Angles 90 Grips: Prevent Shoulder and Low Back Injuries
Written by: Dr. Jose Guevara
The Angles 90 Grips are handles that can be wrapped around many pieces of gym equipment.
Why is this important? Watch the video below…
Instead of your body having to adapt to the movements created by weight lifting machines which can cause joint injuries…
Now machines become adaptable to your natural pain-free movements. With so many low back and shoulder injuries happening at the gym, the small price you pay for these could save you thousands of dollars in medical bills.
Here’s the problem…
Most types of deadlifts, rows, pull-ups, and other fundamental pull movements aren’t performed in the best positions and angles for your body. This can potentially result in shoulder, wrist, elbow, and low back injuries.
Just take a look at your anatomy…
Let your arms hang down and look at your palms. How are they rotated? Are your palms facing your body? Yup…this is the neutral position and it’s the least damaging to your upper extremity joints. Most types of deadlifts, rows, pull-ups, and other fundamental pull movements aren’t performed in this neutral position. Over time with constant repetition this can lead to injuries.
Shoulder Impingement Injuries
Because the shoulder has so much range of motion, it is one of the most common joints to injure. The movement that involves the most risk for injuring the shoulder is a combination of internal rotation and elevation. This is the same position you see with a pull up or shoulder press exercise. A better option would be a chin up with your arm externally rotated. The problem with a chin up, however, is that it places too much stress on the wrists and inside of the elbow.
So the best solution is a neutral grip pull up. This takes off stress from the shoulders, wrists, and elbows. These problems come when you workout on a straight bar because of its fixed position. This is where the Angles 90 grips come in.
Angles 90 To The Rescue
The Angles90 can be attached to gym equipment and allow for free range of motion.
So you can attach it to a pull up bar to do neutral grip pull ups and maintain a natural pain free movement throughout the exercise.
Low Back Injuries
When it comes to the low back, many people suffer herniated discs when doing deadlifts. The deadlift is a very technical exercise which requires perfect form and hip mobility. A lack of hip mobility is disastrous for your low back when attempting this exercise. When you lack hip mobility your body has to compensate by using the low back. This is where people get herniated discs. With the Angles 90 grippers, you can raise the starting point of the deadlift to make up for the lack of hip mobility.
This decreases the risk of ending up with a low back injury because most of the weight is being lifted by your legs instead of the low back.
Benefits of Angles90 Grips
Muscle Fiber Activation
By changing your grip positions with Angles90, you’re biomechanically doing a new exercise which will activate new muscle fibers. For example, adding a rotated grip to a pull up gives your lats a better squeeze/ contraction at the end.
Increased range of motion
Static bars and grips restrain your range of motion because you’re in a fixed position.
With Angles90, you expand the range of motion of any pull movement. In lat pull-downs and rows, you extend the length of the pull. With pull-ups, your lats experience a more intense stretch and you have more room to bring your elbows back for a more intense contraction.
Mind-muscle connection
Because of the more natural pull motions, you can feel your back and each movement more accurately. At the same time, you shift your focus from your arms to your back muscles (where it should be) as you develop a better mind muscle connection.
Improve stabilization
Because the Angles90 grips are free to move while you exercise, your stabilizer muscles are constantly working to keep your exercise motions steady and smooth.
Features
What I Liked About the Angles 90
The number 1 thing I liked about the Angles 90 grips is that they move allow you to move your arms freely in a natural range of motion. This causes less pain than being in a fixed position. That way I can focus on lifting, not hurting. Don’t get me wrong…
I like the soreness from working out, but I don’t enjoy having joint pain. The Angles 90 is also very small so it doesn’t take up a lot of space when I take it to the gym. And you also have the option to use 3 different grip styles for different exercises.
Overall it’s a very practical piece of equipment with a lot of benefit to my workout and body.
What I Didn’t Like
The only thing I didn’t like is that I have to carry it to the gym but that’s not really a big deal. I’m just used to going in, getting my workout in, and not having to carry anything. Since the grips are not bulky, I don’t mind it.
About the author
Hi, my name's Dr. Guevara and I'm passionate about health and well-being, and enjoy helping people attain and maintain their optimal physical condition. I love to keep up with the ever-changing world of medicine, using my knowledge and skills to help people in pain.
