Weight lifting grips are used by athletes, personal trainers, amateur bodybuilders and well as weekend warrior amateur bodybuilders.  Let’s review why you may want to incorporate this fitness accessory into your workout routine. What are weight lifting grips?  This term is often interchanged with workout glove,  workout or lifting strap or similar product that one uses when engaged in a strength training or weightlifting routine. While the terms are used interchangeably, the uses and advantages can range greatly.

A weight lifting strap is used to hold the weight in your hand.

They resemble a flat strap (usually made of neoprene material) where one end has an open loop.  By wrapping them around your wrist as well as the weight you’re lifting it helps the user to maintain control over the weight itself.  More control usually means more confidence and a better workout. The argument over weight lifting straps versus weight lifting grips has been going on as long as muscle heads have been pumping iron in the gym!   The supposed advantage of using a strap is that you can accomplish more reps, more weight, and ideally more muscle gains because the strap helps to alleviate some of the strength required by your hands to hold the weight. The argument against lifting straps is that they provide a false sense of control and tend to cause the user to compromise proper form instead focusing on counting reps.

There is little argument or debate over weight lifting grips however.

A lifting grip is used to simply provide a barrier between the metal weight and the skin on your hands.

Anyone who has ever lifted a weight has undoubtedly felt and experienced the discomfort that happen from repeated friction.  Unlike straps, lifting grips really don’t inhibit your grip strength since they are not assuming the load or force of the weight in any way. So what are weight lifting grips used for?  Anything and everything where you want to protect your hands from calluses or wear and tear that working out can cause.  This can be anything from Kettlebell workouts to Kipping Pull ups!   A good weight lifting grip will usually wick away sweat which allows for a more confident lift. What are the best lifting grips?  In a nutshell… they’re the ones you’re actually going to use!  No grip, strap or workout glove is going to do the work for you!  Some quick online investigation will help you to decide what are the best workout gloves or lifting grips on the market.  Do your homework, and you decide.

Tweet