"The
Manta Ray" - Is it a squatters
dream come true?
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The squat is one of the best exercises
you can do for
building strength and muscle mass.
Can the Manta Ray
make it more comfortable and even
more effective?

The barbell squat, as I'm sure you've
heard time and again, is one of the
most effective exercises not only
for building the legs but also for
building muscle all over the entire
body. The metabolic effects of the
squat are very powerful.
One
of the main problems with the barbell
squat, however, lies in the placement
of the bar across the shoulders. For
many, placing the bar across the shoulders
can be a painful experience. If it
hurts when you do it (and not in a
good way), chances are, you're going
to be a lot less likely to do squats
regularly, if at all. You'll be missing
out on an excellent exercise!
In
the past, you had fewer choices when
it came to padding your shoulders
for the squat. You could wear a thick
sweatshirt when squatting, you could
wrap a towel around the bar, or you
could place a foam pad around the
bar.
The
sweatshirt, unfortunately, does little
to cushion the bar and the towel or
foam pad can actually allow the bar
to more easily roll or slip down your
back. Not a good thing!
The
"Manta Ray" squatting accessory
aims to change all that. It addresses
the structure of the body with respect
to the mechanics of the squat exercise,
claiming to make the exercise more
comfortable to perform and more effective.
The
Manta Ray is a simple piece of strong,
specially-molded blue plastic. It
has a groove for the bar and is shaped
to rest comfortably over the trapezius/shoulder
area of the body. It looks a lot like
the sea creature it's named for!
But
can it live up to its claim of making
the squat more comfortable and, therefore,
more effective?
I
will cut right to the chase. The Manta
Ray lives up to these claims easily.
It is simply one of THE most effective
training tools I've every used in
the 15-plus years I've been training.
Here are the two major reasons why:
1. Effective Load Distribution
The
Manta Ray effectively distributes
the entire load of the bar over a
much larger area of the body than
you get with just the bar alone. It
works for the same reason that a person
wearing snowshoes can walk easily
where a person without snowshoes will
sink down into the snow: increased
surface area. I've found the unique
shape of the Manta Ray to be very
well-constructed for this purpose.
To
illustrate this point, I've used the
Manta Ray to do partial top-range
squats with more than 1100 pounds.
If I tried this weight with just the
bar, I'm sure I'd be missing a few
vertebrae! The Manta Ray's extremely
effective distribution of load will
allow you to use more weight more
comfortably.
2. Prevents the Bar From Rolling
or Slipping
|
Barbells
are round. I'm sure you've noticed
this. What better shape to roll
with? One of the hardest things
to deal with in the barbell
squat is in fighting the tendency
of the bar to slide or roll
down your back.
Even
a slight roll of the bar can
throw off the balance of the
exercise and compromise your
form and safety. Worst case,
if the bar rolls or slips too
far, you may even have to ditch
the bar to avoid serious injury.
|
 |
The
Manta Ray effectively arrests this
tendency to roll or slide. The molded
shape of the plastic locks the bar
into position on your shoulders and
stops the shifting of the bar.
In
comparison to the positives of the
Manta Ray (load distribution and roll
prevention), the negatives, in my
opinion, are minor.
The
negatives of the Manta Ray are a small
price to pay for the exceptional benefits
and value you'll get from it. Not
only will the Manta Ray help make
your barbell squats more comfortable
and more effective, it can also very
easily be used for other exercises
such as barbell calf raises, barbell
lunges and more.
Priced
at $39.95, I've found the Manta
Ray to be one of the BEST investments
in training equipment I've ever made.
If you're interested in improving
your squat, I highly recommend either
getting one for yourself or talking
to your gym owner or manager about
getting one for your facility. I've
been using mine for more than 10 years!
To
learn more about the Manta
Ray or to get one for yourself,
click
here.
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