Introducing TrueHold
Research shows the 28mm barbell is below optimal diameter for virtually every adult male - regardless of height. TrueHold sleeves over your existing equipment and gives you the exact diameter your hand anatomy demands, in 0.05" steps.
Based on NASA anthropometric data (avg. male hand length 7.6") and Rossi et al. (2012), which found peak grip force at 17.9% of hand length. Applied consistently: 7.6" × 0.179 = 1.36". Even men in the 5th percentile for hand size have an optimal diameter above the standard 28mm bar. ~ denotes an estimate derived from averages - individual hand length varies independently of height.
A bar that's too thin forces your grip to collapse. Your 4th and 5th fingers become passengers - not contributors to force production.
Dead fingers mean weak lat engagement, reduced core linkage, and less explosive output. It limits your ability to develop the body with proper athletic efficiency.
Technique cues can't correct a geometry mismatch. The 28mm standard wasn't set by biomechanics - it was set by competitive weightlifting regulation. Those are very different things.
The standard bar wasn't optimised for the average hand. It was standardised so that no competitor would be disadvantaged by a bar that was too thick for their grip. The result is a bar that is too thin for almost everyone.
Fifteen barbell diameters from 1.15" to 1.85", plus six dumbbell/cable diameters from 1.35" to 1.60" - all in 0.05" increments. Not one-size-fits-all - your exact size.
The correct diameter reactivates your 4th and 5th fingers, restores grip symmetry, and fires full-chain recruitment - lats, core, total-body tension. More results for the same effort.
Your ideal hypertrophy diameter and strength diameter typically differ by 0.05". Serious athletes own both adjacent sizes - one for neural drive, one for pump and time under tension.
No new bars. No new dumbbells. TrueHold works with what your gym already has.
Each colour = one of the 15 barbell models. Every 0.05" step is a distinct diameter.
▲ 5'9" avg. optimal: ~1.35" | 6'2" optimal: ~1.45" | 6'6" optimal: ~1.55"
6.0 inches wide. 0.5 mm geometric texture. Fifteen sizes, Model 1 to Model 15 - each numbered and color-coded for instant identification. Models 1 - 3 have a 24mm inner diameter (women's Olympic bars); Models 4 - 15 have a 27mm inner diameter (standard bars).
All 15 barbell models, Model 1 (1.15") to Model 15 (1.85")
4.75 inches wide - engineered to fit between dumbbell heads without interference. 29.5mm inner diameter across the line. Same 0.5 mm geometric texture. Six models, Model 1 to Model 6, each split top/bottom by color for easy identification.
All 6 dumbbell models, Model 1 (1.35") to Model 6 (1.60")
Measure your hand length from the tip of your middle finger to the crease at your wrist. Enter it below.
Use a ruler or tape measure. Place it at the crease where your wrist meets your hand (the proximal wrist crease). Extend your hand flat and measure to the tip of your middle finger. That's your hand length.
~ denotes approximate averages. Individual hand length varies independently of height.
Note: the standard 28mm (1.10") bar falls below optimal for virtually all adult males.
Use the calculator above as your starting point. That's the diameter where your 4th and 5th fingers should fully engage the bar.
Your ideal size for maximum neural drive and your ideal size for pump typically differ by 0.05". Both are worth testing.
Serious athletes keep both sizes on hand. Different goals, different sessions - same TrueHold system, dialled in precisely.
Coaches and teams: Stock the full range and let every athlete find their exact match in one session.
For experienced lifters who use a thumbless grip on pulling movements. Based on Kong & Lowe (2005), which found optimal diameter at 19.7% of hand length - slightly larger than the standard grip optimum. Note: grip force drops sharply past your optimal diameter, but comfort declines gradually, so if your result falls between two models test the larger size first.
TrueHold is currently in the prototype phase. Join the waitlist and you'll be the first to know when we launch - and the first to lock in your size.
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