Pronated, supinated or neutral grip — their role in weightlifting

Neutral grip, supinated grip and…what? Getting your head around different weightlifting grips can be tricky, but we’re here to smooth things all out and get you into that next session feeling confident and ready to train.

First things first though, why does the grip you use when lifting weights matter?

Grip importance in weightlifting

When you perform an exercise with a dumbbell or barbell, you might not give any thought to how you hold the bar, but the grip you use is actually one of the most important indicators to which muscle you’ll be targeting.

There are three main grips in weightlifting: pronated, supinated and neutral. Each of these creates a different movement path for your arms to follow, which in turn can change the muscle that an exercise targets. The way you grip a dumbbell or bar dictates an exercise’s starting position from which the rest of the movement follows, so it makes sense that it’s a deciding factor.

That’s all well and good to know, but what are the three main grips in weightlifting and what are their benefits?

Pronated grip

An overhand pronated grip is the most common grip in weightlifting. You can think of it as the natural technique that you’d use to pick a bar up off the floor — your hands go over the bar with your palms turned towards you. It’s most commonly used for heavy, compound movements like deadlifts, rows, bench press and shoulder press since it’s a comfortable position that offers the best grip of the three.

Supinated grip

Training with a supinated grip means holding the bar from the bottom with your palms turned towards the ceiling. If you ever get confused, remember that a supinated grip looks like you’re holding a bowl of soup. It’s most commonly used for isolation exercises, with a standard bicep curl being the clearest example of this grip in use. It brings your elbows close to your body so is preferred for targeting the biceps, but tends to provide a weaker grip as a result

Neutral grip

The best of both worlds, a neutral grip is defined by holding the weight with your palms facing each other. It’s primarily used for hammer curls, cable rows and pull-ups, and has the benefit of building overall strength in your arms by activating the forearms, brachialis and both bicep heads.

How grip type affects different exercises

We’ve told you about the three primary grip types, but how do each of them adjust some common lifts in the gym?

Pull-ups