Thumb Under Vs. Thumbless In The Low Bar Squat

Thumb Under Vs. Thumbless In The Low Bar Squat – CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO

I wrapped up filming a 2 part series on the low bar rack position and grip. Within that, a primary strategy I covered within that video was the option to go thumb under vs. thumbless with your grip in the low bar squat. Within the low bar rack position, every strategy we have available falls within this sliding scale of either improving our upper back self/tightness vs. improving our relative abilities for shoulder external rotation and extension. I pulled this clip from one of my recent Q&A videos, as I felt it highlighted this concept well within the strategy of grip choice in regards to the thumbs. Thumbless biases on the spectrum to give us improved abilities for the relative demands of shoulder extension and external rotation vs. thumb under helps through multiple facets to possibly help improve our upper back shelf. In the case with Nico, as I show in the video, he was struggling with his upper back position, so we biased to a thumb under grip to improve his upper back tightness and shelf, knowing he was not struggling in regards to the demands required for shoulder extension and external rotation. The net result since has been excellent, and in particular on rep work he has been able to maintain position and stability with his low bar rack position to a greater degree than when he used a thumbless grip. As always, it just depends lifter to lifter, and this will be fully covered in the upcoming video on Powerlifting Now next year.