Lifting is better with these attachments.
Almost all put themselves through discomfort in their workouts to improve muscle, fat loss, or performance. Many people also know they need to load moderately to heavy with big movements like the squat, hinge, push, pull, and carry to get there.
But like the invention of the squat rack to make squats easier rather than deadlifting or squatting a heavy barbell from the ground, some workout accessories make your workouts more effective.
Think of these three attachments like the whipped cream on top of a milkshake. The milkshake is fine without the cream, but the cream on top makes it yummier.
3 Effective Workout Attachments
It is no coincidence that three of the attachments involve grip.
Grip strength is a use-it-or-lose-it thing; it always pays to work on or improve it. Some have difficulty gripping and lifting with barbells, kettlebells, and chin-up bars or want to enhance their grip strength; this is where these three attachments shine. Let’s get into it.
Note: I get no kickbacks for writing about these products. I believe in them.
Gripedo Attachment
The Gripedo is shaped like a torpedo, hence the name. But it also looks like something else. But this is a family blog, so…..This barbell attachment is not complicated to use but is highly effective at improving grip strength. It is cylindrical in shape and measures 16″ long, with a 4″ globe on the top and a series of four fins on the bottom.
The shaft (keep your mind out of the gutter) measures roughly 2.25″, challenging exercises like wrist rolls. It allows you to use it over the barbell or a landmine attachment for unilateral rows and presses.
Its four fins at the bottom allow you to attach dumbbells and kettlebells to make carries more fun and challenging. The Gripedo is a versatile tool that can increase strength, size, and endurance in all things grip and forearms. Get like Popeye and get on these.
Angles 90 Attachment
The Angles 90 is a plastic set of grips coated in rubber designed to be attached via the straps to barbells, pull-up bars, cable attachments, dumbbells, and kettlebells. The Inventor, Simon Sparber, invented the idea by using an old skiing stick on a pull-up bar that attaches to any fixed bar, weighs around 400 grams, and can handle up to 800 pounds.
The ergonomically shaped grips closely follow the form and angles of your hand, but the real magic is that they allow for the natural movements of the hand and forearm. For example, a barbell forces you to use an overhand or underhand grip, but the Angles 90 allows your grip to rotate naturally, lessening the stress on your wrist, elbow, and shoulder joints.
Recently, I trained a client with arthritis in her hands. She had trouble gripping anything while performing rows. By tying these to a resistance band, she could row without pain. That told me all I needed to know about this fantastic tool.
Fat Gripz Attachment
Fat gripz are placed around barbells and dumbbells to increase the diameter of the gripping surface. Your hands, wrists, and forearms work harder to hold it to improve the intensity of the exercise and further challenge your grip strength.
Besides improving grip strength and giving you a wicked forearm pump, there is another excellent reason for incorporating these into your workouts. Gripping engages your rotator cuffs and the muscles surrounding your shoulders, which improves your stability and muscle tension. Fat gripz takes this to the next level.
When you increase grip strength demand, you enhance the strength of your rotator cuff and other muscles surrounding the shoulder joint, improving overall shoulder strength. However, there are benefits and drawbacks to using Fat Gripz. The benefit is that if you’re suffering from shoulder pain, decreasing the weight and increasing the shoulder stability demands may reduce discomfort, but the drawback is that you’ll use less weight.
Using Fat Gripz is a simple thing you can do to increase the intensity and novelty of your workouts.
Wrapping Up
I’m all about making workouts more effective, and these three attachments do that. The beauty of them is they are portable and can be used at home or your local gym. Plus, they train and improve the number one use or lose-it factor: grip strength. All three are handy additions (pun intended) to your workouts.
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