Hook grips and straps?

[Umholtz]

On the thread for medial epicondylitis (golfer's elbow) you said that using hook grips for deadlifts and straps for pull ups could be used while the area heels. Can you please describe what these are? I found what I think is a hook grip at the store today. It wraps around the wrist and has a metal hook that fits in the palm of your hand. The problem with this is that I feel if I let the hook do a lot of the work it will damage my wrist. And can you please describe how to use a strap (and what is a strap?) for pull ups. I have been dealing with this injury for 5 years. No amount of time off will allow it to heal so I am doing my best to work around it. It seems that squats hurts it more than anything because with the low bar position the hand must press firmly against the bar to keep it in place. This puts a huge amount of strain on the flexor muscles at the elbow.

[Mark Rippetoe]

A hook grip is not a device, it is a method of gripping the bar. It involves placing your middle finger on top of your thumbnail in a double overhand or alternate grip, so that the friction against the thumb holds the bar without a lot of grip squeeze necessary. This allows some relaxation of the grip muscles and might let the injury heal. Strap use is describe in a picture sequence in BBT, the only sequence photo of its kind, I believe.