What appears to be an apparently insignificant detail, in the economy of a whole show, in reality is often the key not only for the success of the lift itself, but also for the attainment of a new PR.
In the risers with barbell, grip is a crucial element.
I know it well powerlifter, who train her with special exercises to be able to handle deadlifts with impressive weights.
We compare the fanatics of the flat bench (for them there is also a third variant, the ghost grip: dangerous and "expert", we won't talk about it in this article).
Let's see then the two classic sockets: the regular grip and the hook grip.
Index
Regular sockets = weight without control
La regular grip simply involves grasping the barbell with fingers and palms of the hands. If our hands are big enough, the thumbs can overlap with the other fingers.
But let's put ourselves in the shoes of an athlete who has loaded a hundred kilos on the barbell, and is preparing to try one snatch. It is prepared with the classic wide grip. Here, it is known to all how it is impossible to control the balance in the moment of maximum acceleration of the power position the snatch, with a regular grip.
The barbell will inevitably escape from the hands of our athlete.
Yes, it also applies if you have large hands and long fingers. Performing a fluid and elegant lift will be equally impossible.
The culprit is the socket voltage. The "grip" of the muscles of the palm of the hand - and consequently the tension that radiates to the muscles of the arms - has three negative effects:
- interrupts the coordination between arms and body
- prevents that part of the energy coming from the push of the legs is transmitted effectively to the weight
- your concentration goes to the grip itself, and not to the movement: above all as you go rep increase
The solution: hook grip, and lift safely
In hook grip (hooked socket), the thumb comes to rest under to the other fingers. The grip then securely wraps around the barbell.
I reasons to choose one hook grip they are numerous and evident.
- no immediate fatigue is created in the hands (that's why many CrossFitter they use it)
- eliminates stiffness in movement due to the tension of the socket
- it allows to lift weights that otherwise, with the regular grip, would be inaccessible
Is the hook grip the perfect grip?
Well, almost. The hook grip has only one real flaw: it is difficult to learn. Also initially the thumb compression can be quite annoying.
However it is a temporary problem, which like others tends to reduce significantly with the increase in practice.
Here, in this case, we can say that all that glitters is really gold.