As my deadlift has increased over the years, it’s led me to fine tuning all aspects of the lift, including how I grip the bar. You will have to choose what method to use for your grip, and one interesting question people have is whether you can use straps with mixed grip or not.
It does not make sense to use straps with a mixed grip. They are redundant when used together because they both perform exactly the same function: they allow you to grip the bar for heavy deadlifts without having your grip strength limiting you. There is no situation in which using straps and a mixed grip is advantageous. You should choose to either deadlift with straps or deadlift with a mixed grip, not both.
Although it can be tempting to use all of our options at once to increase grip strength on the deadlift, as we will see, it just does not make sense here. Let’s go over in detail exactly why using straps with a mixed grip doesn’t make sense.
Why a Mixed Grip and Straps Don’t Make Sense Together
Both straps and mixed grip are used in place of the double overhand grip on the deadlift. There is no other lift in which the mixed grip should be used, so I will be focusing on straps vs mixed grip for deadlifts only. The double overhand grip, while quite comfortable, limits you greatly due to the lack of grip strength in that position. To understand why it doesn’t make sense to use straps and a mixed grip together, we have to understand the function of each.
Straps
Lifting straps are straps which you loop around your wrist and then wrap around the bar in order to increase grip strength. Straps have the benefit of giving you an immediate boost to grip strength. You can literally add hundreds of pounds to your deadlift moving from a double overhand grip to straps.
Mixed Grip
A mixed grip is where you grip the bar with one hand in the pronated (palms facing you) position and one hand in the supinated (palms away from you) position. This allows an incredibly strong grip, which, similar to straps, can add hundreds of pounds to your deadlift.
Because these two methods for increasing grip strength perform the exact same function, they are redundant. Adding them together doesn’t really increase your grip strength much further and, quite honestly, just makes this harder. There is technique to using both straps and mixed grip. Your grip gets really messy when you try to combine both of them.
It can be quite difficult to get straps into place with a basic double overhand grip, let alone when you have a mixed grip. Focus on one or the other and you will ultimately have a stronger deadlift.
Straps vs Mixed Grip for Deadlifts
What are the benefits of using straps versus mixed grips for deadlifts? This is a controversial topic in weight lifting circles because there are good points on both sides. Let’s take a look at the summary of benefits and drawbacks for both straps and mixed grip:
| Straps | Mixed Grip |
|---|---|
| Less chance of injury due to double overhand grip | Higher chance of injury due to one hand supinated grip |
| Does not develop grip strength | Does not require any extra equipment |
| Easy to use as a crutch for a weak grip | Can cause muscular imbalances |
Straps vs Mixed Grip Injury Prevention
When it comes to injury prevention, straps definitely beat the mixed grip. When performing deadlifts with straps, your hands are in a stable, uniform double overhand position. While performing deadlifts with a mixed grip, you have one arm which is using a supinated grip. This grip opens that arm up to biceps tears. And this does happen to people who use a mixed grip.
If you’re going to use a mixed grip, you need to be careful to keep your arms completely locked straight out. If there is any bend in the elbow, especially on the arm with the supinated grip, you are risking a biceps injury.
Straps vs Mixed Grip for Grip Strength
As far as developing grip strength, the mixed grip is clearly superior. With a mixed grip, you are actually gripping the bar with no assistance from any external equipment. Even though a mixed grip is much stronger than a double overhand grip, you are still using your own grip strength to hold the weight.
With straps, you are now relying on external equipment to assist you in lifting the weight. Now, if you are only using straps on your heaviest sets, this is probably not a huge deal. You can always do extra grip work to compensate for strap usage.
Unfortunately, some people do end up relying on straps and this weakens their grip strength considerably over time. As long as you are aware of this potential pitfall, and use straps only on your heaviest sets, you should be okay.
Straps vs Mixed Grip Muscular Imbalances
Straps are not known to cause any muscular imbalances outside of potentially weakening your grip if you overuse them. Mixed grip deadlifts, on the other hand, are known to cause muscular imbalances. Think about it. When you pronate or supinate your hand, you are changing the dynamics of muscle involvement in the lift. For example, when you do barbell rows with a pronated grip, you are hitting your upper lats more. When you do them with a supinated grip, you are targeting your lower lats.
If you are constantly using a mixed grip for deadlifts, you will definitely cause a muscular imbalance, unless you switch up your grip. It’s up to personal preference as to how often you want to switch up your grip. What I mean by switching grip is going from right hand supinated and left hand pronated to left hand supinated and right hand pronated.
You can switch grips each set if you’d like. This is what I do. The only issue with this is losing a bit of consistency and momentum as you have to switch between each sets. I usually stop switching grips once I get to my heaviest sets and then use my more dominant grip.
Another method of switching grips is to switch on a weekly or monthly basis. You can do cycles with one grip and cycles with another grip, lasting anywhere from weeks to months. It’s really up to you.
Choosing Between Straps and a Mixed Grip
You have to weigh the pros and cons of using a mixed grip versus using straps and choose one or the other. Personally, I’ve used a mixed grip for years and haven’t had any problems. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s the best option or the best option for you. As we’ve seen, straps are a great option with plenty of benefits.
Just don’t use both at the same time!
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