My Bends Seem To Be Paradoxical

[gothrik]

When I try to bend a pr or something new, and I can't budge it Do stile I find that if I switch to DU I can often power throught the first 5-10 degr. like their nothing, and then hit a wall.

I have read the post on dieselcrew about arm length, and have short arms with my elbow above my navel. But I can only start the bend in DU and the crush down the rest in DO. Should I just keep doing DU and train for all the way? I can't start hard bends in DO but I can't finish them in DU....

Am I just a hybrid?

Any advice?

[acorn]

Its like that for alot of people when they start. especially on long stock. I was the same way until my wrist strength and shoulder flexibility caught up in the DO position. After that it was no contest.

- Aaron

[Alawadhi]

What Aaron said. I don't have long arms but my DO is much better than DU. My friend with short arms and no flexibility is better at DO than DU. Just get your form down. But if you have flexibility and long arms it WILL HELP A LOT MORE.

[Booyah!!!]

I started the same way except I kinked with Reverse Grip. Eventually while purposely trying I kinked something DO and then on came the PRs. Doing what you do, it is almost impossible for you not to start getting the DO technique, it seems so natural that way. BTW after you get the DO technique it is helpful IMO to occasionally practice DU and Reverse after a nice hard DO workout.

[gothrik]

Thanks guys for all your advice...yesterday I try'd to kink it DO...the first bend was so hard...but it slowly went...

Then I guess my brain got in gear cause the next 10 or so peices (same steel) exploded through and felt really powerfull and the steel seemed to almost obey my will...

Do you guys usually have this kind of mental block or whatever before the first bend and then the rest are powerfull?

But I can tell when I am getting tired, the bends slow down a lot, or stop.

[lone Wolf]

Thanks guys for all your advice...yesterday I try'd to kink it DO...the first bend was so hard...but it slowly went...

Then I guess my brain got in gear cause the next 10 or so peices (same steel) exploded through and felt really powerfull and the steel seemed to almost obey my will...

Do you guys usually have this kind of mental block or whatever before the first bend and then the rest are powerfull?

But I can tell when I am getting tired, the bends slow down a lot, or stop.

You should warm-up with a couple of easy bends then try what your using

my warm-up consist of 3-40ds, 2 - g2 bolts 1/4"x6" and 1/4"x5" after that when start

getting into the harder stuf. Then it's just a matter of working on conditoning by doing some

volume bending on a few occasions I've 40-40ds in a row. Your first bend is something you know

is going to bend very easy then go from there

[gothrik]

You should warm-up with a couple of easy bends then try what your using

Usually my bending comes after a whole body workout HIT style. So I was figuring I was allready warmed up. However I will try that...I have been bending at the local Steel shop...using their scrap Iron that they are throwing out. So I don't really know what strength it is.

I have a question however...is wider steel harder to bend at the same thickness? like a 2"x1/16"x7.5" vs a 1"x1/16"x7.5"?

Or does the bars width only effect your grip and comfort. Cuase the 2" wide bars are hard to bend! But I don't have access to anything smaller. (Just ordered the IM nail set) so I should get something in specific strength (If I can bend it....lol)

Thanks for the help though.

[EricMilfeld]

I have a question however...is wider steel harder to bend at the same thickness? like a 2"x1/16"x7.5" vs a 1"x1/16"x7.5"?

Or does the bars width only effect your grip and comfort. Cuase the 2" wide bars are hard to bend! But I don't have access to anything smaller. (Just ordered the IM nail set) so I should get something in specific strength (If I can bend it....lol)

Thanks for the help though.

Yes, because you're bending more material wider bars are more difficult and require more force to bend.

[lone Wolf]

You should warm-up with a couple of easy bends then try what your using

Usually my bending comes after a whole body workout HIT style. So I was figuring I was allready warmed up.

With the HIT style whole body workout does the word pre-exhaust mean anything to you if your doing

the HIT right you really shouldn't have to much strength left when your done. So to bend that take a lot

of upper bodystrength so how much do you have left to bend after your workout? If your going to exercise

with bending I would just do squats to help get the blood flowing

[gothrik]

Usually I am pretty whipped after a HIT workout...however I figured that as I haven't specificaly hit the wrist and hand muscles they are still moderately fresh, and not likely to be overpowered and hurt by using to much force...(if my form slipped.) I have also found that in the 3-4 minutes it takes me to walk down to the metal shop I have recovered enough that I could do another set of all my upper body stuff if I wanted...(with less reps granted.) But I have always found that I recover fast, no matter how I train. Right now though I am in a really low rep phase 1-8 so even though I may go to failure, bending for volume is still plausable because as the lower force I still haven't reached the maximal inroad in my strength yet.

But yes I may need to push It more on the HIT. After my week off I will Hit it hard again in a rep cycle (12-30) and try to stay true to HIT's true effort.

[timiacobucci]

I too always feel more comfortable kinking reverse grip then finishing the rest DO. From all I have read on here this is a classic newbie form and I am trying to work my way into full DO. I do feel much more powerfull in this position but not at all on the kink. Is this a flexibility thing at all?

I also sort of feel like a tendon on the lower inside of my left elbow might explode after a few hard full DO bends, but only on the kink. No pain after it has started but at the start I am not sure if the steel or my elbow is going to give in first.

Is this just a common weak spot that I have to strengthen by more DO kinking or is it flexibility or what?

Has anyone else had a pain in this spot when bending?

[ObsceneJester]

I too always feel more comfortable kinking reverse grip then finishing the rest DO. From all I have read on here this is a classic newbie form and I am trying to work my way into full DO. I do feel much more powerfull in this position but not at all on the kink. Is this a flexibility thing at all?

