If you’re starting out in your fitness journey, you may be wondering what discipline of lifting is best to not only reach your fitness goals but also to promote longevity and health.
Today, we’ll highlight the key differences between two of the most popular training disciplines, bodybuilding and powerlifting. We will discuss training methodologies, fitness/health benefits, and injury risks of each approach to help guide you on your fitness journey.
First, let’s take a look at the overall focus and training goals of each approach.
The main focus of bodybuilding style training is to maximize hypertrophy (muscle growth) and achieving aesthetic goals, such as symmetry, definition, and low body fat percentage.
Powerlifting, on the other hand, focuses on building strength and power in the big 3 lifts: the squat, bench, and deadlift. Aesthetics are secondary.
You may be asking, what are the main differences in the training regimen between a bodybuilder and a powerlifter?
Bodybuilding style training often takes a higher volume approach with moderate to heavy weights with emphasis on isolation exercises to target specific muscle groups. Common training programs include the body part split, where each muscle group receives a dedicated training day; upper/lower split, where emphasis is placed on either upper body or lower body muscle groups for the training session; and push/pull/legs, where one day focuses on horizontal and vertical pressing movements, another day is focused on horizontal and vertical pulling movements, and the last day is focused on lower body movements, such as the squat and deadlift, with isolation exercises targeting the quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves.
Powerlifting style training, in general, takes a lower volume approach with heavy weights to maximize strength development in the squat, bench, and deadlift. Compound and isolation exercises are utilized in training to improve specific weakpoints in each of the three lifts. These are referred to as accessory movements. There are many different training approaches in the world of powerlifting, but our favorite is the conjugate method. The conjugate method emphasizes training with a variety of movements to maximize strength gains and minimize plateaus. Traditionally, conjugate is broken down into four training days: two max effort or heavy effort days, focusing on heavy movements to build absolute strength, and two dynamic effort days, focusing on explosive movements to improve power. Accessory movements are utilized in each training day to build up weakpoints specific to the individual.
That’s all well and good, but what are the health benefits of each approach?
Bodybuilding can help to improve body composition, increase muscle mass, and enhance metabolic health. It may also have positive effects on bone density and joint health.
Powerlifting can increase bone density, improve joint stability, and enhance strength in functional movement patterns for everyday activities. Powerlifting style training can also help to improve body composition, increase muscle mass, and enhance metabolic health, depending on how your accessory movements are structured in your training cycle.
Now that we know the pros, let’s talk about the potential cons.
We typically see more overuse injuries in the bodybuilding world due to high training volume and repetitive movements. To reduce the risk of injury, it is a good idea to vary your intensity and exercises every 4-6 weeks.
In the powerlifting world, we tend to see more acute injuries due to individuals lifting heavy weights too fast, too soon, and too often. This is where a well-structured, periodized training program is paramount. Planned deloads are often necessary to allow for adequate recovery and continued progress towards training goals.
Overall, the training approach that is best for you depends on your health and fitness goals. If you’re determined to lose fat and gain muscle mass, a bodybuilding style program may be best for you. On the other hand, if you want to build as much strength as possible and become more resilient in day to day life, powerlifting may be better for you.