bencrush Posted June 6, 2014 Share Posted June 6, 2014 I have been doing some work with a wrist developer that Chris Rice gave me about 8 years ago. I'm ashamed to say that before the end of April, I had done probably a total of 5 minutes on it in all the years I've had it. It works the extensors and flexors. I have mainly used it with only 10lbs on it and go for a nice pump. Then put it down and maybe do another giant set (extensors, flexors, extensors again, then flexors again) once that day. Seems to work out to about twice a week that I've been using it since late April. I don't even remember what made me decide to finally pick it up again. It has been sitting in my garage all this time. Pretty much in plain sight. What it has done is had a strange positive effect on my pinch strength. I may or may not explain that more later, lol. Just depends on if I feel anyone is even interested in hearing about it. My forearms have shown a bit of muscular improvement just from this modest amount of work. And considering that it's only 10lbs on there, that's pretty neat to see any improvement. I do it mostly for prehab and maybe even rehab, since I've had forearm issues over the years. Mostly from reverse bending though. It's been probably a year since I tore a deck of cards. And I broke that streak early this morning - after a coworker left a slick deck of cards in my mailbox. I even managed to quarter them. It wasn't super fast, probably took about 5 seconds to halve them. And maybe 20 seconds to quarter a side and possibly 40 seconds to quarter the other side. Hands are not in the shape they once were. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted June 6, 2014 Author Share Posted June 6, 2014 I also did a 20mm gripper workout last week. 2nd gripper workout since the Gripday Party in early April. Managed 3 solid singles with my 154lb #3 righty. And 2 singles with my 142lb 5/8" SM lefty. Missed my 161lb Elite (with the sweet CPW rating tag on it that I won at the GDP!) by more than I care to admit. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony C. Posted June 6, 2014 Share Posted June 6, 2014 Nice work, ben. You seem to have kept a strong base level of strength during your hiatus. I'm assuming by the title that training isn't going to be a regular thing, but it'll be nice to see how you do man. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jedd Johnson Posted June 6, 2014 Share Posted June 6, 2014 Ben, It's always a great experience with you at contests. I wish you would get fired up and come to comps again. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 Well, I'm still using the Chris Rice wrist developer (CRWD) about twice a week. Moved the weight up over the last month to 17lbs. I don't have any desire to move it up from there. Doesn't sound like much, but it is plenty for me at this point. I'm doing the reps with a nice controlled tempo and full range. I only pause between extension and flexion for as long as it takes me to move my hands around on the device. Sometimes pausing in the contracted position for a few seconds. Sometimes longer. I'm not counting reps either. Just going by feel. I need to start doing two workouts, twice a week again. I have been so busy lately that I only take the CRWD out of hiding (it has a few parts that would hurt my toddler if she was climbing around on it) once for a single workout. Two giant sets would be better than one on this. I've been doing a once a week throwing (Braemar stone) workout with my eye on a Highland Games comp in October. And no, throwing once a week is not the best way to train for a Games. But I am excited about my HG training because my wife's parents just gave me the okay to throw at their new place out in the country. It's only about 10 minutes from our house. All I have to do is mow an area away from their house in the big field so that I can throw in that area. Did another gripper workout on July 8th. It had been a month since my last gripper workout. My strength is obviously not going to increase on a once a month gripper workout, but this is just how it worked out. Put up a gripper training video on Facebook from my workout on the 8th. The wrist work (forearm training, flexion and extension) has had a strange carryover to TNS gripper strength. Or, more likely, the ability to exert pressure against the gripper without it hurting my right hand as much as no set gripper stuff has done the past few years. I'm not near the top-end TNS strength I was at my strongest. But I am pleased to at least close my cert #3 again (146lb RGC rating) righty. It was not a dominating close. But considering when I last tried a hard TNS close back in April - I failed big time on this gripper due to hand and forearm pain. By the end of this workout, I had TNS closed my 146lb #3 for 5 singles-righty. Also closed my 154lb #3 with a 20mm block set for 3 singles-righty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geralt Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Good stuff Ben. Strange correlation between your TNS strength and MMS strength. TNS-ing a #3 @149 is a strong close IMO. