8 Tips to Breathe & Brace CORRECTLY When Lifting Heavy (Also: #1 Mistake!)

Let’s cover 8 tips on how to breathe and brace when lifting. Tips #1-4 cover how to do this correctly while tips #5-8 cover what not to do (i.e., common mistakes).

Tip #1: If the bar is moving, you’re not breathing.
Breathe in at the start of the movement, hold that breath throughout the entire rep, and then breathe it out at the end of the movement.

Remember this – if the bar is moving, you’re not breathing.

Breath is support, and thus we want to hold a nice full breath in our lungs when lifting. For example, in the squat, take a breath in at the top of the rep, hold that breath all the way down and back up again, and then release it after you’ve locked out the rep.

On the deadlift, breathe in when the bar is on the floor, hold that breath all the way up to lockout and then back down again, and then release that breath only when the bar is back on the floor.

Tip #2: How do you hold your breath correctly?
Specifically, you perform a Valsalva maneuver, i.e., you forcefully hold your breath against a closed glottis. Put another way, you hold your breath in your throat.

If you’re not sure how to do this, say the word “hick” and hold the “ck’ sound. If you do this, you’re performing the Valsalva maneuver correctly.

Tip #3: Get ready to take a punch.
As you perform your Valsalva maneuver, you’re going to make your midsection tight and rigid. Tighten every single muscle in your trunk (never say “core” unless you’re a “too-tight-polo-shirt-wearing-clip-board-holding-personal-trainer”). Pretend you’re about to take a punch right in the gut, and you’ll probably be doing this very well indeed.

Keep these muscles flexed rigidly all the way down and back up again (or all the way up and down again in the case of the the deadlift), and you’ll be bracing correctly.

Tip #4: Belt
Use a lifting belt.

Among other benefits, a belt provides excellent proprioceptive feedback on what you’re doing with the muscles of your midsection. Also, since you now have something to brace against, you can brace harder, i.e., you can use those trunk muscles more effectively with a belt than without a belt.

Tip #5: Don’t breathe like a buffoon when deadlifting.
Don’t release your breath at the top of the deadlift.

Remember – breath is support, so keep that support until the bar is resting on the floor again.

You’re not hanging out at the top of the deadlift for long – you’re not going to pass out before the bar is back on the deck, so this is easy to do in the technical sense, but releasing your breath at the top can be a difficult habit to break if you’ve been making this error for a while.

To fix this, cue yourself to “lift silently.” From the time the bar starts moving, your mouth shouldn’t make any noise until the bar is resting on the floor again, and this cue does an excellent job reminding you of this.

Tip #6: Don’t “bear down.”
The cue “bear down” is sometimes used to remind people to get tight and brace hard.

However, you never want to push anything in a downward direction when bracing correctly. You are not giving birth, nor are you pooping (although both involve the Valsalva maneuver), so don’t push anything downward when getting tight unless you want to be changing your pants after squatting.

Again, simply think of getting tight as preparing to take a punch. If anything, you can cue yourself to “bear in” (or “bear upward”) as if you’re trying to crush your belly button.

Tip #7: Don’t overcomplicate this.
You’ve been breathing your whole life without thinking about it. You’ve also been performing the Valsalva maneuver your whole life without thinking about it (e.g., anytime you’ve tried to push a stuck vehicle or heavy box).

With that said, now that you’re focused on breathing and bracing correctly, it’s easy to complicate it, and the “fitness social media” world loves to make this worse.

Take a big breath, brace hard like you’re going to get punched, and hold that through the entire rep.

Don’t buy into that old 80s and 90s fitness magazine nonsense about “breathing in on the way down and breathing out on the way up.” Again, if the bar is moving, you’re not breathing.

Tip #8: Don’t hold your breath with puffed out cheeks.
If you’re holding your breath with puffed out cheeks, i.e., if you’re holding your breath against your lips, you’re performing the Valsalva maneuver incorrectly.

This is probably the most common breathing and bracing error we see, so remember – you hold your breath in your throat and not in your mouth against your lips. If you’re doing it correctly, you should be able to Valsalva with your mouth closed or open. Try out the “hick” method back in tip #2, and you’ll be doing it correctly.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

• Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

• Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

• Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

---

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

Weightlifting vs Powerlifting vs Strengthlifting - What's the Difference?!

(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 11/20/18)

“What’s the deal with all of these lifting sports? I can’t keep them straight!”

No worries - let’s take a quick look at the three major sports of the barbell world (you can also watch the included video).

