Lifting Straps and Wrist Wraps: When to Use Each (and Both in One Session)

Quick answer: Lifting straps and wrist wraps do different jobs, so many lifters bring both to the same workout. Lifting straps connect your hands to the bar so your grip holds out on pulls like deadlifts, rows and shrugs. Wrist wraps firm up your wrists on presses like bench, overhead press and dips. On a full-body or push-pull day, wear wraps for your pressing sets, take them off, then put straps on for your heavy pulling sets. Never wear straps on a press.

Most guides treat lifting straps and wrist wraps as an either-or choice. In a real training week, plenty of lifters use both, sometimes in the same hour. This guide is about that: what each piece of gear does, which lifts each one belongs on, how to put each on, and how to run a session that uses both without fumbling between sets.

If you just want the side-by-side comparison, see Lifting Straps vs Wrist Wraps. For buying advice, see the best lifting straps buyer's guide.

What Lifting Straps Do

Lifting straps are strips of strong material that loop around your wrist and then wrap around the bar, dumbbell or handle. Once they're twisted tight, part of the load is held through the strap and your wrist, so your fingers aren't doing all the work. That matters on heavy or high-rep pulls, where your grip often gives out before your back, hips or legs do.

Our padded lifting straps are lasso-style, made of durable cotton with neoprene padding where the strap sits on your wrist, and they're $19.99.

What Wrist Wraps Do

Wrist wraps go around your wrist joint only. They don't touch the bar. Their job is to add stiffness around your wrist so it's easier to keep it stacked, without bending back, when a heavy bar sits in your hands on a press.

Bay Gear Co. wrist wraps are 18 inches long, made from a polyester cotton blend, with a thumb loop and a hook-and-loop closure. Every print, including our signature Tactical Hawaiian and Black Camo, is $28.99.

Which Lifts Get Straps, Which Get Wraps

The simple rule: pulling = straps, pressing = wraps. Straps lock your hands to the bar, which is exactly what you don't want when you might need to let go of a press.

How to Put On Lifting Straps

1. Put your hand through the loop so the tail runs from the pinky side of your wrist, across your palm. If it comes off the thumb side, switch the strap to the other hand.
2. Snug the loop so the padding sits on your wrist.
3. Wrap the tail under and around the bar toward you.
4. Twist your hand to take up the slack until the strap is tight against the bar.
5. Grip the bar over the strap and lift.

To release, loosen your grip and unwind the tail. More setups for back day: Lifting Straps for Pull-Ups, Lat Pulldowns and Rows.

How to Put On Wrist Wraps

1. Hook your thumb through the thumb loop.
2. Make the first pass right over your wrist joint, not down on your forearm.
3. Keep tension as you wrap, overlapping each pass.
4. Fasten the hook-and-loop closure.
5. Slide the loop off your thumb before you lift, if your setup allows it.

Full step-by-step guide: How to Wear Wrist Wraps.

How to Use Both in One Session

Here's how a push-pull or full-body day can flow when you're using both.

Example: Bench and Deadlift Day

1. Warm-up sets: No gear, or loose wraps on your last bench warm-up.
2. Bench working sets: Wrist wraps on and tight for each set. Loosen or open them between sets.
3. Overhead press or dips: Keep the wraps; snug them back up.
4. Take the wraps off before you walk over to the deadlift platform. Don't wear wraps under your straps.
5. Deadlift warm-ups: Chalk and no straps, so your grip still gets trained.
6. Heavy deadlift sets: Straps on.
7. Rows and shrugs: Keep the straps for these, especially once your forearms are tired.

Tips to Make Switching Easy

• Lay your gear out in order. Wraps on top of your bag for the first half, straps for the second.
• Keep straps loose on your wrists between sets so you can loop them back on fast.
• Don't strap into a press, even for one set.
• Use chalk on strap-free sets. Liquid chalk is a low-mess option for most gyms.
• Train some sets without straps so your grip keeps doing its own work.

Do You Need Both?

Not always. If you mostly press, start with wraps. If your grip gives out on deadlifts and rows, start with straps. If you train both heavy presses and heavy pulls each week, having both in your bag means you're covered either way. The Wrist Wraps + Lifting Straps Bundle puts one pair of each in a single order.

FAQ

Can I wear wrist wraps and lifting straps at the same time?

There's usually no reason to. Wraps are for presses and straps are for pulls. Take your wraps off before you put your straps on.

Should I use lifting straps on bench press?

No. Straps lock your hands to the bar, and you need to be able to release a press. Use wrist wraps on bench.

Do wrist wraps help on deadlifts?

Not really. Wrist wraps don't help you hold the bar. If your grip is what fails on deadlifts, lifting straps or chalk are the tools for that.

Are lifting straps cheating?

No. They're a training tool that lets your back and legs finish the set when your grip would end it early. Keep some strap-free work in your program for your grip.

Which should I buy first, straps or wraps?

Buy the one that matches your main limit. Presses feel shaky at the wrist? Wraps. Grip fails on pulls? Straps.

What kind of lifting straps are best for mixed sessions?

Lasso (loop) straps. They're quick to put on and take off between exercises, and they work on bars, dumbbells and cable handles. See Figure 8 vs Loop Straps for more.

Veteran-Owned Gear for Push and Pull Days

Bay Gear Co. is a veteran-owned company. Founder Brian Young, a Marine Corps veteran, started it in 2017, and we're now based in Sebastian, Florida.

Gear Up for Your Next Session

• Lifting straps: Shop padded lifting straps, $19.99
• Wrist wraps: Shop weightlifting wrist wraps, 18", $28.99
• Both together: Wrist Wraps + Lifting Straps Bundle

Bay Gear Co. offers free shipping on orders over $49 and a 30-day return policy.