Now I hate to ruin the surprise right out of the gate, but the Vulcan Alpha Bumper Plates are probably the most unique, versatile, durable, and reasonably priced bumper plates currently on the market, and I’m extremely excited about finally getting to review them.
I realize that there are more exiting things to actually read than a bumper plate review, but I truly believe that you’ll be glad to have discovered and read this review if and when you find yourself in the market for new plates, as they are about as close to the perfect bumper plate as you can get.
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This is a review for the California Bar, American Barbell’s first multi-purpose (dual-marked) Olympic bar. The California is basically a WOD bar; American Barbell’s version of the Ohio Bar. It’s an American-made jack-of-all-trades; and it’s one of the best-built bars in its class.
This particular review is for the original California Bar; the zinc-plated version that has since been replaced with the Cerakote California. While I have also reviewed the newer version, I will leave this version intact for those who are interested
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In this review I’m going to take a look at the Sport Bumper Plates, American Barbell’s basic bumper plates. I realize that basic bumpers do not exactly make the most exciting reviews, but people need bumpers, and these are a viable option.
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This is a review for the Ohio Deadlift Bar from Rogue Fitness – an extra long, highly elastic power bar designed exclusively for heavy deadlifts. A bar that I think the majority of you will agree rivals both the Okie Deadlift Bar and Texas Deadlift Bar not only in specifications, but also in price.
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What shoes do you deadlift in? Do you have actual deadlift shoes, or do you pull in regular sneakers? Perhaps you use your Oly shoes, or maybe you just pull barefoot. Does it even matter?
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I’ve been searching high and low for the perfect pair of gym shorts. A pair of shorts to train in that are comfortable, lightweight, flexible, ideally affordable, and short enough to squat in without having to worry about fabric catching on my knees or sticking to my thighs. Bonus features would include moisture-wicking, breathable, and good looking; or at the very least not stupid looking.
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The new Eleiko Power Lock Bar is a unique and rather interesting take on the classic Eleiko Training Bar. Matter of fact, the Power Lock is really just a variant of the Eleiko Training Bar. They share all the same hardware, same specifications, and high level of performance; only the new Power Lock has deep grooves cut into the length of the sleeves. Grooves that look really cool, mind you.
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If you’ve been lifting for any length of time, you undoubtedly know about the Inzer Forever Power Belt and the Pioneer Double Suede Power Belt. You may also know that there is no shortage of praise and positive reviews for both of these belts – so much so that telling you that these belts are awesome wouldn’t exactly be breaking news. So setting that aside, the question then becomes how does one choose between two popular and seemingly identical belts?
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In the last month or so there’s been a number of new products to hit the market, and a few that are due very soon. I thought that I’d highlight some of the coolest among them for those of you who don’t have time to troll the Interwebs for stuff that you don’t actually need and probably shouldn’t be buying (like the first item on the list.)
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Folding wall racks are a great space saving alternative to full-size power racks for athletes who want to train in their garage, but who still need to be able to pull the vehicle in at night. Folding racks require only some empty wall space and a few inches of floor space to store, yet they open up into a full-size rack that’s almost as versatile as a normal power rack, and able to support more than enough weight.
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About a year ago, Rogue Fitness released the Ohio Power Bar; a bar that would completely replace the old Rogue Power Bar; Rogue’s only self-branded powerlifting bar. With only two unique power bars being sold by Rogue at the time (Rogue Power & Westside Power), and both of them having all-too-similar specifications, the addition of the Ohio Power was much needed. Why though?
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A few months ago I picked up what is easily one of the greatest and most reasonably priced garage gym accessories available; the Spud Inc Economy Lat & Tricep Pulley. I believe that this cable system is hands down the best $85 (it is now at $99) that I’ve spent on a piece of equipment in a long time and I felt that it deserved to be praised for a few minutes.
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This is a review of the infamous CAP OB-86B Olympic bar. The OB-86B is a fairly popular, lower-end import barbell sold at sporting good stores, online fitness outlets, and of course; Amazon. This bar retails for around $150-$160, and it’s the least expensive bar currently reviewed on this site.
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As is the tradition, I have created a list of Christmas gift ideas for those of you that have a lifter on their shopping list. I’ve considered the CrossFitter, weightlifters, and the regular ol’ gym rat. There’s something for everyone!
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This is a review for the Super Power Bar, a high tensile strength, stainless steel power bar manufactured by American Barbell.
Update: the AB Super Power Bar reviewed here no longer exists as a product. It has been replaced by the new Mammoth Power Bar.
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