Tag Archives: USAWA Rules

New Official OTSM Lifts

by Al Myers

Paul Anderson training the squat with his iron wheels in Toccoa, Georgia. Paul's name has been "tied" to two new USAWA OTSM lifts.

I’ve already covered one of the new lifts approved at the USAWA Annual Meeting (The Curl – Reverse Grip).  However, the big news in “lift approval” is the addition of several new Old Time Strongman lifts.  The following OTSM lifts are NOW official lifts in the USAWA:   People’s Deadlift, Anderson Press, Anderson Squat, and the Dumbbell to Shoulder.  These 4 OTSM lifts have all been performed in USAWA competition over this past year as exhibition lifts, but now they are official lifts.  Included in the motion at the meeting to accept these as new lifts was retroactively making any lift “record eligible” in these lifts that have been done over this past year.  The Peoples Deadlift was part of the “Battle of the Barn” OTSM competition held be Eric Todd this past March, with the Anderson Squat, Anderson Press, and the Dumbbell to Shoulder being part of the 2011 USAWA OTSM Championships held by Thom Van Vleck last fall in Kirksville.  In each circumstance, the lift was done according to the new accepted rules, so it seems only right to me that these past efforts  be recognized by potential records.

One thing that I like to see with new lifts is that they have been done a few times as exhibition lifts in USAWA competitions before they become official.  This way any “wrinkles” can be worked out in the rules, and only lifts will be presented for new lift status that have been “tried and tested”.  The days are long gone where a lifter can just present a new lift at the National Meeting to be accepted without any prior written rules in hand or Executive Board approval.  Now there is a SET POLICY in place (check the rulebook) so only lifts are presented that have been well reviewed.  Most of our rule problems, as well as stupid lifts (and I’ll name them if you want me to),  in the past have been caused by the hap-hazard way lifts used to be approved.  

The Rules for these 4 new OTSM lifts are below.  Soon they will be added to the Rulebook.

Peoples Deadlift – This is a partial deadlift, where the bar height must not be over 18″ from the platform (measured from the top of the bar). The plates or bar may be supported on stands, rack supports, or blocks to obtain this height. The lifter must have the bar in front of the legs, as in a normal deadlift. The hands must be on the outside of the legs (NO SUMO STANCE) during the entire lift. Lifting straps or any other gripping aid is not allowed. It is NOT an infraction to drag the bar up the legs, bounce the bar up the legs, or support the bar on the legs during the lift (hitching). A one minute time limit is allowed for the lifter to make a legal lift, during which time a lifter may make multiple tries. Once the lifter is totally upright and the bar motionless, an official will give the command to end the lift.

Anderson Press – Press (with a standard Olympic bar) will be done from a dead stop position in the power rack from a height no greater than the height of the lifter when standing erect. Lifter may “bow” back to press the weight but must keep knees locked. The lift ends when the lifter is upright, arms locked, and demonstrates control of the weight. The lifter may press in an uneven manner and unlock unevenly. It is not a disqualification if the bar is lowered during the press, and afterwards the press resumes. The feet are not allowed to move. However, the lifter may raise the heels or toes during the press. Time limit of 1 minute is given for each attempt meaning the lifter may reset as many times as necessary to complete the lift. An official will give a command to end the lift.

Anderson Squat – A squat (with a standard Olympic bar) done from a dead stop from a height not over two thirds the height of the lifter. Squat is completed when the knees are locked and the lifter is standing erect. Time limit of 1 minute is given for each attempt meaning the lifter may reset as many times as necessary to complete the lift. Knee wraps or knee sleeves will be allowed. An official will give a command to end the lift.

Dumbbell to Shoulder – A Dumbbell will be taken from the floor to the shoulder using any method the lifter wants to employ. The dumbbell may be lifted with two hands, continental style, may be rested on the belt during the lift, by any part of the dumbbell. Hands may grip the plates, bar, collars or any part of the dumbbell. Any size plate may be loaded onto the dumbbell.The lift is completed when the lifter is standing upright, with the dumbbell resting on the shoulder, and the lifter demonstrating control. Both hands may remain on the dumbbell to complete the lift, or with one hand or both hands off the dumbbell. Time limit of 1 minute is given to complete the lift. An official will give a command to end the lift.

