I hurt my lower back doing Deadlifts (more SI joint misallignment than back) and was told that using a Hex-Bar would be far more beneficial for deadlifts than an Olympic Bar, as I wouldnt have the trouble of the bar having to pass over my knees etc.
Has anyone any experience using them? How do they differ in terms of effects from an ordinary DL with an OL bar? Reccommended?
Hex Bar:-
I Like Them Better Then Regualar Deads Bc Its Work The Lower Body More, I Think. And Its Safer Also
The Trap Bar is a cool piece of training equipment because:
Effectiveness: I worked Trap Bar Deads extensively for a couple months. The bar worked great at lighter weights, but when I went to heavier weights I ended up raising my hips more and performing the exercise like a regular deadlift. This is probably just because I’m weak, though; a friend of mine who is stronger than me and managed to hold perfect form throughout his training cycle said he experienced considerable carryover to both his DL and his squat.
I’ve done them before, I felt they were a great exercise. Give em a try sometime.
Looking to cover all bases with a few compound movements. I had being doing: Squats, bench, DL, Row or Lat Pulldown, and occasional Push-Press and extra hamstring work (if not too fatigued from track etc.).
Just wondering is the Hex Bar DL a direct substiture for the oridinary DL, I had being doing.
Great exercise! I feel like I get the best pure expression of strength with this lift. Like you said, since you don’t have to go around the knee, the weight stays right in alignment all the way through and you can focus on simply exploding.
The only thing I don’t like about it is that it doesn’t give quite the range of motion at the bottom as deep squats or snatch grip deadlifts from a box provide. Although you can also do these on a low box as well to provide even more depth.
Has anyone noticed size differences between different hex bars?
I remember one I used to use 5 years back and thinking it was bigger than the smaller ones I see at the gym I go to now.
I much prefer this hex bar than the straight bar deadlift! With this, i didn’t have to worry about hurting my shins, can do it more smoothly and handle more weight. Go for it!
snatch grip from a box. I can barely do snatch grip deads from the floor. :eek: You must be flexible or built like a gorilla
I used to do it off the box as well. my glutes were hurting bad the next day…
Thanks all. Thinking more and more about ‘safety’ in the weights room, as my injury history gets worse and worse!
Just want to make sure that hamstrings get enough work from a few basic compounds (Squats, Push Press, Bench Press, BO Rows/ Lat Pulldown, and now Hex Bar Deadlifts). Thanks.
Tried them in a workout after squatting:
2 x 6 x ~250lbs
Definately hit legs harder than with regular OL bar deadlifts and the strain is taken off the back. Not sure of this is a good thing (reduced Erector Spinae development etc.) but sure helps ppl like me who have trouble maintaining perfect posture when bar has to travel over the knee.
Just said I’d share my thoughts.
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO CF.COM TEAM AND MEMBERS 
Hey all,
I’ve heard a lot of people hyping these as the perfect combo of squat and deadlift. All the benefit none of the problems. Would you agree with this? What are the drawbacks to them? Are the spinal erectors really not developed? because I find my trunk to be in a very flexed position (more than a squat, less than a conventional deadlift). I’m thinking about adding this into my routine over Xmas break, along with front squats, for a change. I feel like these two exercise give me the right balance between quad and hamstring emphasis (do you agree?) and they’re two exercises I don’t do often.
I have problems keeping it balance when i use it, it keeps tilting back and forth.
it’s not be all, end all. Vary your exercises. I’d get bored with same exercise after 2 weeks.
When you grip the bar, offset your hands a bit. That is, put your left hand a bit forward of the middle of the grip and your right a bit behind the middle. Don’t need much, but this helps with the balance quite a bit.
I’d say this is a bit of an overstatement, but if they work for you and let you move big weights, then go with it! due to limb length, attachment and leverage differences, any exercise has a different muscular balance dpending on who is performing it, so don’t stress about quad/hamstring emphasis…get strong and run fast!
I can’t believe that I forgot about this. Since my gym doesn’t have Hex bar (also known as Trap bar), I just use dumbbells. Same thing. I just did a pair of 100lbs DBs for 5 reps earlier today. It was pretty tough but my hands aren’t strong enough keep adding more weights. It isn’t same as regular deadlift where I can lift more overall.