Strap Bar

[beamgymnast]

So are you a fan? I think strap bar is awesome, but what are your thoughts on it? Does it help you with your giants?

 

[Mack_the_Ripper]

It hurts my wrists a lot! There's a big gap between the "medium" and the "large" straps so if I wear the large straps, there's no point to being on strap bar. The mediums require a lot of huffing and shoving and twisting to get my hands in. However, I do like it. We've worked clear hips on it and I almost got to handstand, toe circles, at which I suck, and giants with a spot. I can really work on my big tap swings (eventually giants) which is great because my toes tend to hit the low bar. HOWEVER...it's so different from the regular bar that I don't like to do it often.

 

[I-Heart-Beam]

I loved it It feels a bit funny at first, but they're really useful I think!

 

[gymgymgymnast08]

I wasn't at a gym with a strap bar until I already had my giants but I play on the strap bar!

 

[CamSeawind]

Well I luved doing giants on the strap bar. Now I just do clearhip handstands! :ninja:

 

[beamgymnast]

Yeah, they do hurt my wrists!! It's worth it though

 

[Igym24-7]

I agree it can hurt your wrist alot! But i think in the end it helps alot and they are fun to play on.

 

[gymluvr33]

For me, they are fun to play on, but don't really help my giants all that much. They do hurt my wrists a lot though!

 

[gymfan4ever95]

I did my first giants on strap bar...but now that i have them on the regular bars, i like them on the regular bars better! It didn't used to hurt my wrists, but now it is at the point where my wrists bleed everytime we go to strap bar!

 

[BlairBob]

It sounds like y'all need to wear thicker wristbands when working strap bar.

Working too much strap bar can become a crutch. Some coaches like to use straps with gloves to work on the wrist shift.

It's also very useful because you can get more repetitions in besides decreasing fear or anxiety.

Very useful for other stuff like stalder/endo/toe-on/off work or connecting them to giants or learning chinese tap.

 

[GetaGrip]

Okay... Where do I start...
I'm warning you, this may sound pretty negative, but I spent hours a day at gym training giants on strap bar in level 5 with no spot, so I have my reasons.

#1- Strap bar, as I know personally, does not help at all in giants. You do not need to tap at all on strap bar to make it around, while on the real bar you need to severely tap to get a good giant. Also, shifting is a major issue. You do not need to shift on strap bar either, but you need to on the real bar. I didn't know this, so in my first attempt at giants I nearly collapsed onto the bar from lack of shift.

#2- You cannot train much on strap bar. Honestly, aside from training clear hips and giants, what else can you do than connect in or do many in a row? And when you do practice it, it takes multiple times to get it right, when you will still have to spend many more hours getting used to the normal bar when you get back onto it.

#3- Strap bar is dangerous. Many times, I would hit handstand, and then I would collapse onto my head, shins, chest, and hurt myself. And it is not just because on poor giants. Giants are my best bar skill now. Also, I've seen so many gymnasts on my team hit handstand, then instinctively try to twist off, and hurt their shoulder or fall sideways and seriously mess up their arm or shoulder in the process. And in the long term, I've bled from the use of strap bar. And that is when I was using wrist bands, the big fluffy kinds. Do they protect you? Yeah right.

These are my reasons, and honestly, after level 6, it is COMPLETELY unneccesary to use strap bar at all.

-GCG

 

[meng.luvs.gym]

OMG i hate spraps, they're either too samll or too big, but they have helped me with my giants and freehip to handstand, its also easier because you dont have to worry about flinging off. im scared to cast handstand beczuse i might instantly twist out of it and hiut my wrists.

 

[tumblebug921]

i think they're okay for a while, when you have a coach there to tell you if your not shifting your wrists, and actually reducing the fear of going around the bar. but it's like putting 8 inch mats by a low beam while learning a back hand spring. its good for learning to not be scared to jump backward, but once you land on the beam, you need to move the mats, and eventually get on a high beam.

also, they do hurt. if you don't get the straps just right, by your third or fourth giant, you feel like you can't hang on anymore. also, we have the kind with the tube around it, but i ripped on the strap bar the other day... it was really weird. haha

 

[taylor12097]

i LOVE strap bar. i am not training giants yet but they help me to get really good tap swings. people at my gym who also love strap bar and train giants on them turn out really good on uneven bars!!!

 

[gymdog]

Strap bar is a great training tool. I was in a rec program that didn't use strap bar and I couldn't tap swing or giant (this was the only event that was an issue. The other 3 events I was very well trained by very good coaches, although not competing...we didn't have the bars equipment). A couple months working with tools like strap bar and I had it. I got free hip handstands much stronger on strap bar. it's also good for training faster giants, and better extension. I still do it once in awhile for fun...but I don't really swing bars with grips much.

I will say I much prefer to use strap bar without a PVC pipe, and with gloves instead. The shift is still easier because of the radius of the bar, but it feels much more...authentic, to me. I always did this growing up, but have encountered a fair amount of gyms who don't.

 

[epicgym]

They do work very very well. But they hurt your wrist a little bit. But as long as you wear your wristies you'll be ok. And I really like strap bar.

 

[Optionals United]

i like doing giants on the regular bar better,because after i do giants on strap bar i dont shift my wrists on the regular bar!

 

[T.Gymnastics]

I like strap bar because i can work on my form during giants and freehips.

I wear two pairs of wristbands on straps so my wrists are a little sore, but do not bleed.

I think that it is a good resource but does not nor should it replace learning on regular bars, because there are important differences between them.

 

[Optionals United]

i agree completly with gymcatgirl! also it is not useful after lvl 6.like it is useful for learning tap swings and like when you are starting to learn giants in lvl 56 but it is nothing like the regular bar and teaches you some bad habits like not having to tap and not shifting your wrists. for something it helps like clear hips but i would rather learn those on the regular bar.but the are fun to play on i have to agree.

 

[lilgymnast7]

I think it is fun.. that is until the wrist pain kicks in! My wrists usually turn all red and get bruised but I am 100% sure I am using the right size. The only good thing is I don't get rips when using the strap bar and I always tend to get rips all the time on the normal bars! Its great to get the feel of tap swings. Its an awesome thing aside from the pain.