Repetition Records

by Al Myers

Another new rule that was passed at the USAWA National Meeting was a policy outlining repetition records.  Up till now, nothing was in place for this as a way of keeping track of these type of records.   Our USAWA rules have always stated that any official lift may be done for repetition, but a method for keeping track of these records was not defined.  The IAWA President Steve Gardner and I discussed this in length at the Worlds in Australia, and after several nights of “brainstorming” we can up with a good plan.  Included in this discussion was USAWA Prez Denny Habecker, Mark Haydock, Chad Ullom, and Art Montini.  So I feel that some of the greatest minds in the all-round lifting World was at work in coming up with this plan to deal with repetition  records (I just took notes by the way…). 

First, I want to outline some basic rules that have been in place in the Rule Book  for repetition records to give you a baseline:

K.  Repetition Lifts

Any approved lift may be done for repetitions, provided it is done according to the rules of the individual lift. Repetition lifts are allowed to be a part of any USAWA competition.

That’s it!!!  I’ve always seen how a “big problem” could arise if lifters actually got serious about establishing repetition records with this minimal rule.  Let me give this example: 

Lifter A: Weighs 190# and is 25
Performs a lift of 200 pounds for 9 repetitions

Lifter B:  Weighs 194# and is 33
Performs the same lift with 210 pounds for 8 repetitions

Which one should be the repetition record holder in the 90 Kilogram class???  Lifter A did more total reps, but lifter B used more weight on his lifts. Obviously some formula should be used to determine who gets “the spot” in the record list, because if you didn’t, you might as well list ANY repetition lift for record that is done, because of the infinite number of possibilities of choosing rep schemes with different poundages. 

Next I want to make a few comments (ok, my opinions) on how the IAWA deals with repetition records. In the IAWA rulebook there are only 8 lifts that can be officially done for IAWA repetition records.  These are: Repetition Cleans with Bodyweight, Repetition Presses with Bodyweight, Repetition Snatches with Bodyweight, Repetition Clean and Jerks with Bodyweight, Repetition Jerks with Bodyweight, Repetition Deadlifts with Bodyweight, Abdominal Raise for reps, Roman Chair Sit Up for repetitions. That’s the list – so you can see that the IAWA does NOT allow other official lifts to done for World Records. The first 6 lifts tell the amount of weight that must be used (bodyweight), but the last two do not specify anything (so it’s open-ended, with endless possibilities like the USAWA).  I can understand bodyweight deadlifts for repetition, but bodyweight snatches??? REALLY???  That’s most lifters goal for 1 rep in the USAWA/IAWA.  Obviously, there was not much thought put into the IAWA system for repetition records (my opinion), and is only a slightly better system than what the USAWA has (which is NOTHING, another opinion).

Now for the answer to “all this mess”.  This was the rule passed at the 2012 USAWA National Meeting to handle repetition records from now on:

Rule V. Records:  Records for repetition records will be kept for each official lift within the same weight classes and age groupings as individual records.  The method for keeping these records will be based on the bodyweight-corrected Lynch Points of the total weight lifted (reps times weight lifted), with the Lynch Points being used as the repetition record. This will allow the lifter to choose whatever weight and repetition scheme they desire in order to establish or set a repetition record.  The same weight must be used for each repetition.   There must not be any long pauses between repetition lifts, with this being based on the judgement of the official. The rules of the individual lifts apply, including the officials commands on each repetition.

It’s amazing all this can be resolved with one simple paragraph in the Rule Book.  This rule will be proposed at the IAWA World Meeting in October, so hopefully, the IAWA and the USAWA can be “on the same page” with this issue.  Now for the answer of who has the repetition record in the prior example:

Lifter A:  (200#) x (9 reps) x (.9199 Lynch Factor) = 1655.82 Lynch Points

Lifter B: (210#) x (8 reps) x (.9091 Lynch Factor) = 1527.29 Lynch Points

Lifter A gets the repetition record in the 90 KG weight class!!!!!  This method allows a lifter to make “the choice” of what weight and rep scheme they want to use – thus require a little strategy.  Each lift is different in the number of reps that can “comfortably” be done with more weight, and this decision is now left up to the lifter doing the repetitions.   

I listed the lifters age just to confuse you.  Age should not matter as all age groups should be represented in the repetition record list just like the individual record list, and the team record list. Records have never been age-adjusted, and they shouldn’t be.  I believe that the record list for repetition records should be a separate listing due to the uniqueness of it (just like with the team record list).  However, it will look EXACTLY like the individual record list in age categories and bodyweight divisions.  You may also notice that the rule calls for the lift to be done with the EXACT same rules as listed for the individual lift, including officials commands like the down command.  That’s the way it should be done – the right way!

