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Different Bending Styles


ZFJango

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Hello. I am super new to bending, just a couple of days, and I am interested in the different styles of bending. My questions have to do with the differences between styles as those differences pertain to power and likelihood of injury.

What would the order be from most powerful bending style to least powerful bending style?

Which bending style has the greatest chance of injury to the bender(shoulders, etcetera)?

Oh, and I was wondering about the Vertical style of bending. A buddy sent me a link to Iron Grip World, and I saw the Vertical style there. It seems hardcore. Have any of you tried it? If so, what are your thoughts on where it belongs in the two questions I posed above?

My apologies if these questions have already been answered, but I was unable to find them. Thank you for checking this out.

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Rinderle did a quick rundown years ago.

Thanks, man, but I had already seen the styles. I was hoping for answers to my two questions above. I appreciate the video, though. I got to see the Vertical bend in it.

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The biggest steel has been bent double overhand. Bending is a dangerous activity to begin with, but if you stay light on the wraps and make sure they are very tight on the steel you'll likely reduce your chances of a mishap. But i think many will agree that taking it slow and as climber511 always says train more and test less should keep you in good shape.

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The biggest steel has been bent double overhand. Bending is a dangerous activity to begin with, but if you stay light on the wraps and make sure they are very tight on the steel you'll likely reduce your chances of a mishap. But i think many will agree that taking it slow and as climber511 always says train more and test less should keep you in good shape.

That is excellent advice. I kind of feel like the Double Overhand bears the most chance of a shoulder injury just by how it feels when I try the position. I was not even able to kink the 7" by 1/4" CRS in the DO position, but it bent like butter when I went into the Reverse position. I am guessing it is simply a lack of polished technique which prohibited me bending in the DO style. Thank you again, Jose.

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My opinion,

Most powerful style is easily Double Overhand, followed by Double Underhand, and then in distant third is Reverse.

I can't speak about vertical or Heslep or Slim style etc...since I know almost nothing about them other than they don't appear to be very powerful compared to the big three.

I'm not sure what all of the potential injuries of each are since I haven't suffered any but I've heard DO can be hard on the shoulders.

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My opinion,

Most powerful style is easily Double Overhand, followed by Double Underhand, and then in distant third is Reverse.

I can't speak about vertical or Heslep or Slim style etc...since I know almost nothing about them other than they don't appear to be very powerful compared to the big three.

I'm not sure what all of the potential injuries of each are since I haven't suffered any but I've heard DO can be hard on the shoulders.

Man, thank you. That's exactly what I was looking for. I appreciate you taking the time to share your bending experience with me on this. I can't seem to bring anything to bear on the DU or DO. I need to watch some more videos of bending. Thanks again.

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I have dabbled in both Heslep and Vertical. My best bends right now is a grade 5 DU, and a 30-ish degree kink on a grade 5 reverse. I suck at DO, and can only bend a weak timber tie heslep (I have wobbled a hard one), and can consistently bend hard timber ties vertical ( I have the wrist strength to do harder, I just usually irritate my shoulder) So I am by no means an expert on any of this.

Heslep is going to tax the crap out of your supinators, and you can hurt your elbows if you aren't careful so the best advice for that is to take it easy and improve gradually, but I have heard several people say that even then, it is still more risky that some of the other styles. I have never seriously injured myself, but I am also not very good at it.

From what I have seen and experienced, the vertical style is more of a wrist style than reverse is, and places more stress on your ulnar deviators which means you should take it slow and expect to improve gradually. I have made my shoulder unhappy doing a vertical bend with a 6-inch timber tie, but I have never seriously injured myself. Again, I am not that great at it, so take the above with however many grains of salt you feel you need to.

DU is definitely dependent on technique so I think checking out this link would be an excellent use of your time: http://www.gripboard.com/index.php?showtopic=43922

Edited by wulfgeat
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I have dabbled in both Heslep and Vertical. My best bends right now is a grade 5 DU, and a 30-ish degree kink on a grade 5 reverse. I suck at DO, and can only bend a weak timber tie heslep (I have wobbled a hard one), and can consistently bend hard timber ties vertical ( I have the wrist strength to do harder, I just usually irritate my shoulder) So I am by no means an expert on any of this.

Heslep is going to tax the crap out of your supinators, and you can hurt your elbows if you aren't careful so the best advice for that is to take it easy and improve gradually, but I have heard several people say that even then, it is still more risky that some of the other styles. I have never seriously injured myself, but I am also not very good at it.

From what I have seen and experienced, the vertical style is more of a wrist style than reverse is, and places more stress on your ulnar deviators which means you should take it slow and expect to improve gradually. I have made my shoulder unhappy doing a vertical bend with a 6-inch timber tie, but I have never seriously injured myself. Again, I am not that great at it, so take the above with however many grains of salt you feel you need to.

DU is definitely dependent on technique so I think checking out this link would be an excellent use of your time: http://www.gripboard.com/index.php?showtopic=43922

Thank you very much, Wulfgeat. I can definitely see where Heslep could cause damage if a person goes too fast. Man, excellent insight on the Vertical. I thank you for the excellent information, and the link. I appreciate you very much.

