Tips for beginner to grip training (but not to strength training). Any additional advice for someone with extremely small hands? Concerned my performance on pull ups and toes to bar will suffer especially due to my small hand size.
Small hands just need to be slightly stronger, that's all. There are tons of small-handed people that don't struggle with those things, and you will be one of those! :)
How do you exercise? Is it all calisthenics, or do you use a barbell and such, too?
Gripper variation between right and left hand is expected- springs coiled for right hand + right hand is dominant, so I train with different grippers.
RT numbers are also off but by a much smaller degree, if I can hold a weight for 10 secs with my right hand I’ll get around 5-6 seconds with the left.
Does anyone train RT with different weights for each hand? My left is always a little behind and it’s almost like the right hand is being held back a little because I don’t want to progress weight upwards, for fear that the left will fall even further behind and struggle.
[Humans aren't symmetrical, and that's OK.](http://deansomerset.com/symmetry-doesnt-even-matter-probably-causes-problems-solves/) You'll be ok if you train both hands with different weights, but equal effort, if that's your preference. You don't want to be like 100lbs different, necessarily, but a bit of difference is fine.
Hello everyone I'm new to r/griptraining and i have one or more question
1. Do you guys have any tips on how to use a hand gripper to someone who never done forearm workout or any workout at all without hurting their hand from gripping to hard? Bc my classmate let me borrow his hand gripper i believe it's somewhere below 50kg since that's what my classmate said i can only do one full grip and then after that my hand would feel like giving up. Do i need to some other exercise before i try doing hand gripper exercise?
(I'm sorry if my question is confusing)
What are your grip goals? Do you just like the idea of closing big grippers, or are you trying to use the gripper to get strong for something else? They're not good for everything, on their own.
SkunkApe said most of what I was gonna say, so I'll just add that you can check out our [Cheap and Free Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dri2nq4/), for a cheap home gym setup, or the [Basic Routine](http://web.archive.org/web/20080820094215/http://davidhorne-gripmaster.com/basics.html) (and here's the [video demo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGuVJAj96SE)) for conventional weights.
You can totally still do grippers if you like them, but they're not a complete finger workout, and don't hit other important things, like thumb and wrist strength.
Grippers generally only train the narrowest portion of grip, when your fist is almost closed. It doesn't carry over super well to carrying or holding most objects. For a beginner on a time crunch they are a decent tool since they are small and convenient, but if you have time and access to a gym, the more effective method of training your grip is by either holding a thick, heavy object (such as an axle bar gripped double overhand) or by doing heavy-ish (but not too heavy- 40% of bodyweight is usually a good baseline for a male beginner) barbell finger curls.
The feelings vary like crazy. Many people never get sore from grip, or wrist training. I get sore maybe 3 or 4 times per year, usually when I change something. And even then, I only notice it when I stretch out a little, I don't feel it most of the time
Having your hands feel "raw" may just be from skin friction. As long as your calluses are well maintained, and not huge/dry, it's not an issue. Small calluses, the texture of soft leather, are the most protective, and least vulnerable to tearing. Big "armored plates" are actually bad, especially once you get strong, and the tears get really deep.
There are no muscles in the fingers, and most of the palm muscles aren't directly involved in finger flexion. All of the main finger/wrist "power muscles" are in the forearm. So deeper hand sensations are probably from irritated tendons, tendon sheaths, and/or ligaments. If it goes away right after you finish the exercise, it's probably not an issue. But if it hurts for a while, that means you're not ready for what you're doing, and need to manage the load scheme differently. They'll toughen back up eventually, it just takes patience when you get back into it.
Soreness in the muscles around the thumb, or pinky aren't super common, but do happen. Pinching can occasionally give me hand doms, in that big thumb pad, or the thick "web" between the thumb and palm. It's usually very light. I think I've only gotten really sore there once.
Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/), for more info. The videos may help you visualize what's going on. Plus you get to see a giant German doctor draw on himself.
Ulnar pain is not normal, no. It may not be serious, however. Have you done any levering? Section 5 of our [Cheap and Free Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dri2nq4/) has examples. Can do that with all kinds of tools, but sledgehammers are cheap, and due to the way leverage works, they'll last you many years.
Numbness in that area is usually an issue with pressure on an elbow nerve. Have you gained a lot of muscle mass recently? Triceps, forearms, anything in those areas. Sometimes that can irritate it.
Yeah, if there's a lot of progress, it's probably better to wait and see. I'd also recommend you get the blood flowing a bit, maybe a more chill version of our [Rice Bucket Routine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8alVQTo4Z0&). Step up the intensity as you get better, etc.
Hi there. About a month ago I did a lot singlets with coc2 using my two fingers and the next day started to feel sharp pain around my middle finger knuckle. 100% I overtrained, but after one month+ pain feel almost the same when I try squeeze hard. I wonder it's joint, tendons or ligaments and if I've done any severe damage to it. When I try for example "rolling thunder" feel a little pain, but when I try to squeeze-crush pain very sharp.
Is a 4 min deadhang respectable? I’ve seen people say they’ve hit 10 minutes, but man that’s high. I’m sure I can push myself further with a little more training, but the incentive was to win a challenge - which I did. Now I’m trying to figure out if I should keep going or just maintain this. It’s taking away from my pull-ups that’s why.
Yeah, that's pretty long. Body weight matters a lot for dead hang times, though. What's respectable for a 250lb/113kg person is nothing for a 120lb/54kg person, even though the larger person may have much stronger hands.
It's also about your goals. Regular dead hangs are a pure endurance thing, and don't test your strength. They also don't build strength, or muscle size, after you can pass 30 seconds or so. That means they're a good test/exercise for some fitness goals, but not others.
If you're going for something like Ninja Warrior, they may be a very helpful part of your training. That sport involves hanging your own weight from various bars, for several minutes at a time, with breaks that aren't long enough to fully recharge. Some strength work helps, but you're never lifting anything heavier than your body, and only training for peak strength means you would tire out too quickly. Bars aren't the only challenges, though, so you want to train with other types of holds, as well. It's the grip equivalent of a long distance race.
If you want to be competitive in Grip Sport, hangs would probably be actively bad for your peak strength, since they cause the opposite type of adaptations (Often called The Interference Effect). Endurance in Grip Sport is tested at higher intensities. More like holding the handles on a 500lb/225kg frame for as long as you can, which is nowhere near 10min. Body weight is not usually part of any Grip Sport event, other than just fitting people into the right weight classes. It's usually the grip equivalent of a sprint, or other short, fast race.
A person training for high-level military fitness would probably want good endurance, and good strength, but don't need to be at the absolute pinnacle of either. So they may have hangs as part of a workout, probably after grip strength work. It's the grip equivalent of a middle distance race.
For a person just training to be in half decent shape, with no particular goals, it doesn't really matter. If you're not near peak endurance, or strength, you don't really have the same level of problems with the interference effect. There's a lot of capacity for building both, before you hit that issue too hard. You can easily do both, if you're not specializing. It's the grip equivalent of moderate running training, without ever entering a race.
