18/05/2025
Hex bars (Trap Bars) for Deadlifting.
So I have a few ideas about this and I have no doubt that I'll get some replies, but that's OK.
Ok, firstly, anatomically the starting position in a Trap bar deadlift is very similar to the bottom of a squat, meaning that your joint angles and the position of your body is very similar to the bottom position of the squat, which you should have already trained that day anyway,
and if that movement pattern has been trained thoroughly from squatting earlier, that makes the trap bar kind of redundant,
Secondly, the handles on a trap bar are higher than than the centre of the plates that a traditional bar would be, which means that you're not training a few more inches of range of motion towards the ground with a trap bar which is a good range of motion to train for everybody.
Remember, a deadlift is a specific movement, and training that movement to safely lift weight off of the floor is a good thing for most people to know how to do efficiently. Unfortunately, by using the trap bar you're only degrading the quality of that movement.
Thirdly, I'll say that the handles on a trap bar are set at a very specific distance, which means that if your body is not perfectly sized and shaped for the grip width and position of a trap bar, then that bar is not designed for you. For example, if you're 18 years old, or you're a smaller older woman or you're a 200Kg strongman competitor, good luck! But in all probability, it won't be perfect for you, also you'll never be able to refine your starting position by even an inch one way or the other. None of that is possible.
In addition to this you're not going to be able to do deadlift variations, like maybe a sn**ch grip deadlift or a Sumo pull. Basically, It's not a very versatile piece of equipment, it's a one trick pony, and it's a really bad pony.
Finally I would say this, if you're training heavy, which I would argue that you should be, and you stand up at the top of the movement with the trap bar deadlift, the bar is not in contact with your body at all, it's just floating around, and I'm definitely not a fan of the very precarious and small rapid wiggles at the top of the movement.
For the older population especially, to do this every single time they come into the gym is just playing Russian roulette.
I don't want to get misquoted here, I'm not saying that a trap bar is guaranteed to screw your backup, I'm just stating that that wiggliness at the top of the movement pattern seems a little reckless.
Theoretically, the easiest way I can say this is..
A conventional bar is braced tightly against your body to keep it still and stable at the top, which is just a safer way of applying a very intense stress to your body with a heavy load, and it's also more predictable as a movement.
Hope this helps.
