How Do You Place Your Thumb?

[lifesnotfair]

Hi everyone.

I have never been completely sure if when pinching, one must place the thumb so that the knuckle that attaches it to the palm should be above the edge of what you're pinching, OR, if you should only pinch with the thumb-tip, so the last thumb knuckle would be over the edge.... I think I've been doing it the first way, with the whole thumb on the surface.

However, when the thickness starts increasing, it gets difficult. I see how this might not be a problem with the adjustable apparatus, since people can set it to thin widths like 44mm and stuff. When pinching my 2-25's (a bit over 3" combined), if I use all my thumb, then my index finger cannot be on the other side completely. Actually, there is no comfortable way for that finger to be there, it's between the first and second knucle of it that lies above the edge. Now, this gets worse when trying the blobs... I only have the 30 and 35 right now. They feel so wide..... and I've been wondering what's best. Today, a member named odin posted a pic of a full blob DL (I think a blob 50?), and his thumb was not completely on a side, it would look as if he was using the tip.

Also, I think because of my short hands/fingers, it actually feels a bit better to lift the 30lb blob using only the bottom 3 fingers on the side, and the index finger on top of it... does anyone else feels the same? Is it still a valid lift this way?

Oh, and last but not least, if anyone ever felt a big pain for 3-4 secs on the top of the wrist/hand (looking at it with palms facing the floor) right after releasing a blob (not when holding it, but right after putting it down), please tell me how you got rid of this.

[pdfk20]

The whole of the side of the thumb down to the knuckle should be in contact with the side of the plate you are pinching. For 2HP you are ideally pinching something that is the exact width of the distance between the bottom of your thumb and the knuckle of your index finger. For wider pinching you obviously cant do this, but you should always try and maximise the amount of skin in contact with plates.

At least thats what i think anyway

Very occasionally i get pain on the top of my hand , and i deal with it as i do whenver i get grip associated pain - REST.

Pete

Edited August 22, 2007 by Pete1006

[lifesnotfair]

but you should always try and maximise the amount of skin in contact with plates.

Trying to maximise the amount of THUMB skin? Because if we're talking about total amount of skin, maybe by having only the thumb-tip and not the whole thumb, I can use a bit more from each of my other fingers, maybe then having more total skin on whatever I'm pinching?

[mbcx6pmw]

There's an article by David Horne on hand placement, which I think is available on the diesel crew site. You may find it of use.

[lifesnotfair]

There's an article by David Horne on hand placement, which I think is available on the diesel crew site. You may find it of use.

Holy cow, that last drawing of his is exactly what I did a few days ago to get some air on my 35lb blob, and what I mentioned in my original post, of having the index finger on top. Should I train for the blobs like this all the time? Wouldn't this be neglecting the index finger strength? ... And my 2-25's @ 80mm wide, which I can now lift (if I'm "on" heh), should I put my index on top too? I'm not putting my index on top for them, but my index finger knuckle is not even close to being on the edge of the plate.. I wonder if I could do better if I place it on top?

Darn, I have so many questions... like, what is the benefit of narrow pinch? .. According to Mr. Horne's article, the best distance for me would be something thin, probably less than 2" (maybe the 44 or 50mm or whatever some use in competition)... but does this type of pinch has any carryover to wide pinch? Or overall handstrength? Open-hand strength? Or is it only for the purpose of using more weight in competition? ... Because if it's the latter, since I'm not even dreaming of competing yet, but I wanna have reasonably strong hands, I might stick to the wider pinching. Argh, over a year as a member and still making noob questions.

[mbcx6pmw]

Err, pass! haha. I think the bottom line is you have to experiment and find what works best for you.

[The Mac]

The key must always be to experiment to find what works best for you, using the guidelines laid down by those that have gone before.

I like the fact that there are many different ways to work pinch.

[David Horne]

You should train for what you want/need.

You can't be strong at everything.

David

[lifesnotfair]

You should train for what you want/need.

You can't be strong at everything.

