A Powerlifters Guide to Velocity Based Training (VBT)

Bar velocity has opened a world of information and approaches to helping athletes get stronger and prepare for their sport.

While historically this has been utilised in the strength and conditioning world of elite field and court sport athletic development departments, the improvement in app technology means accurate and easy-to-use barbell velocity tracking apps like Metric VBT have brought velocity based training to the masses. There is no population of athlete’s who will benefit from this more than powerlifting.

Powerlifters thrive when they track bar speed and use the data to help inform their training. When you step on the platform every kilo matters, so finding ways to optimise your training, calibrate your program and push your limits is crucial for success on the platform, avoiding plateaus and increasing career longevity.

In this beginners guide to velocity based training for powerlifters, we’ll explore the fundamentals of VBT, the benefits it has for strength athletes and how it can be applied in your powerlifting program.

VBT is a method that involves measuring the velocity of your lifts to determine the optimal training load, volume, and intensity. By tracking bar speed (usually done with a computer vision app like Metric), you can gain valuable insights into your force production, fatigue levels, and overall performance progression over time. VBT provides a window into an athlete’s capabilities, allowing coaches and athletes to make data-driven decisions in their training.

Producing force is about more than just lifting heavier and heavier weights. Force production is a product of mass and acceleration. Acceleration can be noisy and is difficult to directly measure so we are able to instead infer acceleration from the mean velocity of our reps.

Lift the same weight faster and you have produced more force, likely indicating a strength gain, while lift a weight slower and it might suggest a technique shift or a drop in performance due to fatigue or low effort.

By measuring bar speed, we can estimate the force being produced and determine the optimal loading for specific training adaptations.