Chalk… such a simple piece to the puzzle. Most anyone who has ripped a heavy deadlift off the floor has chalked up to maximize their grip. Nothing worse than missing a lift, but missing it because you forgot to chalk up? Unforgivable! But have you ever thought about chalk beyond it being white, dry, and kind of a mess? Let’s drop a few resources and notes on chalk and dig into what I have experienced to be The Best Chalk for Powerlifters.
What Is Chalk and What Is It Used For?
Chalk for lifting purposes is commonly made of Magnesium Carbonate. This has drying properties to help remove moisture from your hands and increase your grip. That is the MOST basic description and break down of chalk. Take a look at the basic chalk blocks on Amazon and you’ll see they state exactly this. Coat your hands for your next lift, gymnastics workout, climbing expedition, or anything where your hands need to hold on tight and not slip.
Chalk will often come in 1 of 3 options… Liquid, Block, Powder. The powder is simply the block, mashed up. It might come loose, or it might be placed in a mesh type ball for ease of application. The liquid options are in small squirt bottles, they come out in a liquid form much like a lotion. You rub them into your hands, it dries, and it transforms from a thick “paste” into a dry powder. Once it completely dries, it is very similar to dry powder chalk.
A really cool positive for liquid chalk, is the lack of mess. Assuming you don’t squirt it everywhere (that’s what she said), there is very little room for error. With a powder, there is almost ALWAYS chalk dust. With a block you often break small pieces off, and overall you are left with something to clean up.
Especially beneficial for those that travel, liquid chalk can be hidden in a gym bag and likely not be noticed if your gym doesn’t allow chalk. But also nice for those that try and keep their garage gym extra clean. But what is the best chalk for powerlifters?
Different Brands of Chalk
This is where most people have probably ended their chalk research. They bought a couple blocks of chalk, cheap, on Amazon, and called it a day. I did this myself, spent $10 and I didn’t even consider buying anything else.
In 2022 I was FINALLY running out of chalk. Out of nowhere I was approached by TWO companies to explore some of the premium chalk options on the market. Weird timing, but good timing. The first was Spider Chalk, and the second was Primo Chalk.
Spider Chalk
Spider Chalk started out of necessity. The owner ran a Crossfit gym, ran out of chalk, placed an order, and was promptly told it would take 4-6 weeks to arrive from China. He quickly found out that NO ONE makes USA made chalk. Every single chalk company was a white label option shipped from China. As in, the same chalk, different label, every single time.
He didn’t like this, so he changed it. Check out their backstory in this article.
Spider Chalk makes a few different options, including their liquid chalk, bagged chalk, and block chalks.
Experience
What I noticed right away with Spider Chalk, is that it is more “present” than normal chalk. What I mean is that you can feel it, when it is on your hands you almost have a gritty feeling. It adds a layer of feedback when you lift with it that seems to improve your ability to connect into the bar.
Another way I can explain it, my daughter loves using chalk. She used the block and dropped some pieces of chalk on the ground, outside. Normal chalk blows away with the LIGHTEST of winds. Even someone walking bye would be enough to make the chalk fly away. The Spider Chalk stayed in place, outside, exposed to the elements, for multiple days. I had to physically sweep it up for it to go away.
One of the statements from Spider Chalk, is that you need to use less. This idea means that you can justify the added expense (more on that later). As in, more expensive chalk but using less means not more expensive in the end. I personally use chalk as a ritual. Every time before a working set of deadlifts or something where my grip might be challenged, I chalk up. It is part of the switch that flips to let me know it is go time. So this doesn’t really pan out for me. I’m not saying it isn’t real, it just doesn’t have real world applications FOR ME. If you use chalk pretty conservatively, I think you’ll be in business here.
Overall
Spider Chalk is noticeably different than your basic chalk off Amazon. I had multiple lifters at my house for the 2022 Fall Garage Gym Competition, and each noted something similar. The chalk was more THERE. This coming from seasoned and non-seasoned lifters, men and women, tells me that my experiences are accurate.
Primo Chalk
Primo Chalk sent me a few items as well, including their powder and bag options. Primo’s number one statement is around hand care. Dry chalk plus aggressive knurling can lead to brittle skin on your hands. A fellow GGC competitor shared with me that he had nail problems using standard chalk. Primo addresses this with the addition of essential oils. I believe the main oil is a eucalyptus and maybe peppermint oil, which are known for antibacterial properties as well as simply smelling good.
100% the chalk smells great. My wife when I first told her we had good smelling chalk was like “wait, what does that even mean?”. Pop open the bag, take a whiff “Oh! That does smell good!”.
I wouldn’t personally worry too much about the antibacterial aspects in a home gym, but potentially helpful for group sessions if you do that kind of thing. And if you own an affiliate, or maybe rent out your space through a service like Go RX Fitness, having something antibacterial makes perfect sense.
