Armnwrestling is a very specific sport. Most inexperienced viewers think that the fighters use their arms only in a fight. And hence the popular opinion that only huge arms matter in armwrestling, the rest is just for show.
A seasoned armwrestling fan knows this is not so. A whole arsenal of muscles has to be used. There are many opinions on what a “proper” workout regime should be for an armwrestler. Different diets, different day layouts, supplementation and, of course, different training plans. Today we’ll talk about the importance of squats and deadlifts in armwrestling. Those are the exercises many think of as non-important, because they are just “general” exercises, they don’t affect the fight itself. This is what most people say, but some know different. To find out what the truth is, we’ve asked the top fighters.
Denis Tsyplenkov:
To tell the truth, deadlifts and squats are completely unimportant in our sport. I never do them, since I’ve left strongman.
Vadim Akperov:
I don’t do either of those exercises. They take time that I could use for other, specialist exercises.
Artem Taynov:
I do both exercises in the off-season. I don’t see any armwrestling power gains from them, but I do them just for general development, and I think every armwrestler should.
Hetag Dzitiyev:
I’ve noticed that many people do nothing else but specialized armwrestling training. I don’t
think that’s good. A sportsman, never mind their discipline, should be developed all-round. I put a lot of focus on that, especially between tournaments. How can you really lift weights with weak legs and back?
Taras Ivakin:
Those exercises can be used as base in armwrestling. Personally, I haven’t done squats in 15 years, but deadlifts are great for finger and forearm strength, if done without straps.
I’ve had numerous occasions to discuss those exercises with many sportsmen, and I’ve noticed a general tendency to disregard those exercises as an element of armwrestling by all but the lowest rank of armwrestlers.
This is not the end of our quest for answers to those questions. In the next article, we’ll discuss the scientific aspects of squats and deadlifts.
Artur Grigorian