High Bar Straps

[powerplant42]

Thanks! I'll post pics of what I THINK is what you're saying to do soon.

[KirkB]

First, make sure the strap bar is closely supervised by a qualified coach. Second, do NOT wear dowel grips, especially men's dowel grips with the strap bar as the straps could lock while the athlete's body is circling the bar and cause severe damage to hands, wrists, and arms. I have seen the results and it is gruesome!

... if you dont have the proper supervision to have someone instruct you on how to strap into a high bar, i would think itd be a good idea to pass on the skills where a strap bar is necessary. learning to do giants or things of that nature on your own is dangerous. be safe and good luck!

This advice should not be taken lightly!!!

Worst case scenario ...

You're inexperienced with using the strap bar, but you're anxious to try giants. No one is around to advise you or to help you.

You didn't strap them on properly, or there's some mechanical issue with the way they slip around your home-made highbar in your back yard. Maybe the PVC got jammed somehow.

You try a giant, but at the top (handstand), you continue to rotate around the bar, but your hands and wrists don't.

Now your wrists are SEVERELY injured - A SEASON-ENDING INJURY - but the worst isn't over yet.

You're left hanging under the bar in severe pain. You can't unstrap the straps. You yell for help, but no one is around ...

Call this scare-mongering if you like, but better safe than sorry. I cringe just thinking about this.

Use the buddy system. Start out slow, and be VERY, VERY CAREFUL that everything is working correctly!

And DO NOT USE THE STRAPS AS A CRUTCH TO LEARN GIANTS. Learn them with your wrists free, so you can simply fall off if you have a problem. Only do giants with the straps after you're confident that (a) you can do them freestyle, and (b) the equipment (PVC, highbar) and straps are all in perfect working order.

Kirk

[rainbowgirl28]

Kirk, have you ever swung on a strap bar without straps? No offense, but that is dangerous advice.

PowerPlant, you should definitely make sure you at least have someone there. The most important thing is that you keep your arms straight, the most likely chance of injury is if you let your elbows bend.

But for Pete's sake, if you're going to swing without straps, don't use the PVC pipe, just swing on the bar. It's a lot harder to hold onto the PVC without straps and the odds of peeling off at the wrong moment are too high to try it.

[powerplant42]

I definitely had no plans on doing anything semi-dangerous without someone there... Broken wrists + asfixiation = BAD!

I am thinking that straps on the PVC is much better than without, not only for RG's reasons, but also for added safety (what happens if the tube breaks off?).

Keep the advice coming... It is GREATLY appreciated!

[smokinvaulter1]

Go to your local gymnastics school or instucto r they will show you how and how to make it safe.

[KirkB]

Kirk, have you ever swung on a strap bar without straps? No offense, but that is dangerous advice.

Yikes! No, no! I didn't mean that.

I meant don't use the straps OR the PVC unless the equip is all in perfect working order and you have a good spotter (or - at your own peril - someone that can dial 911 while you're hanging dazed and injured).

PP has only a highbar right now - no PVC yet. That's what I meant.

You're right, once he tapes on the PVC, then he can't easily remove it to try a giant or two.

if you're going to swing without straps, don't use the PVC pipe, just swing on the bar.

Thanks for clarifying.

Kirk

[rainbowgirl28]

Oh you can just move the PVC to the side, it's not that hard to keep it out of the way to for doing other stuff on the bar.

[KirkB]

But PP's bar is less than 4' wide (how wide exactly, PP?), so if the PVC is a couple feet wide, then he wouldn't have enough room left to try a giant (or anything else). And certainly not safely in the middle of the uprights. Or is the PVC in 2 short parts - one under each hand, maybe only 5" wide each?

PP, the more I think about this, the more I think the combination of PVC + straps are a BAD idea for your specific setup.

You DON'T want to do the hinge/whip drill with PVC!

And if you're going to try them from a running start, the PVC should DEFINITELY NOT be used ... unless you're training for the landing that occurs after a pole break!

Why not just do all the drills without the fancy straps? Just use ordinary ones.

PP started this thread because he PM'd me, asking me about the straps and the PVC, and I told him that I never used a "strap bar", and that he should get advice online here about that. For the record, my first reply to him was "What the hell are you trying to do?".

I think you're all giving him good advice, but until now, he may not have realized that once he turns his ordinary highbar into a strap bar, he can't easily change it back (unless I'm mistaken about the width of the PVC - how wide should it be, and is it in one piece or two?).

Kirk

[gymnastsrock]

Kirk, have you ever swung on a strap bar without straps? No offense, but that is dangerous advice.

PowerPlant, you should definitely make sure you at least have someone there. The most important thing is that you keep your arms straight, the most likely chance of injury is if you let your elbows bend.

But for Pete's sake, if you're going to swing without straps, don't use the PVC pipe, just swing on the bar. It's a lot harder to hold onto the PVC without straps and the odds of peeling off at the wrong moment are too high to try it.

Strap bar minus straps= how my best friend broke her arm.

[rainbowgirl28]

I think you're all giving him good advice, but until now, he may not have realized that once he turns his ordinary highbar into a strap bar, he can't easily change it back (unless I'm mistaken about the width of the PVC - how wide should it be, and is it in one piece or two?).

You can do two pieces of maybe 9" or less each, or one continuous piece that is a little wider than shoulder width. They're not _that_ big.

[rainbowgirl28]

OK after thinking about it and looking at pictures, I remembered the two different ways I've strapped myself in.

The tight way:
Put the strap on the bar so it makes a "U" shape under the bar.
Insert wrist into "U"
Move the top parts of the "U" (where the strap goes over the bar) so that they overlap on top. So now it's a teardrop shape with your wrist going through the tear.
Twist your wrist toward your body and grab the bar, as seen in this picture:



The loose way (not recommended unless your straps are too small):
Put the strap on the bar so it makes a rainbow shape over the bar. Insert wrist into rainbow.
Move the bottom parts of the rainbow (where the strap goes under the bar) so that they overlap on bottom. So now it's an upside down teardrop shape with your wrist going through the tear.
Grab bar.

I think with the second way there ends up being one less twist in the straps.

It should be painful for you to just hang on the bar while strapped in, but when you are swinging it should just be uncomfortably tight. You'll get more used to it over time.

[powerplant42]

The tight way:
Put the strap on the bar so it makes a "U" shape under the bar.
Insert wrist into "U"
Move the top parts of the "U" (where the strap goes over the bar) so that they overlap on top. So now it's a teardrop shape with your wrist going through the tear.
Twist your wrist toward your body and grab the bar, as seen in this picture:

Sweet! That's what I thought I should do... I tried a bunch of other stuff but it didn't work too well.