There is much confusion behind the sports of weightlifting and powerlifting,
especially for people that aren’t spending their time or training dedicated to being
great at one or the other. Beyond that, there is much controversy in how the training
for each of these strength sports can be related to training for your more popular
sports, such as football, basketball, baseball, volleyball, hockey, etc. When training a
baseball player this athlete might say, “I don’t want to train to look like one of those
elite powerlifters,” but the training for a baseball player and a powerlifter might
have more relation then one might originally think.
The Basics of Each Sport
The sport of powerlifting is centered on three lifts: the back squat, the bench press,
and the deadlift. The training of the powerlifter is centered on developing maximum
absolute strength in each of these lifts because that is what is required of them on
the day of competition. The sport of weightlifting (one word)—one might hear it
called Olympic weightlifting—is centered on two lifts: the snatch, and the clean and
jerk. The focus of the sport of weightlifting is developing maximum absolute power
in each of these lifts, due to the fact that a weightlifter has to be able to get the bar
overhead in one movement in the snatch, and in two movements in the clean and
jerk. Similar to powerlifting, on the day of competition the weightlifter has three
opportunities to demonstrate their one repetition maximum in each of the lifts.
When it comes down to it, both sports rely on maximum force production into the
ground for an optimal outcome, but a weightlifter will produce force at a much
higher rate resulting in a more explosive movement. Both of which, are very
important in training an athlete in a field sport.
What some coaches might call the most important lift in their arsenal: the squat. You
could say that the squat (front, back, etc.) has the most direct influence in sport. If
you look at pictures of different athletes in competition you will see that the angle of
their hips, knees, and ankles are in a position of a squat. That could be a deep squat
position or a more explosive movement coming out of a squat position. Even if you
look at an athlete planting on their outside foot to make a play, that leg with no
doubt is in a squat position, therefore it is extremely important in developing
strength in the squat to produce maximum athletic performance.
The strength sports of powerlifting and weightlifting are very focused on training
the squat very consistently. Powerlifters tend to squat with a very wide stance (feet
way outside shoulder width) and creating as much tension on the bar as possible.
One might originally say that this type of squat is not directly related to
performance in sport, but squatting with a wide stance gets more activation out of
the hips, which is very productive for sports performance and is the key area an
athlete needs to develop. Weightlifters tend to fall on the other side of the spectrum,
and squat with a narrow stance (feet under hips or slightly wider). This type of
squat may be said, to be more specific to sport. The style of the squat with the feet
underneath the hips is more oriented towards jumping and sprinting activities,
which are very explosive movements that an athlete needs to develop strength in, in
order to excel at their respective sport.
To borrow a quote from Matt Wenning when I heard him speak at the 2015 NSCA
National Conference, “squat performance can be directly related to success in track
and field, and sporting events.” A squat, if done correctly (properly activated
posterior chain), can develop hip dominance in athletes, which is directly related to
performance on the playing field.
Pulling From the Floor
Just as with the squat, both strength sports very consistently train pulling from the
floor (deadlift variations, clean, clean pull, etc.), and is very important in developing
an athlete. Proper pulling will get more activation out of the hamstrings than the
squat. Powerlifters focus on the traditional style deadlift, with some using a very
wide stance (sumo), or a very narrow stance. Weightlifters focus on pulling from the
floor in the same style as their snatch or clean to develop strength and position in
each of those movements, without focusing on getting the weight overhead. The
weightlifting pull is typically more explosive than a powerlifting deadlift, and force
is being created at a much higher rate. Both styles of pulling are very conducive to
increased sports performance. Proper pulling from the floor will develop a strong
posterior chain in athletes, and creates strength and power in the area of the hips,
which mentioned before is very important to athletes. A strong posterior chain, and
dominance in the hips creates better positions for an athlete in the weight room, and
more particularly on the playing field. Having a strong posterior chain gives an
athlete a stronger area to develop more power, and decrease the chance of injury
during competition.
Both strength sports put an emphasis on pressing. Powerlifters will focus more on
the bench press, and weightlifters will more than likely only focus on pressing
overhead to improve overhead strength in the snatch and jerk. One might not think
that the bench press is very beneficial to improving performance in sport, but it will
tell you many things about an athlete, just as much as pressing overhead. Pressing;
whether that is overhead or on the bench press, will be able to tell you if the back of
your athlete is strong. If the shoulders are flaring up on the bench press good
chances are that the athlete needs to develop some strength in the mid to upper
back to keep their shoulder blades down in a good position. If an athlete can’t keep
their shoulders in a good position during any sort of pressing in the gym, good
chances are that they will be more prone to shoulder injuries during competition.
The bench press is a better tool to developing healthy shoulders than one might
think. Being able to keep the shoulders in an optimal position under load will help
keep the athlete in good positions during competitions when the environment isn’t
as controlled. The bench press is also more of a total body exercise than many think.
It takes a lot of activation and stabilization in the back and hips, which again will
develop stronger positions and areas for an athlete. Overhead pressing involves just
as much, and more stabilization than the bench press. The upper back is heavily
involved to keep optimal position of the shoulders, the core must stay very active
due to the fact that there is an object hoisted overhead, and the glutes must stay
active the whole time for optimal stability. All of this is very crucial for an athlete to
develop to maintain tension control throughout movements. Pressing will tell you
many weak areas that an athlete needs to develop to optimize their performance in
competition.
What Type Of Training To Choose?
I would believe it to be somewhat ignorant to say that you want to develop an
athlete solely like a powerlifter or solely like a weightlifter. The type of training for
both strength sports is very key to developing certain areas of an athlete. Some
areas of training might be useful in developing an athlete, and some may not be. It is
up to you as a coach to decide what areas your athlete needs to develop, and what
areas they are already strong. Powerlifting training is very useful in developing
strength in the lower body and hips; overall absolute strength, can be used as an
assessment tool, and can be very useful in preventing injury if trained right. It also
might be lacking some areas, such as mobility, and higher training velocity
adaptations, such as power and speed. Weightlifting training is very useful in
developing strength, power, speed, mobility, and stability, which are very key areas
that an athlete needs to develop to excel. However, it is possible that it could lead an
athlete to injury, IF the athlete doesn’t have a proper weightlifting coach, or the
weightlifting training is programmed insufficiently. You could also look on the other
side of that and say it can lead to injury prevention, IF you have a good coach who
knows how to program and execute the movements properly.
In conclusion, powerlifters and weightlifters are some of the strongest men and
women in the world. Training with both styles in mind has the potential to develop
some very important areas for an athlete, which will lead to an increase in
performance in their sport, a decreased risk of injury, and more overall strength.
Like Mark Bell said, “no one ever regretted getting strong.”
Article by Justin Frazier