Al Gerard

Al Gerard

Al Gerard, originator of the Trap Bar, crossed this same bridge before Stuart. While we already know what solution this powerlifting engineer settled upon (the Trap Bar), examining the discoveries which brought him to it can shed much light on this whole issue.

Al Gerard & His Trap Bar
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Al Gerard & His Trap Bar Hardgainer Magazine #25 Hardgainer Magazine #25 As reported in HARDGAINER issue #25, which carried a detailed article authored by Paul Kelso focusing on the virtues of the Trap Bar, back problems prompted Gerard to seek some sort of less-damaging alternative for overloading his lower-body and lower-back musculature.
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In point of fact, Al had suffered five prolonged episodes of nasty lower-back miseries, all of which, he noted, came as a direct result of heavy back squatting. Aside from these setbacks putting a decided dampener on his competitive powerlifting aspirations, there was always the worry that such conditions could become chronic.

Because he didn't know precisely what device or apparatus would ultimately meet his requirements, Al reasoned that a bio-mechanical study would be a logical first step. Fortunately, there was a substantial number of local high school athletes already actively involved with intense weight training workouts who were more than willing to participate.

When completed, this extensive investigation produced much valuable information which explained Al's penchant for recurring back injuries, demonstrated that not everyone benefitted equally from back squatting, and revealed that many individuals in the aforementioned category did respond favorably to heavy pulling movements and, more importantly, explained why these observations occurred.
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Further, Gerard noted that those with the "squat disadvantaged" structure innately tended to lapse into body positions which left them susceptible to spinal injury during back squatting. In fact, vulnerability generally peaked during the squat descent at and below the point where the upper thighs form a 300 angle with a line drawn parallel to the floor and through the knees.

The exact anatomical trouble spot was the spinal section from the fifth lumbar vertebra down to the coccyx, which would prematurely rotate under the rest of the spine during the bottom portion of the squat.

Naturally, the likelihood of aggravating this danger zone escalated greatly when very heavy weights were applied to the squatting movement. Of course, it occurred to Gerard that much of the danger could be avoided by limiting the descent depth to the 300-above-parallel point, among those who were inclined toward problems.
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As this study progressed, Al attempted to alter lower leg positions of the leverage-disadvantaged squatters. (This would include heel elevation in some people, though for many such a measure increases the risk of injury to the knees.) While such measures did greatly reduce the spinal stress these lifters sustained while squatting, they increased the shearing forces to the subjects' knees to injurious levels.

Plus, these technique alterations radically lessened the amount of resistance the subjects were capable of squatting. Hence, the overload to their lower body musculature was diminished. Needless to say, Al quickly abandoned this "round peg in a square hole" approach when safety, first, and overload capabilities, second, were compromised.

Al Gerard and The Gerard Trap BarOldtime Strongman Training Iron Game History Classic Strength Equipment Workout Techniques
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Al Gerard and The Gerard Trap Bar
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Al Gerard and The Gerard Trap Bar
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Al Gerard and The Gerard Trap BarAl Gerard was a powerlifter from North Carolina who devised a unique "frame" which allowed him to increase his deadlift without putting undue stress on his back.

He named his invention the "Trap Bar" because of its shape -- using the Trap Bar, Al was able to deadlift over 745 pounds.
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Labels: Al Gerard, Deadlift, Equipment, Gerard Trap Bar, Leg Development, Leg Strength, Powerlifting, Shrugs, Trap Bar Workout, Traps

My name is Al Gerard and I invented and patented the Trap Bar.Your site with the shrugs and deadlifts being performed with the Trap Bar are great!If I can be of any service to you, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Al Gerard, Inventor of the Trap Bar

(Another monster lift by Al Gerard)

TRAP BAR(TM) DEADLIFTS

TRAP BAR(TM) SHRUGS begin after standing erect with the weight.
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Al Gerard showing his stuff!

The creator of the Trap Bar, Al Gerard, had that very issue in mind.