The NEW Reverse Grip Curl Lift

by Al Myers

One of the new official lifts of the USAWA that was passed at the National Meeting  is the “Curl – Reverse Grip”.  This has caused some confusion (I’ve received a couple of emails on it already) as we already HAVE that lift as one of our official USAWA lifts!  The reason for this is a simple one – our rules for the Reverse Grip Curl has been drastically different than the IAWA rules for the Reverse Grip Curl!   A while back I wrote a blog stating the differences on this:  https://www.usawa.com/curl-reverse-grip/ .   The new Curl – Reverse Grip will go by this rule, which conforms to the IAWA rule for it:

Curl – Reverse Grip:   The rules of the Rectangular Fix apply, except that once the bar reaches the midway point it does not stop fixed, but continues to the finish position in one motion.

Need to reference this rule:

D24.  Rectangular Fix

This lift starts with the lifter standing holding the bar on the thighs at arms’ length, with the palms of the hands facing the lifter. Maximum hand spacing is shoulder width. Feet placement is optional. On a command by an official to start the lift, the lifter raises the bar by bending the elbows. The bar is raised to a position in which the lower arms are at a 90 degree angle to the body and parallel to the platform. The upper arms and elbows must maintain contact with the torso throughout the lift. The wrists must stay straight. Movement of the feet, raising the heels or toes, or swaying the body is not allowed. Once the bar is motionless, an official will give a command to end the lift.

Also in this proposal included a change of name for the “previous” Reverse Grip Curl that we have been doing in the USAWA.   It will now go by this name officially: Curl – Cheat, Reverse Grip.   All records will be preserved that have been set previously and this new name will be changed in the rulebook and record list.  However, the new Reverse Grip Curl is “now open” for any new records!  Interestingly, at Worlds this year we will be performing this lift according to the IAWA rules, thus the same rule as this new lift.  That is REASON NUMBER ONE we needed to approve this new lift.  You see, there are lifts that are official in the IAWA that are not official in the USAWA (even though the USAWA has several more that are not IAWA approved). It would seem odd to perform a lift at the Worlds on our own “home turf” that is not an official lift in the USAWA.   I know it seems confusing, but hopefully with time all of these differences will be reconciled.  Progress has been made on this over the past couple of years.

In summary, the Curl – Reverse Grip follows the rule of the Rectangular Fix and the Curl – Cheat, Reverse Grip follows the rule of the Cheat Curl.  The Executive Board briefly discussed calling this new lift the Curl – Strict, Reverse Grip  but decided against it.  Who knows – with time we might need that name if we ever decide to propose a Reverse Grip Curl following the rules of the Strict Curl???  Now THAT would make things confusing!!

Curl – Reverse Grip

by Al Myers

One of the lifts that will be contested at Nationals this month, as well as at the IAWA World Championships in October, will be the Reverse Grip Curl.  However, I want to point out that at each of these meets this lift will be done in a completely different fashion!!  The reason for this is that the USAWA rules for the Reverse Grip Curl are completely different than the IAWA rules!  This makes this lift  “one of many” all round lifts in which for some reason the rules have been written differently for the USAWA than the IAWA – thus causing problems when one of these lifts is selected for an IAWA competition because USAWA lifters have been doing it differently.  Add in the issue that it completely makes World record keeping for these lifts impossible!!!

USAWA RULE

D8. Curl – Reverse Grip

The rules of the Curl – Cheat apply with this exception. The grip on the bar must be a reverse grip, with the palms of the hands facing down or towards the lifter.

D7.  Curl – Cheat

The bar begins on the platform, and at the lifter’s discretion, is picked up with a grip that has the palms of the hands facing up or away from the lifter. Feet placement and hand spacing is optional, but must remain the same throughout the lift.  The heels may rise during the lift. Once the lifter is upright in a standing position with the arms and legs straight, the bar on the thighs hanging at arms’ length, an official will give a command to curl. The knees must remain locked and the legs straight during the lift. The lifter is permitted to bend at the waist, sway the body, or drop the shoulders to gain momentum of the bar. The bar may be lowered prior to the beginning of the curl, including lowering the bar below the knees. The bar must be curled from arms’ length to touching the upper chest or neck in one motion. Any downward movement of the bar during the curl is a disqualification. Once the bar is motionless, and the lifter is upright, an official will give a command to lower the bar. The lift ends when the bar returns to the platform under control by the lifter.

