Powerlifters and endurance work have an uneasy relationship. Too many lifters do none and wonder why they gas out, while others do so much they blunt their strength. The truth sits in the middle. You need enough endurance to support your training and your health, and no more than that.
Why a Strength Athlete Needs Any Endurance
Endurance, in the form of a solid aerobic base, drives your recovery between sets and sessions. It keeps your heart healthy under the load of carrying real muscle. And it gives you the work capacity to handle a full training program without falling apart. A lifter with no endurance base recovers slowly and runs out of gas in long sessions and at meets.
How Much Is Enough
For most powerlifters, two or three easy sessions a week of twenty to thirty minutes covers it. That is enough to build and maintain a base without adding fatigue that bleeds into your lifting. You are not training for a marathon. You are building just enough engine to recover well and train hard. Walking, easy cycling, or the sled all do the job.
When to Pull It Back
Endurance work is a support tool, so it gives way when strength is the priority. In the final weeks before a meet, cut your conditioning down so all your recovery goes toward your peak. If your lifts start sliding, look at whether your conditioning volume has crept up too high. The endurance work should make you a better lifter, not turn you into a mediocre runner with a fading squat.
Do enough endurance to recover well and stay healthy, and no more. Keep it easy, keep it modest, and always remember it is there to serve your strength.