Vice Posted July 25, 2005 Share Posted July 25, 2005 I thought I would start a journal to help track my progress and get some encouragment along the way to keep me motivated. I've been training my grip off and on for the past 2 years and just recently started back up about a month ago. For the past month I've been training with blockweights and doing rotations with a couple 3lb. shot puts to build my strength back up. Today I started back on grippers, as these are my passion when it comes to training grip. Right now I can close the #2 consistanly with either hand. My short term goal is to close my new HG300, and long term goal is to close the #3 and certify as a Mash Monster and then hopefully a COC. My grip routine for the next couple months is a spin off of KTA. I'll be gradually increasing the volume throughout the next couple of months and tracking my progress. 7-25-05 Warmup: #1x1 with both hands Test w/HG 300: 5/16" with right hand 1/4" with left hand Work sets: 4 Overcrushes with a filed Super Advanced 4 Smooth Negatives with a narrow Elite 2 sets of TTK 15#x10/17.5#x8 2 sets of extensors with IM bands, greenx15/yellowx10 Finished the workout off with some contrast baths and my hands feel amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 26, 2005 Author Share Posted July 26, 2005 7-26-05 Went to the gym and had a great leg workout and got some real good squats in there. Hands are always stronger after doing squats for some reason. Warmup: #1x1, HG200x1, Filed #2 Held for 7 seconds RH/6 seconds LH PR! Work sets: Note: Filed a little more off my Super Advanced before the workout to make OC's harder. 4 Overcrushes with filed Super Advanced grinded the handles for 12 seconds 4 Smooth out Negatives with narrow Elite 2 sets of TTK 17.5#x10/20#x6 PR! 2 sets of extensors, IM yellow x 25/green x 15 Finished off with contrast baths again and my hands feel STRONG. Once again I hit some PR's after a good squat workout Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted July 26, 2005 Share Posted July 26, 2005 Looking good! Glad you do extensor training...it is key to all around strength and injury prevention. Keep it up!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 26, 2005 Author Share Posted July 26, 2005 Looking good!Glad you do extensor training...it is key to all around strength and injury prevention. Keep it up!! ← Thanks for the encouragement. I just read your log and you've made some great progress, hopefully I'm right behind ya. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted July 26, 2005 Share Posted July 26, 2005 I took some time off and am just getting back...Ughhh!! But looking forward to gaining what I lost back. You have a very well rounded approach..it amazes me how many people ignore their extensors!! Good Luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 26, 2005 Author Share Posted July 26, 2005 I took some time off and am just getting back...Ughhh!! But looking forward to gaining what I lost back.You have a very well rounded approach..it amazes me how many people ignore their extensors!! Good Luck!! ← Thanks Paul. Glad to see you're so impressed that I work my extensors Don't feel too bad about taking time off, this week is the first time I've worked with the grippers since December But the desire is back... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted July 26, 2005 Share Posted July 26, 2005 Hey...Upstate New York?? Used to live in Clifton Park and work in Albany..nice up that way.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigT Posted July 27, 2005 Share Posted July 27, 2005 7-26-05Went to the gym and had a great leg workout and got some real good squats in there. Hands are always stronger after doing squats for some reason. Warmup: #1x1, HG200x1, Filed #2 Held for 7 seconds RH/6 seconds LH PR! Work sets: Note: Filed a little more off my Super Advanced before the workout to make OC's harder. 4 Overcrushes with filed Super Advanced grinded the handles for 12 seconds 4 Smooth out Negatives with narrow Elite 2 sets of TTK 17.5#x10/20#x6 PR! 2 sets of extensors, IM yellow x 25/green x 15 Finished off with contrast baths again and my hands feel STRONG. Once again I hit some PR's after a good squat workout ← Congrats on the Pr, looking good overall. Keep making those OC's harder and really grind those handles buddy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jad Posted July 27, 2005 Share Posted July 27, 2005 (edited) These are some good looking workouts, very balanced. I'll be keeping an eye the TTK work. Nobody seems to keep a detailed account of what they do with it so I'm interested to see how you'll progress. Keep up the good work Edited July 27, 2005 by jad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 27, 2005 Author Share Posted July 27, 2005 (edited) pdoire- Yeah it is nice up there. I'm actually in Vermont for the summer, but I'll be back in Plattsburgh, NY in a few weeks for my last year of college. BigT- Thanks BigT, appreciate the support! jad- Thanks Josh, In the past I haven't made much progress with the TTK but I'm gonna try something new next week to see if it helps. 