Is there a problem with lifting aids (gloves, pads, etc...)

[DravenCarey]

As I've been reading a lot of the posts on the website, I've noticed that a good deal of people shun the use of stuff like gloves and other accessories to make the lifting a little easier. Why is that? Is it just because a majority of those people who shun it come from a competitive lifting background where those accessories aren't allowed? Also, for someone who is only lifting for the purpose of bettering him/herself in a sport (where something like building the necessary grip strength for a big deadlift isn't necessarily needed) is there any negative side effects to using them. The one's I'm most concerned with are lifting gloves and the padding people may use when doing squats to make it a bit more comfortable. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[ssez222]

I dont know of any negative problems with using the pad for squatting but using gloves and straps for deadlifts, pull downs, rows etc. robs not only the development of your grip strength but it also prevents your forearms from growing evenly with the rest of your body. So unless you want to be doing hundreds of exercises to catch up your forearm development with the rest of your body, you are better off lifting without any aids.

 

[stevesmi]

unless you are going for pure strength when you workout and do not care about development and are doing insane amount of weight then you shouldn't use any of those.

i wore gloves for a couple years straight and my forearms and wrists did not grow like the rest of my arms. this ended up costing me as i started having wrist and forearm problems.. i dumped the gloves and a few months later my problems went away. the only thing you will see me go to the gym with is my headphones and water bottle.. thats all.

these young guys who take the entire sports section with them will learn the hard way as they get older. and then you have the older guys with those huge beer guts walking around the gym with a belt the whole time. their back is probably in such bad shape that without a belt they would be crippled trying to push heavy weight .. i was squatting 460 X 6 for 3 sets and some kid came up to me and was like "i have a belt in my car" and I told him straight up I don't use belts. he looked at me funny and walked away. I am not gonna give someone a lecture on why they shouldn't use belts at all, if you want to use a belt then by all means do it.. its your body. if you want to have a crutch at 22 years old and be dependent on using a belt for the rest of your life then go for it. its like the people who you see at walmart using wheelchairs to shop when they have 2 legs, they start doing it then they continue doing it.. and pretty soon they will become so lazy that they will be in a wheelchair all the time.

so in conclusion if you are in your teens and still growing then it would be extremely detrimental to use accesories. if you are 60 years old and you need to wrap your body up just to get out of bed then might as well use them.. hell you don't have upside at that age anyway

next time you are at the gym look at who has gloves and who doesn't. its usually the guys who don't workout often or newbs. the experienced guys have figured out that gloves are detrimental. also the guys who use belts are the guys who are overweight usually. and the guys who have straps are either trying to do way more weight than they should or have pounded away for years and their joints and cartilage look like swiss cheese (sadly i know a guy like this and he takes ibuprofen before his workouts which will cause even more damage)

 

[RickRock13]

I pretty much agree with these guys on the use of straps, gloves, and pads. If you can avoid using them, the better. I never use any pads or gloves, and the only time I use straps are sometimes for heavy rows, deadlifts, and shrugs. That isn't all the time either, as going without them will build your grip strength. Using them has it's place at times to help work the targeted muscle by being able to do more weight or reps that way.

I do use a belt on heavy deadlifts and squats, but I have ongoing back problems since my teen years that have had me in and out of chiropractors, so a belt is a necessity. On the lighter sets I do not use one though

 

[joeblow12345]

I personally feel you shouldnt use anything you dont need. Gloves will make your hands soft like a women. Using a belt on weights you dont need to, will weaken your lower back. Straps will limit grip and forearm development. Im assuming the pad your referring to is one of those foam bar pads? If the bar on your back is causing pain, that means your upper back, and traps are loose,and weak. You need to practice getting tight under the bar. And you also need to build those muscles so they are strong enough to support the bar. What sport are you training for?

 

[shirlene29]

Im a chick so my opinion probably doesnt apply but I dont use the foam pad for squats...it screws me up and I usually fling the thing in disdain if someone left it on the bar

I don't use straps because Im bad at wrapping them correctly..I use gloves because I wrench cars all the time and could probably pop your nuts with my grip strength from rachets and wrenches and my forearms are fine...callouses on a chick aren't hot

oh, and I think not using a belt on certain lifts is just pigheaded scene point tough guy profiling after a certain weight

 

[moya]

Im a chick so my opinion probably doesnt apply but I dont use the foam pad for squats...it screws me up and I usually fling the thing in disdain if someone left it on the bar

I don't use straps because Im bad at wrapping them correctly..I use gloves because I wrench cars all the time and could probably pop your nuts with my grip strength from rachets and wrenches and my forearms are fine...callouses on a chick aren't hot

oh, and I think not using a belt on certain lifts is just pigheaded scene point tough guy profiling after a certain weight

that was hot

 

[Headholio]

I wrench cars all the time and could probably pop your nuts with my grip strength

No thank you.

 

[Headholio]

I hardly ever use any aids for reasons mentioned above. But I think for really heavy squats and deads, a belt is a good idea. I mean if you are maxing or working up to a heavy low rep set, use the belt on that last set. Belts increase intra-abdominal pressure which plays a large role in reducing the compressive stress on the lumbar vertabrae.

I did a report on this in college. Studies of vertebral strength of cadaver bones show that they crack, and discs rupture, with forces far below the forces that would bee seen in vivo by powerlifters if it was not for intra-abdominal pressure (IAP).

IAP plays a big role in counteracting the force on the spine even if you don't wear a belt, just by holding your abs tight and in, but a belt increases IAP by reducing the cross sectional area of your abdominals and allows greater pneumatic pressure build up.

 

[shirlene29]

yeah...Ive read a lot of the same info headholio...and its why people hold their breath when doing big lifts..to increase IAP ..and it increases CSF which further stabilizes the spine
I was afraid to mention it ..haha