What is the story with all of this gear, how did we get here, what do you actually need, and who actually needs it?

Homo Sapiens – An Animal Built on Cheating

I feel like I could make a very good argument that cheating is the one thing that humans are the best at.  For most of history, if you wanted to go somewhere, you walked, or ran.  Well, not anymore.  First we had bikes and now we drive.  And, if you want to go a really long distance, you fly, in a plane, at 400+ miles an hour - stupid human cheaters.  We are the only land animals in the animal kingdom that can fly across the country in a day.  Some may call this innovation but it is really just cheating.  If other animals could consciously understand how much we cheat they would be so angry and jealous.  “Hey birds, sweet migration pattern and flying V you created through your mastery of aerodynamics, we are just gonna fire this sweet jet up and travel 100 times the distance and apply zero human energy to it.”  If I was a bird I would be so angry.

We do this in every walk of life.  Humans are constantly trying to find easier and more comfortable ways to do daily tasks.  Want to sit down?  Here is your couch with cushions.  The ground makes your feet hurt?  I am sorry, check out these padded shoes for $150 dollars.  Is picking up rocks too hard?  Let us invent this perfectly weighted barbell that can be evenly loaded from each side, with grip molded to the bar, and grease bearings for spin, so we can pick up heavy things easier.  Do you want to squat more without having the core to do it?  Here is a belt that will give you the feeling of a 12 pack.  Do you want better ankle flexion without stretching?  Check out my new oly shoes bro.  Oh your wrist hurts because you type all day, never sit properly, and don’t stretch your wrists?  Let me get you this colorful piece of fabric that you can tighten to support your wrists that are unable to support themselves.

As I preach from my 30 inch box jump, let me explain.  I love cheating.  If you have ever squatted with me, I wear oly shoes (a have a crappy right ankle and it helps), I like to squat a lot, and heavy, so I wear a belt (it makes me stronger), and because I feel like a cheater when I wear it, I usually wear it under my shirt (when I wear one) so people do not even notice it.  I am even cheating your visual interpretation of me cheating – what a loser, right? But, where do you draw the line on when should you start cheating, what is the proper gear, what does it do, and what is a total waste?  I want to go through some of the more popular gear I see in the gym, give a little run down on why it was invented, how it is useful, some of the pitfalls, and let you decide if it is something you want to spend the money on.

Weightlifting Belts

Do I use them? Yes

Do I love them? Yes

What are they good for? The belt is a fantastic tool for creating a really strong, or stronger, core.  When you squat, the goal of the core is to maintain an upright torso.  If you are pushing out on your abs as hard as you can, your torso will be tighter, making it easier to maintain the correct back angle, and therefore you will be stronger driving out of the hole.

Should you use them? Maybe, for most I would say no.  If your goal is to be strong as f*ck, then you should totally buy one.  For most there is very little need.  You should squat weight through a full range of motion and gradually increase weight as your body adapts to the load.  The weight should not be the focus.  I do sometimes use the belt as a coaching tool for people to understand how to engage their core by pushing out on the belt #coachingcheating.

Is it really cheating? I squat over 400 with a belt.  I lack confidence over 355 without one.  Sounds like cheating to me.  But, I do it because it feels safer to me.  This is also the lie I tell myself for not having a better squat belly.

Recommendation to help you cheat more? Get the Velcro, black one.  You just don’t really need much more

Olympic Lifting Shoes

Do I use them?  I would sleep in them if The First Lady of Fitness would let me

Do I love them?  Seriously, I would sleep in them.

What are the good for? They are an incredible tool for people with poor ankle flexion.  They are also a great tool for keeping an upright torso in any squatting motion. 

Should you use them? If you love Olympic lifting the answer is a 100% yes.  If you casually do some lifting then maybe you do not need them.  There a ton of benefits beyond just the torso positioning and ankle flexion support.  They come with a really hard sole so you can transfer energy through the ground.  This makes you fractionally stronger and gives you a much better base of support than regular fitness shoes.  But, and there is always an outlier, Fronning snatches 300# in nanos.  Sometimes being good is better than cheating.

Is it really cheating? Well, kind of, but as always it depends on your goal.  For most I want to say no.  You should learn to jump correctly, understand the transfer of energy in the Olympic lifts, have the flexibility in your ankles, thoracic spine, shoulders and properly maintain an upright torso before buying a pair.  In fact, if you do not have those things, but own oly shoes, you are cheating.  If you can do all of that AND you get some shoes, you are probably moving pretty good weight and could stand to benefit from them.

My recommendation to help you cheat more? The new Reeboks are actually super legit.  The old ones were better for climbing rope than lifting but the new ones they got right.  The red, traffic cone Adidas ones and the Romeloes are also top notch.