Powerlifting
This is the sport of the squat (i.e., back squat), bench press, and the deadlift. Each lifter gets 3 attempts on the squat, 3 attempts on the bench press, and 3 attempts on the deadlift.

Take your best attempt from each lift, add them together, and you have what is known as your total.

Stephanie locks out the press at a strengthlifting meet.

Strengthlifting
This is the sport of the squat, the press, and the deadlift. It is similar to powerlifting, but there are several notable differences:

• The press (i.e., overhead press) is contested, not the bench press.

• The deadlift is conventional, which means your hands go outside of your legs. This is how we teach the deadlift anyway, so it’s not unusual to you, but at powerlifting meets, a beast known as the sumo deadlift often makes an appearance (wherein the stance is very wide and the grip is fairly narrow - inside the stance).

• The judges simply tell you whether or not the lift counted, whereas in powerlifting, the judges are a bit more involved.

Chris snatches 133 kg at a weightlifting meet.

Weightlifting
This is the sport of the snatch and the clean-and-jerk. Like the other two sports, each lifter gets 3 attempts on each of the lifts, and once again, we add the best successful lifts together to get a total.

• Weightlifting is also known as “olympic weightlifting” or simply “olympic lifting.”

• If you’ve ever watched lifting during the Summer Olympics, this is the sport you witnessed.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

• Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

• Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

• Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

---

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

How to (EASILY) Put on Tight & Stiff Knee Sleeves (TWO METHODS)

Knee sleeves are wonderful, but if you find yourself struggling to put them on in the first place, today’s two tips are for you.

I would highly recommend watching the video below to see these two methods in action (all the photos in this article come from this video) as it’s easier to learn from a demonstration.

Method 1 – Basic 7 mm Knee Sleeve (or thinner)
This first approach works very well with the typical 7 mm thick knee sleeve such as a Rehband or IronBull sleeve, and it works equally well with thinner sleeves such as 5 mm thick sleeves. With that said, don’t get a 5 mm sleeve - once you try out a 7 mm sleeve, you’ll never go back.

Step 1
Orient the knee sleeve so that it is right-side out with the correct side up and facing forward.

step 1

Step 2
Turn the knee sleeve inside out, and in the process, you will also turn the sleeve upside down.

step 2

Step 3
Rotate the sleeve so that the front faces backward. This part is optional, but it makes it slightly easier to get the sleeve around the ankle due to the bend in most sleeves.

step 3

Step 4
Slide the knee sleeve over your foot.

step 4

Step 5
Rotate the knee sleeve so the front side faces forward again.

step 5

Step 6
Drag the knee sleeve up your leg until it reaches where you want the bottom of the sleeve to sit (i.e., in the upper shin region).

step 6

Step 7
Grab the top of the sleeve (which is currently located low on the leg) and peel it all the way upward. At this point - potentially with a few minor adjustments to get the placement just right - you’re done.

step 7

finished!

Method 2 - Stiff 7 mm Knee Sleeve
If you have a very robust, stiffer, and longer 7 mm thick knee sleeve such as a Stoic, Pioneer, or SBD sleeve, you’ll find the following method extraordinarily useful:

Step 1
As with Method 1, orient the knee sleeve so that it is right-side out with the correct side up and facing forward.

step 1

Step 2
Grab the top and fold it down until the upper half of the sleeve covers the lower half.

step 2

Step 3
Slide the knee sleeve over your foot.

step 3

Step 4
Grab two straps or something similar. I’m using cloth lifting straps in the accompanying video (and thus these photos), and that is the only time we ever recommend using cloth lifting straps as they will eventually tear when used for actual training (e.g., when deadlifting). However, leather lifting straps or some other piece of webbing (we use climbing webbing to make our DIY lifting straps), fabric, or even rope will work.

step 4 - insert straps

Slide a strap down between one side of the sleeve and your leg. Repeat the process on the opposite side with the other strap. You now have two handles to grab.

step 4 - handles

Step 5
Double check to make sure the front of the sleeve is still facing forward, and then pull on the handles, sliding the sleeve up your leg until it reaches your knee.

step 5

Step 6
Pull the straps out.

Step 7
Grab the top of the sleeve (which is currently located below the fold of the double-over sleeve) and peel it all the way upward. At this point - potentially with a few minor adjustments to get the placement just right - you’re done.

step 7

finished!

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

• Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

• Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

• Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

---

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

Why do I Keep FAILING?!

