Hex Bar Deadlift
Olympic Hex Weight Bar
119.99 Deadlifts, bench press, squats. Those are the three compound exercises prescribed by pretty much anyone on the internet. You can do these three exercises with a traditional barbell, but if your goal is more along the lines of safety while learning a movement then a specialty bar is more likely up your alley.
The hex bar is a specialty designed bar to help beginners learn the hip hinge pattern of the deadlift before being tossed onto a standard olympic bar. It’s friendlier on the back as well, which can lead to less injuries while learning.
Being that the generalist exerciser is performing deadlifts to get bigger or develop more power anyway (as opposed to becoming a professional olympic lifter) buying a specialty bar is a great investment on everything outside of the additional space it’s going to take up (if you already have a standard olympic bar.) And being that we’re on the internet, I found someone else who agrees with my position.
The one positive to an olympic bar over a hex bar would be the ability to perform a single leg deadlift on the bar while using slide pads or something similar. With that being said though, you would probably be better off with a heavy kettlebell to perform said deadlifts with than an olympic bar anyways.
Titan Fitness Hex Bar
There are 2 variations of the Titan Fitness Hex Trap Bar, the one in the photos that I own can be loaded to 500lbs and comes with it’s own collars. They’re standard squeeze collars, but I was happy to get collars nonetheless (as I’d had to buy collars for my olympic bar.) The V2 Titan Hex Trap Bar has been tested at 800lbs but costs double.
Considering the standard for an advanced deadlifting 240lb man is 490lbs you’re more than likely covered with the 500lb V1 version (and you’ll have an extra $100+ in your pocket to spend on weight plates.)
I personally like having the hex bar to deadlift with before farmer’s walking across the room. You do your X reps, then at the top of the last rep go walk X steps and set it down. Rest, do your sets, walk across the room. This is highly beneficial for improving your grip strength (MMA people.)
My wife, who hates olympic style lifting, is a fan of the hex bar. I was surprised but also happy that she engaged with this tool.
Storage is indeed a problem, as you can see from the photo I don’t have any weight plates on the bottom of that rack as they collided with my hex bar, making it so nothing sat right. I have additional storage on my actual rack for the heavier plates so at the end of the day it wasn’t really a problem for me, but is something for you to consider before purchasing the bar. Where will I put this?
If you’ve got the room and want to get all the benefits of deadlifting in a slightly safer manner then I would highly suggest purchasing this bar. If you’re already an advanced lifter who likes the olympic bar then you more than likely aren’t even reading this.
Additional Exercises for the Hex Bar
The neutral grips of the hex bar can be a benefit for both bench press and overhead shoulder press exercises. You can also use the handles to perform both push ups and rows. I’ve even seen suggestions for using the hex bar as a weighted squat jump. The position of the weight has been moved from the upper back to around the waist, turning it into both a power (exploding off the ground) and grip (because you don’t want to drop the bar while jumping) exercise.
