SantaClawz Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 Hey guys, After realizing the huge benefits everybody is getting from block training and reading Mastery of Hand Strength, I went to my local sports store and bought the heaviest dumbell that they had with unscrewable blocks on the ends. It is only 20 Kg, but the weight is still heavy for me as a beginner. John Brookfield stresses the advantage of the york blocks because of the way the block is made. He said it tapers in to be the widest in the middle and thinnest at the ends, so it is harder to grip. Now the blocks I started using from the 20 Kg dumbell are the same width through, they do not get thinner toward the edge. So they are basically very short cylinders. Is this okay to train with? Will it still give me benefits, or do I need one that tapers to become thinner? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opnsysme Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 Any block wil help, some are just a little better than others. Just practice with those until you can easliy snatch them then you know its time to move on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SantaClawz Posted October 17, 2004 Author Share Posted October 17, 2004 Last night I thought about adding more weight to my blocks, since I could hold them for more than 10 seconds which Brookfield recommends as too long for pure strength gains. So I wrapped a thin rope around the block once and then tapped the around the rope and the whole block. This has helped a lot. For one, now the block doesn't slip. Two, I can continue to add weight, which destroyed my hands yesterday Can I just continue to progress by adding weights or do I have to buy higher weight blocks to continue to progress in the future? I am thinking about the different widths of the blocks which might help. Is it that big of a factor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SqeezeMasterFlash Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 Different width blocks is a huge factor. The wider the block the more tendon and fingertip strength is required. The example I like to use is my 35lb York blob. With 15lbs added I'd say it's about half as hard as my BLOB50. I could lift the 35 with that weight added about 6 months before I could lift my 40lb blob. The slight increase in width makes all the difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SantaClawz Posted October 18, 2004 Author Share Posted October 18, 2004 Thanks for your reply. That's what I was afraid of. I was hoping that I could stick to these blocks and just keep adding more weight to them. Do you think I would still benefit (granted not as much) from using these blocks and increasing the weights? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Browne Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 That's what I was afraid of. I was hoping that I could stick to these blocks and just keep adding more weight to them. Do you think I would still benefit (granted not as much) from using these blocks and increasing the weights? Do you have any Scrapyard buisnesses where you live? Places that take in scrap iron and steel..... metals from industrial waste? Sometimes you can rummage around in the yards and find useful items. Of course, some yards will not allow this due to possible injury liability factors, but it would not hurt to check it out. You can also check out a welding/fabricating shop and ask for junked out items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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