Re: deadlift grip and uneven lat development

[Guest guest]

1. Only use the alternating grip if you can't hold the bar with a double

overhand grip. This avoids this problem and also works your grip better.

2. If you have to use an alternating grip, switch the hands from set to

set. For example, for set 1 have your left hand over and right hand under,

set 2 have left hand under and right hand over, etc.

3. You can always try wrist straps if your overhand grip is failing and you

want to avoid the alternating grip.

On Thu, Jun 5, 2008 at 8:47 AM, Masterjohn <chrismasterjohn@...>

wrote:

> I always noticed back when I used to work out that my right lat was

> visibly more developed than my left lat. It was confusing, because I

> didn't notice any imabalance when I did exercises that I assumed were

> the main exercises influencing my lat development (especially pullups

> and lat pulldowns, to some extent rows).

>

> The trainer who showed me how to deadlift taught me to use an

> alternating grip, with my left palm down and my right palm up. I

> spent several years deadlifting like this.

>

> I've been out of the gym a couple years but joined one a month ago and

> have been using the alternating grip on the deadlift.

>

> I noticed two nights ago that my right lat is visibly more developed

> than my left, and then I remembered always noticing this before.

>

> Yesterday, I was reading a Men's Fitness article on the deadlift grip,

> and it said many people use an alternating grip to increase grip

> strength but recommended against it because a) it can cause your hips

> to rotate and is thus less safe; it puts undue tension on the

> palm-up bicep; and c) it can cause the traps to develop unevenly.

>

> Now I'm wondering if my alternating grip is what is causing my lats to

> develop unevenly. I'm going to switch to palms-down now and see what

> happens.

>

> Interestingly, if this *is* correct, it would seem to suggest that the

> best exercise for lat development is a palms-up deadlift!

>

> Any thoughts?

>

> Thanks,

> Chris

>

> ------------------------------------

>

>

[Guest guest]

--- Alan <alanmjones@...> wrote:

> 1. Only use the alternating grip if you can't hold

> the bar with a double

> overhand grip. This avoids this problem and also

> works your grip better.

Yeah, and if it helps, use straps. The deadlift is

one lift that should not be done for high reps...I

would not go over 5...ever. Normally I do 3 reps per

set, and do the occasional multiple heavy sets of 1.

One thing you could do to keep lats evenly developed

is to do one-arm dumbell snatches.

Also, I would be dubious of anything I read in Men's

Health, unless the authors are Alwyn Cosgrove or

Dos Remedios, who are quite good. It's

generally a magazine aimed at metrosexuals, not

hard-core lifters. Just my opinion

-

[Guest guest]

,

> Also, I would be dubious of anything I read in Men's

> Health, unless the authors are Alwyn Cosgrove or

> Dos Remedios, who are quite good. It's

> generally a magazine aimed at metrosexuals, not

> hard-core lifters. Just my opinion

This was in Men's Fitness, not Men's Health. The alternative, of

course, is doing my cardio warmup without reading anything, which is

pretty... boring.

Anyway, Men's Health IMO is way better than Men's Fitness. This

month, the two best articles are in the back, one very WAP-ish against

industrial agriculture and vegetarianism and about raising pastured

meat and going halves on a pig and so on, and then the last article on

intermittent fasting.

But this thing from Men's Fitness was just what gave me the idea that

my alternating grip might be what's responsible for my very observably

obvious uneven lat development, just a stimulus for a hypothesis to

explain the observed fact. So I'm not really relying on them too

heavily.

Do you guys thing it makes sense that the grip could be responsible

for the uneven lat development?

Chris

[Guest guest]

Just switch grips once in a while and when you do pull-downs or rows

think about using the underdeveloped side.

Uneven development is the norm, not the exception.

[Guest guest]

>> Do you guys thing it makes sense that the grip could be responsible

for the uneven lat development?<<

I doubt that, it's more likely that you have been providing most of the

horse-power from your right lat during pull-ups, pull-downs and to a

lesser extent, barbell rows. I think sometimes people write stuff for

magazines just because they have to write something to get paid and

anything that sort-of, kind-of makes sense passes muster.

Try doing some one arm dumbell rows with an 8RM weight and compare total

reps for each side. Pay attention to depth, height and hip involvement

so that you know it's a fair test.

I always use the same alternating grip and never switch it. I have

never noticed a problem with doing this. The total number of deadlifts

is tiny compared to the total number of every other lift I do that works

the same muscles.

I never use straps, not that they don't have a place, but for most

people once they start lifting heavy their grip will give out before

anything else does so it pays to develop it. I even like to use a

snatch-grip when I start a high-rep set of Romanians, then switch to an

alternating grip when my grip gives out so that my legs and back get

something out of the deal.

Aidan

[Guest guest]

>> I would expect my right

side, which is more developed, to do more. If it does, I don't think

this proves that I'm using my right side more in the other exercises.<<

True, it could also say something about your arms, but it is useful

data. If your right side is developed more you are almost certainly

favouring your right side. The one-arm dumbell rows (any dumbell or

kettlebell exercise really) are excellent for remedying this. Most

people find they can do more reps on one side at first, the other side

will catch up with repeated use of this exercise. Same goes for pressing.

>>My lower body workout

almost entirely consists of squats and deadlifts. I do 90 degree and

45 degree barbell rows and lat pulldown, which I think are the main

upper body exercises working my lats, but none of these have anywhere

near the weight or intensity of a deadlift. <<

They require more lat activation though. Have you ever had sore lats

caused by deadlifting? Traps, almost certainly, but not usually lats.

Whereas chins and rows are very likely to give you sore lats the next day.

If you want to mix your grip up, mix your grip up! I'm just saying it's

never caused me any problems. Try the snatch grips, too; good fun,

brutal on arms, shoulders and back.

Aidan