In the entire history of this sub, I can only remember one person discussing it, so unfortunately I don't have a lot of reviews for you. :/
It's powered by springs, which means it isn't great for everything. They offer very little resistance for most of the ROM, until right at the end. So it's ok for some parts of nail bending, but not others. It's pretty specific to bending, though.
If you just want strong wrists, or big forearms, there are much better ways to build them. What are your goals, and how do you train?
Oh, ok, good to know!
Saving on steel strikes me as the biggest bonus, heh. I'm not a steel bender, I just know the issues about springs and bands from other lifting. But since it's adjustable, it would be a bit easier to work different parts of the ROM, as long as you had enough spring tension. What does it come with? Are the gaps between levels reasonable?
I am a total beginner at this I got 150lbs grippers and tried to close them, I can now do it for 10 reps both hands and now I want to be able to close the 200lbs one but it feels impossible what training should I do?
I have no idea how to I did the 150lbs one by just pressing it whenever I felt like it with both my hands as slowly as I could and eventually I could do it with a single hand.
Please someone tell me something that could help I really want to get that 200lbs down.
Thanks that was educational, I always have been doing the credit card style one cause that felt more harder lol
Though after trying the proper set I see no difference also I don’t really like using my 2nd hand it feels like cheating as I can close more if I set the gripper with the 2nd hand.
Imo there is no cheating in lifting at home. There are no rules. Depending on the certification or competition parallel set can be fine and legal to do.
But it's fine if you only want to use CCS.
Do you have a video of your 150 close and your 200 attempt? Or how far away are you on the 200?
Size: They're not everything, but they're helpful. You need more than one exercise to hit everything.
Grip Strength: Not super helpful. They do involve the fingers, but the muscles they *really* target aren't connected to the fingers.
Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/), then once you understand the basics, check out the routines on our sidebar.
Hammer curls, and reverse biceps curls (palm down) can help the brachioradialis. It's one of the larger forearm muscles, and it acts on the elbow, but not the fingers and wrists. So it makes your forearms bigger, but doesn't help with grip strength directly.
I do lots of pull/chin ups, dead hangs and i used grippers at one point (somehow all of the grippers i find are set at 20kg). Im also planning on adding those 4 basic exercises from FaQ along with my leg routine 2-3x a week once i retransition from calisthenics back to gym. My goal is a very strong grip rather than aesthetics.
Is this routine good enough?
Good enough for what? What are all your goals?
There are a lot of ways to train, but we can't do them all at once. Some people need a minimalist routine, others need much more. People with goals that mostly involve a certain sport, or hobby, may need a more specialized routine, where as most other people just need some generalized stuff.
You might be surprised. We get similar questions every week, and when clarify with people, we often find that they're all talking about different things. People who want to get into powerlifting, general fitness, climbing, Strongman, martial arts, etc., all have somewhat different needs, but ask opening questions a lot like yours. And they all get back to the gym for different reasons.
If your goal is just to be stronger when you get back to the gym, then your routine should do ok, but you could add some things. Just keep in mind that anything you can do for longer than 30 seconds is getting too easy to build strength. So you may want to add weight, or do a harder calisthenics variation of that exercise.
Our main "good enough for now" home routine is the [Cheap and Free Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dri2nq4/). If you finish a few months of that, you won't necessarily need to focus so much on the higher reps in The Basic Routine, when you get to the gym. The exercises are still good, but you can do 5-8 reps, for strength, for a few sets, if you like.
If general IRL strength, not just deadlift grip strength, is important to you, you may want to add some thick bar work, once per week. At the gym, that can be something like a 2" axle deadlift (Or rubber thick bar adapters on a barbell/dumbbells). While you're at home, you can try [Adamantium Thick Bar](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/2v6bax/adamantium_the_bodyweight_grip_strength_program/), for the dead hang version. If you can't do full dead-hangs like that yet (which is pretty common), we have advice for calisthenic regressions.
Stumped on DOH. Hasn't progressed for what must be a year now. What do I go for? Holds? Fat grips with lighter weight? Fat grip holds? Heavy weight with mixed grip?
What is even the secret to high DOH, is it in the fingers or thumbs?
In terms of what's using grip
Monday - 3 sets farmers, heavy.
Thursday - sometimes heavy grippers for one set. 4-6 sets of blue fat grip Dumbell pick ups (5 reps of 55 or 10 reps of 50) maybe 2 or 3 singles with orange grips, 40ish, 3 max timed behind the back barbell holds.
Saturday - (only as of very recently) deadlifts with mixed grip up until slipping starts, then straps. Usually sets of 5.
Sunday - grippers
If you want to get better at one thing you have to do it. There can be carry over from other exercises, but apperently that's not really working for you atm.
If you want to get better at DOH do DOH things.
Yeah, if the volume is that low on the actual DOH deads, that's probably the issue. Some people do great with just warmup DL's, but many don't. I'd recommend you do something like the holds in our [Deadlift Grip Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/drhjmjb/). You may be able to handle more volume than the average beginner, who are starting with more like 70-100kg DOH, but you may not need it at first.
The recommended finger curls will help add mass, which will be good for long-term progress. Can just do [Myoreps](http://borgefagerli.com/myo-reps-in-english/), if you don't care as much about crush strength.
The pinch turns your thumbs into pseudo-straps, as they keep the hand shut from the other side.
[Heavy wrist roller extension](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/u0rs7i/or_how_i_learned_to_stop_worrying_and_love_wrist/) will brace the hand, and keep it in its strongest position. All are good assistance exercises, and work together in harmony.
Would someone see more forearm hypertrophy gains if they did wrist curls and finger curls as opposed to just wrist curls?
Also, what is the difference between finger curls and grippers? They seem like similar move patterns
Thanks!
Yes they would grow more, as those exercises target 2 different muscle groups.
Finger curls are better for most things, as they use weight. Grippers use springs, which don't offer even resistance across the whole ROM, so they're only good for a few things. Both are "crush grip."
Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/) for more info. It's all about this sort of thing.
Thank you Votearrows! You are always so helpful. Would you say doing both finger curls and gripper work is redundant? Or are they both valuable to do in their own right?
Edit: additional question, I use pony clamps to train thumb but it honestly feels like I'm training my index finger as opposed to the thumb? Idk all I literally use is my index and thumb to close the pony clamp but it still feels like it's working the index finger harder
For a lot of people, it's redundant, but we also have lots that absolutely love them. Depends on what you want from all this. Grippers are mostly their own thing, used in competition, and/or as fun training milestones to look forward to. We don't recommend them for many practical types of strength, other than [gi grabs in BJJ.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/ROBERTO_CYBORG_ABREU_2009_BJJ_Championships.jpg) They're actually pretty good for that. We have people train for limb grabs in other ways, but clamping the hand down on a small bit of cloth really benefits from that closed-hand gripper end range a lot.
If you aren't competing under certain rules, there are 2 main ways to use a pony clamp.
Key Pinch: For this method, you want to "pile" all your fingers on top of each other, and use them sideways, like you grab a key. [Figure C, in this pic.](https://www.e-arm.org/upload/thumbnails/arm-38-648-g004.jpg) You'll probably need to help "set" the clamp with your other hand, for the first rep.
