All The Weightlifting Bars Your Gym Will Ever Need

Dave Shelton

Weightlifting bars are versatile equipment that can be used in many ways.

They have a long, thick handle with either knurling or smooth steel for grip and come in different lengths.

Many weightlifters will use multiple bars to properly train each muscle group. Whether you’re bench pressing, doing squats, or any other lift, having the right bar can make all the difference in your workout.

We will cover the conventional barbells as well as specialty barbells every gym should use.

There is no one size fits all for lifting. So trying to use a straight bar for every lift does not make sense and can lead to issues.

Let’s explore all of our barbell options.

Which Weightlifting Bar Should I choose?

This depends on your specific fitness and performance goals.

There are expensive bars, cheaper bars, bars to improve the squat, bars to increase your bench press, and more.

Weightlifting bars come in all shapes in sizes. Pick the bar that meets your specific needs and can assist in reaching your goals.

Olympic Weightlifting Power Bars

The Olympic training bar is a competition bar for Olympic weightlifting.

With Olympic bars, one of the main things you’ll notice is that the bar is slightly thinner with less aggressive knurling than the standard Ohio power bars. This will prevent you from tearing up your hands during your Olympic weightlifting.

The Ohio bar is generally a stiffer bar than the Olympic bars, which benefits the various Olympic movements such as the power clean and snatch.

Not all commercial gyms will stock Olympic bars. However, gyms for athletes or weightlifters should definitely have Olympic bars in their collection.

Bella Bar

The Bella Bar is a more traditional flat barbell created specifically for women weight lifters.

The biggest difference that you will notice between the Bella Bar and the rogue Ohio bar or standard power bar is the size.

This bar is shorter in overall length, has a smaller diameter, and is lighter than the men’s rogue Ohio power bar. There is no center knurling on this bar.

This is considered a versatile bar that women can use for a variety of Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting movements.

Rogue Ohio Power Bars

The rogue Ohio power bar is a multipurpose bar & can be thought of as the men’s version of the Bella bar.

This is one of the weight-lifting bars that you would find in almost every commercial gym. This Rogue bar is highly versatile. It can be used with bumper plates, bare steel plates, and for a variety of Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting exercises.

Like the Bella bar, there is no center knurling on the Ohio bar.

This is a strong bar that is a versatile tool for any gym. If you only have the budget for one barbell, start with the rogue Ohio power bar.

Cambered Bar

The cambered bar is a specialty bar that is most often used as a tool to increase the squat.

This barbell puts a greater demand on your abdominal muscles and develops the core.

Using the cambered barbell will increase your stability while squatting. No matter how strong you get if you cannot stabilize the weight, you cannot squat it.

A specialty bar such as this can be good for people with a lack of shoulder mobility and who cannot get into a proper squatting position.

Power bars like the cambered bar will most commonly be found in more hardcore powerlifting gyms.

The Duffalo Bar

The duffalo bar is a curved specialty bar that can be used for nearly all pressing and squatting movements. This weight lift bar was designed by a powerlifter and machinist Chris Duffin. With a max deadlift of about 1,000 lbs, Chris is one of the strongest and most experienced barbell manufacturers you will find.

This curved profile can reduce the stress on the shoulder joint by minimizing the amount of external rotation needed to get into a strong squat position.

The shape of this training bar also allows a lifter to perform the benchpress with a larger range of motion. With a flat barbell, your range of motion is limited by the barbell contacting your chest at the bottom of the movement. With the duffalo bar, you can get a few extra inches of movement.

Safety Squat Bar

Safety squat bars are crucial for building a monster squat.

For many lifters, the limiting factor in executing a maximum weight squat is your upper back strength. Your legs may be strong enough, but if your upper back cannot keep up the lift will not be completed.

Safety squat bars will sit higher up on the upper back than a standard squat. In order to prevent from rounding over and failing the lift, the upper back muscles will need to activate to keep the bar stabilized and on the correct path.

Safety squat bars are also a great option for lifters that have issues with shoulder mobility. If you cannot get your arms into position on a standard barbell squat, give the safety squat bar a try.

Fat Bars

For many people, the grip is the limiting factor when executing a heavy deadlift or barbell row. Fat bars will more effectively target and build your forearm strength to make your grip into a strength.

Most fat bars do not have bearings that allow them to rotate in position. Therefore if you make a mistake with your exercise technique, the bar will let you know by attempting to turn in your hand. This technique feedback can improve your lifts with the standard barbell.

Deadlifting and bench pressing with the fat bar will improve your wrist positioning and overall grip strength.

Angled Handle Football Bar

The angled-handled football bar is great for the bench press and other pressing movements. This bar is also commonly referred to as the angled swiss bar or the multi-grip barbell.

This bar has multiple grips with multiple different angels. These different grip options can more accurately match the natural body motions of all different size lifters and reduce overall shoulder pain.

Anyone who bench presses with a standard flat barbell will know that it is just a matter of time before you run into shoulder injuries. It is only a matter of time before you get little tweaks and pains in your shoulder from pressing.

The angled grips effectively reduce the amount of direct stress on the shoulder joint and minimize the chance of injury for many lifters. Lifting injury-free will give you the best chance of making gains over the long run.

Trap Bar

The trap bar or hex bar is most frequently used as a deadlift variation.

With trap bars, the grip is perpendicular to your body and is slightly higher off the ground than the straight bar.

As opposed to the flat barbell, you will be able to stand in the direct center of hex bars putting more of the load on your quads and less on your hamstring and glutes.

Trap bars can also be beneficial to lifters with pre-existing injuries. If you have a back or flexibility issue, the trap bar may be your best option. Using hex bars to start from an elevated position will reduce the pressure on your lower back.

During the standard barbell deadlift, the barbell will rest upon your legs throughout the movement. With hex bars, the weight will tend to rotate about your body more easily requiring you to activate your core and oblique muscles to stabilize the weight.

Are trap bars better than the standard barbell for deadlifts? Not necessarily. The movement you choose will depend highly upon your specific goals and mobility level.

Final Thoughts

We have just covered a man of the commonly used weightlifting barbells in the fitness industry.

Which barbell is best for you? Well, that depends upon your goals. There is a solid bar for everyone.

The truth is that utilizing a variety of barbells will constantly switch up the pressures we put on our bodies while weightlifting. Lifting with different angles and grip positions will allow you to reduce the wear and tear on your body and improve your performance.

Doing the same movement with the same barbell over and over again can create overuse injuries with time.

Do yourself a favor and stock your gym full of these barbells to increase your performance and reduce your chance of injury.

About Post Author

Dave Shelton

Dave founded My Fitness System to pursue his true passions of health & fitness. He has dedicated his life to studying exercise, general well-being, and health supplements. This site was created to share Dave’s years of experience in the fitness industry and provide quality information to the people.

See author's posts