IAWA(UK) RULE

E32     REVERSE CURL

The rules of performance for the rectangular fix apply, except that once the curled bar reaches the midway point, it does not stop fixed, but continues in one movement, until the bar is at the top of the sternum / neck configuration.

E3       RECTANGULAR FIX

The barbell should be held at arms length, resting across the lifters thighs with the legs and body upright and erect. With a hand grip spacing of no more than shoulder width, and with the knuckles facing the front, the referee will signal to start the lift. With the upper arms remaining held in contact with the torso, the lower forearms will raise, holding the bar firm (not sagging at the wrist) until they are at right angles to the body and parallel to the floor. No raising of the heels and toes, or swaying of the body is allowed. When the bar is held fixed and motionless in the finished position, the referee will signal to replace the bar.

Causes for Failure:
1. Starting the lift prior to the referees signal.
2. Failure to hold the bar in the fixed, finished position, forearms at right angles to the body and parallel to the floor, until the referees completion signal.
3. Any movement of the feet or swaying of the body during the lift.
4. Failing to keep the legs and torso braced, upright and erect during the lift.
5. Failure to keep the upper arms in contact with the torso throughout, or allowing wrists to sag.

As you can see from reading these two rule descriptions for the Reverse Grip Curl (or Curl – Reverse Grip if you are using USAWA lingo, or Reverse Curl if you are using the IAWA-UK name), this is obviously two completely different lifts!  The USAWA version follows the rules of the Cheat Curl while the IAWA(UK) version follows the rules of the Rectangular Fix.  The ONLY THING that is in common is that a reverse grip must be used.  Other than that, the USAWA version is as different as “night and day” from the IAWA(UK) version.   I wouldn’t even consider this the same lift. 

I’m writing this blog today so hopefully any lifter planning on competing at Nationals will know that the USAWA Rule will be followed there, as well as any lifter planning on competing at Worlds will know that the IAWA rule will be followed at that meet.  I have been to enough IAWA meets in the past where I was “surprised” by rule differences that I was not aware of previously, and I don’t want anyone else to be in this situation with the Reverse Grip Curl at either of these meets!

Back Extensions

by Al Myers

The top picture is the starting position for a Back Extension, while the lower picture is the finishing position.

This is an excellent “finishing movement” to a heavy night of deadlifting and squatting. On top of that, it is an Official USAWA Lift!  It is in our Rulebook and but TOTALLY ABSENT in our Record List.  NO ONE has ever done it in a record day and it has never been contested in a USAWA competition.   This surprises me as it is a great exercise that works the lower back.  I like doing them after my heavy training and train them in a higher rep fashion, but this lift is well-suited for a maximum attempt.  I’ll refresh everyone on the USAWA Rule for Back Extensions as I’m sure most lifters are not familiar with this lift:

D11.  Extension – Back

A Roman Chair or similar apparatus is used for this lift. A bar is placed in front of the Roman Chair on the platform. The lifter will take a position on the Roman Chair facing the platform that allows the lifter’s body to bend fully downward at the waist. The seat must not touch the lifter’s torso. The legs must be straight and may be secured. The seat must be parallel to the floor and must not be raised at any angle. At the lifter’s discretion, the lifter will bend at the waist to a 90 degree angle, and fix the bar into the crooks of the elbows, with the arms bent. Once in this position, an official will give a command to rise. The lifter will raise the body to a position where the line of the back is parallel to the platform. The bar must remain fixed in the crooks of the elbows or it will be a disqualification. There must not be any downward movement of the body once the body has started to rise. Once the lifter is motionless, an official will give a command to end the lift.

The biggest difficulty with this lift is having the proper apparatus to do it on.  The seat must be the perfect height to allow the lifter to bend at the waist and place the bar in the crooks of the elbows at a full bend of 90 degrees.  Also, the feet must be secured  staight back for support.  An apparatus like this is usually not available in most gyms, and thus probably why this lift has not been done.  I like using my Glute-Ham device for this as the seat and feet supports are adjustable and allows me to get into perfect position. 

I have never done a max attempt on Back Extensions, but just might do one at my next record day.  After all, it looks like setting a record in it would be very easy as there are not any!!! However, don’t expect to get an IAWA World Record in the Back Extension as this lift IS NOT an IAWA official lift.

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