Your opinion on fat grips for pulling exercises

[RadialDevial]

Anyone with experience on using the fat gripz for pulling movements, I’d like to invest in one, does it make the exercises submaximal because of the grip component? Specifically pullups, db rows and cable rows.

[17mahmoods]

If your aim is to work your grip then it's useful. If your aim is to work your back then you are just wasting your time & money.

[RadialDevial]

Im talking about how much the thicker grip plays a factor in making the exercise more difficult. For example I would want to build grip strength peripherally alongside my general pulling strength. Doing regular db rows with 60kg for work sets and needing to do only 50kg becaue of the fat grips seems okay, however if It drops down to 25kg then that makes no sense, because its like 30% of 1rm. So training grip separately would be more logical.

[17mahmoods]

The affect it has on the weight you can row is entirely dependent on how strong or weak your grip is.

I would honestly just do it seprately, makes it simpler and you don't have to sacrifice your back.

[michaelbrianinc]

I have Viking fat grips that I use for pull ups..

You will quickly find out within a few reps/sets how strong your grip really is lol. They definitely bring the challenge. You will not only feel the tension in your grip, but it engages more muscles in your forearms to work.

Being that I have some work to do with pull-ups, I don't use the grips exclusively. They are a pretty good tool to have though and you can use them for nearly everything from bicep curls to farmer carries. In pulling exercises, grip and forearm strength seems to be the key to improvement. If you have a weak grip or weak forearms, I can't imagine heavy weight being handled efficiently.

Mine were $20 on Amazon. Probably work just as well as the fat grip brand. The best way to describe the grip is like holding a 4" pipe in your hands. Also depends on your hand size. If you have small to medium hands then you can basically get your thumb just over your fingers. The widening of your grip is effective in making the exercise more challenging.

[mdonnelly80]

If you feel the need to increase grip strength, then yes. But, use the fat gripz as an accessory to your standard lifts or you'll sacrifice gains on the standard lift. Personally, I think tying in exercises specific to building grip strength like farmer's walks, plate pinches, Kroc rows (etc..) is a more effective way to go. You just get more bang for your buck out of these exercises, all around.

[michaelbrianinc]

If you feel the need to increase grip strength, then yes. But, use the fat gripz as an accessory to your standard lifts or you'll sacrifice gains on the standard lift. Personally, I think tying in exercises specific to building grip strength like farmer's walks, plate pinches, Kroc rows (etc..) is a more effective way to go. You just get more bang for your buck out of these exercises, all around.

^^ This... Like I said, I don't use the grips I bought exclusively. It has forced me to do less reps on my pull ups and being that I am relying on building strength for more reps, I don't use them. Heavy farmers walks would do some great grip work along with even dead hangs for time.

[ironwill2008]

Anyone with experience on using the fat gripz for pulling movements, I’d like to invest in one, does it make the exercises submaximal because of the grip component? Specifically pullups, db rows and cable rows.

Yes. You're putting the cart before the horse by sacrificing your ability to use maximal loads to work your back muscles in order to work your "grip."


Dedicated grip work should be performed after you've thoroughly worked your major muscle groups. Try several set of Static Holds in a power rack at the end of your regular back workout.