(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 11/03/23)

Are you missing reps on your linear progression? Let’s address one potential problem, and it’s one that’s easy to fix.

Specifically, let’s talk about rest periods (i.e., how long you’re resting between sets). I know - not very exciting. However, rest periods are important because they can either support your training, or - if chosen poorly - they can derail your training.

When someone starts training with us here at Testify, we have a conversation on day one wherein we discuss rest periods, and during this conversation, we address two things:

1. Resting Between Warm-up Sets
The short version? You don’t need to do it. That’s right. Don’t rest between warm-up sets. The act of changing your weights will provide enough rest while you're warming up. These are warm-up weights and don’t require much of a break between sets. You are welcome to rest several minutes, but most people don’t have all day to train, and this is the place to save time in the workout.

One caveat - you’ll probably want to rest a few minutes after your last warm-up set, i.e., before your first work set, which brings us to . . .

2. Resting Between Work Sets
You definitely want to rest between work sets. When you’re getting started with the Starting Strength linear progression, somewhere between three and five minutes will probably suffice. Treat that range as a minimum.

Want to squat 225 lb like Sarah? be sure to rest long enough between your work sets.

Remember that the purpose of strength training is - not surprisingly - to get stronger. To get stronger, you need to do the prescribed training for the day - you need to lift what you said you were going to lift - and to lift that weight, you need to rest enough to complete all the reps of your work sets.

The Main Point
That last part is the main point - rest long enough to ensure that you complete the next set successfully. When you read “three to five minutes,” remind yourself that this is appropriate for when you’re starting out, and also remind yourself that this is a minimum. When things get heavier and more challenging, there will come a time when you need to rest longer - you’ll rest six minutes, seven minutes, etc.

Establish the Habit
One of the most enjoyable parts of lifting weights is . . . not lifting weights, so force yourself to get used to resting - even at the beginning of your strength training journey.

If it’s your second workout, take the three, four, or five minute break even if you know you could get back under the bar and complete the next set with a shorter rest break. Start establishing the habit of getting adequate rest right away in your training. If you tend to rush things, a timer can be a handy tool to ensure that you’re waiting long enough before starting your next set.

Practical Limitations
There are, of course, some practical limitations to how long you’ll actually rest, and you’ll notice that I’m not suggesting that you rest 15 minutes between sets. Even if a 10-15 minute rest period might be useful, it simply may not be practical in terms of your schedule for the day.

Wrapping Up
In general, though, rest long enough to ensure that you can complete the next set. Completing your work sets will allow you to get stronger, and in this way, you will still be making progress on your linear progression four months, five months, or even six months into it instead of missing reps in the first or second month.

It may help to remember that this isn’t conditioning; of course, there will still be a conditioning benefit, but that’s not why you’re strength training. You’re doing it to get stronger, so take the appropriate rest, and as always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

• Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

• Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

• Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

---

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

How to Do the Starting Strength Squat (How to Squat in 60 Seconds)

Step 1: Bar Position & Grip
Take a grip on the bar that’s as wide as it needs to be so that you can get the bar into the correct position on your back – just below your traps and sitting on your delts – but also a grip that is as narrow as it can be so that your delts are nice and bunched up and you've got a tight upper back.

Step 1: bar position & Grip

Step 2: Stance
Stand the bar up and take one step back with each foot. Assume a roughly shoulder-width stance with your toes pointed out about 30 degrees.

Step 3: Focal Point
Stare at a point on the floor approximately 4 to 6 feet in front of you.

steps 2 & 3: Shoulder-width stance & focal point

Step 4: Breathing & Bracing
Take in a big breath and hold that breath with every single muscle in your midsection tightly clamped down and contracted as if you're going to take a punch. Hold that breath all the way down and all the way back up again.

Step 5: Hips Back, Chest Down, Knees Out
As you start to descend, reach back with your hips, point your chest directly at the floor, and shove your knees apart so that they travel in the same direction as your toes.

Step 5: Hips back, chest down, & knees out

Step 6: Hip Drive
When you reach the bottom of the squat – that is, when your hip crease passes below the top of your knees – drive your hips straight back up. In other words, stay leaned over on the way up longer than you think. Drive your hips upward.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

• Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

• Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

• Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

---

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

Go Home, Get Weak, and DIE: Why Your Doctor is WRONG about Lifting Weights

You've heard it before: "Why are you doing this?" "You don't need to be lifting those heavy weights." And they're all wrong. So wrong. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 05/29/23)

Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

• Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

• Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

• Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

---

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?