Curling a 45

[Nathan Say]

I've got a end piece off an old broken bar that I'll put through the plate & hold in place with a spring collar & keep adding weight like 5 or even 2.5lbs at a time.  That way l can add resistance more gradually. When going from one plate to another, I don't just go up 10lbs, but all the weight is furthur away from my hand as well. That's had me stumped for a while because I can do 16 reps with a 25, but none with a 35. Once I can do a 25+15 extra, I'll probably be able to do a 35, because 25+15=40 but with a 35 the weight is furthur away. Then I'll do the same thing with a 35, do 35+15=50 then next workout I'll do a 45. It almost seems too easy...

[Tou]

It's too easy to figure it that way. Curling a 45 is the most impressive feat of grip strength, for me anyway. I can curl a 35 and I can barely move the 45. Ask David Horne on how to train and improve the plate curl.

[Guest woody36]

Nathan,

          What about using a small G clamp to fix

          plates to the far rim,to increase the difficulty

[RogerSteffens]

I worked up to the 45lb plate curl, something I once thought was going to be impossible, by doing wrist curls with the plates rather than the full bicep curl.  Your plan seems good to me.  You can also take a spring collar and force the clips through an Oly plate, eg. the 25lb plate, then slip smaller plates over the protruding ends to work up to the next plate size. If you get to the point, as I am, where you can do plate wrist curls with the 35, up from the horizontal only, for say 10 reps, then you'll be at the 45lb curl level I would say.

[Tom Black]

I worked my way up to a 37.5 pounds fairly easily by attaching plate mate magnets to the far end of the plate.  I used the 2.5 pound magnets.  The plate mate magnets increase the weight and the torque, but the spring clip through the center works well in a pinch, and it is much cheaper than those magnets, which are a bit pricey.

[Guest baldy]

I agree with Tou that the 45 lb plate (and beyond) is the ultimate. Hats off to David Horne, Michael Daly, Nick M, Mobsterone, Roger Steffens, and anyone else freaky strong enough to plate curl that kind of weight.

My experience with it is that it just takes time to add weight. To get better you have to get many good reps in with whatever weight you are at. I have yet to specialize in plate curling and I haven't done it that much, but I seem to progress steadily (albeit slowly) at it. I use a loading pin to add weight progressively. Drop the pin through the top of the plate with whatever added weight you want, example would be 25 lb plate and a 5 lb plate on top, with loading pin dropped through to secure it.

Roger, your workout logs have inspired me to add plate wrist curls into my workouts whenever the notion strikes. My plate curl is significantly better than my plate wrist curl, so I should show good improvement. When I saw your log saying 35 lb plate wrist curl for 10 reps my jaw dropped, that is awesome.

[RogerSteffens]

And just to be clear, those 35s are from the horizontal up, as opposed to the 25 where my wrist goes well below horizontal.

[Nathan Say]

It's no different from what Norb Schemansky said when someone asked how to increase hhis squat: 'Squat, add some weight, squat again'. As long as I'm adding weight whenever I can, even if it's just 2.5lbs I'll be a little closer to doing the 45. It doesn't sound that hard.

[Guest baldy]

Nathan, once you get to a 35 lb plate that "even if it's just 2.5 lbs" becomes more like "even if it's just .5 lbs". A little makes a lot of difference the closer you get to a 45 lb plate. I didn't understand this concept until I first plate curled a 35, then realized I couldn't even get a legitimate negative rep with a 45. They are worlds apart.  There are a couple guys here that can do a 45 with weight added!

Incidentally, I weighed my weight plates at the recommendation of one of the board members here (I think it was Quick Grip), and my 45's were all over 45 lbs. That makes me feel better knowing that when I do get to a 45 I am just a little over, to be safe.

To whoever said that about weighing plates, thanks. Nathan, best wishes with your goal. Keep us posted.