When You Should Use Lifting Straps to Build More Muscle
Just about every gym best practice has an exception. If you've read enough of our fitness advice (or you hang around enough CrossFit boxes or with functional fitness devotees), you might have heard that you should rarely turn to tools like lifting straps for an extra edge while you're training. Those aids should instead be reserved for competitions (if they're allowed) or max-out attempts, when you'll use them to help you lift as much weight as possible and don't care about building functional strength.
At What Point Should You Use Lifting Straps?
The rationale behind only using straps for special occasions or not at all, is that straps might help you in the short term (and boost your ego) by helping you lift more weight than you would without them—but in the long term, you'd be better off not using the assistance so you can build more grip strength. That's a fine thought, especially if you're focused on training to be as strong as possible or for a specific goal that relates to your capacity outside the gym. If you're training to build muscle, though—and you're trying to hone in on a specific muscle group that is not your forearms—you'll be much better off if you strap up on certain exercises.
What Lifts Should You Use Straps For?
According to MH US fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S. while demonstrating the chest-supported row, an exercise which is being used to target some of the biggest pulling muscles in your back, the lats and rhomboids, that the key to this exercise is focusing on the mind-muscle connection.
In practice, that means controlling the weight through the full range of motion and emphasising the contraction at the top of each rep. The incline bench is already putting him in a position that is more advantageous for his back muscles compared to other variations of the exercise that use a bent-over stance, where the lower back can be a limiting factor—so adding straps to shore up his grip allows for even more focus on the lats and rhomboids.
'Newsflash: I'm not trying to train my grip strength. I'm trying to build muscle,' Samuel says. 'I'm trying to hit the large muscle groups. If I were really trying to train my forearms, I would do forearm exercises.'
This advice isn't just limited to dumbbell movements like rows. When you train heavy compound barbell movements like the Romanian deadlift with the intent to build up your big posterior muscles like your hamstrings and glutes, your grip might wind up being a limiting factor. You can and should strap up to focus on your larger goal of building muscle, not moving weight or building overall strength.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Lifting Straps?
The Pros
Lift heavier: Lifting straps allow you to lift heavier weights without grip fatigue or other limiting factor muscles hindering your performance.
Safety: Straps also reduce the risk of slipping, improving safety during training.
Fatigue: By reducing grip fatigue straps enable you to push your muscles closer to failure, therefore increasing the likelihood of making gains.
Hand protection: They protect the hands from calluses and blisters.
The Cons
Grip strength: The main drawback of lifting straps is that they can hinder grip strength development when overused.
Grip to back connection: Grip strength is a key indicator of back strength, reflecting neuromuscular coordination and our overall pulling power. Straps can bypass grip limitations, but can make us miss out on this grip to back connection, which can be a useful indicator of our limits. This is important to be aware of to ensure we don't lift beyond our capabilities and get injured.
Over-reliance: Overuse can also lead to a reliance on straps, preventing you from developing the raw grip strength needed for heavy lifts without the added assistance.
The Verdict
Balancing strap use with grip training is essential in a well-rounded programme which supports optimal strength gains. Use lifting straps strategically during your training to reap the rewards of heavier lifts and functionality. To balance both grip strength and strap use, use straps strategically and incorporate grip strengthening exercises like farmer’s carries and dead hangs. Regularly test lifts without straps to ensure grip strength progresses alongside back strength for optimal performance.
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