sizes too small.


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## DieYoungStrong (Jan 31, 2019)

PillarofBalance said:


> Picture me benching in a denim jacket worn backwards and 4 sizes too small.



With a Metallica patch on it lmao


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## Gadawg (Jan 31, 2019)

PillarofBalance said:


> They don't compete against raw lifters. And until you put a shirt on and try and bench with it, don't talk shit. It's hard af.



That's why I asked.  The SPF that I plan to compete in has a category for bench pressing with Mark Bell's slingshot.  Other than him being a sponsor, I just dont understand why that's a thing. 

My initial post reads as more inflammatory than I meant it to be. That's just my nature. Lol


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## ToolSteel (Jan 31, 2019)

Equipped lifting is something you can’t really understand until you’ve tried it or at least trained with some guys that use it for a while. It really is like a whole different sport. 
Im a big fan of raw lifters using equipment for overload training. I used to have a single ply squat suit I used every couple weeks. Helped me break out of a plateau. The highest I ever went with it was 765. 
It really makes your normal raw weight unracks a lot less scary.


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## Gadawg (Jan 31, 2019)

Gotcha. Thanks guys


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## Straight30weight (Jan 31, 2019)

Gadawg said:


> That's why I asked.  The SPF that I plan to compete in has a category for bench pressing with Mark Bell's slingshot.  Other than him being a sponsor, I just dont understand why that's a thing.
> 
> My initial post reads as more inflammatory than I meant it to be. That's just my nature. Lol


Interesting. They’re actually competing using the slingshot? When I’m not broken anymore I’m going to use mine a whole lot more


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## Gadawg (Jan 31, 2019)

Straight30weight said:


> Interesting. They’re actually competing using the slingshot? When I’m not broken anymore I’m going to use mine a whole lot more



Yes. 

What do you like about it 30?  The only people I ever see using them just do so bc they want to put a bunch of weight on the bar. But I dont lift st a powerlifting gym


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## Uncle manny (Jan 31, 2019)

The other night I saw this clown, he had a bench shirt, sling shot and made sure his belt was on tight... on the decline bench... bouncing 2 plates off his big belly. Dude was all geared up. I was just there laughing found it pretty damn funny.


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## Straight30weight (Jan 31, 2019)

Gadawg said:


> Yes.
> 
> What do you like about it 30?  The only people I ever see using them just do so bc they want to put a bunch of weight on the bar. But I dont lift st a powerlifting gym


I wouldn’t use it to add weight. I would use it to squeak out more reps. Like rep out 315 without it, then throw on the slingshot and keep going at the same weight. I would just use it as a tool


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## Gadawg (Jan 31, 2019)

Straight30weight said:


> I wouldn’t use it to add weight. I would use it to squeak out more reps. Like rep out 315 without it, then throw on the slingshot and keep going at the same weight. I would just use it as a tool



Gotcha. I use a spotter for that but Im more likely to just keep dropping plates.


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## Straight30weight (Jan 31, 2019)

Gadawg said:


> Gotcha. I use a spotter for that but Im more likely to just keep dropping plates.


I love drop sets too


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## ToolSteel (Jan 31, 2019)

Slingshot is great for training your groove imo. Ques you to keep your elbows tucked. For a lot of guys it completely eliminates bench-related shoulder pain. 
When used to use it a lot, I did pretty much what 30 said. Work up to a double or triple raw, then add the slingshot for reps at the same weight.


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