Calisthenics vs Powerlifting: Squat and Deadlift PRs

Step outside your usual training style and you find out fast what carries over, and what doesn't. We usually train calisthenics, but this session with Dutch powerlifter Tom Tuning turned into a real test of squat and deadlift strength.

The goal was simple, load the bar, chase one-rep maxes, and see how bodyweight athletes handle classic powerlifting. The biggest lesson was even simpler, because raw strength matters, but technique decides what happens when the weight gets heavy.

Stepping outside our comfort zone

When we met up with Tom, the idea was to mix our calisthenics background with his powerlifting experience. Tom had done two powerlifting competitions and had hit a 200 kg squat and a 260 kg deadlift. His bench was around 120 kg, and at that point he was focusing a bit more on bodybuilding.

We also had a gym ranking board with squat, deadlift, bench press, and shoulder press written on it, so the workout had a clear target from the start. Michael and Yannick wanted to beat their own numbers, and Tom had a shot at the gym records.

"We're always still learning."

That mindset shaped the whole session.

Squat technique and the 110 kg goal

Squats came first, and Tom kept the coaching simple. Before a heavy rep, take a deep breath into your belly and brace your core. That tightness matters more as the bar gets heavier, because once the weight goes up, any weak position shows up right away.

Three cues stood out:

• Take a big breath before you unrack or descend.
• Brace your whole core before the rep starts.
• Stay tight through the lift instead of relaxing at the bottom.

Michael came in with 107 kg for 3 reps as his previous best, so 110 kg for a single was the goal. He ended up getting 110 kg for 2 reps, which was a strong jump and a new PR. Another squat PR in the session was 102.5 kg, up from 100 kg for 2 reps. Meanwhile, Tom went for 140 kg, which put him right at the gym record.

That was the first clear difference between calisthenics and powerlifting. Calisthenics builds plenty of control and core strength, but low-rep barbell work asks for a different kind of confidence once the load gets heavy.

Deadlift form starts before the bar moves

Deadlifts came next, and this was the lift where Tom broke down more of his setup. He starts the same way as the squat, with a big breath into the belly, then a hard brace through the core and lats. After that, he brings his hips a little up so he can feel his hamstrings and glutes, then drops them slightly and pulls the bar.

The big takeaway was that the deadlift starts before the bar leaves the floor. If the torso is loose, the pull gets messy. If everything is braced, the movement is cleaner and stronger.

We worked up through the sets, and then Tom loaded every plate left in the gym. The total came to 185 kg. The posted gym record was 185 kg for 1 rep, so he needed at least 2 reps to beat it. By that point, the lower-body session had already gone on for a while, so it made sense to stop after squats and deadlifts and save bench press and shoulder press for an upper-body day.

What carried over from calisthenics

The session also showed how much calisthenics carries into heavy lifting. Core strength helped a lot, especially once the bar got heavy and bracing mattered more. At the same time, powerlifting exposed weak points that don't show up the same way in bodyweight training.

Training with someone from another discipline helped too. Tom brought barbell experience, while we could see how calisthenics strength and body control transferred back into the lifts. The gym ranking board made the challenge even clearer, because once a number is written down, you know exactly what you're chasing.

What this workout showed

A session like this doesn't prove that one style of training beats another. It shows that strength carries over, but only when technique holds up under load.

The best part was stepping outside our comfort zone and learning from it. Calisthenics gave us a base, powerlifting sharpened the details, and the bracing cues alone were worth bringing into future training.