David

Yeah, says the guy who IS !!!

I think (please correct me if I'm wrong) that wide pinch would have more carryover to a hand that is just plain strong overall. The narrow pinch is a competition lift and sure involves pinching strength, but obviously one makes this suitable for handsize and I think (again, just my guess here) and it is less "functional" than being strong at wide pinch. If these assumptions are correct I think I will focus more on wider pinch as I've found I can't train so many things at the same time.

If I'm wrong though, be sure to let me know, and why!

[Teemu I]

You should train for what you want/need.

You can't be strong at everything.

David

Yeah, says the guy who IS !!!

I think (please correct me if I'm wrong) that wide pinch would have more carryover to a hand that is just plain strong overall. The narrow pinch is a competition lift and sure involves pinching strength, but obviously one makes this suitable for handsize and I think (again, just my guess here) and it is less "functional" than being strong at wide pinch. If these assumptions are correct I think I will focus more on wider pinch as I've found I can't train so many things at the same time.

If I'm wrong though, be sure to let me know, and why!

You just answered your question: rotate the exercises that you use in your grip training for the best results. Hit that wide pinch hard for couple of months, then go to regular pinching. For example.

I found out that for me, wide pinch did not carryover so well to the regular pinching. I figured out that the reason has to be because you can't pinch with your palm when you are handling an item as wide as the blobette. Where as in the width that best suits your hand you can utilize the palm strength. I just didn't know how to do it when I first started to do the regular pinch, but started seeing results when I started to get hang of it.

I also found out to be very weak with really narrow pinching. I made a narrow pinch tool out of 5 mm thick iron plate and quickly discovered that my tumb is weak in that position. Pathetically weak.

Best results overall are to be expected when you find out your weaknesses and bring them up, I believe.

Edited August 22, 2007 by Teemu I

[David Horne]

I have over the 20 odd years of grip training trained my pinch on different widths, textures, etc, etc.

But if I have a goal or contest, then I train on what I need to. Hence my technical ability on some events will slip somewhat.

Hope this helps,

David

[climber511]

I have over the 20 odd years of grip training trained my pinch on different widths, textures, etc, etc.

But if I have a goal or contest, then I train on what I need to. Hence my technical ability on some events will slip somewhat.

Hope this helps,

David

Some of the best advice I ever got on the Gripboard came from David back when we had the "Chat" function - and you pretty much just read it right here. 20 years of "doing it all" means David is ready for about anything with 2 or 3 months of focused event work. Train everything - have no weaknesses - then focus to the immediate goal at hand. But build that base first - a tall building better have a wide strong foundation.

[Teemu I]

Well said!

[twig]

I confessed that I am guilty of training that which I am good at, and neglecting that which I am not, to David when I met him...

He kindly explained that these were the events I should practice practice practice upon, to build an all round grip. he was in no way judgemental...

But the look he gave me made me feel like I was 5 years old in Infants School!

[David Horne]

Neil,

It was nice meeting up with you that day and having a beer.

But yes, if you want to have balanced strength or compete then train the various areas, and train your weak parts harder. Also remember to train all your body, and don't neglect your heart and lungs.

It's good to be strong, but even better to be fit and healthy. Think of your many years ahead.

David

[hab34buy]

Not to sidetrack the topic, but given the above mentioned stuff in terms of using the index finger or not, I'm going to go ahead and ask . In the discipline of martial art that I study, the masters always used to say that when grabbing someone (and I'll now extend this to something) the index finger shouldn't be used. The reason given is that by excluding this finger, the brain will cause a stronger contraction of the remaining fingers, and result in a grip that is tighter then what could be acheived otherwise. Now up front I'm going to say that this I'm sure may not be true for someone with serious grip training, but does this have any truth in it? I venture to guess that if this is true, then for someone like myself with slightly smaller hands with an inability to get the index over a large size at all (like some block weights), just may not be as handicaped as assumed from this respect. Just curious... sorry for the sidetrack