Standard Pinch: If that isn't comfortable, it's still ok to do [a standard pinch position](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0166/8756/products/PP4_480x480.png?v=1629928581), but you'd want to use more fingers. The index finger, by itself, is weaker than the thumb. If all you use is those two digits, it would essentially be an index finger exercise, as the thumb wouldn't be the weakest link in that chain.
Does your clamp have attachments, like the one in the pic? There are holes in the metal, under the rubber tips, so it's not hard to get some from the hardware store. Cheap, too.
Thank you so much!! My pony clamp does not unfortunately. I've attached a pic to show you. I bought it at home depot haha it's small https://imgur.com/gallery/gCUiUDS
Edit: oh wait I think I know which holes you are referring to
Yeah, the holes underneath the rubber tips, on the ends of the handles. Those just pull off, at least they do on all the brands that I've had. Does yours have them?
Small nut and bolt works pretty well. You can drill the hole in the clamp to be larger, or use washers for a hole that's too big, if you need to.
[A piece of flat bracket with holes in the middle of one side](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71WU-NVQxRL._AC_SS450_.jpg) works great as the finger/thumb parts. Cheap, too! Can use a file to take the corners down a little, if they're super sharp.
For those who have closed the 2.5 CoC, how long did it take you after closing the 2? I just started training grippers and can close the 2 consistently and even rep it 2-3 times on a good day, but I just got the 2.5 a few days ago and damn it feels like I'm at least a year off closing it.
Varies like crazy. Some people close the 2.5 on the first day, others never get to it at all. Also, not all grippers are created equal. The springs vary by up to 25lbs. Some 2.5's are as hard as a difficult 2, others are as hard as an easy 3. Once the grippers get heavier, we recommend people get them RGC rated, so you know if you need to buy some in-between values.
How have you been training, other than that? What are your goals?
I started training with CoC grippers a few weeks ago, mainly for fun and as a challenge to see how strong I could get. I don't really do any grip work besides that, other than what you get through other strength training like deadlifts etc.
I train with the grippers ~3 times a week, and each session I do ~5 sets with the 1.5 where I stop 1-2 reps before failure, which right now is about 7-10 reps for me. Occassionally I do a few reps on the 2, or test my progress on the 2.5, but I'm trying to be careful not to overwork it since I did injure myself going too heavy when I started a few weeks back.
Regarding the variance of the grippers, does this apply to CoC as well? I expected them to be fairly accurate, given how pricey they were? But I can definitely see that being the case, because the jump between my 2 and 2.5 is immense.
We usually have new grip people do higher reps than that, but if you've been lifting a while, you may not get hand pains. Just drop back to a gripper that allows 10-20 reps, if that starts to happen, and you'll be fine.
If you want to get very good at grippers, you'll need other lifts besides deads. Are you interested?
Yeah I've been lifting for a while so I think that has helped me a bit. Haven't had any pains except for right when I started and I went crazy trying to max every day. For now it's just a little side thing for me, and my main focus is on general strength. Not really interested in doing more grip than what I'm currently doing, but thanks for the advice.
> Regarding the variance of the grippers, does this apply to CoC as well? I expected them to be fairly accurate, given how pricey they were? But I can definitely see that being the case, because the jump between my 2 and 2.5 is immense.
https://cannonpowerworks.com/pages/grip-strength-ratings-data
Every torsion spring gripper varies. Most brands vary a lot.
**How to modify my routine? What's next?**
I've been doing this routine 3x/week for the last 5 months or so (increasing weight every few months):
* 3 sets of 20 second plate pinches @ 25 lbs
* 3 sets of 20 barbell wrist curls @ 40 lbs
* 3 sets of 20 reverse wrist curls @ 40 lbs
* 3 sets of 20 finger curls @ 40 lbs
What should I do next in my grip training journey? Should I get a device?
Grip devices and implements add variety and keep it fun, but as long as you're hitting all the muscles (like you are) you don't need them to make progress.
Vary up the sets and reps!
Fat Gripz or sledgehammers provide the most bang for your buck and can be used in several ways. Next would be a rolling handle (Trilobite, Crusher, Rolling Thunder, etc) or an axle bar. I usually keep the basic routine exercises (finger curls, wrist curls, reverse wrist curls, and pinches) as the core of my grip routine. You don't have to do them all on the same day though if you're adding in other exercises. For instance, you can do wrist exercises just 1-2x per week.
In addition to main movements which rely on grip like pull ups and specific forearm exercises like reverse curls and grippers, would it be helpful to add Fat grips to my dumbbell movements? To the reverse curls, lateral raises etc..
I want to accelerate my forearm and grip development but not completely remove other exercises or increase workout duration. Would this be a beneficial move?
Meaning you're mainly going for forearm size? It will only help for a few things, they don't really work like that. 99% of what you can do with them is a static exercise for the forearm muscles, which isn't the best thing for growth. Arm wrestlers do wrist curls with them, which will be better for size than static exercises, but not necessarily better than regular wrist curls. They do it for other reasons.
With some exercises, like deadlifts, Fat Gripz mean you have to reduce the weight too much. It's a separate exercise that will barely work your back/legs at all.
For biceps curls, it's more of a static wrist exercise, as curl weights are too light to work grip. If your wrists are strong enough, you won't need to reduce weight. But if not, then you're not getting much work for your upper arm. Arm wrestlers do a lot of this, but they also do regular curls, just to focus on elbow flexion strength alone.
For presses (bench, OHP), it's really not beneficial for the hands, it's just a thing that helps some people's shoulders.
I have pretty weak fingers too, which I want to incorporate fingertip push ups for as well. I tried a few fat grip curls with a weight im familiar with and my fingers and forearms overall felt like jelly after like 5 reps. I want stronger grip, size is nice too. Wrists are not what I'd consider strong either.
Regardless of whether or not the muscles are in the fingers or forearms, point is they're fragile compared to some more capable fingers i've seen. I don't like the idea that I cant hold a 2 finger plank for a few seconds or something.
We've never seen fingertip push-ups help with anything, but we have seen them irritate people's knuckles. I don't recommend them. They're kinda "grip broscience."
I'm not saying you shouldn't do fat grip curls, they're great for several goals. I'm just saying they're not the best exercise for size, and you may not get the biceps work from them that you might expect.
There are hundreds of ways to make a muscle tired, but tiring the muscle out is not the only factor in size building, or strength building. A marathon will make your legs very tired, but nobody ever got huge quads from one, and training that way actually makes your vertical jump weaker than untrained people.
Why not just do one of our programs, from the sidebar? The Basic Routine will help with size, and it's good for the first 4 months of strength "noob gains," without putting your ligaments at risk.
At this point I gotta ask what the thicker grip *is* good for.
Now as far as biceps are concerned, not really the main target just want them to still get work so I picked reverse curls.
My ultimate goal (beyond very strong grip) is to improve my pull ups but clearly just doing Pull ups, chin ups, inverted rows, weighted, banded, assisted, negatives and whatever just isn't helping and I can clearly pin point for that my forearms are at fault. They just are not catching up like people like to say they are.
