Two Decades Ago, a Piece of Equipment Revolutionized The Strength World... It Helped Build Powerful Legs, Super Strength and
Allowed Some of the Strongest Men of All Time Break World Records... And Now...
IT'S BACK!
Every so often a piece of equipment comes along that is so revolutionary and so amazing that it changes the course of strength history
forever. I am going to tell you about just such a piece of equipment, one that can help you become bigger, stronger, and more powerful than
you ever thought possible...
You see it all began more than two decades ago when a powerlifter from North Carolina named Al Gerard
kept having to miss workouts due to a sore lower back. Being a powerlifter, Al had to train the deadlift but deadlifting with a
straight bar left him sore for days.
One day he had an idea - why not create a
parallel handled "frame" to stand in while deadlifting, which could put the weight more in line with the body's natural center of gravity
and take stress off the lower back...
Sure it sounded like a good idea - but would it work?
Al Gerard showing his stuff!
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Al began to experiment. He tried a couple different designs but found that a trapezoidal shaped bar worked best.
He began to train with this unique bar instead of with a straight bar. It did not take long for Al to notice something
- he could now train the deadlift without any lower back stress...
Even more amazing, after several months
of training with the Trap Bar he could now deadlift AND squat more weight even though he rarely trained those exercises.
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He also noticed his traps had grown substantially larger and more muscular and his grip improved tremendously. He was undoubtedly
on to something BIG and the Gerard Trap bar was born!
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Serious lifters perked up their ears and the Gerard Trap Bar soon became well known as a valuable training tool for all kinds of athletes.
Dr. Ken Leistner trained his powerlifters on it and they experienced incredible gains. Many professional football teams
started using the Trap Bar. The biggest and strongest athletes on the planet
used it for deadlifting and to train the all-important neck and upper back muscles.
For building hip and leg strength, there is simply nothing better than the Gerard Trap Bar. The Trap Bar
is the safest, most comfortable way to deadlift and now you can train with it too!
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The Original Gerard Trap Bar
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The ONE Piece of Equipment that EVERY
Single Gym in The World Needs
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If you want to build superhuman leg strength, the Gerard Trap Bar will help you get there quicker and safer than any other method. Here's why:
The unique trapezoidal configuration moves the weights closer to the body, which improves balance and
eliminates interference -- the bar will not drag against your torso and thighs while you train.
This design also allows for greater rib cage expansion and muscular development -- the bottom line is that when you train with the
Trap Bar you gain strength and power in a more efficient, effective, and safe manner.
The knees don't interfere with the bar while the lifter assumes a more upright position when starting a lift.
The weight moves directly upward instead of sideways, placing more emphasis on the target musculature.
The lifter has better control of the bar throughout the full range of motion.
The weight moves in line with the ankles which improves leverage.
Lower back stress is reduced while the weight is moved in line with the natural center of gravity.
Shearing forces on spine and knees are reduced.
The shrug exercise is an integral part of every strength athlete's program. Strong upper back, neck and shoulder
muscles are essential in all sports. The Trap Bar makes "shrugs" more comfortable because there is no bar contact
with the upper thighs and lower front torso area; thus, more range of movement yields more muscle use and development.
It's easier to maintain good form -- elbow and wrist-joint strain is reduced by eliminating opposite grips, and standing shrugs yield improved trapezius
development because the bar never contacts the thighs interfering with range of motion.
A Trap Bar moves the weight mass 16% closer to the perpendicular plane of the lower back than a conventional straight bar.
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Back Strength!
Trap Bar Shrug
Deadlift
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The Original Gerard Trap Bar Makes its Triumphant Return!
For a period of time, the Gerard Trap Bar experienced unparalleled success. Brooks Kubik wrote about it in Dinosaur Training,
Dr. Ken Leistner wrote about it in a number of Powerlifting USA articles and the Trap Bar also became a big part of one of the most
effective training systems ever put down on paper - Paul Kelso's Shrug System.
So where do I come in?
Well let me tell you... you see I know full well that there is always an opportunity for great equipment to make a comeback.
The Trap Bar has always been an incredible training tool but in the late 90s the original manufacturer had to bow out and Al Gerard had his hands full
with a non-training-related project and thus the trap bar briefly fell out of the public view.
That is, until one day when I found one that we had in our garage and decided to give it a spin just like the old days. (Yes, that's right; I
actually train with the equipment featured on this site so you know it's good.)
Hardgainer Magazine
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IRONMAN MAGAZINE" JULY 1988, article
"Zap the Traps" by Paul Kelso
The Gerard Trap Bar has been featured in just about every major training magazine. Here are a few examples:
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Powerlifting USA
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This got me thinking - why not make this great piece of equipment available again? So I called up Al Gerard and... he gave me the thumbs up.
Then I called a manufacturer friend of mine and sent them Al's plans - we wanted to make this according to Al Gerard's exact specs.
They crunched some numbers and put everything together and the results were absolutely dead-on perfect.
Now the Gerard Trap Bar makes its triumphant return at www.oldtimestrongman.com! We have
created the latest edition of the Trap Bar to Al Gerard's exact plans using only the highest quality components.
The gerard Trap Bar is now available for Olympic and standard barbell plates.
The only difference in the New Trap Bar is that
it is now zinc plated (giving it a nifty gold color.)
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Al Gerard's Exact Specs
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Why is this important?
You see, many trap bar knockoffs are manufactured very cheaply with low grade steel and low quality chrome.
As a result, the chrome flakes off in jagged edges which are very dangerous. Then, once the chrome falls off, the underlying steel will rust.
This will not happen with our new zinc-plated models.
Hot off the Presses: BONUS Trap Bar Training Guides
Our NEW Trap Bar Training Guides
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Of course, every good training product should have solid training information to support it. That's why every order for a Gerard Trap Bar will include,
at no additional cost, a full set of Trap Bar training materials. These exclusive guides are written by the most knowledgeable experts on the subject of
training with the Trap Bar. You'll get Using the Trap Bar to Get Stronger by Al Gerard,
which includes a step-by-step multi-phase 10-week workout plan
to build full-body strength along with a full-length interview with Al himself.
Also included in the set is Dr. Ken's Trap Bar Workout which is full of
great training information from Dr. Ken Leistner. And you'll get a special report written by me - John Wood - entitled "The 5 x 2 Trap Bar Workout."
Together, these guides will
help you get the most out of your Trap Bar and they are FREE with every Trap Bar order from www.oldtimestrongman.com.
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Make sure your equipment will last a lifetime. Do yourself a big favor and be a part of Trap Bar training in the new Millennium - Grab a genuine Gerard Trap Bar Right Now!
Train hard,
John Wood
Join the Trap Bar Revolution - Order Your Very Own
Gerard Trap Bar Below:
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Order by phone:
1-800-978-0206 |
The Gerard Trap Bar is proudly
Made in the U.S.A.
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