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Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt Review [Worth the Premium Price?]

Christian Pinedo

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Our Score

Price
While there are cheaper squat stands on the market, none come close to the quality that Rogue Fitness offers.

Effectiveness
Whether you’re doing a 1RM for your deadlifts, or just repping it out, the Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt will offer more than enough support to help you get through it. It’s a beast of a belt.

Value
Considering that this is made in the same cowboy method of tanning hides, and you’re getting something that is ultra-durable, stiff, and offer heavy-duty support, the belt is a great value for it’s price.

Summary:

If you’re wondering if the Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt is right for you, the answer is yes and no.

If you’re a beginner or an average gym-goer, the rogue Ohio lifting belt is probably overkill and I recommend the Dark Iron Fitness belt (review here). It’s what I used for years.

If, however, you’re an intermediate to advanced lifter, then you should definitely invest in the Rogue Ohio Lifting belt as I have. If you squat, overhead press, and deadlift with some damn heavy weights , then you should get this belt. Continue reading to see why.


Get The Best Price Here
Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt

I had a back injury a couple years back while doing an ab exercise.

My physical therapist told me I could never go on a run again and that I should never deadlift or squat again.

Yeah… that’s like telling me I was never going to be able to eat oreos again…

Obviously I wouldn’t listen. (I’m not dumb. I didn’t start squatting and deadlifting again until like 2 years later..)

But still, ever since then, I always wear a belt.

Not just for actual physical support but also mental support (to feel safer during heavy lifting).

I think that those of you with a previous back injury can relate.

So, as a beginner, I went with the Dark Iron Fitness Belt.

Picture of Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt vs Dark iron Fitness Belt
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click to expand

It was Amazon’s Best Selling weightlifting belt.

It had great reviews and so I bought it.

It’s what I used for years because it offered enough support for my weight lifting.

As I got stronger, however, I felt like I needed more support.

Pause squatting 315lbs for reps with a prior back injury can make you feel like that.

So, I was basically in the same position that YOU are right now.

Looking for the RIGHT belt.

You probably heard about the Rogue Belt.

That’s how I heard about it (word of mouth).

So, I looked into the Rogue Ohio Lifting belt and decided to invest in it after all of the positive buzz I heard about it.

Safe to say that I love it and am very happy I did.

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To help you in your buying decision for weight lifting belts, for this review, I want to compare two different belts and help you pick the best one based on your lifting experience.

First, let’s go over the Rogue Ohio Belt.

Why Rogue Fitness?

Rogue Fitness has been one of the top gym-equipment companies for a while now. They just produce quality products (i.e., power rack, benches, barbells, and anything you need for a home gym). I’ve spent thousands with their company and have not had a single complaint yet on the quality of the products.

I have their Rogue Ohio Power Bar (review here) and the SML-1 Squat Stand (review here)

The Ohio Lifting belt is no exception in terms of quality and performance.

The Rogue Fitness Ohio Weightlifting Belt

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Whether you call it a powerlifting belt or a weightlifting belt, the Ohio belt from Rogue Fitness:

  • Is made in the USA
  • Great for supporting your heavy squats, deadlifts, and more.
  • Looks and feels super nice (vegetable tanned and real stiff leather
  • Great for Strength Training

Let’s talk about some of the qualities that make it a great weight lifting belt.

How it Feels While Lifting

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The break-in time of the belt only took a week or two for me because I put it to good use right away.

I do a ton of squats and deadlifts and overhead presses, all with “heavy” weights.

If you know anything about those lifts, you know that intra-abdominal pressure is a must to lift weight.

Also, being able to push your core against the belt is very helpful when doing that.

With the 10mm thickness of the belt, you definitely feel it and it feels secure and safe.

As I said at the beginning of the article, I had a back injury in the past so as the weights got heavier, I wanted more support, just for peace of mind and to help with my lifts.

The belt has felt amazing while lifting. 

It didn’t allow any bending while squatting or deadlifting and felt tight and secure the whole way down and up.

Different from the Dark Iron Fitness belt, which we’ll be going over later.

Safe to say, if you are pause squatting 315lbs or more, for reps, this belt will give you that much-needed support.

However, after reading some other reviews of this same belt, the Ohio belt isn’t the best for movements like the clean due to slight “pinching” but for everything else, it’s great.

So if you’re just doing the standard big three lifts, this belt will get the job done.

Quality, Design, and Comfort

The Ohio lifting belt is made of vegetable tanned (brown tone) leather.

Of the many leather lifting belts out on the market, this one is, by far, the best looking belt, in my opinion.

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It’s also the softest leather because of how it was made.

This doesn’t mean it will bend easily, however.

It’s definitely firm, but it can crease due to the genuine leather.

It is brown, has minimal branding (only Rogue on the back and the buckle strap).

It is a single prong design and is 10mm thick while being 4” wide.

The spacing holes of the leather belt are close enough to get a secure fit regardless of how “big” you are. In terms of sizing, the Rogue website has a sizing guide so you can pick the right belt.

rogue lifting belt sizing guide
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For the majority of weightlifting belts, the cheaper ones are nowhere near this quality.

You will be able to tell right when you get your hands on one.

To really make this realization apparent, I wanted to compare it to Amazon’s best selling belt, the Dark Iron Fitness Belt.

Dark Iron Fitness Belt vs Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt

My previous belt, the Dark Iron Belt, doesn’t list its actual dimensions and thickness, so I took pictures:

Difference in Thickness

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It’s a lot less thick (you would have to get 2 belts to get the same thickness).

This explains why there is a difference in price.

However, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.

I’m not saying the Dark Iron belt is bad by any means.

In fact, I used that belt for the past couple of years of my fitness journey.

It has worked great.

That being said, when you compare the two, you can tell why stronger individuals invest more in their belts with something like the Rogue Ohio Belt.

Has a Lot More “Give” Than the Ohio Belt

The Dark Iron belt has a lot more give to it when you try to fold it than the Rogue belt.

If you try and fold the belt in half (see picture below), it pretty much does willingly while the Rogue belt won’t give. It may crease a little but it will not give.

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The Dark Iron belt has a 2 prong design and it will give you medium support and is great for beginner lifters and the average gym-goer.

However, I wouldn’t recommend it for the intermediate-to-advanced lifter.

For them, I’d recommend the Rogue Ohio belt.

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The Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt

5/5

Great for the intermediate-to-advanced lifter. Offers great support for the Big Three and is ultra-durable. Definitely worth the investment.


Get the Best Price Here
Rogue Fitness Belt

Video Review of the Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt

Overall Thoughts on the Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt

As I said in the beginning, if you’re a beginner or an average gym-goer who doesn’t do much strength training with heavy weights (or not yet), then this belt is probably overkill.

You’d be better off with something like the dark iron fitness belt.

However, if you’ve been training for more than 2-3 years and your deadlifting, squatting, and overhead-pressing weight is starting to “get up there,” then you should definitely invest in a better belt like the Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt.

Although it is a lot higher in price, it will last you a long time and will give you that much-needed support for those heavy lifts.

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The Rogue Ohio Lifting Belt

5/5

Great for the intermediate-to-advanced lifter. Offers great support for the Big Three and is ultra-durable. Definitely worth the investment.


Get the Best Price Here
Rogue Fitness Belt

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Christian Pinedo

Hey there, Christian here. I'm a former fat guy who just wants to help you succeed in your fitness journey. I share my own experiences and experiments right here on this site. Let me know how I can be of help by leaving a comment below. If you want to learn more about my 50 lb weight loss journey, click here.

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