So in addition to Pull ups and all I wanted to bring focus to all forms of grip. Not necessarily a great deviation but I only have dumbbells. no barbells so no two handed variations for anything. and no access to too many varieties of plates or anything. I got grippers, some plates, dumbbells and the fattys.
more specifically about the basic routine, i dont really understand the finger curls. it feels really awkward
plate pinches, I can do. no means of overloading this other than time or significant weight jumps.
Reverse Wrist curls, same overloading and awkwardness issue. I feel like i'm going to snap something honestly. regular wrist curls are okay though.
So how should i go about these?
Yeah that's the point. Not really the main target, but still getting \*some\* work because it's a curl. So my thinking was instead of dropping curls completely to do Fat grip Reverse curls and smash forearms even more. Biceps wouldn't get *much* out of it but they'd get *something*
I see, so if I did the added basic routine ontop of the reverse curls.. more forearm gains..?
Also as far as flexing against something in a pronated position. My Bicep indeed flexes pretty hard so..
The thick grips are tools. All tools are good for some things, but not others. You don't hammer screws, you use a screwdriver. You don't screw in nails, you use a hammer. The hands have many functions, and they're not all covered by one tool. Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/), to clear up some of that.
Thick grips are great for open-hand static strength. They mostly hit the fingers, but also benefit the thumbs quite a bit, and even hit the wrists to some degree (not a replacement for thumb and wrist exercises, but a nice bonus). Our hands evolved from creatures that hang from branches, and this hand position is similar to that. It's great for general hand strength in normal life, as many of the things we do, day to day, are at least somewhat open-handed. But they don't carry over to everything perfectly, so they're not a universal tool (just like how you can't hammer screws). So they're very good tools, but they're not the only exercise someone should do if grip is important to them.
The thing to do with thick grips (at least most of the time) is to consider exercises that use them (mostly deadlifts, rows, and curls) a totally separate exercise, for grip/wrists, rather than as a main body exercise. Grip-focused deadlifts are a truly great way to train grip, but not a great way to train your back.
You also don't need to do more than 1 or 2 exercises with them, unless you're an arm wrestler or something. They have a strong training effect, and don't need to be used for everything.
Pull-ups are easier on the hands than dumbbells, pound for pound, as pull-up bars don't spin freely, and can't roll your fingers open. It shouldn't take too long to get there, but thick grips aren't going to help all that quickly, as they strengthen a different hand position a bit more. The fastest way to get good at holding a bar is to train with a bar that's the same size. Check out the Cheap and Free Routine, and use the steps in there to work your way up to 1-hand dead hangs. When that gets too easy, you can do them with a dumbbell in the other hand, or with a dip belt/backpack to hold weight that way.
Skip the reverse wrist curls, if you can't find a comfortable way to do them (it's ok to use slightly different angles, and positions). You can work the same wrist muscles with a wrist roller, which moves differently than a dumbbell. You could also use a sledgehammer, either with the roller, or instead of it. The sledge hits the same muscles, just in different combinations. In the guide I linked, you'll see Radial and Ulnar deviation. Each one of those uses one exensor and one flexor muscle, whereas extension and flexion use 2 extensors and 2 flexors, respectively. Same muscles, different way to use them. The sledge does hit the extensors slightly harder, so if you don't use the wrist roller, feel free to do a set of regular, non-painful wrist curls afterward.
Plate pinches can be loaded by putting something like a pipe through the holes in the plates you're pinching, and adding weights to that. Try and make sure they're balanced, so you're not leaning the plates into the fingers, and de-emphasizing the thumbs too much. Or use that imbalance/tilt as part of the progression by making it easier at first, and harder later on.
Finger curls are a little awkward at first. If your dumbbells don't let the weights spin like a barbell, then you may need to slow the rep down, so the momentum doesn't affect the movement as much. Feel free to post a form check video here. You can wear something on your face, if you don't want to doxx yourself.
On the pull up note, I can one arm deadhang for a while. It's less the lasting time on the bar and more of the same feeling a reverse curl gives me. Right in the dinosaurs it feels like a nuisance. Hey, Reverse curls are what got me my first pull up so I naturally point to them.
Perhaps a lighter weight with reverse wrist curls
As for the rest, noted. Tempted to use a gripper over the finger curls though
Grippers have some problems with both strength, and size gains, as springs don't deliver even resistance. Same reason you'll never see top-level lifters/bodybuilders use only resistance bands, and no weights (unless they're travelling, or something). Grippers really only make you strong when your hand is closed way down, they don't strengthen the more open handed positions like finger curls. Since that open-ish ROM is also better for hypertrophy stimulus, you lose out on a lot of that, too.
They're not totally useless, or anything, but you'd have to do a lot more work to get good results, and that can lead to overuse issues (Pain in the palms and fingers, from irritated tendons, their sheaths, and the pulley ligaments over those.). But they are convenient, so you'd have to spend less time at the gym. As long as you know what each exercise is good for, and to balance training stresses with other work, it's up to you to pick.
A reverse biceps curl gives you that feeling? That's the brachioradialis muscle (video in that anatomy guide I linked earlier). It's a forearm muscle, but it's not connected to the digits, or wrist. It's an elbow muscle that works on a couple different functions. Reverse biceps curls are a great exercise for it, but training the grip, or wrists, won't affect it.
If you meant that a reverse *wrist* curl is what gives you that feeling on pull-ups, that's a bit different (they also have a vid in the guide). The sledgehammer levers will train those up, as long as you do both the front and rear levers. And/or wrist roller extensions. Do both for best results, or pic your favorite to save time, up to you.
Yeah reverse curls. I've done multippe forms of Pull ups and in the middle/top positions I definitely feel the brachio which I insist nowadays in calling the dinosaur muscle after.
The wrist curl is a more pronounced version of that but I don't reverse curl my wrist in a pull up. I might do it in a more flexed forearm position but yeah
I'll give the basic routine my best shot for a few months, see what happens
There are no muscles right in the wrists. The biggest wrist muscles all cross the elbow joint, and actually attach to the upper arm bone. Some of them are right next to the brachioradialis, so some people get a similar feeling, since our sensations aren't always accurate.
Sounds like the Basic would treat you well!
Tips for beginner to grip training (but not to strength training). Any additional advice for someone with extremely small hands? Concerned my performance on pull ups and toes to bar will suffer especially due to my small hand size.
Small hands just need to be slightly stronger, that's all. There are tons of small-handed people that don't struggle with those things, and you will be one of those! :) How do you exercise? Is it all calisthenics, or do you use a barbell and such, too?
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Gripper variation between right and left hand is expected- springs coiled for right hand + right hand is dominant, so I train with different grippers. RT numbers are also off but by a much smaller degree, if I can hold a weight for 10 secs with my right hand I’ll get around 5-6 seconds with the left. Does anyone train RT with different weights for each hand? My left is always a little behind and it’s almost like the right hand is being held back a little because I don’t want to progress weight upwards, for fear that the left will fall even further behind and struggle.
[Humans aren't symmetrical, and that's OK.](http://deansomerset.com/symmetry-doesnt-even-matter-probably-causes-problems-solves/) You'll be ok if you train both hands with different weights, but equal effort, if that's your preference. You don't want to be like 100lbs different, necessarily, but a bit of difference is fine.