Using the Trap Bar to Get Stronger by Al Gerard

E-Mail Al Gerard at:trapbar@yahoo.comTRAP BAR(TM) is a registered trademark of Al Gerard. Authorized use of this trademark, only by written permission from Al Gerard. The weight frame Al named the TRAP BAR(TM) received two (2) United States Patents.

E-Mail Al Gerard at:trapbar@yahoo.comTRAP BAR(TM) is a registered trademark of Al Gerard.Authorized use of this trademark, only by written permission from Al Gerard.The weight frame Al named the TRAP BAR(TM) received two (2) United States Patents.

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... Al Gerard with his Trap Bar
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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.

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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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.
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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.)

The Original Gerard Trap Bar Plans Al Gerard's Exact Specs
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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.

Al GerardAl Gerard, originator of the Trap Bar, crossed this same bridge before Stuart.While we already know what solution this powerlifting engineer settled upon (the Trap Bar), examining the discoveries which brought him to it can shed much light on this whole issue.

As reported in HARDGAINER issue #25, which carried a detailed article authored by Paul Kelso focusing on the virtues of the Trap Bar, back problems prompted Gerard to seek some sort of less-damaging alternative for overloading his lower-body and lower-back musculature.
...
In point of fact, Al had suffered five prolonged episodes of nasty lower-back miseries, all of which, he noted, came as a direct result of heavy back squatting.Aside from these setbacks putting a decided dampener on his competitive powerlifting aspirations, there was always the worry that such conditions could become chronic.

Because he didn't know precisely what device or apparatus would ultimately meet his requirements, Al reasoned that a bio-mechanical study would be a logical first step.Fortunately, there was a substantial number of local high school athletes already actively involved with intense weight training workouts who were more than willing to participate.

When completed, this extensive investigation produced much valuable information which explained Al's penchant for recurring back injuries, demonstrated that not everyone benefitted equally from back squatting, and revealed that many individuals in the aforementioned category did respond favorably to heavy pulling movements and, more importantly, explained why these observations occurred.

Cutting to the crux straightaway, Gerard determined that individuality with regard to basic fulcrum-lever physics held the key.Specifically, due to wide variation in skeletal leverages, trainees possessing certain kinds of physical construction were at a greater risk of injury while back squatting.Moreover, generally speaking, the typical "squat disadvantaged" type of body build was characterized as having a short torso and long legs, especially inordinately long thigh bones.Also, very tall trainees--even those with more balanced upper to lower body apportionment--qualified.

Further, Gerard noted that those with the "squat disadvantaged" structure innately tended to lapse into body positions which left them susceptible to spinal injury during back squatting.In fact, vulnerability generally peaked during the squat descent at and below the point where the upper thighs form a 300 angle with a line drawn parallel to the floor and through the knees.The exact anatomical trouble spot was the spinal section from the fifth lumbar vertebra down to the coccyx, which would prematurely rotate under the rest of the spine during the bottom portion of the squat.

Naturally, the likelihood of aggravating this danger zone escalated greatly when very heavy weights were applied to the squatting movement.Of course, it occurred to Gerard that much of the danger could be avoided by limiting the descent depth to the 300-above-parallel point, among those who were inclined toward problems.
...
As this study progressed, Al attempted to alter lower leg positions of the leverage-disadvantaged squatters. (This would include heel elevation in some people, though for many such a measure increases the risk of injury to the knees.) While such measures did greatly reduce the spinal stress these lifters sustained while squatting, they increased the shearing forces to the subjects' knees to injurious levels.Plus, these technique alterations radically lessened the amount of resistance the subjects were capable of squatting.Hence, the overload to their lower body musculature was diminished.Needless to say, Al quickly abandoned this "round peg in a square hole" approach when safety, first, and overload capabilities, second, were compromised.
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Al Gerard is adamant about utilizing the best loading mechanism (exercise) possible for maximally developing any muscle group, assuming that safety is not jeopardized.If a trainee finds that in his case the greatest- resistance-equals-greatest-results formula favors usage of the squat, then this should be his focal point the majority of his training career.On the other hand, if another trainee sees that the greatest poundage rule favors the deadlift in his case, then he should pursue this barbell maneuver with fervency.