Strength sports: bodybuilding and powerlifting

Strength sports can look very similar from the outside: barbells, weights, sweat and long hours in the gym. The real difference emerges when you ask what is assessed in competition. In bodybuilding, it is how your body looks; in powerlifting, it is how much weight you lift.

Why do strength sports differ?

Bodybuilding and powerlifting often start in the same place. You join a gym, learn the exercises and start getting stronger. Both sports require consistency, good technique and recovery. That is where the confusion comes in: if both involve lifting weights, aren’t they almost the same thing?

They are not. The simple truth is that powerlifting judges how strong you are, while bodybuilding judges how you look on stage. A powerlifter can win with a very unremarkable physique if they lift more than their competitors. A bodybuilder can stand out on stage even if their maximum squat or bench press is not the heaviest in the gym.

Powerlifting has three main competition lifts: the barbell bench press, squat and deadlift. A competition attempt involves lifting the maximum possible weight for 1 repetition, or 1 lift, under specific technical rules. How lean, symmetrical or stage-ready an athlete looks counts for nothing. The winner is whoever posts the better result.

In bodybuilding, the reverse is true. Athletes are judged on their proportions, muscle mass, muscle separation and overall stage condition. How much an athlete can bench press, deadlift or squat is of no direct interest. What matters is whether their physique meets the demands of the sport.

How do bodybuilders and powerlifters train?

Training serves a different purpose in each sport. A powerlifter’s training revolves mainly around the three competition lifts. Traditionally, each lift is trained once every 7–10 days, although this is not the only approach. What matters is that the athlete has recovered by the next heavy workout and can lift more weight in the main lifts.

Still, powerlifters do not all train the same way. Some train a particular lift once a week, while others may train that same lift 3 times a week. There have also been reports of very high-frequency systems in which a single lift or its accessory variations are trained 8 – 9 times a week. That sounds grueling to the average gym-goer, but elite sport often involves exploring the limits.

For example, Rich Weil, a long-standing bench press record holder, recommended training each muscle or lift once a week (Weil, 1985). At the other extreme is Tara Nott, America’s first Olympic gold medalist in weightlifting, who has regularly completed 9 squat workouts a week. These examples clearly show that there can be several effective approaches within a single sport.

Powerlifting itself now has two branches. There is RAW POWERLIFTING, which involves lifting without supportive equipment or with minimal equipment. Alongside it is equipped powerlifting, which permits specialized equipment such as lifting suits and bench shirts. Both require strength, but their results cannot always be compared directly.

A bodybuilder usually trains muscles, rather than just lifts. The goal is not to perform 1 lift with the heaviest possible weight on a particular day, but to develop a balanced physique. This means using a wider variety of exercises, muscle group splits, a greater focus on feeling the muscles work and more training volume. Very broadly speaking, powerlifters often train in the 1–6 repetition range, while bodybuilders tend to use 5–15 repetitions. This is not a rule set in stone. Bodybuilders also include strength cycles and low-rep sets, while powerlifters sometimes use higher-rep sets.

Strength sports and competition condition

One similarity between the two sports is that both bodybuilding and powerlifting use weight classes. Beyond that, they diverge again. For a powerlifter, body weight matters primarily in relation to their weight class and strength. For a bodybuilder, body weight is tied to stage condition: how much muscle remains and how little fat covers it.

Body proportions matter a great deal in bodybuilding. If a man has been training for some time and has 40 cm biceps and 44 cm calves, his overall appearance on stage may suffer because his arms and legs may be out of proportion. In powerlifting, this does not determine the result. If an athlete has a strong squat, bench press and deadlift, they are a strong competitor.

Nutrition plays a particularly large role in bodybuilding results. In competition, the aim is to display the lowest possible body fat percentage, clear muscle definition and a strong overall stage presence. Powerlifters also monitor their nutrition, but appearance is not a goal in itself. If an athlete eats more than their body currently needs, it may not be a problem as long as their strength and weight class remain under control.

Weight cutting differs too. In bodybuilding, getting into competition condition can be a long and mentally demanding process. In powerlifting, an athlete may need to lose weight if they are on the boundary between two weight classes and want to qualify for the lower class. That is often a very different undertaking from achieving stage condition in bodybuilding.

The practical difference in training plans

A look at a weekly training plan quickly makes the difference clear. A bodybuilder’s program is usually split by muscle group. Chest and biceps one day, legs the next, followed later by back, shoulders or triceps. A powerlifter’s program is more often built around the competition lifts: the squat, bench press and deadlift, supplemented by accessory exercises.

A typical bodybuilder’s weekly training split

• Monday: chest, biceps, abs.
• Tuesday: thighs, calves.
• Wednesday: rest.
• Thursday: lats, traps.
• Friday: shoulders, triceps.
• Saturday: rest.
• Sunday: rest.

A typical powerlifter’s weekly training split

• Monday: squat + accessory exercises.
• Tuesday: rest.
• Wednesday: bench press + accessory exercises.
• Thursday: rest.
• Friday: deadlift + accessory exercises.
• Saturday: rest or biceps, triceps.
• Sunday: rest.

As a beginner, the most sensible starting point is to ask yourself one question: is your goal to get stronger in specific lifts or to improve how your body looks? You can make progress in both at once, especially early on. But the further you progress, the more specific your plan needs to become. Frankly, this is where many people get caught between two goals: they want maximum strength and a stage-ready physique at the same time, but their training, nutrition and recovery pull them in different directions.

Strength sports FAQ

Does bodybuilding make you strong?

Yes, it usually does. Bodybuilders do a lot of weight training and get stronger, especially as they gain muscle mass. The difference is that their main goal is not to lift the maximum possible weight for 1 repetition in competition.

Does a powerlifter have to look like a bodybuilder?

No. In powerlifting, performance is what counts, rather than how you look on stage. A good powerlifter may be muscular, but they are judged on their squat, bench press and deadlift.

Which sport is better suited to a beginner?

That depends on your goal. If you want to learn the three main lifts and test your strength, powerlifting is a good fit. If you want to shape your physique and develop your muscle groups evenly, bodybuilding is the more logical choice.

Sources: http://www.trulyhuge.com/Bodybuilding-Powerlifting.html

Author: Janar Rückenberg

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