Lacking
Where the Spider Chalk was very noticeable, gritty, THERE. The Primo Chalk was not. It is INCREDIBLY light. So much so, that if you opened your chalk bowl with a summer fan on, you might lose the entire batch. It is so light, you almost don’t even know it is there. But to its argument, it does stay put on the hands. It isn’t disappearing with every rep or set. I just don’t get that same tactile feedback. I feel like it does the moisture controlling job, but drops the ball on what makes Spider Chalk truly “different”.
I’ll add that the Spider Chalk liquid chalk, White Widow, also has essential oils in it. So if you are after hand care and a high quality smell in your chalk, Spider Chalk has you covered.
Other Brands
There are a metric ton of options just on Amazon, let alone google searching chalk. One thing to note again is what Spider Chalk wrote, that the VAST majority of chalk today is white labeled and the EXACT same thing. Very few offerings are different from brand to brand.
Overall Thoughts – The Best Chalk For Powerlifters
I compiled my experience, the feedback of the lifters at my house, notes from my wife and daughter, to get us to a final verdict.
First, lets address price. Spider Chalk is $25 for a 1lb block. The same 1lbs is going to cost you ~$20 for the cheapest, Chinese import, no name nothing chalk. When you factor in that a large majority of the import chalk is a binder, I have no idea why you would even consider the “cheaper” stuff. It isn’t cheaper, just lower quality. The better chalks have less fillers, have better additions for certain applications, last longer, and are Made In The USA. Better at every turn. So please, don’t go buy that other stuff.
Our Favorites
My daughter and wife really like the chalk ball from Spider Chalk. It is simple and easy to use, and keeps the mess low. It covers the hands easily without much effort. I’ve found for me the block chalk to be PERFECT for conventional deadlifts. I can essentially paint my hands with chalk before a lift. This gives me that mental clarity that my grip WILL NOT BE A FACTOR. I’ve been using the Liquid Chalk for my strongman related workouts. I often do weighted carries with some form of overhead press on Fridays.
My weighted carry implement of choice, a Rickshaw, has no knurling. The liquid chalk has improved my grip by an EASY 50lbs. It is tacky and grippy, and holds tight. And since it lasts an entire workout with one application, I can continue through my sets back to back to back without worry. I could see the liquid chalk being an awesome application for a Crossfit WOD or something where you absolutely do not have the time to waste to chalk up.
The Best
Because of the above, I am dubbing Spider Chalk as The Best Chalk For Powerlifters. It might even just be the best chalk for lifters in general. And it is what my daughter uses for her ninja warrior stuff in the garage too. The block is going to be my 1RM chalk, with the liquid chalk being my weighted carry option. With the grittiness, with the noticeable aspects of Spider Chalk BEING THERE, and the ability to paint my hands perfectly, it wins, and it wins by a long shot. I feel better with it on my hands than the other options I’ve used. And outside of the craziness of a deadlift bar, my hands aren’t destroyed from using it either.
As mentioned, Spider Chalk makes a few different options, including their liquid chalk, bagged chalk, and block chalks. So make sure to take the notes above into consideration for what will be the right chalk for you.
The Best Chalk For Powerlifters
The Garage Gym Competition is, of course, a powerlifting competition. And since we have the best chalk for powerlifters, it only made sense to reach out and partner with Spider Chalk for the GGC. They have joined the ranks of our sponsors for the 2023 Fall event. They’ll be handing out a block of chalk FOR FREE to anyone who wants it via our newsletter (if you missed it, this is why we’ve been telling you to sign up!). And on top of that, each of our Top Athletes is going to take home their favorite chalk item as part of their winnings.
Make sure to snag some Spider Chalk for the 2023 Fall Garage Gym Competition as you eye down that next PR!
January 17, 2023 @ 9:39 am
Just your average garage gym lifter with a love of lifting that is substantially more then my numbers represent. I have used only two brands of chalk over the last ten years. To be honest I didn’t think there was much of a difference between them until I ran out and bought a different brand.
The gym I used to go to before becoming a garage gym granny did not allow chalk so the liquid version is what I used to sneak in.
1. Fit Grip Liquid Chalk I purchased a large bottle and it lasted for several years. This product went on easily and dried quickly with no mess left behind.
2. Liquid Grip says on the bottle that it is made in the USA. I purchased this from the Rogue website. This was much thicker and took forever to dry and even harder to get off the hands. I had to scrub my hands with the nail scrubber to get it completely off my hands. The mess it left on my bars required deep cleaning. I didn’t even finish this bottle I went in search of my old chalk.
Thanks to a previous purchase log at Amazon I found this.
3. Sports Medic liquid chalk this is what I am currently using. Smells good and dries quickly and cleanups are a breeze. When I finish this container I will give one of these a try. Thanks for sharing your info.
January 17, 2023 @ 3:21 pm
Very interesting about the Liquid Grip. The White Widow has some staying power, but a quick rinse and scrub and its gone. No need to file away at the hands. It also has a nice scent, smells like peppermint to me.