If you are reading this article, you are probably a bit new to the sport of powerlifting or are making a return to the platform.

So I will preface this by saying we are glad to see you taking the step towards the platform! We love to see people try new things and it lets us more veteran competitors and coaches relive our excitement for our first meet through you. It’s always an amazing experience seeing the smile on someone’s face when they get their first white lights after a long and sometimes nerve-racking prep cycle. We are glad to have you here in the sport of powerlifting and can’t wait to see what you do!

Now, down to the nitty gritty.

There are many different federations across the globe to compete in, so I would first recommend figuring out which federation your would like to compete in and read into their rulebook that they have available. For this example, we will stick with USPA.

1) Purchase your membership

To be able to compete in most any notable federation, you will need to have bought your membership to that federation.

For the USPA you can find that link here: www.uspa.net/membership.html

The reason for this membership is to:

1) Support the federations day to day operations
2) For the recordkeepers to have all the information they need to update your future records

Now that we’ve got that down, onto the next step!

2) Pick a meet!

The federation of your choosing should have a list of meets available somewhere on their site. There are a few things we should take into account before we finalize which meet we are going to do:

1) How far will I have to travel?

 For our first meet, we probably want to find a meet that is local so that we can get a feel for the way they work first. Meets can be crazy enough at it is, having the added stress of negotiating travel arrangements, possible weather delays, and numerous other things could possibly affect the way our first meet experience goes. So keep it simple! The closer the better! An added plus, all of your friends can come to support as well!

USPA Meet Calendar Can be found at this link: uspa.net/national_events

2) How long do I have to prepare?

Most powerlifters if you ask them will say they take around 12-16 weeks to train and prepare for a meet, so finding a meet that will give you enough time to train will set you up for a successful performance. If you are looking for a program that fits your needs I have an article written just for you! Click here:  “What Program Is Right For Me?”

Or you can sign up for our Torqued Training Systems Program Library here:  tts.programs.app/

3) What equipment do I need?

All notable federations have a general requirement for equipment you will need such as a singlet, closed-toe shoes and “deadlift socks”. Wearing things such as knee sleeves, knee wraps or wrist wraps are not required but are allowed. You would need to refer to your federations approved equipment list on what equipment is allowed. For this example we will use USPA equipment list to explain what equipment is allowed, which can be found here: uspa.net/vendor/approved-gear-2021

Let’s start with our singlet. Our singlet is required to be a one piece, full length, form fitted and backed suit made of only a singly ply stretchy material. That means it can’t be too thick or rigid as it might be confused with an assistive squat suit. It can be of any color or colors and is allowed to have designs on them (keep it PG okay). The main two things to look out for is that the singlet does not have another federations logo on it and that there are no sewn in patches or padding as these are not allowed.

For our Knee Sleeves (which are most commonly used) there are a few standards they will have to meet. First they will need to be listed on the USPA Approved Equipment List we previously talked about. Knee sleeves must conform to the specifications listed in the rulebook as well. They must be made of one-ply material, made from commercially available neoprene or woven elastic that is covered with polyester, not more than 30 cm in length, and not exceeding 7mm in thickness. sleeves are also not allowed to have any crisscross seams that allow additional support either. Listed below are a few recommendations I have from personal experience for those starting out:

SBD 7mm KNEE SLEEVES
INZER ErgoPro Knee Sleeves
STRONGHOUSE COMPETITION KNEE SLEEVES

As for our knee wraps, the same thing applies, they must be on the approved equipment list, but there are a few different specifications. For the USPA, knee wraps must be of single-ply nature, no more than 8cm in width or 250sm(2.5m) in length. The way we wrap matters as well as the total wrap after applied may not exceed more than 30cm, the same as our knee sleeves.
Whew, that’s a lot! All of that being said, here are a few recommendations I have for wraps:

Beginner: LILLIEBRIDGE KNEE WRAPS
Intermediate: BMF KNEE WRAPS – LEVEL 4
Advanced: ELITEFTS™ SUPER HEAVY KNEE WRAP

Last but not least we come to our wrist wraps. They are allowed to be used in all 3 of the lifts per USPA rulebook but they also have a few specifications to meet for competition use as well. As with our other equipment, they must be on the approved equipment list that we talked about before. Wrist wraps must also be of a single-ply nature; they can only be up to 100cm (1m) in length and up to 8cm in width. How we wear our wrist wraps is also a factor, as they can not be more that 10cm above (towards the elbow) or 2cm below (towards the fingers) the center of the wrist joint and not cover a space of more than 12cm total length. Here’s two of my favorite pairs of wrist wraps:

Stiffer: Ghost Strong Wrist Wraps 26″
Softer: SBD Wrist Wraps 60cm

MAN that was a lot! Hopefully that helped us figure out what we need to make the first step on the platform! There is one more thing we need to keep in mind and it really should have been the first thing I mentioned.

4) HAVE FUN!!!

This sport is all about the experience and seeing each other become a stronger version of ourselves every single day. So enjoy yourself, make new friends and have a blast showing the world what you’ve spent so many hours training for at your first meet!

If you found anything of value in this article or enjoyed it in any way, let us know!

Message us on Instagram: @Torqued_Training_Systems or message Coach T directly: @_thequadfather_

Let’s get after it!

Stronger. Every. Day.