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Me personally I WOULD wear a belt forever. Belts protect the spine in the squat and keep the back tight which creates a smoother ride - some spinal flexation is inevitable when lifting heavy weights, better to be safe than sorry.
Not a single powerlifting fed in the world (note: raw unity is NOT a fed) disallows the use of belts and EVERYONE who competes wears one.
Most of the cheap ones you see in sports stores are poorly designed though - get an outbak powerlifting belt from samsfitness for $65.
A belt is a band aid solution for a weakness in your core. I've told you that you need to address your core strength to protect your back in the future from further injury.
Wait until your back is fixed and your core is stronger then build your overall strength up gradually.
Otherwise you will have strong legs but due to belt use your core wont have kept up. As soon as the belt comes off the core is a weak point again, and then again you have a great risk of injury.
Nah, thats what I meant. See how the belt is wider at the back? the person who designed that didn't have much of an idea what they were doing because its supposed to place pressure against your abdominals.
A good belt is 4" wide all the way around (if you're a shorty though you might need 3"), a laminated suede and a good 10-13mm thick. They're usually really stiff and take a month or two to wear in, but when they do they're great. Belts I'd recommend:
- Inzer forever belt (sets you back about $150)
- Safe USA competition belt (about the same, order from titanaustralia)
- Outbak powerlifting belt (a more modest option - $65 with postage)