7-27-05 Warmup: #1x1, HG200x1, filed #2x1 Work sets: 4 Overcrushes with filed Super Advanced, grinding the handles again for 12 seconds 4 Smooth out negatives with narrow Elite (lost some skin on my palm but I'm a warrior, I put some superglue over it and kept gripping) 2 sets of TTK 17.5#x10/20#x4 (I open the TTK almost all the way to get a good ROM) 2 sets of extensors, IM greenx25/yellowx15 1 full deadlift with 32.5# blob (this is basically my 1RM) Dexterity ball rotations with palm facing down until I got a good pump I did a little extra at the end of my workout today because tomorrow is an off day, and much needed, now that I'm missing some skin on my left hand. Finished off with some contrast baths again and my hands feel good. Can't wait to start gripping on friday. Edited July 27, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted July 27, 2005 Share Posted July 27, 2005 If you rip the skin badly, you can use athletic tape in addition..this is the only thing that kept me going during KTA... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blarg Posted July 27, 2005 Share Posted July 27, 2005 Grats on the PR! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 29, 2005 Author Share Posted July 29, 2005 (edited) pdoire- I might need to get some athletic tape because the super glue wasnt working today. Blarg- Thanks man, appreciate it. 7-29-05 Warmup: HG200x1, filed #2x1 Work sets: The plan was to increase volume today and do 5 sets of overcrushes and 5 sets of negatives but that didnt happen. The superglue wasnt working like usual and i re-ripped some skin in my palm on my left hand then ripped off some fresh skin from my palm on my right hand. So I was only able to get through 3 sets instead of 5 and right now my morale is hurting. The hole in each hand is in the same exact place so I'm gonna wrap the part of the handle that touches that part of my palm with electrical tape and see if that helps. Also I'm taking tomorrow and sunday off to let my hands heal, and I'm gonna take about 5000 vitamin E pills and lather my hands in bacitracin or whatever that stuff is called all day and all night. 3 sets of overcrushes with filed SA 3 sets of negatives with narrow elite 1 set of extensors with IM yellowx20 2 sets of TTK 20#x6/20#x5 1 set of front/rear levers and rotations w/8 lb sledge Finished off with contrast baths and my hands feel good, except for the fact that I'm missing a few layers of skin. Edited July 29, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 29, 2005 Author Share Posted July 29, 2005 Change of plans, I'm gonna use my supergripper for tomorrows workout, that way I can still workout and let my hands heal at the same time. Anyone know a good technique for cheating the supergripper shut for negatives? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted July 29, 2005 Share Posted July 29, 2005 Yes ..you can take that bootm part of where the springs attach...notice the space..and you can put that part of the bar on top of a solid surface (I use a soild oak 2 drawer cabinet and then lean your bodyweight down to help to clse it)..Hard to describe without a pic. That bar needs to be wedged against the corner of the cabinet or object for the leverage necessary. Hope this is clear as mud??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted July 30, 2005 Author Share Posted July 30, 2005 pdoire- As clear as mud was the perfect phrase I really couldnt get a visual for this but I appreciate the help. I just put both hands on the supergripper one on top of the other and squeezed with both hands, then removed the bottom one, while the top one did the negative. 7-30-05 Today's workout is on the ISG becuase I have some skin missing off both hands that need to heal. Warmup: 5,3/6,3/7,3 Volume is up to 5 sets of overcrushes and 5 sets of negatives Work sets: 5 overcrushes on setting 8,2 for 10-12 seconds 5 smooth out negatives on setting 10,7 3 sets of extensors, greenx25/yellowx20/bluex10 1 set of rotations with 3 lb shots Decided to take the day off from the TTK. I previously worked with it 6 days/week in the past and made little progress so I'm gonna scale it back a bit to 4 days a week and gradually increase the volume. Finished off with contrast baths and my hands feel pretty good. Tomorrow is an off day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted August 1, 2005 Author Share Posted August 1, 2005 (edited) 8-1-05 Hands still need another to heal before I start using grippers again for a full workout but I was able to do a max attempt with the HG300 and hit a PR! Warmup: 5,3/6,3/7,3 Test w/HG300: RH- 3/16" PR! LH- 1/8" PR! Excited about the PR's but I'm pretty sure these were more due to neural adaptions rather than actual increases in hypertrophy, still psyched about it tho. Work sets: 5 sets of overcrushes on setting 8,2 for 10-12 seconds 5 sets of smooth negatives on setting 10,8 3 sets of extensors, greenx25/yellowx20/bluex10 2 sets of TTK, 20#x5/20#x6 Finished off with contrast baths. I cant decide if I should work my thumbs with the TTK or with block weights. What do you guys think? A lot of people have increased their crush with blockweights so I'm starting to lean toward using them, plus they're more fun, but I'm still undecided. Maybe I should use both? Edited August 1, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted August 1, 2005 Share Posted August 1, 2005 8-1-05I cant decide if I should work my thumbs with the TTK or with block weights. What do you guys think? A lot of people have increased their crush with blockweights so I'm starting to lean toward using them, plus they're more fun, but I'm still undecided. Maybe I should use both? ← You can use pony clamps and add elastics as you get stronger, that is straight out of the KTA program. Both of the other things you mentioned are fine also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigT Posted August 1, 2005 Share Posted August 1, 2005 8-1-05Hands still need another to heal before I start using grippers again for a full workout but