

Written by Daniel Green

It’s no secret to those who pay attention to the world of raw powerlifting that it is a sport dominated by lifters who are or who look like bodybuilders. And I’m referring to the “absolutely jacked” quality of these lifters, not the propensity for wearing shimmery thongs and fake tanning (had to take at least one shot). The point being that carrying around a ton of muscle and then doing so without a lot of body fat is part of the formula for high caliber lifting.

Gaining this muscle mass can be very beneficial, and is by no means a new concept. As lifters we must train for strength first and foremost, but there are times when it is helpful to train some extra lifts “like a bodybuilder.” Packing on muscle in the right places to compliment what is left lacking by the main lifts will ensure that you give yourself a chance to later strengthen some of your weak areas—which likely negatively affect your technique on the main exercise or limit your ability to execute it under progressively heavier weights. Additionally some bodybuilding training can be used to build up the stabilizing musculature or antagonist musculature in a region of the body to keep the body in balance.

Check out these tips from Dan on how bodybuilding can make you a better lifter…