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Good stuff Ben. Strange correlation between your TNS strength and MMS strength. TNS-ing a #3 @149 is a strong close IMO. Thanks, Geralt! It was only a 146lb #3 though. I always had a pretty high carryover from MMS to TNS. Best MMS close was a 185lb #3.5. Best TNS close was a toss-up between a 174lb HG350 (narrow spread) and a 169lb Super Elite (2.75" spread). Also TNS closed a high 160s GNC300, but I thought the start felt easier than a normal-sized handle gripper. It was only the close that felt harder to me on those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geralt Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Those were strong closes! Dayum. 170 pounds mms is around my Max right now i'd say. It's a tough weight to surpass. My next gripper up is a ghp8 and it has a mean sweep. So it could be higher a few pounds with a gripper with a more 'easy' spread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Parker Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Good TNS closes Ben. Not sure if I mentioned it before but I base my TNS technique off your videos, very helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
honk Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Ben, how are your shoulders these days? Pic of the CRWD, please? ...the zen approach to TNS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted May 13, 2015 Author Share Posted May 13, 2015 I think the last time I "trained" (more like tested) grippers was July of 2014. Until March of 2015. And it was not at all like the training I was used to. In a week or so I should be able to update this thread with a gripper experiment I did from mid-March to a few days ago. Pavel Tsatsouline is going to publish an article about my results on the StrongFirst blog. The results are pretty interesting. And the gripper training is like nothing I have ever read about. I got the idea from a series of articles Pavel wrote recently about slow twitch fiber training. In fact, I think that forum is the only one that even knew I was doing this experiment. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six Barrel Shotgun Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 (edited) I think the last time I "trained" (more like tested) grippers was July of 2014. Until March of 2015. And it was not at all like the training I was used to. In a week or so I should be able to update this thread with a gripper experiment I did from mid-March to a few days ago. Pavel Tsatsouline is going to publish an article about my results on the StrongFirst blog. The results are pretty interesting. And the gripper training is like nothing I have ever read about. I got the idea from a series of articles Pavel wrote recently about slow twitch fiber training. In fact, I think that forum is the only one that even knew I was doing this experiment. Sounds very interesting. Looking forward to reading about it. Edited May 13, 2015 by Six Barrel Shotgun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted October 29, 2017 Author Share Posted October 29, 2017 I recently bought a Moneymaker Hub and have done 5 workouts in 3 weeks with it. The quality of the MM Hub is great. Solid as a rock. It holds chalk well. There are a few guys (John McCarter and some other hubsters come to mind) that would probably pull 100lbs clay style on this bad boy on day one. I am not one of those guys, lol. My daughter really likes it too and has done 3 workouts with it under my supervision. My wife also gave it a shot once and liked it. My baseline max was 42.2x1-both hands on 10-7-17. Next improvement was 45.6x1-righty on 10-9-17. Only got about 4" of air lefty. Improved to 46.6x1-righty on 10-17-17. Did another workout on 10-22-17, but no increase. Did an attempt (got no movement on 50lbs) and then a negative righty with the same weight after resting. Most recent workout was 10-26-17. I pulled 50.2x1-righty and 44.6x1-lefty. So a 2.4lb improvement lefty in 3 weeks and 8.0lbs righty. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shoggoth Posted October 29, 2017 Share Posted October 29, 2017 Good to see you logging again Ben! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McCarter Posted October 29, 2017 Share Posted October 29, 2017 Good to see you back at it Benn. I'll have to try one of his out one day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted November 8, 2017 Author Share Posted November 8, 2017 On 10/29/2017 at 10:29 AM, Shoggoth said: Good to see you logging again Ben! Thanks, Jason! It's good to be doing something grip again, even if it's just some hub work. I still piddle around with light grippers once every two weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted November 8, 2017 Author Share Posted November 8, 2017 On 10/29/2017 at 12:05 PM, John McCarter said: Good to see you back at it Benn. I'll have to try one of his out one day. Thanks, John! You will probably pull 100lbs on his hub. No joke. I have no excuse except weakness, because the surface is pretty grippy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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