Germany VS Great Britain - Strongman Battle Of The Giants (eng sub)

[0ni]

I understand the reasoning behind it, but would hate to see a back injury caused because of it, that's all. Darkoz, I'm making a point of it because we both know how it feels to lift (say) a TV, a lounge chair or anything that is not really super heavy but damn hard and awkward to get your hands on properly...and before you know it, ..you've pulled a muscle in your back or twisted an ankle etc...



Fadi.

And I'd hate to see someone break their spine performing a snatch. But it happens. Lifting heavy shit is dangerous. I've never seen anyone have a back injury performing an axle clean and press

 

[Fadi]

Thats makes alot of sense Fadi. Alot of sense. What I find impossibly painful is the crushing of the nail/end of thumb. I can handle to about 90kg...then its just insane. I guess it is just a conditioning thing.

I might try it out every pulling session and see if I cant improve the tollerance over a longer period. Id much rather be pulling with both hands over the bar than a mixed grip, as I heavily favour one mixed variation over the other.

Tim.

Tim, from your stats, I understand that you're a powerlifter Sir, am I correct? If so, why would you need to use the hook grip ever, is my question? I thought only Olympic weightlifters (like I was) used such a grip. Moving on from this, here's my advice to you if you feel the need to use a hook grip: only use it during a competitive lift and nothing else. By competitive lift, I mean whatever is the equivalent to a full snatch and clean & jerk in the sport of powerlifting, ..I think that would only be the dead lift, correct? But then, don't powerlifters use the alternate hand grip style? Forgive me, I'm slightly confused here mate.

Okay, back to why use it only in a competitive lift. It's because here, would be the only time you can really get your adrenaline hormone pumping, which would serve to block your pain receptors. Try it,...but I'm still confused as to the reason for its use in any case in your sport Tim.



Fadi.

 

[Timeah]

For better balance in the body Fadi is what I was thinking. The other obvious solution is force myself into using the other mixed grip. At present I only use left hand under. Right hand under is awkward with anything heavy, ill end up doing a bicep tendon if I go too heavy with it as I have a nasty tendency to "curl" the bar with it (if im making sense).
The reason people use straps in bodybuilding would not only be for "saving hands" but for symmetry.

Tim.

 

[Fadi]

And I'd hate to see someone break their spine performing a snatch. But it happens. Lifting heavy shit is dangerous. I've never seen anyone have a back injury performing an axle clean and press

Not sure of the relevance here Oni! I'm talking about the creation of a weak link on purpose, by making a bar (not a fridge or a log, but a lifting bar) an awkward apparatus to grip when there's no need for it, that was my point. I wasn't referring to whether lifting big was dangerous or not. There's a risk in anything that we do, but as sane people,we try to minimise the risk and increase safety, the way they do in F1 grand prix for example. No one is saying don't race don't go fast,. But do take the necessary safety measures is what we're saying here. I had a snatch fall on my upper back near the neck which rendered me unconscious for few seconds,. But that was not due to someone purposefully making the bar harder to grip than it already is okay. I hope I made my point clearer.



Fadi.

 

[0ni]

Having competed in strongman and doing fat bar clean and presses on the regular most Tuesdays I think the increased risk is so small it's not worth worrying about

 

[Goosey]

I use straps often on deadlift sets, it saves your hands. Grip has never been a problem. As a bit of fun I deadlifted 200kg single handed hook grip.

That's a a bloody good effort

 

[0ni]

Yeah 200kg single arm deadlift is pretty killer
I've done 160 but above that the bar seems to tilt to one side unless I pull too slowly to make the rep

 

[Jeff]

Hey Fadi, I'll offer some explanation.

The use of thick bars has ties back into the history of strongman.

There are a few classic implements that have been lifted over the years and considered challenge items: the Inch dumbbell (2.38" handle, 172 lbs), the Millenium dumbbell (2 & 3/8" handle, 228 lbs), Apollon's wheels (1.93" handle, 366 lbs). Plus probably some other significant pieces that I can't think of.

I've read that historically part of the reason for the thicker handles was the quality of the metal available. It was more practical to build the implements with thicker handles that wouldn't bend like thinner bars made of the same material.

Other reasons I can think of would be:
* Differentiating strongman from weightlifting and gym lifting - useful when promoting the sport. Shows that this lift is different to what people to in the gym and is even harder.
* When introduced, it was a way of removing technique. Stops people who are good at the olympic lifts from dominating overhead lifting. This point could be argued, but the strongest person won't always lift the most weight from ground to overhead on a standard bar. A thick bar balances the field a little (though discriminates against those with smaller hands). With people practicing thick bar lifts now, you could also argue that it doesn't reduce the impact of technique, it just requires a different technique.
* Variety. Stops every contest from being the same.