Yippee! Chalk day!

Happy to say my cynicism was overcome recently. I was expecting a tragicomic, protracted hunt for magnesium carbonate ("chalk"), but, wonder of wonders, I got a chalk ball today with ease at an outdoor shop not far from one of my schools. Ain't globalization grand!

Chalk is the famous white dust used by gymnasts, rock climbers and weight lifters. And now I've got it! From what I've been reading, chalking will add about 20kg to my deadlift right off the bat. A slippery grip has an inhibitory effect on the entire neuromuscular system, as the brain won't wholly "fire" if it senses what you're trying to lift might slip. I often have mildly sweaty palms even when I'm not working out, and my wristbands still let moisture onto my palms when I am working, a deficit I noticed very quickly with the deadlift.

I've held off on using the alternating grip, mainly because I believe––and my research bears this out––that a natural prone grip in both hands results in better grip strength and better overall muscular symmetry. I do have a pair of power straps but I am also reluctant to rely on them, since, again, you're only as strong as your weakest link, adn I think straps give the wrists too much of a break. As even semi-serious lifters like me know, your grip is a glass ceiling that must be broken again and again in order to train heavily. I'm also diffident about using the (Olympic) hook grip, since it seems more trouble than it's worth, for my goals. So, until I hit a genuine, respectable ceiling––say, lifting my goals for the Big Three*––I cannot foresee using straps when I would use chalk, and I foresee using chalk pretty much only on the deadlift, heavy lat pulldowns and pullups, shrugs, and perhaps the bench press.

I'll be sure to report my first experience with it tomorrow.

* My goals for the Big Three would be a bench at 1.5X bdw, a squat at 2X bdw, and a deadlift at 2.5X bdw. Those are 1RMs, so at some point I'll need to do a diagnostic lift. So far I've been doing multiple sets and reps, so I can only guesstimate my bdw/lift ratios. My bdw is currently 93kg give or take, and I feel confident saying I could do 105kg on the bench (~1.13X bdw), 125kg on the squat (~1.34X bdw), and 145kg (with straps!) on the deadlift (~1.56X bdw).