Back to gripping basics

[Guest sjeff70]

A few months ago I started grip training when I started reading the first three issues of Iron Grip Magazine (I love the history articles).  This was after I won a magazine David Horne put up for auction on Ebay.  I didn't know it was his auction until we set up payment.  I recognized his name and tried out an issue of his magazine.  

Then I lurked the #### out of this board for more.

I learned a lot of stuff but I don't feel like I have the basics.  Iron Grip magazine is great for contest reporting and history articles, but lacks routines and beginner info.  I found the same thing to be true here.      

Holds: I got into one-handed deadlifting via Courtese through the Vol #2, 1 (Jan 2002) issue of Iron Grip.  I feel these have a place in my program and I do them after one of my gym workouts.    

Crushing: I enjoy the grippers just like everyone else.  I do them on a day all by themselves.  

Pinch:  I haven't been properly motivated to start pinching; I'm still waiting to see a routine, a how to, something to get me started and motivated.  A routine where I can fit them in.

Wrist work:  Same as Pinch.  Haven't been properly motivated on what to do.  

Where do you guys get your routines?  If you do crushing, holds, pinching, and wrist training, how should they be placed in a program?  I felt the routines in the training/routine section here were too volume intensive and were based too much on instinct.  Iron Grip magazine doesn't stock routines, at least not in the four issues I have.  

Maybe a basic routine section could be added to this forum?

Jeff

[David Horne]

Jeff,

I don't put many routines in Iron Grip due to the fact that I've used countless in the past, and most with success. So where do I start. In my courses I used to show 'how-to' articles for a particular feat or exercise, and sometimes even showed a sample routine that I had used. Send me an email, and I will reply to you with the routine that we are all using now, it's working well. We mix our grip training with our overall body training.

David

[RiotGrip]

sjeff,

I won't give you a basic routine for crushing, but for pinching and wrist work it is simple.

pinching:  if you own weight plates, find your beginning weight i.e. 3 10lbs or 2 25lb plates.  Pinch them for holds or just a full deadlift from the ground.  To progress, put a junky dumbell handle through the holes, and gradually load weight on it (you may need 1.25lb plates for this part) and they should be standard dumbell bar and plates through an olympic weight hole.  If you don't have olympic weights, order a pinch grip block and do the same thing.  Just do holds and deadlifts once or twice a week, and you'll quickly progress and can worry about advanced exercises later.

Wrist: wrist curls and reverse wrist curls or heavy hammer leverage bar or sledge hammer levering once or twice a week

There are many other things you can do, however these are the easiest to get started and will build you a good foundation of thumb and wrist strength and you can move on to more advanced exercises as you come across them.  If you are only going to do one of these exercises, I'd recommend the pinching over the wrist work

[Guest sjeff70]

Thanks David, for taking a time out to post here from what has to be a busy schedule of yours.  I sent you an email.

RiotGrip!  I'll get started on those pinches this weeks, thanks for your help.

Jeff

[RSW]

Jeff,

      How about adding steel bending ?  Great for strengthening the wrists and a lot of fun too.  Buy some 3/16" and 1/4" diameter hot rolled steel (HRS) and a pair of bolt cutters and you can make your own bag of nails.  I usually do three bends as part of my grip work out once a week. As an example: ironmind white nail as a warmup (6"x3/16" HRS), ironmind Yellow(7"x1/4" HRS) and then ironmind blue (6"x1/4" HRS).  The ironmind blue is equivalent to an average 60 penny nail.

    To futher strengthen my wrists I do sledgehammer lifts and wrist plate curls.

Robert