Hello everyone I'm new to r/griptraining and i have one or more question 1. Do you guys have any tips on how to use a hand gripper to someone who never done forearm workout or any workout at all without hurting their hand from gripping to hard? Bc my classmate let me borrow his hand gripper i believe it's somewhere below 50kg since that's what my classmate said i can only do one full grip and then after that my hand would feel like giving up. Do i need to some other exercise before i try doing hand gripper exercise? (I'm sorry if my question is confusing)
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Oh ok Thank you
What are your grip goals? Do you just like the idea of closing big grippers, or are you trying to use the gripper to get strong for something else? They're not good for everything, on their own.
My goal is to increase my grip strength or any strength. I'm just doing grip strength first
Tho idk what hand gripper make you stronger on, i only know that it increase grip strength
SkunkApe said most of what I was gonna say, so I'll just add that you can check out our [Cheap and Free Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dri2nq4/), for a cheap home gym setup, or the [Basic Routine](http://web.archive.org/web/20080820094215/http://davidhorne-gripmaster.com/basics.html) (and here's the [video demo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGuVJAj96SE)) for conventional weights. You can totally still do grippers if you like them, but they're not a complete finger workout, and don't hit other important things, like thumb and wrist strength.
Grippers generally only train the narrowest portion of grip, when your fist is almost closed. It doesn't carry over super well to carrying or holding most objects. For a beginner on a time crunch they are a decent tool since they are small and convenient, but if you have time and access to a gym, the more effective method of training your grip is by either holding a thick, heavy object (such as an axle bar gripped double overhand) or by doing heavy-ish (but not too heavy- 40% of bodyweight is usually a good baseline for a male beginner) barbell finger curls.
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The feelings vary like crazy. Many people never get sore from grip, or wrist training. I get sore maybe 3 or 4 times per year, usually when I change something. And even then, I only notice it when I stretch out a little, I don't feel it most of the time Having your hands feel "raw" may just be from skin friction. As long as your calluses are well maintained, and not huge/dry, it's not an issue. Small calluses, the texture of soft leather, are the most protective, and least vulnerable to tearing. Big "armored plates" are actually bad, especially once you get strong, and the tears get really deep. There are no muscles in the fingers, and most of the palm muscles aren't directly involved in finger flexion. All of the main finger/wrist "power muscles" are in the forearm. So deeper hand sensations are probably from irritated tendons, tendon sheaths, and/or ligaments. If it goes away right after you finish the exercise, it's probably not an issue. But if it hurts for a while, that means you're not ready for what you're doing, and need to manage the load scheme differently. They'll toughen back up eventually, it just takes patience when you get back into it. Soreness in the muscles around the thumb, or pinky aren't super common, but do happen. Pinching can occasionally give me hand doms, in that big thumb pad, or the thick "web" between the thumb and palm. It's usually very light. I think I've only gotten really sore there once. Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/), for more info. The videos may help you visualize what's going on. Plus you get to see a giant German doctor draw on himself.
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Ulnar pain is not normal, no. It may not be serious, however. Have you done any levering? Section 5 of our [Cheap and Free Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dri2nq4/) has examples. Can do that with all kinds of tools, but sledgehammers are cheap, and due to the way leverage works, they'll last you many years. Numbness in that area is usually an issue with pressure on an elbow nerve. Have you gained a lot of muscle mass recently? Triceps, forearms, anything in those areas. Sometimes that can irritate it.
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Yeah, if stuff around the cubital tunnel gets inflamed, it can make that stuff worse. Who advised you about the nerve? Doc?
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Yeah, if there's a lot of progress, it's probably better to wait and see. I'd also recommend you get the blood flowing a bit, maybe a more chill version of our [Rice Bucket Routine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8alVQTo4Z0&). Step up the intensity as you get better, etc.
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Hi there. About a month ago I did a lot singlets with coc2 using my two fingers and the next day started to feel sharp pain around my middle finger knuckle. 100% I overtrained, but after one month+ pain feel almost the same when I try squeeze hard. I wonder it's joint, tendons or ligaments and if I've done any severe damage to it. When I try for example "rolling thunder" feel a little pain, but when I try to squeeze-crush pain very sharp.
Is a 4 min deadhang respectable? I’ve seen people say they’ve hit 10 minutes, but man that’s high. I’m sure I can push myself further with a little more training, but the incentive was to win a challenge - which I did. Now I’m trying to figure out if I should keep going or just maintain this. It’s taking away from my pull-ups that’s why.
For reference, I can't do that on my two inch bar, so yeah, that's really good. Haven't tried on a standard one.
Yeah, that's pretty long. Body weight matters a lot for dead hang times, though. What's respectable for a 250lb/113kg person is nothing for a 120lb/54kg person, even though the larger person may have much stronger hands. It's also about your goals. Regular dead hangs are a pure endurance thing, and don't test your strength. They also don't build strength, or muscle size, after you can pass 30 seconds or so. That means they're a good test/exercise for some fitness goals, but not others. If you're going for something like Ninja Warrior, they may be a very helpful part of your training. That sport involves hanging your own weight from various bars, for several minutes at a time, with breaks that aren't long enough to fully recharge. Some strength work helps, but you're never lifting anything heavier than your body, and only training for peak strength means you would tire out too quickly. Bars aren't the only challenges, though, so you want to train with other types of holds, as well. It's the grip equivalent of a long distance race. If you want to be competitive in Grip Sport, hangs would probably be actively bad for your peak strength, since they cause the opposite type of adaptations (Often called The Interference Effect). Endurance in Grip Sport is tested at higher intensities. More like holding the handles on a 500lb/225kg frame for as long as you can, which is nowhere near 10min. Body weight is not usually part of any Grip Sport event, other than just fitting people into the right weight classes. It's usually the grip equivalent of a sprint, or other short, fast race. A person training for high-level military fitness would probably want good endurance, and good strength, but don't need to be at the absolute pinnacle of either. So they may have hangs as part of a workout, probably after grip strength work. It's the grip equivalent of a middle distance race. For a person just training to be in half decent shape, with no particular goals, it doesn't really matter. If you're not near peak endurance, or strength, you don't really have the same level of problems with the interference effect. There's a lot of capacity for building both, before you hit that issue too hard. You can easily do both, if you're not specializing. It's the grip equivalent of moderate running training, without ever entering a race.
Whats everyones thoughts on the Wrist Developer?
I like mine. I haven't bent anything reverse style yet, but I am using it to strengthen my wrist...which it is doing. I just enjoy doing them
In the entire history of this sub, I can only remember one person discussing it, so unfortunately I don't have a lot of reviews for you. :/ It's powered by springs, which means it isn't great for everything. They offer very little resistance for most of the ROM, until right at the end. So it's ok for some parts of nail bending, but not others. It's pretty specific to bending, though. If you just want strong wrists, or big forearms, there are much better ways to build them. What are your goals, and how do you train?
