[younggun]

I'm kind of joking, but my track coach back in high school had us weight training and told us never to use the manta ray for two reasons:
1) Girls like the crease in your back/traps that the bar gives you over time and
2) You look like a bitch when you use it

Now I'm pretty sure #1 is bullshit and both are pretty garbage reasons, but the last time I squatted I said fuck it and used it. If anyone doesn't know what I'm talking about, here's a picture:



An article on bodybuilding.com the other day had some good things to say

Quote:

The Manta Ray effectively distributes the entire load of the bar over a much larger area of the body than you get with just the bar alone. It works for the same reason that a person wearing snowshoes can walk easily where a person without snowshoes will sink down into the snow: increased surface area. I've found the unique shape of the Manta Ray to be very well-constructed for this purpose.

The article also goes on to talk about the increase in stability, which allows you to maintain better form and decrease the risk of injury. As someone who had a pretty bad lower back injury from squatting about half a year ago, this might be beneficial. But maybe I'm just not using my core effectively?

Clearly I'm not an expert or else I wouldn't be asking this. But is there any reason to use the manta ray that can't be refuted by saying "no pain, no gain?"