The Grip Strength Superthread- Read Here First

[kratz]

Dean22, are you a certified fitness expert or just regurgitating what you heard from someone (your trainer?) or read somewhere? If you are going to defend an opinion that is being challenged by current CF members, I would suggest you provide links to where you are deriving your facts from. Doing so will go a long way to aiding your credability.

 

[George Wallace]

???

I'm not a physical fitness expert, but this sounds like BS to me.  I am sure that there are better ways to improve your grip, such as squeezing a tennis ball or a soft rubber ball, or any other of a number of tools found about a gym or physical fitness facility.  Hanging from a bar for 60 seconds just doesn't cut it in my eyes; nor do chin ups.

By tools in the above quote, I did not mean tools like 'hammers'; but 'tools' found in gyms to specifically exercise muscle groups.  They could be as simple as a soft rubber ball, elastics or springs that one would use to excercise thier hand muscles.  Hanging from a bar does little to exercise these muscle groups.  Chin ups for the most part concentrate on arm muscles; not so much the wrist and hand muscles used in a grip test.

 

[Dean22]

By tools in the above quote, I did not mean tools like 'hammers'; but 'tools' found in gyms to specifically exercise muscle groups.  They could be as simple as a soft rubber ball, elastics or springs that one would use to excercise thier hand muscles.  Hanging from a bar does little to exercise these muscle groups.  Chin ups for the most part concentrate on arm muscles; not so much the wrist and hand muscles used in a grip test.

I have made three posts now saying why hanging from a bar is not an exercise but a gauge. When you hang form a chin up bar with your hands sideways or facing away from you, you are squeezing your hands around the bar(s). The stronger your grip is the longer you can hold on. Without grip, you can't hold on and will simply fall off. In a chin up you increase your grip by holding on and utilizing your arm muscles. Without grip you can't do chin ups and the hold chin ups are specifically designed to increase your grips.

You saying chin ups has nothing to do with grip is laughable when I couldn't do any when I could bench a lot of weight but couldn't do chin ups.

I respect your opinion George but I trust a masters in kinesiology.

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

I respect your opinion George but I trust a masters in kinesiology.

Don't,
I have YET [ in over 30 years of being a gym rat] to see anyone fail to do chin ups because of their grip.....

 

[Dean22]

Don't,
I have YET [ in over 30 years of being a gym rat] to see anyone fail to do chin ups because of their grip.....

Try doing the chin up exercise I suggested. You'll be impressed and amazed at yourself in a few months.

 

[aesop081]

Try doing the chin up exercise I suggested. You'll be impressed and amazed at yourself in a few months.

I'm sure he has chinups and military fitness covered.

You on the other hand....not so much.

 

[Dean22]

I'm sure he has chinups and military fitness covered.

You on the other hand....not so much.

Please, do not troll the forums especially in information threads.

Thank you.

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

Please, do not troll the forums especially in information threads.

Thank you.

Alright Stooge, I've just reviewed your posts and I've had enough of you and the trail of BS/ ruined threads you leave behind.

Last warning, one more bit of kife from you and your gone.
Don't respond.
Bruce
Staff

 

[blacktriangle]

Try doing the chin up exercise I suggested. You'll be impressed and amazed at yourself in a few months.

I've done THOUSANDS of chin ups and pull ups in my life; nevertheless, my grip scores do not reflect my abilities on a bar...

 

[nocknee]

Okay, thanks to the two(2) people who responded to my question. One more and I'll start drawing graphs and finding correlations > Everyone else: sorry for mentioning the chinups!

Redeem yourself Dean22, before they make you armwrestle an admin, what did you score on the dynamometer and what can you deadlift/platepinch?

 

[PMedMoe]

I have YET [ in over 30 years of being a gym rat] to see anyone fail to do chin ups because of their grip.....

And on the opposite side of the fence, I've never failed a grip test, but I can't do a chin up to save my life.  ;D

 

[Soldier1stTradesman2nd]

Don't,
I have YET [ in over 30 years of being a gym rat] to see anyone fail to do chin ups because of their grip.....

