Related Sports (to weightlifting)
All these sports are similar in that they use and require weights and free weights but the objective of these sports are different.
Powerlifting
Powerlifting is similar to olympic weightlifting because the basic objective of powerlifting is to lift more weight. Powerlifting is the most simple sport for developing key whole body strength. Oddly enough Powerlifting doesn't require power but is actually a test of maximal strength. Due to it's similarities and relationship to olympic lifting (which also requires some degree of maximal strength) - I also coach the powerlifting movements, of which squats are used a great deal to build strength in coaching sessions. There are many organisations for Powerlifting.
The three exercises used test for overall body strength. These are:
* The Squat
* The Bench Press
* The Deadlift
Squat
The Powerlifting Squat is very similar to the exercise used in Olympic weightlifting (they can be identical). The main difference is that the lifter may only descend to just parallel or just below (depending on the rules of the organisation) and the bar is often placed in the "Low bar" position which gives a mechanical advantage to the lifter (quite often) (again this will be covered in more detail in coaching sessions)
Bench Press
The Bench Press is one of the single best way to test and train for upper body strength. The lifter removes a free barbell from the rack and descends the weight onto the chest where it is then pressed back up to full arms length. Sometimes the lifter will get the signal to "Press" the weight back up.
Deadlift
The Deadlift actually uses the same muscles as the squat (only used in a slightly different way) with the additional requirement of grip strength making it a truly thorough test of overall body strength. The bar is simply pulled off the floor (usually without "jacking" the bar up the thighs) until the legs and torso are fully straightened. The best deadlifters often have long arms which shortens the pull and gives a mechanical advantage as the bottom is the most difficult part of the movement (requires most muscular-skeletal force). The majority of people can lift the most weight in this manner out of the three powerlifts and obviously compared to the Olympic lifts (snatch and clean and Jerk)
Powerlifting is separated into two divisions - Unequipped (Raw) and Equipped.
The three exercises used test for overall body strength. These are:
* The Squat
* The Bench Press
* The Deadlift
Squat
The Powerlifting Squat is very similar to the exercise used in Olympic weightlifting (they can be identical). The main difference is that the lifter may only descend to just parallel or just below (depending on the rules of the organisation) and the bar is often placed in the "Low bar" position which gives a mechanical advantage to the lifter (quite often) (again this will be covered in more detail in coaching sessions)
Bench Press
The Bench Press is one of the single best way to test and train for upper body strength. The lifter removes a free barbell from the rack and descends the weight onto the chest where it is then pressed back up to full arms length. Sometimes the lifter will get the signal to "Press" the weight back up.
Deadlift
The Deadlift actually uses the same muscles as the squat (only used in a slightly different way) with the additional requirement of grip strength making it a truly thorough test of overall body strength. The bar is simply pulled off the floor (usually without "jacking" the bar up the thighs) until the legs and torso are fully straightened. The best deadlifters often have long arms which shortens the pull and gives a mechanical advantage as the bottom is the most difficult part of the movement (requires most muscular-skeletal force). The majority of people can lift the most weight in this manner out of the three powerlifts and obviously compared to the Olympic lifts (snatch and clean and Jerk)
Powerlifting is separated into two divisions - Unequipped (Raw) and Equipped.
Paralympic Powerlifting
This sport is the equivelent of Weightlifting at the Paralympic games and uses the Bench Press for people with lower-body disability. Note that in powerlifting, it's also possible to compete in single event efforts as well (for example squat, bench or deadlift only events)
Strength Athletics ("Strongman")
Strength athletics (commonly known as "strongman") or the competition "Worlds Strongest Man" includes a wide variety of "strength athletics". It is an interesting sport as the tests of fitness are greatly varied and unspecific. Strongman includes strength endurance and normal movements in everyday life but with excessive amounts of weight (for example lifting heavy stones). Strongman is the most complex of all the strength sports requiring a vast number of abilities combined in different ways.
Bodybuilding
Bodybuilding is perhaps the best known form of "strength" training but also often the least well understood. Bodybuilding is about training for appearance and definition where the goal is not particularly functional-strength or sports-performance focused (though it can be a by-product). The main focus for a bodybuilder over anything else is hypertrophy (or "building up the body with muscle"). There are also different categorisations of bodybuilding based on different levels of definition and size.
Weight Training
Weight training is a more general term but often is associated with "toning" and improve strength and whole body fitness and decreased body fat using weights. Weight training may include powerlifting movements and smaller muscle group exercises similar to those used in bodybuilding, with very general goals relating to health and fitness (i.e. the tendency is less specific)