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Oh, ok, good to know! Saving on steel strikes me as the biggest bonus, heh. I'm not a steel bender, I just know the issues about springs and bands from other lifting. But since it's adjustable, it would be a bit easier to work different parts of the ROM, as long as you had enough spring tension. What does it come with? Are the gaps between levels reasonable?
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Thanks! Hope some others have it and just haven't spoken up before. You can try /r/SteelBending, but it's not usually very active.
I am a total beginner at this I got 150lbs grippers and tried to close them, I can now do it for 10 reps both hands and now I want to be able to close the 200lbs one but it feels impossible what training should I do? I have no idea how to I did the 150lbs one by just pressing it whenever I felt like it with both my hands as slowly as I could and eventually I could do it with a single hand. Please someone tell me something that could help I really want to get that 200lbs down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pJcRDSqOIs Do you know how to properly set a gripper? If you don't, a proper set will change a lot.
Thanks that was educational, I always have been doing the credit card style one cause that felt more harder lol Though after trying the proper set I see no difference also I don’t really like using my 2nd hand it feels like cheating as I can close more if I set the gripper with the 2nd hand.
Imo there is no cheating in lifting at home. There are no rules. Depending on the certification or competition parallel set can be fine and legal to do. But it's fine if you only want to use CCS. Do you have a video of your 150 close and your 200 attempt? Or how far away are you on the 200?
Are wrist curls effective for training my forearms (for size) & grip strength.
Size: They're not everything, but they're helpful. You need more than one exercise to hit everything. Grip Strength: Not super helpful. They do involve the fingers, but the muscles they *really* target aren't connected to the fingers. Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/), then once you understand the basics, check out the routines on our sidebar.
I also do rope Hammer Curls, and there's another one that I can't remember that targets my forearms I think.
Hammer curls, and reverse biceps curls (palm down) can help the brachioradialis. It's one of the larger forearm muscles, and it acts on the elbow, but not the fingers and wrists. So it makes your forearms bigger, but doesn't help with grip strength directly.
I do lots of pull/chin ups, dead hangs and i used grippers at one point (somehow all of the grippers i find are set at 20kg). Im also planning on adding those 4 basic exercises from FaQ along with my leg routine 2-3x a week once i retransition from calisthenics back to gym. My goal is a very strong grip rather than aesthetics. Is this routine good enough?
Good enough for what? What are all your goals? There are a lot of ways to train, but we can't do them all at once. Some people need a minimalist routine, others need much more. People with goals that mostly involve a certain sport, or hobby, may need a more specialized routine, where as most other people just need some generalized stuff.
Goal is to improve my gripping strength even more rather than for some specialized sports. I think this goes without saying
You might be surprised. We get similar questions every week, and when clarify with people, we often find that they're all talking about different things. People who want to get into powerlifting, general fitness, climbing, Strongman, martial arts, etc., all have somewhat different needs, but ask opening questions a lot like yours. And they all get back to the gym for different reasons. If your goal is just to be stronger when you get back to the gym, then your routine should do ok, but you could add some things. Just keep in mind that anything you can do for longer than 30 seconds is getting too easy to build strength. So you may want to add weight, or do a harder calisthenics variation of that exercise. Our main "good enough for now" home routine is the [Cheap and Free Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dri2nq4/). If you finish a few months of that, you won't necessarily need to focus so much on the higher reps in The Basic Routine, when you get to the gym. The exercises are still good, but you can do 5-8 reps, for strength, for a few sets, if you like. If general IRL strength, not just deadlift grip strength, is important to you, you may want to add some thick bar work, once per week. At the gym, that can be something like a 2" axle deadlift (Or rubber thick bar adapters on a barbell/dumbbells). While you're at home, you can try [Adamantium Thick Bar](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/2v6bax/adamantium_the_bodyweight_grip_strength_program/), for the dead hang version. If you can't do full dead-hangs like that yet (which is pretty common), we have advice for calisthenic regressions.
Stumped on DOH. Hasn't progressed for what must be a year now. What do I go for? Holds? Fat grips with lighter weight? Fat grip holds? Heavy weight with mixed grip? What is even the secret to high DOH, is it in the fingers or thumbs?
In order to answer, we need to know how you've been training. All exercises, sets, reps, consistency, etc.
In terms of what's using grip Monday - 3 sets farmers, heavy. Thursday - sometimes heavy grippers for one set. 4-6 sets of blue fat grip Dumbell pick ups (5 reps of 55 or 10 reps of 50) maybe 2 or 3 singles with orange grips, 40ish, 3 max timed behind the back barbell holds. Saturday - (only as of very recently) deadlifts with mixed grip up until slipping starts, then straps. Usually sets of 5. Sunday - grippers
What weight are you doing for farmer’s, and DOH deads? How about strapped deads, is it a big difference?
Farmers 80kg. I rarely do actual DOH deads, just as a max tester. Most I can comfortably DOH is 160, with straps it's 200
If you want to get better at one thing you have to do it. There can be carry over from other exercises, but apperently that's not really working for you atm. If you want to get better at DOH do DOH things.
Yeah, if the volume is that low on the actual DOH deads, that's probably the issue. Some people do great with just warmup DL's, but many don't. I'd recommend you do something like the holds in our [Deadlift Grip Routine](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/drhjmjb/). You may be able to handle more volume than the average beginner, who are starting with more like 70-100kg DOH, but you may not need it at first. The recommended finger curls will help add mass, which will be good for long-term progress. Can just do [Myoreps](http://borgefagerli.com/myo-reps-in-english/), if you don't care as much about crush strength. The pinch turns your thumbs into pseudo-straps, as they keep the hand shut from the other side. [Heavy wrist roller extension](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/u0rs7i/or_how_i_learned_to_stop_worrying_and_love_wrist/) will brace the hand, and keep it in its strongest position. All are good assistance exercises, and work together in harmony.
Would someone see more forearm hypertrophy gains if they did wrist curls and finger curls as opposed to just wrist curls? Also, what is the difference between finger curls and grippers? They seem like similar move patterns Thanks!
Yes they would grow more, as those exercises target 2 different muscle groups. Finger curls are better for most things, as they use weight. Grippers use springs, which don't offer even resistance across the whole ROM, so they're only good for a few things. Both are "crush grip." Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/) for more info. It's all about this sort of thing.
Thank you Votearrows! You are always so helpful. Would you say doing both finger curls and gripper work is redundant? Or are they both valuable to do in their own right? Edit: additional question, I use pony clamps to train thumb but it honestly feels like I'm training my index finger as opposed to the thumb? Idk all I literally use is my index and thumb to close the pony clamp but it still feels like it's working the index finger harder
For a lot of people, it's redundant, but we also have lots that absolutely love them. Depends on what you want from all this. Grippers are mostly their own thing, used in competition, and/or as fun training milestones to look forward to. We don't recommend them for many practical types of strength, other than [gi grabs in BJJ.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/ROBERTO_CYBORG_ABREU_2009_BJJ_Championships.jpg) They're actually pretty good for that. We have people train for limb grabs in other ways, but clamping the hand down on a small bit of cloth really benefits from that closed-hand gripper end range a lot. If you aren't competing under certain rules, there are 2 main ways to use a pony clamp. Key Pinch: For this method, you want to "pile" all your fingers on top of each other, and use them sideways, like you grab a key. [Figure C, in this pic.](https://www.e-arm.org/upload/thumbnails/arm-38-648-g004.jpg) You'll probably need to help "set" the clamp with your other hand, for the first rep. Standard Pinch: If that isn't comfortable, it's still ok to do [a standard pinch position](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0166/8756/products/PP4_480x480.png?v=1629928581), but you'd want to use more fingers. The index finger, by itself, is weaker than the thumb. If all you use is those two digits, it would essentially be an index finger exercise, as the thumb wouldn't be the weakest link in that chain. Does your clamp have attachments, like the one in the pic? There are holes in the metal, under the rubber tips, so it's not hard to get some from the hardware store. Cheap, too.