Right, but most people fail to do enough chinup reps in a set to cause enough stimulus for growth because of the one weak link in the chain of muscles that are being utilized - for most that is the forearm/hands. In other words, the smaller and weaker "gripping" muscles usually fail well before the biceps, pecs, delts and lats. Thus, as you very well know, many use wrist straps or wrist hooks when doing chinups, pulldowns, rows or deadlifts - to ensure the targeted muscle groups get enough stimulus.
If someone can do enough reps to reach failure of the main musclegroups without using wrist straps, good on them - but likely very rare.
As for recommendations to increase grip strength - not rocket surgery - any exercise where the hand is opened and closed in reps. Suggestions: purpose-built grip strength device with small weights on bottom and handles for palm and fingers (much like the actual testing device)(I have seen one in NDHQ); wrist curls with a barbell allowing the bar to roll to the fingertips and back to closed grip; kettlebell wrist curls same as with barbell on bench or standing up with bell moving up and down opening and closing the hand (close approximation of the test, minus the 45 degree angle).
As the test looks for 2 RM (repetition maximum), one suggestion is to try to lift heavy and few reps (4-6 max).

 

[Dean22]

Okay, thanks to the two(2) people who responded to my question. One more and I'll start drawing graphs and finding correlations > Everyone else: sorry for mentioning the chinups!

Redeem yourself Dean22, before they make you armwrestle an admin, what did you score on the dynamometer and what can you deadlift/platepinch?

After talking to the person I know I recognized that chin ups cannot work for small/light people for grip very well unless you can go to failure.

What I posted were techniques to go to failure easily especially for those struggling with their fitness and who are heavier.

My grip sucked horribly before I started training so I can't tell you what it was before but I do know it improved a lot.

On the hand dynamometer I held it wrong (I had my thumb on the top instead of the thumb/forefinger arch) but I had scored 50kg per hand. For dead lifts the most I have ever done was 300 but I believe that can be mostly attributed to my leg power. 

 

[Smirnoff123]

don't stress, just think about how often use you use your hands. it's pretty hard not to fail.

I think you got that backwards 

 

[zipperhead_cop]

Here ya go:

http://www.ultimategripstrength.com/gripequipment/equipment.php

There are also heaps of devices other than these.  One of the guys I work with has a hand held grip strengthener (looks like the old school stud makers that douche bags used to keep in their glove boxes of their IROC-Z's  ;D but made from stainless steel) that takes 250 lbs to touch the ends together.  It is bananas hard.  But if you were to rail away at it every day, your hands would get strong. 

 

[marlborough]

My advice would be: GO CLIMB A ROCK!

This is by far the easiest, fastest and most fun way to build grip strength (along with uper body, balance and leg strength).

 

[CDN_LoneWolf_CDN]

Gotta agree with marlborough:

GO CLIMB A ROCK!

This is by far the easiest, fastest and most fun way to build grip strength (along with uper body, balance and leg strength).

... but don't forget the unparalleled core workout that comes with all sorts of rock climbing!  For hand grip; I cut up a couple sections of 2x2 and nailed them to the joists in my basement ceiling from which to do forearm chinups.  The beauty of this is that there is only 1.5" of grip space along the top, so it's all fingers- what better way to build hand grip and forearm strength?!

 

[Ascendant]

If you deadlift, use a double overhand grip for as long as you can (until it fails you) before switching to hook or mixed grips. Also, on your last rep, do a static hold at lockout. Static holding a few hundred pounds will do wonders for your grip strength.

You can also do farmer's walks with heavy dumbbells. Try to best your previous weight and/or distance every time.

Also, I haven't read through all the pages, but in the couple I did read, I didn't see the CoC (Captains of Crush) grippers mentioned anywhere.

They're basically the gold standard in grip strength and the training of it.

They ran thege from lowest, the CoC "Guide" (60 lbs), up to the CoC No. 4 (365 lbs).

They certify people for closing the higher ones and only five people have been certified on the No. 4 since 1998, one being a former World's Strongest man winner, Magnus Samuelsson.

Anyway, just another couple suggestions to throw out there.

 

[zipperhead_cop]

Heh.  Around these parts, CoC has quite a different meaning.  However, the devices you are talking about frequently would have quite a bit more "grip" than what we are used to. 

 

[Ascendant]

Yeah I saw that in another part of the forum after I posted. What's the military meaning?

I think the lower poundage CoCs could be beneficial, but I have no actual experience with them. I think they would carry over to the specific testing done, because they are essentially testing the same thing.

From what I do know of them, I'd just put the 2.5-4 in the just bragging rights, "look I did this" category.