I was able to do a max attempt with the HG300 and hit a PR! Warmup: 5,3/6,3/7,3 Test w/HG300: RH- 3/16" PR! LH- 1/8" PR! Excited about the PR's but I'm pretty sure these were more due to neural adaptions rather than actual increases in hypertrophy, still psyched about it tho. Work sets: 5 sets of overcrushes on setting 8,2 for 10-12 seconds 5 sets of smooth negatives on setting 10,8 3 sets of extensors, greenx25/yellowx20/bluex10 2 sets of TTK, 20#x5/20#x6 Finished off with contrast baths. I cant decide if I should work my thumbs with the TTK or with block weights. What do you guys think? A lot of people have increased their crush with blockweights so I'm starting to lean toward using them, plus they're more fun, but I'm still undecided. Maybe I should use both? ← Great job on the HG 300 attempt and also like your recovery work, I'm trying to get more serious about extensors and such again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted August 2, 2005 Author Share Posted August 2, 2005 (edited) Paul- That was another thing I was thinking about, I like how easily it is to microload. BigT- Thanks man, the contrast baths definetly help my hands feel good, and working extensors is always good. 8-2-05 The superglue worked wonders today and I was able to get a full workout in with the grippers. I put a clamp through the spring on my Super Advanced and tightened it up to make it harder. This is much quicker than filing so I'm gonna stick with this for a couple weeks, then move up to my filed #2 for OC's. Warmup: #1x1, filed #2x1 Work sets: 5 sets of overcrushes with filed super advanced 5 sets of negatives with narrow elite 4 sets of TTK- 15#x10/17.5#x10/20#x7/20#x7 PR! 2 sets of extensors- greenx25/yellowx20 (these are feeling much easier than when I started) Finished off with contrast baths. Edited August 2, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted August 3, 2005 Author Share Posted August 3, 2005 (edited) 8-3-05 Warmup: #1x1, filed #2x1, HG300 down to 1/8" maybe less Work sets: 5 sets of overcrushes with the filed SA for 10 seconds, tightened the hose clamp half a turn to increase resistance 5 sets of negatives with narrow elite 3 sets of extensors, greenx25/yellowx20/yellowx20 I also put my #3 in a hose clamp set at 1" and give it a couple hard squeezes. Got it down to about 3/8" with either hand. Finished off with contrast baths. Gonna work my thumbs and wrists tonight. Edited August 3, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdoire Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 (edited) Vise how does your Narrow Elite stack up against your #3? Are they close in strength because of the spread difference? Nice workout by the way! Edited August 3, 2005 by pdoire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted August 3, 2005 Author Share Posted August 3, 2005 (edited) Vise how does your Narrow Elite stack up against your #3? Are they close in strength because of the spread difference?Nice workout by the way! ← Thanks Paul. I'm not sure if I'm strong enough to give an accurate comparison, but as far as I can tell, the narrow elite is on slightly harder than my #3. Probably a 3.1 or 3.2. The main reason I use it for negatives is because its easier to set because of the narrow spread. I have a hard time setting my #3 deep enough to get my hand comfortably around it. Edited August 3, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted August 4, 2005 Author Share Posted August 4, 2005 (edited) Just finished working my thumbs and wrists. I just started messing around with a sledge last week so that explains my very low numbers on the sledge. Try not to laugh too hard 2 sets of front levers: 2.75 reps @ 112 ip for both sets(couldn't quite get the 3rd rep to parallel) 2 sets of rear levers: 5 reps RH,6 reps LH @ 104 ip/ 8 reps RH,7 reps LH @ 112 ip (somehow I did more reps even though I was farther down the handle) 2 sets of rotations: 6 reps @ 88 ip for both sets I wasnt sure how far down the handle to go so I just winged it. I want to be in the 6-8 rep range for a couple weeks to get my wrists used to the stress, then drop it to 2-3 reps with heavier weights. As you can see I hit the mark on everything except front levers which I went a little too heavy on. Does this look like a decent program for just starting off? I really have no idea... After working my wrists I did some work on the TTK: 4 sets: 15#x10/20#x8/20#x8/22.5#x4 20#x8 is a PR but I'm not sure if its from an actual strength increase or because I did this workout many hours after my gripper workout and my thumbs were just fresher. Either way its a PR. For anyone who has done some sledge work, can I substitute levers to the nose in place of front levers? Its the same movement just with the arm obviously in a different position, I get a much better pump and feel a lot more stress on my wrists when doing levers to the nose. Any help would be great, thanks. Edited August 4, 2005 by Vice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vice Posted August 5, 2005 Author Share Posted August 5, 2005 8-05-05 Warmup: #1x1, filed #2x1 Work sets: Upped the volume today and held the negatives for a little longer to up the intensity. This workout was much tougher than my last one. 6 sets of overcrushes with filed SA for 10 seconds 6 sets of of painfully slow negatives with the narrow elite 2 sets of extensors, greenx25/yellowx20 4 sets of TTK: 15#x10/20#x9 PR!/22.5#x4/22.5#x4 Finished off with contrast baths. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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