Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.
Table of Contents
What Is A Tib Bar? (a reminder)
In short, a tib bar (aka tibialis trainer) is a piece of exercise equipment built to target the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle. This muscle plays a key role in activities like running, jumping, walking, and kicking the ball. Wherever there’s dorsiflexion of the foot, the TA is probably the main actor. Additionally, the tibialis anterior supports the ankle joint, making it important in activities like landing, quickly changing directions, lunging, etc.
Simply put, a tib bar is a piece of equipment that helps you put a controlled load onto the tibialis anterior muscle to strengthen it. Considering how a healthy tibialis anterior has a lot of work to do, the tib bar comes with more than just the benefit of pumping out tib raises.
Tib Bar Benefits For Athletes
A strong and healthy tibialis anterior provides the necessary support throughout all sorts of activities and movements. If you target it with a tib bar, you can expect improvements in several areas. So, we can divide the tib bar benefits into 3 main groups:
- Tib bar benefits for runners and people playing fast-paced group sports,
- for lifters and strength-related athletic disciplines,
- and for athletes in recovery, or athletes who are looking to bulletproof their bodies.
Now, you can (and should) find yourself in more than one group. For example, a hybrid athlete is someone who aims to cover all three areas. On the other hand, some athletes implement the tib bar into their training for specific purposes (e.g. better sprint times or a higher jump).
Now let’s see what sort of tib bar benefits you can expect once you start training your shins the right way.
Tib Bar Benefits for Runners
Running causes constant, repetitive stress, especially to your lower body. The load comes from hitting the ground with every step, making the forces quickly spread up the kinetic chain. And the first to take the hit are the feet, and by extension – the ankles.
The tib bar benefits runners by strengthening the tibialis anterior, which in turn supports the ankles to handle the stress that comes from running. On top of that, if you train your tibialis the right way, you will also start noticing improvements in your running gait cycle. The TA muscle is active through about 70% of the gait cycle, and plays a crucial role in “carrying” your foot correctly to the next step.
A stable and consistent dorsiflexion helps you land during running, and after jumping. Being that the tib bar exercises utilize dorsiflexion the most, we can safely say that using it can improve the mechanics of not only your athletic, but everyday activities as well.
Next to endurance, the tib bar benefits strength as well…
Tib Bar Benefits for Lifters
Ok, the tib bar helps you practice dorsiflexion in a controlled (and loaded) way, which is excellent for runners. But how does it affect your strength, and lifting in general?
Remember the stress load that comes from the ground during running/jumping? Well, the same goes for lifting, only now it’s about the intensity instead of repetition. A tib bar will help you with deadlifts and squats by strengthening the supporting muscles that send the force up, through your legs. The tibialis anterior is just the muscle you need to develop if you want to avoid shaky legs during compound lifts.
Remember – the tib bar provides you with an effective way to load the tibialis, making it great for progressive overload as well.
The Tib Bar As An Injury Prevention Tool
Last, but not least, we have the (arguably) most important tib bar benefit that all athletes need to consider – injury prevention.
Long-distance running, heavy lifting, intensive sports – all of these put a lot of strain on the body, primarily the lower part. The tib bar, thanks to its simple, yet effective way of targeting the tibialis anterior, helps with preparing the body for those aggressive movements.
When combined with the KOT approach, the tib bar helps you improve the control over your lower-body kinetic chain. This directly translates to a more natural way of moving your body, which results in fewer injuries due to under and over-utilization of certain muscle groups.
Another bulletproofing tib bar benefit is its active approach to shin splints. All that repetitive/intensive stress that exercise puts on the tibia bone can be significantly prevented with the regular use of a tib bar.
Lastly, the tib bar is a great tool for keeping your knees healthy, as it targets the specific area between the ankle and the knee.
Tib Bar Benefits - The Verdict
As you can see, the tib bar benefits go beyond the simple tibialis anterior pump.
For runners, the tib bar is a great tool to work on gait improvement and the biomechanics of running. Lifters can (and should) use it to increase the stabilization of the lower body during compound lifts. People who play high-intensity sports will love all the injury-prevention benefits that a tib bar delivers if used regularly.
So, if you’re looking for a way to boost your lower-body performance, add some inches to your jump, or lose some minutes from your long-distance run (while staying injury-free) – the tib bar is just the tool for you.
Above all, a storyteller. Then comes marketing, branding, writing music, powerlifting, and woodworking.