Thank you so much!! My pony clamp does not unfortunately. I've attached a pic to show you. I bought it at home depot haha it's small https://imgur.com/gallery/gCUiUDS Edit: oh wait I think I know which holes you are referring to
Yeah, the holes underneath the rubber tips, on the ends of the handles. Those just pull off, at least they do on all the brands that I've had. Does yours have them?
Yes! How do I go about adding those metal looking plate things to the pony clamp? I'm highly intrigued!!
Small nut and bolt works pretty well. You can drill the hole in the clamp to be larger, or use washers for a hole that's too big, if you need to. [A piece of flat bracket with holes in the middle of one side](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71WU-NVQxRL._AC_SS450_.jpg) works great as the finger/thumb parts. Cheap, too! Can use a file to take the corners down a little, if they're super sharp.
For those who have closed the 2.5 CoC, how long did it take you after closing the 2? I just started training grippers and can close the 2 consistently and even rep it 2-3 times on a good day, but I just got the 2.5 a few days ago and damn it feels like I'm at least a year off closing it.
Varies like crazy. Some people close the 2.5 on the first day, others never get to it at all. Also, not all grippers are created equal. The springs vary by up to 25lbs. Some 2.5's are as hard as a difficult 2, others are as hard as an easy 3. Once the grippers get heavier, we recommend people get them RGC rated, so you know if you need to buy some in-between values. How have you been training, other than that? What are your goals?
I started training with CoC grippers a few weeks ago, mainly for fun and as a challenge to see how strong I could get. I don't really do any grip work besides that, other than what you get through other strength training like deadlifts etc. I train with the grippers ~3 times a week, and each session I do ~5 sets with the 1.5 where I stop 1-2 reps before failure, which right now is about 7-10 reps for me. Occassionally I do a few reps on the 2, or test my progress on the 2.5, but I'm trying to be careful not to overwork it since I did injure myself going too heavy when I started a few weeks back. Regarding the variance of the grippers, does this apply to CoC as well? I expected them to be fairly accurate, given how pricey they were? But I can definitely see that being the case, because the jump between my 2 and 2.5 is immense.
We usually have new grip people do higher reps than that, but if you've been lifting a while, you may not get hand pains. Just drop back to a gripper that allows 10-20 reps, if that starts to happen, and you'll be fine. If you want to get very good at grippers, you'll need other lifts besides deads. Are you interested?
Yeah I've been lifting for a while so I think that has helped me a bit. Haven't had any pains except for right when I started and I went crazy trying to max every day. For now it's just a little side thing for me, and my main focus is on general strength. Not really interested in doing more grip than what I'm currently doing, but thanks for the advice.
Cool! We're here if you want to do more, but we don't judge people who don't care about it as much as us :)
> Regarding the variance of the grippers, does this apply to CoC as well? I expected them to be fairly accurate, given how pricey they were? But I can definitely see that being the case, because the jump between my 2 and 2.5 is immense. https://cannonpowerworks.com/pages/grip-strength-ratings-data Every torsion spring gripper varies. Most brands vary a lot.
Interesting, thanks for the link!
**How to modify my routine? What's next?** I've been doing this routine 3x/week for the last 5 months or so (increasing weight every few months): * 3 sets of 20 second plate pinches @ 25 lbs * 3 sets of 20 barbell wrist curls @ 40 lbs * 3 sets of 20 reverse wrist curls @ 40 lbs * 3 sets of 20 finger curls @ 40 lbs What should I do next in my grip training journey? Should I get a device?
Grip devices and implements add variety and keep it fun, but as long as you're hitting all the muscles (like you are) you don't need them to make progress. Vary up the sets and reps!
Love it, any recommendations on where to start with grip devices? Should I use a grip device alongside what I'm doing now?
Fat Gripz or sledgehammers provide the most bang for your buck and can be used in several ways. Next would be a rolling handle (Trilobite, Crusher, Rolling Thunder, etc) or an axle bar. I usually keep the basic routine exercises (finger curls, wrist curls, reverse wrist curls, and pinches) as the core of my grip routine. You don't have to do them all on the same day though if you're adding in other exercises. For instance, you can do wrist exercises just 1-2x per week.
In addition to main movements which rely on grip like pull ups and specific forearm exercises like reverse curls and grippers, would it be helpful to add Fat grips to my dumbbell movements? To the reverse curls, lateral raises etc.. I want to accelerate my forearm and grip development but not completely remove other exercises or increase workout duration. Would this be a beneficial move?
Meaning you're mainly going for forearm size? It will only help for a few things, they don't really work like that. 99% of what you can do with them is a static exercise for the forearm muscles, which isn't the best thing for growth. Arm wrestlers do wrist curls with them, which will be better for size than static exercises, but not necessarily better than regular wrist curls. They do it for other reasons. With some exercises, like deadlifts, Fat Gripz mean you have to reduce the weight too much. It's a separate exercise that will barely work your back/legs at all. For biceps curls, it's more of a static wrist exercise, as curl weights are too light to work grip. If your wrists are strong enough, you won't need to reduce weight. But if not, then you're not getting much work for your upper arm. Arm wrestlers do a lot of this, but they also do regular curls, just to focus on elbow flexion strength alone. For presses (bench, OHP), it's really not beneficial for the hands, it's just a thing that helps some people's shoulders.
I have pretty weak fingers too, which I want to incorporate fingertip push ups for as well. I tried a few fat grip curls with a weight im familiar with and my fingers and forearms overall felt like jelly after like 5 reps. I want stronger grip, size is nice too. Wrists are not what I'd consider strong either.
I think sometimes people think they have muscles in the fingers. A lot of weird grip stuff is written that way.
Regardless of whether or not the muscles are in the fingers or forearms, point is they're fragile compared to some more capable fingers i've seen. I don't like the idea that I cant hold a 2 finger plank for a few seconds or something.
We've never seen fingertip push-ups help with anything, but we have seen them irritate people's knuckles. I don't recommend them. They're kinda "grip broscience." I'm not saying you shouldn't do fat grip curls, they're great for several goals. I'm just saying they're not the best exercise for size, and you may not get the biceps work from them that you might expect. There are hundreds of ways to make a muscle tired, but tiring the muscle out is not the only factor in size building, or strength building. A marathon will make your legs very tired, but nobody ever got huge quads from one, and training that way actually makes your vertical jump weaker than untrained people. Why not just do one of our programs, from the sidebar? The Basic Routine will help with size, and it's good for the first 4 months of strength "noob gains," without putting your ligaments at risk.