I also sort of feel like a tendon on the lower inside of my left elbow might explode after a few hard full DO bends, but only on the kink. No pain after it has started but at the start I am not sure if the steel or my elbow is going to give in first.

Is this just a common weak spot that I have to strengthen by more DO kinking or is it flexibility or what?

Has anyone else had a pain in this spot when bending?

Tendinitis? Work extensors. Use rubber bands on your fingertips and open up or do finger walks with the sledge

[judoboy]

I too always feel more comfortable kinking reverse grip then finishing the rest DO. From all I have read on here this is a classic newbie form and I am trying to work my way into full DO. I do feel much more powerfull in this position but not at all on the kink. Is this a flexibility thing at all?

I also sort of feel like a tendon on the lower inside of my left elbow might explode after a few hard full DO bends, but only on the kink. No pain after it has started but at the start I am not sure if the steel or my elbow is going to give in first.

Is this just a common weak spot that I have to strengthen by more DO kinking or is it flexibility or what?

Has anyone else had a pain in this spot when bending?

i am a relative newb and bend only DO. the kink on 7" stuff felt horrible at first, my form and flexibility has improved but its still the hardest phase. a friend of mine has just started bending and he kinks reverse and finishs DO - we'll all different!

tendon strength takes time to develope, i find sledgehammer and kettlebell work great for conditioning lower arms.

warm-up proper before, be confident and explode into the steel (this will be near impossible if you have a nagging pain), and big stretch after.

good luck

[timiacobucci]

Tendinitis? Work extensors. Use rubber bands on your fingertips and open up or do finger walks with the sledge.

Extensors seem to be the opposite of what would be the crush grip muscles in the forearm. My pain is down in the corner of my elbow and going back up to my triceps. Is this tendonitis still a symptom of weak extensors?

I know that I need to do more extensor work but it doesn’t feel like I really accomplish anything with the rubber bands. Even if I have them tight enough I can barely open them. I never get a burn or soreness from it really. And finger walks on the sledge feel awkward and useless. Though I guess that probably means I need to do it more huh? I might try the sand bucket thing though too, I haven’t done that yet.

warm-up proper before, be confident and explode into the steel (this will be near impossible if you have a nagging pain), and big stretch after.

You are probably right about holding back on unloading with the tendonitis. I can’t harly do allot of the stuff I could months back before I stopped bending for a while. It is probably because of the pain.

I probably need to let it heal for a bit too, but I’ve been ring training too. Has anyone here tried a muscle up on rings before? It tears up that same spot that gets wrenched on the DO kink.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89XYJGKzUOY

Doing the transition without momentum is a beast.

How do you guys let your tendons heal? I feel like I can’t hardly workout at all without wearing on them somehow.

I mean stone lifting, olympic lifts, rings. I would have to stop doing everything I love to let my tendons heal from/for bending.

I know that the best accomplishments are never easy, but I am very used to the recovery cycle of muscle and bending and tendon strengthening seems so much harder and more tedious.

[Booyah!!!]

"How do you guys let your tendons heal?" Ice, Ibuprophen, Rest and stretching all in excess.

[gothrik]

I have another question about bending....all my bending I have been doing without pads and with all of my hands touching the bars.... I noticed however that in all the bending movies everyone just grabs the ends of the bar...Is that for leverage? That doesn't seem as safe cause there would be a ton of preasure in one spot...but then I haven't done it so I wouldn't know. I am getting my IM nail set in the mail soon and should have their pads with it...will try when I get them...

Any advice for me on changing my bending to using just the first two fingers?

[dimmers]

I have another question about bending....all my bending I have been doing without pads and with all of my hands touching the bars.... I noticed however that in all the bending movies everyone just grabs the ends of the bar...Is that for leverage? That doesn't seem as safe cause there would be a ton of preasure in one spot...but then I haven't done it so I wouldn't know. I am getting my IM nail set in the mail soon and should have their pads with it...will try when I get them...

Any advice for me on changing my bending to using just the first two fingers?

I think you'll be ok once you get your IM pads to try DO style with your hands on the ends of the bar, as the IM pads are very durable and won't puncture easily.

over time (if you stick with this style) your hands will adapt to the pressure from the ends of the bar. Just build up slowly.

[timiacobucci]

"How do you guys let your tendons heal?" Ice, Ibuprophen, Rest and stretching all in excess.

Well I guess I should have specified, I mean how much time do you personally need for recovery and what other exercises do you still do and how soon after?

[gothrik]

"How do you guys let your tendons heal?" Ice, Ibuprophen, Rest and stretching all in excess.

Well I guess I should have specified, I mean how much time do you personally need for recovery and what other exercises do you still do and how soon after?

I usually use about 1 to 2 weeks of rest if I have an injury (though I try to play it safe and have almost never had any worth mentioning.) Doing contra bath on the area, and lots of rest. After the injured area heals I do light exercises w/ high reps for several weeks on it slowly building the poundage till I can do more than I was doing before it was injured.

Hope this helps

[Booyah!!!]

"How do you guys let your tendons heal?" Ice, Ibuprophen, Rest and stretching all in excess.

Well I guess I should have specified, I mean how much time do you personally need for recovery and what other exercises do you still do and how soon after?

Sorry I dropped ya. I think everyone has variables that work for them. My latest tendonitis was in my shoulders. I caught it quick enough with Ice and Ibu. and stretching that after 2 weeks and a day, back to bending last dose of Ibu was 6hrs after bending. Going to wait till next week to get back on the weights easy at first then all out ME

I get tendonitis in my elbow also that I do not think will ever go away unless I totally stop grippers still trying to nurse it through, maybe on my 8 Year Gripper anniversary