Which Gym Accessories Do I Need?

Introduction

Along slide our womens and mens gym wear collection, we offer a range of gym accessories. We understand how important looking good is, but we also want to help you perform at your best. A good selection of gym accessories can be crucial for boosting performance and ensuring your working out safely and protecting yourself from injury. We are here to guide you through what we believe are some of the essential gym accessories: weight lifting straps, lifting belts, gym gloves, and wrist wraps. Each of these items has unique benefits that can elevate your workout experience, and increase your performance. Let’s break them down one by one.

Lifting Straps: Enhance Your Grip Strength

What Are They? Lifting straps are fabric bands usually made out of a tough canvas material or leather that wrap around your wrists and the barbell, dumbbell, or any other bar. The lifting straps should be wrapped from back to front of the bar and pulled tight. Gym lifting straps are designed to aid in grip, particularly during heavy lifts. It’s known that your grip can give way before the major muscle group you are training to train exhausts, eg. back or biceps.

Lifting Strap Benefits:

• Improved Grip: Ideal for exercises that fall under the ‘pull’ exercises group like deadlifts, shrugs, and rows, lifting straps ensure your grip doesn’t fail before your training muscles do.
• Enhanced Lift Capacity: Straps allow you to lift heavier weights than your natural grip may allow, leading to improved growth and strength in your targeted muscle.
• Reduced Grip Fatigue: It can be extremely distracting while you train for your grip to be failing and having to constantly readjust. By supporting your grip, it allows you to focus fully on target muscle groups without the distraction of grip fatigue.

Lifting Belts: Support Your Core and Back

What Are They? Lifting belts are thick sturdy belts usually made of hard wearing leather or a nylon with solid insert and worn around the midsection. The largest part of the belt sits at the back to provide maximum stability for the core and spine. Weight lifting belts are tightened usually using a buckle or strong Velcro fastening to a comfortable but firm level during heavy lifting.

Gym Belt Benefits:

• Increased Intra-Abdominal Pressure: During heavy lifts like squats and deadlifts, the belt helps to increase intra-abdominal pressure, providing more support to your spine.
• Improved Body Biomechanics: They encourage proper form, reducing the tendency to lean too far forward during deadlifts or squats.
• Reduced Risk of Injury: By supporting the lower back, they lower the risk of hyperextension and other common lifting injuries.

Lifting Gloves: Protect Your Hands and Improve Grip

What Are They? Gym gloves are padded gloves designed to provide cushioning and grip support during weightlifting. Wearing gym gloves can prevent calluses forming on the palms, which a usually a result of grip rough bars. Weightlifting gloves are produced by many brands and are available in many styles with the most popular being the fingerless kind, as they can keep your hands cool during workouts. Gym gloves are usually made from leathers or hard wearing synthetic materials

Gym Glove Benefits:

• Protection Against Calluses and Blisters: They protect your hands against the formation of calluses and blisters. Calluses are the hard skin patches usually formed at the top of your palm from rough grip textures of barbells and dumbbells.
• Enhanced Grip: We all know that sweaty palms can lead to slipping, gym gloves can provide a secure grip for better performance in exercises like pull-ups, kettlebell swings, and bench presses. With a secure grip you are at less risk of injury to yourself and others.
• Wrist Support: Many gym gloves come with additional wrist support, aiding in the prevention of wrist strain or injury.

Wrist Wraps: Stabilize Your Wrist Joints

What Are They? Wrist wraps are strips of canvas or leather that wrap around the wrist to provide support during heavy lifting. The thick fabric provides support to the wrist joint to prevent over flexing of the joint and keeping the wrist stable. Wrist wraps are hugely beneficial during bench press where there is downward force on the wrist.

Wrist Wraps Benefits:

• Wrist Stability: Crucial for exercises like overhead presses, bench presses, and snatches, they prevent excessive wrist extension causing strain or other injury.
• Increased Lift Capacity: By stabilising the wrist joint, wrist wraps allow you to focus on lifting heavier without worrying about wrist strain.
• Versatility: They are useful in various workouts, from bodybuilding to CrossFit and powerlifting.

Conclusion

Incorporating these gym accessories into your workout regimen can significantly improve your performance, safety, and increase your lifting capacity. Lifting straps, belts, gloves, and wrist wraps each serve a unique purpose, catering to different aspects of your strength training journey. Remember, while bodybuilding accessories can enhance your workout, they should be used alongside proper technique and training regimes. You should also thoroughly research how to use each piece of equipment so you can utilise it to its full potential. So, gear up and get ready to take your workouts to the next level!