The importance of specialty bars…
Why do we use specialty bars?
Specialty bars are used to provide enhancements to the adaptations provided by standard training and to work around or rehab injuries. They help to plug the holes in the boat by adding a slightly different stimulus to a movement pattern. While a squat is a squat, a press is a press, and a hinge is a hinge, we can enhance the patterns by altering the stimulus beyond just changing the weight.
Using a specialty bar to enhance a movement can be something as simple as using a trap bar to give a long limbed lifter better leverages on a deadlift or as complex as using an Earthquake bar with different weights and bands to rotate thru nervous system activation to hypertrophy to pure strength work. The differently shaped bars can help you to use your muscles in slightly different ways. This leads to new training stimulus which will result in new muscle and strength gains. They can also take pressure off of injured areas to reduce pain in certain movement patterns. Different bars have different applications depending on your goals. The following is a run down of some of the types of bars we currently have as well as their uses.
The Buffalo Bar:
This bar has a curve that runs thru it’s entire length from inside the weight sleeves. The bar has different advantages based on the particular lift it is being used for.
The Buffalo bar is good for:
Bench press
Squats
Good Mornings
Over head carries
For the bench press the 6in curve and angle of the bar will allow for a greater range of motion in the bottom of the press and take some of the stress off of the wrists and shoulders. It’s and ideal tool to help lifters who get stuck in the hole with a standard bar or who have shoulder pain while benching. The lower center of gravity will also help you to move more weigh, which is good for overloading the movement.
On squats the curve in the bar allows lifters with limited shoulder mobility to get into a solid and organized position for maximum stability in the lift. The Buffalo bar will also help all lifters to wedge themselves under the bar more tightly because the curve in the bar conforms to the natural shape of the human body. It is also a great choice for front squats because it will sit more comfortably in the front rack position and not compress the neck at all.. Another advantage is that this is the only specialty bar that allows you to squat with the exact same form as you would with a straight bar.
With Overhead carries the bar will oscillate at full extension due to the shape of the bar. This will help light up your nervous system and strengthen the shoulder stabilizers in addition to the core. Any lack of bracing or stability will be amplified with each step in the carry. This effect will help you brace harder and strengthen the core even more than a straight bar carry would while also strengthening your shoulder stabilizers in the overhead position.
12in Cambered bar:
This bar was designed to aid in squat development, and it definitely delivers for both the back squat and the front squat.
The cambered bar is good for:
Squats
Bench press
Overhead press
Good mornings
Zercher lunges
Weighted carries
This bar will be the go to for lifters with very limited shoulder mobility due to the ability to change their hand position to be closer to their midline. The drawback to that however is that it becomes harder to make a shelf for the bar with your upper back.
Due to the 12 inch drop putting the weight closer to your center of gravity the camber bar will provide instant feedback for any technique or strength deficiencies. The weaker your core and bracing ability and the more offline your bar path is the more the cambered bar will sway and pull you off your center. The advantage to all that instability is that it provides instant feedback on your technique. This is a great way to remind the lifter to stay tight and push out of the hole with steady control instead of depending on momentum to get the job done.
That sway is also what makes the cambered bar a good addition to strengthen your other lifts. With a bench press , overhead press, or weighted carry the more momentum the lifter uses the more the bar will sway and light up the stabilizers in addition to providing bar path and technique feedback.
Using a cambered bar for Zercher lunges is a great addition to any grapplers toolbox as it mimics the movement pattern used for a takedown. The bar positioned close to your midline and the sway will supercharge your takedown game by strengthening your core, prime movers, and stabilizers in a way that directly improves technique and performance on the mat.
The Neutral grip bar/swiss bar/football bar/multi-grip Bar
The multi-grip bar is useful for :
Bench press
Overhead press
Rows
Skull crushers
No matter what you call it, this bar is a good option for anyone with achy shoulders where pressing is involved. It moves the hands into a more natural position which takes some of the pressure off of the shoulder joint. The neutral hand position also biases the triceps a little more in your pressing movements. The different grip options allow for more variations in the angles you can hit your muscles from as well. Using the wider grips when benching will hit the pecs more, whereas using the narrower grips will really hammer the triceps.
The multi-grip bar is also a go to for rowing movements. The neutral grip and different grip widths allow you to hit the muscles in the back from a variety of angles and will also give you more lat and rhomboid activation versus more rear delts and traps with a standard bar row. It’s also a good option in the rack for bodyweight and inverted rows and it can be put on top of the rack to give you some grip variety to your pull ups.
For hammer curls and skull crushers it keeps the forearm in a neutral position which is easier on the elbows and wrists in both movements.
Trap bar/Hex bar
This is the go to bar for deadlifts and loaded carries.
For beginners the neutral grip, higher handles, and weight in line with the center of mass all aid in training the proper pull mechanics while minimizing the risks of injuries. The neutral grip emphasizes engagement in the lats and traps and helps to keeps them in position throughout the lift. This results in an overall safer lift that takes pressure off of the low back and reduces the risk of a bicep tear that a mixed grip standard deadlift has.
For carries the trap bar simplifies the whole operation. An athlete can just grip, lift and walk. The design of the bar keeps the weight level and inline with the athlete reducing the need to independently stabilize and balance 2 separate loads like using dumbbells, kettlebells, or farmers walk handles would require.