Wrist Wraps

Do I use them? Nope, never have

Do I love them?  Despise them

What are they good for? They are really good at putting a band aid on poor wrist, elbow, and shoulder mobility.  Wrist wraps are also really good at adding support for people that lack wrist strength (if you take the band aid off they will get stronger – just saying)

Should you use them? Eh, sure.  I mean, some people use them the same way I use a belt, for a sense of security.  I think that this is one of those things that can be very easily avoided by doing 5 minutes of stretching your forearms.

A good test to see if you lack wrist flexion is to kick up to a handstand on the wall.  If your hands point out and not towards the wall, you have some work to do.  This is very much a common issue and can be solved by doing just a couple minutes a day of stretching.

Should you use them? Sure, but do not get caught up in relying on them.  I wish I didn’t rely on my oly shoes and belt so much and you should really work towards getting rid of these. 

Is it really cheating? I would not say this is cheating because it really does not enhance your performance.  It actually does more harm for you by putting your wrists in a cast.  It may not be cheating to make you better but it is cheating you out of getting better.

My recommendation to help you cheat more? I have no idea but the Strength Wraps people are really nice people and they make cool designs.

Tape

Do I use it?  All of it

Do I love it? It is more like a mental trigger that I need in order to do fitness at this point. After 10 years of taping my thumbs, I just don’t even know how to work out without it anymore. 

What is it good for? It really protects your thumbs when using the hook grip.  If you have ever gotten a blister on the inside of your thumb, you know the feeling and it sucks.  It can also be used to protect your palms in competition.  Sometimes, when the goal is to win, you should use every measure possible to ensure you do not tear – tape helps.  If you are in training, or just working out, try to do less kipping and more controlled pull ups.  I am actually very proud of how few torn hands we have in here.  PS – kipping everything is one of the highest forms of cheating.  Just ask everyone on the internet who has written, “my egotistical, non-biased comparison of kipping and strict pull ups regurgitated from 2009 information.”  We know it is cheating, but it makes us more athletic.

Should you use it?  Totally.  It is more of a protection thing than performance enhancing.  You should also know that you can train your hands to be stronger, because you know, skin is a living thing, and it can be trained to be stronger. 

Is it really cheating?  Taping your thumbs is absolutely not cheating.  If you tape your palms for pull ups, absolutely, and it should only be done on very rare occasions.

My recommendation to help you cheat more?  Goat tape.  It is so awesome.  Probably one of the best products I have ever come across in all my years of taping my thumbs.

Knee Sleeves

Do I use them? Yes, but slowly migrating away from them.

Do I love them? It is like walking around in a snuggie all day.  They make your life awesome and your knees will love you.

What is it good for?  These things keep your knees really warm.  Let’s be honest, they are incredible.  Please understand there is absolutely no rehabbing quality to knee sleeves.  Yes, they keep your knees nice and toasty, but they will not repair tight tendons, nor will they help repair more serious injuries.  They are only there to keep your knees warm in between sets and they do a phenomenal job at it.

Should you use them?  Such a tough one.  I actually feel like everyone should use them.  You probably don’t need the highest level of knee sleeve but they are just so damn nice.  The real answer is that you do not need them.  But, we do a lot of moving around and it is nice to keep those knee joints moving like butter.  I am hesitantly saying yes to everyone having them.  It pains me, but they really are awesome.

Is it really cheating?  Not really.  They do not make you stronger, they will not help you recover, and they will not add weight to your barbell.  All they will do is make your knees feel like they are snuggled up their favorite cozy blanket.

My recommendation to help you cheat more? Rehband.  And wash them.  Nobody cares how warm and cozy your knees are when you smell like a trash can.

Straps

Do I use them? HAHA, Yes.  In writing this, I have discovered I am very good at cheating.

Do I love them? Yup, you probably could have guessed it.

What is it good for?  Picking up heavy stuff without making your thumbs feel like they are going to pop off.  They are also really good at making your grip strength much weaker.  The straps completely eliminate your pathetic grip strength so you can lift heavier stuff without needing strong forearms and hands.  It is a magnificent tool.

Should you use them?  Na.  I do it because I am a soft child and do not want to hurt my thumbs.  Be stronger than me.  I have lifted barbells until my entire thumbs were black and blue.  I have earned the right to not worry about my grip strength.  If you ever wake up to bruised thumbs from doing too many cleans, now you get to use them.  Oh, and they are really great for all isolation back exercises.  If that is what you use them for, by all means, proceed.

Is it really cheating?  100% No doubt about it.  Cheating in the highest degree.

My recommendation to help you cheat more?  You gotta find the one that fits you.  I like the softer ones that strap to the wrist.  Some people like the more circular one.  Develop some real hands before attempting these though.  You probably need the grip strength to help in multiple areas.

To summarize, do things without cheating first.  When you hit a certain level, add some gear to aim at specific goals.  If you want general strength and healthy joints, do not buy any of it, do your mobility, and move properly.  If you want to push the limits of what you are capable of, you may want to spend a little time on the internets finding out the best way to cheat.