Explosive traps and pulling power, wide and violent.
Let the legs and hips launch the bar first. The arms only finish the pull, they don't start it.
The wide grip makes the traps work overtime, because your elbows travel higher and wider than a standard pull, and the finishing shrug comes from a longer starting stretch. The back and core hold the flat hinge position, the hamstrings load the powerful hip drive, and the shoulders help steer the bar up the body. It is a favourite for building explosive pulling power and yoked traps without needing to catch anything.
An upright row is a slow, strict arm pull. The high pull is a violent full-body movement where the legs and hips launch the bar and the arms just finish it. Treat it like a jump with a bar in your hands, not a row.
Aim for chest height with the elbows up and out, but only as high as your leg drive earns. If you are muscling it up with your arms to hit a height, drop the weight.
Yes, they are one of the best trap builders around. The wide grip puts the traps under a long stretch and the explosive shrug loads them harder than shrugging alone ever will.
