Visit any gym and you’ll probably find a few things there that bear the brand Harbinger. They’ve been in the fitness industry for years, and recently with the introduction of HumanX, targeting the functional fitness and weightlifting communities. Belts are one of the many things HumanX supplies and the CoreFlex belt is one of my favorite minimalistic weight belts. Belts throughout the years have been traditionally made with leather, since the material strong and pliable. However as of late, belts have transcended leather to the cheaper to produce, nylon. The Classic Oiled Leather Weightlifting belt is an ode to what our fathers and our fathers fathers were lifting in.
Everyone should have a good belt to lift with, it’s a good way to brace your core for those heavy lifts where you need a bit of feedback for your abs. The COLWB comes in only a natural saddle tan leather, sports the “Harbinger” logo on the back and some pretty sweet details like logo stamped rivets and a classic roller buckle clasp. The leather on my size medium belt was initially pretty stiff. My “fit”, without it being too loose, was initially pretty tight, but over time it’s broken in and fits very comfortably, 3 holes in. Since the COLWB uses an old school roller buckle, it’s not going to be as adjustable as the velcro on a nylon belt, but it definitely won’t pop off mid-lift either. I didn’t need a whole lot of support for my back, since I’m not the biggest athlete out there, so I opted for the 4″ version. I also dig that the belt is contoured in the front so that it doesn’t pinch my muffin top when I squat. The thickness of the belt is 5mm, which provides ample support for all unless you’re the most elite level weightlifter.
For pretty much all applications of weightlifting and powerlifting, I would recommend the COLWB. It’s sturdy enough for just about anything you can throw at it. For metcon’s, I would stick to using nylon belts mainly for the easier adjustments and that when you’re moving around that much, the edges could get uncomfortable digging into you. Wearing the COLWB shirtless is a little weird, but that’s to be expected since it’s a raw leather inside, although it should wear down and get softer over time. The look of the Classic Oiled Leather belt is awesome and you just feel cooler wearing something like this; sure you could probably get away with wearing a normal nylon belt, but you wouldn’t quite get the same style bonuses.
The Classic Oiled Leather Belt retails for $50 from HumanXGear.com, which isn’t much more than a nylon belt, and costs a whole lot less than other offerings of leather belts. If you’re looking to lift in what your daddy was lifting in, check out the COLWB from HumanX!