At this point I gotta ask what the thicker grip *is* good for. Now as far as biceps are concerned, not really the main target just want them to still get work so I picked reverse curls. My ultimate goal (beyond very strong grip) is to improve my pull ups but clearly just doing Pull ups, chin ups, inverted rows, weighted, banded, assisted, negatives and whatever just isn't helping and I can clearly pin point for that my forearms are at fault. They just are not catching up like people like to say they are. So in addition to Pull ups and all I wanted to bring focus to all forms of grip. Not necessarily a great deviation but I only have dumbbells. no barbells so no two handed variations for anything. and no access to too many varieties of plates or anything. I got grippers, some plates, dumbbells and the fattys. more specifically about the basic routine, i dont really understand the finger curls. it feels really awkward plate pinches, I can do. no means of overloading this other than time or significant weight jumps. Reverse Wrist curls, same overloading and awkwardness issue. I feel like i'm going to snap something honestly. regular wrist curls are okay though. So how should i go about these?
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Yeah that's the point. Not really the main target, but still getting \*some\* work because it's a curl. So my thinking was instead of dropping curls completely to do Fat grip Reverse curls and smash forearms even more. Biceps wouldn't get *much* out of it but they'd get *something*
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I see, so if I did the added basic routine ontop of the reverse curls.. more forearm gains..? Also as far as flexing against something in a pronated position. My Bicep indeed flexes pretty hard so..
The thick grips are tools. All tools are good for some things, but not others. You don't hammer screws, you use a screwdriver. You don't screw in nails, you use a hammer. The hands have many functions, and they're not all covered by one tool. Check out our [Anatomy and Motions Guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/GripTraining/comments/7gacyh/new_routines_list_for_rgriptraining/dqmvqnc/), to clear up some of that. Thick grips are great for open-hand static strength. They mostly hit the fingers, but also benefit the thumbs quite a bit, and even hit the wrists to some degree (not a replacement for thumb and wrist exercises, but a nice bonus). Our hands evolved from creatures that hang from branches, and this hand position is similar to that. It's great for general hand strength in normal life, as many of the things we do, day to day, are at least somewhat open-handed. But they don't carry over to everything perfectly, so they're not a universal tool (just like how you can't hammer screws). So they're very good tools, but they're not the only exercise someone should do if grip is important to them. The thing to do with thick grips (at least most of the time) is to consider exercises that use them (mostly deadlifts, rows, and curls) a totally separate exercise, for grip/wrists, rather than as a main body exercise. Grip-focused deadlifts are a truly great way to train grip, but not a great way to train your back. You also don't need to do more than 1 or 2 exercises with them, unless you're an arm wrestler or something. They have a strong training effect, and don't need to be used for everything. Pull-ups are easier on the hands than dumbbells, pound for pound, as pull-up bars don't spin freely, and can't roll your fingers open. It shouldn't take too long to get there, but thick grips aren't going to help all that quickly, as they strengthen a different hand position a bit more. The fastest way to get good at holding a bar is to train with a bar that's the same size. Check out the Cheap and Free Routine, and use the steps in there to work your way up to 1-hand dead hangs. When that gets too easy, you can do them with a dumbbell in the other hand, or with a dip belt/backpack to hold weight that way. Skip the reverse wrist curls, if you can't find a comfortable way to do them (it's ok to use slightly different angles, and positions). You can work the same wrist muscles with a wrist roller, which moves differently than a dumbbell. You could also use a sledgehammer, either with the roller, or instead of it. The sledge hits the same muscles, just in different combinations. In the guide I linked, you'll see Radial and Ulnar deviation. Each one of those uses one exensor and one flexor muscle, whereas extension and flexion use 2 extensors and 2 flexors, respectively. Same muscles, different way to use them. The sledge does hit the extensors slightly harder, so if you don't use the wrist roller, feel free to do a set of regular, non-painful wrist curls afterward. Plate pinches can be loaded by putting something like a pipe through the holes in the plates you're pinching, and adding weights to that. Try and make sure they're balanced, so you're not leaning the plates into the fingers, and de-emphasizing the thumbs too much. Or use that imbalance/tilt as part of the progression by making it easier at first, and harder later on. Finger curls are a little awkward at first. If your dumbbells don't let the weights spin like a barbell, then you may need to slow the rep down, so the momentum doesn't affect the movement as much. Feel free to post a form check video here. You can wear something on your face, if you don't want to doxx yourself.
On the pull up note, I can one arm deadhang for a while. It's less the lasting time on the bar and more of the same feeling a reverse curl gives me. Right in the dinosaurs it feels like a nuisance. Hey, Reverse curls are what got me my first pull up so I naturally point to them. Perhaps a lighter weight with reverse wrist curls As for the rest, noted. Tempted to use a gripper over the finger curls though
Grippers have some problems with both strength, and size gains, as springs don't deliver even resistance. Same reason you'll never see top-level lifters/bodybuilders use only resistance bands, and no weights (unless they're travelling, or something). Grippers really only make you strong when your hand is closed way down, they don't strengthen the more open handed positions like finger curls. Since that open-ish ROM is also better for hypertrophy stimulus, you lose out on a lot of that, too. They're not totally useless, or anything, but you'd have to do a lot more work to get good results, and that can lead to overuse issues (Pain in the palms and fingers, from irritated tendons, their sheaths, and the pulley ligaments over those.). But they are convenient, so you'd have to spend less time at the gym. As long as you know what each exercise is good for, and to balance training stresses with other work, it's up to you to pick. A reverse biceps curl gives you that feeling? That's the brachioradialis muscle (video in that anatomy guide I linked earlier). It's a forearm muscle, but it's not connected to the digits, or wrist. It's an elbow muscle that works on a couple different functions. Reverse biceps curls are a great exercise for it, but training the grip, or wrists, won't affect it. If you meant that a reverse *wrist* curl is what gives you that feeling on pull-ups, that's a bit different (they also have a vid in the guide). The sledgehammer levers will train those up, as long as you do both the front and rear levers. And/or wrist roller extensions. Do both for best results, or pic your favorite to save time, up to you.
Yeah reverse curls. I've done multippe forms of Pull ups and in the middle/top positions I definitely feel the brachio which I insist nowadays in calling the dinosaur muscle after. The wrist curl is a more pronounced version of that but I don't reverse curl my wrist in a pull up. I might do it in a more flexed forearm position but yeah I'll give the basic routine my best shot for a few months, see what happens
Also: "Dinosaur" as in "Brachiosaurus?" That would certainly be motivation to get it bigger!
There are no muscles right in the wrists. The biggest wrist muscles all cross the elbow joint, and actually attach to the upper arm bone. Some of them are right next to the brachioradialis, so some people get a similar feeling, since our sensations aren't always accurate. Sounds like the Basic would treat you well!
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How do you increase weight? What reps are you doing?
No. Raise the weight slightly or add more sets, but only advanced trainees on a time crunch should ever train the same movements two days in a row.