The belt and the deadlift.

Inertia is the capacity possessed by physical objects that makes them resist any change in their property of motion.

An object in motion tends to stay in motion, an object at rest tends to stay at rest.

You know that old saying.

Inertia also describes the tendency

of your typical human being to continue doing exactly the same thing he's been doing,

despite the fact that a moment's reflection might indicate that this is stupid. And I'm certainly not

above the possession of a considerable quantity of inertia myself,

although I try to remain open to suggestion and to continued reflection upon my ingrained habits.

I occasionally become aware of a flaw in my thinking, or lack thereof, which merits correction.

And what I do, I'm compelled to share the revelation.

So, today's revelation.

Most people have no business wearing a four-inch power belt for the deadlift.

Unless you're very tall or long-wasted, a 4-inch standard power belt is too wide to permit a correct lumbar position at the start of a correct deadlift. First, the lifter's belt provides a way to increase the effectiveness of the muscular contractions around the thoracic and abdominal

cavities during a heavy lift.

It works by giving the muscles around the spine something to contract against

so that they can produce a harder isometric contraction with the belt than they can without it.

Like throwing a wiffle ball versus a baseball or like learning to clean with a piece of PVC instead of a barbell,

it's hard to produce force against little or no resistance.

The belt provides this resistance to the trunk muscles, and the result is a harder contraction

when the belt is worn.

Muscles contract along their length, and the rectus abdominis, the erectorspine, the

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