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Overall, when you look at the averages, double-overhand is the most "powerful" style. Of course, there are always going to be outliers, and those who are unable to do a particular style, but generally, DO enables you to bend the biggest stock. As-far-as injuries go, there are a lot of bender-specific variables to consider, including individual strengths, training history, and even patience (among many others). Collectively, there have been a lot of injuries with the DO-style, but this will depend on the variables. DO can be a very "safe" style, if you plan your training, and stick to your training. This also includes prep (stretching etc.) and maintenance. But, if you rush things or take short cuts, the likelihood of becoming injured skyrockets. I've really hit both DO and DU hard at times, and never really experienced a major (month+) injury. Any problems were associated with DO; Double-underhand produced a lot more pain, but no injuries.

I can't speak much from experience with reverse, but that is one I would not rush things with. Generally, if you know your limitations, train smart, but hard, trying to PR every now-and-then, while getting proper recovery, you will make progress safely.

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Overall, when you look at the averages, double-overhand is the most "powerful" style. Of course, there are always going to be outliers, and those who are unable to do a particular style, but generally, DO enables you to bend the biggest stock. As-far-as injuries go, there are a lot of bender-specific variables to consider, including individual strengths, training history, and even patience (among many others). Collectively, there have been a lot of injuries with the DO-style, but this will depend on the variables. DO can be a very "safe" style, if you plan your training, and stick to your training. This also includes prep (stretching etc.) and maintenance. But, if you rush things or take short cuts, the likelihood of becoming injured skyrockets. I've really hit both DO and DU hard at times, and never really experienced a major (month+) injury. Any problems were associated with DO; Double-underhand produced a lot more pain, but no injuries.

I can't speak much from experience with reverse, but that is one I would not rush things with. Generally, if you know your limitations, train smart, but hard, trying to PR every now-and-then, while getting proper recovery, you will make progress safely.

Very well stated, thank you. I'll definitely go slow and smart, like you say. Maybe stick to DU as a safety measyure. Thank you for your response, I appreciate you.

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DO definitely most powerful, then DU, then Reverse, then Heslep. Those were the only styles I have experience with.

- Aaron

Edited by acorn
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DO definitely most powerful, then DU, then Reverse, then Heslep. Those were the only styles I have experience with.

- Aaron

That DO... When I hit it right today, that steel just melted. Thank you, Aaron. The Heslep style looks insane. I could maybe break a number 2 pencil in the Heslep style!

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DO definitely most powerful, then DU, then Reverse, then Heslep. Those were the only styles I have experience with.

- Aaron

That DO... When I hit it right today, that steel just melted. Thank you, Aaron. The Heslep style looks insane. I could maybe break a number 2 pencil in the Heslep style!

Yep Heslep style is tough. I rarely did it due to the chance of injury. My best was a 6" x 1/4" Grade 5 bolt in that style.

- Aaron

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DO definitely most powerful, then DU, then Reverse, then Heslep. Those were the only styles I have experience with.

- Aaron

That DO... When I hit it right today, that steel just melted. Thank you, Aaron. The Heslep style looks insane. I could maybe break a number 2 pencil in the Heslep style!

Yep Heslep style is tough. I rarely did it due to the chance of injury. My best was a 6" x 1/4" Grade 5 bolt in that style.

- Aaron

Holy crap. I will be happy just to kink a 60D nail with Heslep. . .

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Honestly DO is safest. IF you only bend in small wraps, such as IMP's. If you bend in doubles before you establish a solid base you stand a high chance of injury.

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Honestly DO is safest. IF you only bend in small wraps, such as IMP's. If you bend in doubles before you establish a solid base you stand a high chance of injury.

Thank you for the heads up, I appreciate you. Why is it, do you think, that the double wraps cause problems?

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Honestly DO is safest. IF you only bend in small wraps, such as IMP's. If you bend in doubles before you establish a solid base you stand a high chance of injury.

Thank you for the heads up, I appreciate you. Why is it, do you think, that the double wraps cause problems?

Doubles don't allow you to have a strong base. You get too strong too fast. The tendons and connective tissue gets beat pretty good.

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Honestly DO is safest. IF you only bend in small wraps, such as IMP's. If you bend in doubles before you establish a solid base you stand a high chance of injury.

Thank you for the heads up, I appreciate you. Why is it, do you think, that the double wraps cause problems?

Doubles don't allow you to have a strong base. You get too strong too fast. The tendons and connective tissue gets beat pretty good.

Ahhh! The pain factor of single wraps keeps a person from pushing beyond their current level of tendon strength. That makes perfect sense. Thank you, EJ.

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I have found double underhand to be the most powerful starting position for me by far. It's as natural as breathing. I've always had issues with being inconsistent at double overhand. Specifically, when I get the bar high in place under my chin, I feel as though I have next to no leverage or power. With DU it's this fluid movement and the bar kinks with little effort.

My guess is the DU style will be limited by virtue of the muscles recruited vs. DO.

Has anyone certed the Red Nail DU?

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I have found double underhand to be the most powerful starting position for me by far. It's as natural as breathing. I've always had issues with being inconsistent at double overhand. Specifically, when I get the bar high in place under my chin, I feel as though I have next to no leverage or power. With DU it's this fluid movement and the bar kinks with little effort.

My guess is the DU style will be limited by virtue of the muscles recruited vs. DO.

Has anyone certed the Red Nail DU?

That's a good question! I am inconsistent in DO right now, but I am getting there. My problem is flexibility and hand placement, but it is slowly coming together.

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