Has Grip Strength In The Population At Large Ever Been Quantified In T

[gripn00b]

I wonder if a lot of this comes from the fact that people in 1st World European/European originated nations can go entire generations without any real, strenuous physical labor being done by large segments of their populations on a regular basis.

Like, I'm sure that 100 years ago, grip strength in the US or the UK was probably profoundly better than today.

I wonder if we were to go to developing nations where there are still large numbers of people who work the earth and labor on a daily basis, if their average grip strength wouldn't *substantially* surpass ours on a per-capita basis? I'm sure that if I picked 100 random farmers from Senegal and 100 random guys off the streets of Chicago, the farmers would close heavy grippers at a much higher rate than the random city guys.

Edited November 24, 2007 by GRIPn00b

[Sybersnott]

Like, I'm sure that 100 years ago, grip strength in the US or the UK was probably profoundly better than today.

Hell, you don't even haffta go back 100 years - go back 50 years or to a time where physical manual labor was the rule of the day.

If you wanted it, YOU picked it up and moved it - by hand. Back then, people knew what it was like to pick up 100 pounds. Today, the average person wouldn't know what 100 pounds felt like if it came up and bit them in the butt!!!

IMHO, we are getting weaker as a whole (population wise) each and every year. Those who choose an activity to progressive resistance - such as weightlifting - will have a definite bodily advantage over those who don't, now and years on down the road.

[jad]

Grippers do require skill but to say they don't test functional hand strength or they aren't a good measure of hand strength is silly. The last part of the close is the hardest part so I don't understand how the portion where you have to be the strongest is the most useless??? If people would check their egos and actually show people how to set them, before testing them and the test-ee would actually listen, we'd see some different results. Also, think about who all the big dyno scores belong to and then compare that to their ability on the grippers. It's not like somebody is going to miss a #2 and then bust a 200 on the dyno.

[Teemu I]

By least functional, I meant only that that ordinary guys with pretty good grips fail on the grippers because the last little bit is what you don't need that often in ordinary life.

I also disagree with the statement that you can automatically close the #2 if you can squeeze 200 lbs on the dyno. That is exactly what I experienced. I was able to squeeze 200 lbs on the Jamar dyno but couldn't close the #2 right away.

Grippers aren't commonly used as a measure of grip strength. If a torsion spring hand gripper was a valid meter, it would certainly be used instead of dyno.

Edited November 24, 2007 by Teemu I

[jad]

I'd get your dyno checked and/or check your dyno technique if you could pull 200 and missed the #2. Unless you were attempting the IM thumbless pinch grip style of closing grippers you should have killed it. I've heard of guys shutting #3s that didn't pull 200 on the dyno.

Grippers are a valid meter of hand strength but aren't used for several reasons

1. They vary too much

2. Not enough increments

3. Most people don't even know heavy duty torsion spring grippers exist

4. Not adjustable for handsize

The dyno is easily superior to the gripper for measuring strength but to say that grippers aren't a good measure is quite a stretch in my opinion.

By least functional, I meant only that that ordinary guys with pretty good grips fail on the grippers because the last little bit is what you don't need that often in ordinary life.

I'd have to disagree with this statement. When the gripper is closed, your hand is essentially closed in a fist. How can someone who supposedly has a good grip not be strong with their hand closed. That's a pretty common position when gripping things. People love to rave about the blobs for functional hand strength but how often do you grip something 4" wide with sloping sides? I think guys that we usually associate with having good grips, usually have a good support grip and then when they fail on the gripper we want to discount the gripper not their crushing grip. But if a gripper guy doesn't do as well on support then that's because grippers aren't a "real" test not the fact that their support grip sucks.

[Teemu I]

I'd get your dyno checked and/or check your dyno technique if you could pull 200 and missed the #2. Unless you were attempting the IM thumbless pinch grip style of closing grippers you should have killed it. I've heard of guys shutting #3s that didn't pull 200 on the dyno.

Grippers are a valid meter of hand strength but aren't used for several reasons

1. They vary too much

2. Not enough increments

3. Most people don't even know heavy duty torsion spring grippers exist

4. Not adjustable for handsize

The dyno is easily superior to the gripper for measuring strength but to say that grippers aren't a good measure is quite a stretch in my opinion.

By least functional, I meant only that that ordinary guys with pretty good grips fail on the grippers because the last little bit is what you don't need that often in ordinary life.

I'd have to disagree with this statement. When the gripper is closed, your hand is essentially closed in a fist. How can someone who supposedly has a good grip not be strong with their hand closed. That's a pretty common position when gripping things. People love to rave about the blobs for functional hand strength but how often do you grip something 4" wide with sloping sides? I think guys that we usually associate with having good grips, usually have a good support grip and then when they fail on the gripper we want to discount the gripper not their crushing grip. But if a gripper guy doesn't do as well on support then that's because grippers aren't a "real" test not the fact that their support grip sucks.

I did that 200 on several calibrated Jamar dynos.

Of course my technique on the grippers wasn't good. Excactly how it commonly is with guys not familiar with grippers. But not that bad as you suggested. However, I could not fully close it.

You can't draw any meaningful conclusions out of the grip strength "measurements" done with grippers. The results are twisted when compared to the grip strength measurement results that can be seen as scientific. Most of the population would test to be weaker than they actually are if you used grippers a measure. Even if you would show them how to set it properly. That was my point.

The reason I defend this view is that it results in false assumptions how weak grips people in general have, when you base your views on the people's performance on hand grippers.

I don't think it to be a "stretch" at all to say that the grippers are not a good measure of hand strength in this context (not a valid or reliable meter of grip strength in larger population).

Grippers are my favourite of all grip related equipment, I just don't use them to measure the grip strength of my clients.

[Teemu I]

Also when a person unfamiliar with grippers grabs a gripper, the thumbside handle is usually so badly positioned, that your joints should allow for ROM way past the point of hand beeing closed in a fist. That is what I was talking about when I said the last little bit beeing the least functional. It is. Sorry I wasn't precise about that before.

[mobsterone]

Grippers do require skill but to say they don't test functional hand strength or they aren't a good measure of hand strength is silly. The last part of the close is the hardest part so I don't understand how the portion where you have to be the strongest is the most useless??? If people would check their egos and actually show people how to set them, before testing them and the test-ee would actually listen, we'd see some different results. Also, think about who all the big dyno scores belong to and then compare that to their ability on the grippers. It's not like somebody is going to miss a #2 and then bust a 200 on the dyno.

You might but no tester wants to have to train individuals in using an item. With most dynos a simple setting of the handle is enough. Variations +/- 5% etc are always allowed for anyway.

[superfeemiman]

Grippers do require skill but to say they don't test functional hand strength or they aren't a good measure of hand strength is silly. The last part of the close is the hardest part so I don't understand how the portion where you have to be the strongest is the most useless??? If people would check their egos and actually show people how to set them, before testing them and the test-ee would actually listen, we'd see some different results. Also, think about who all the big dyno scores belong to and then compare that to their ability on the grippers. It's not like somebody is going to miss a #2 and then bust a 200 on the dyno.

You might but no tester wants to have to train individuals in using an item. With most dynos a simple setting of the handle is enough. Variations +/- 5% etc are always allowed for anyway.

True, but he's not saying that people should use them over dynos, just stating that the they aren't as bad a measure as some people would have you believe.

[climber511]

I don't know but at least half of my friends seem to close the #1 first try and quite a few get the #2 with a little coaching on technique. I have to admit most of my friends a.) have done physical labor type work for a living - b.) have lifted weights for years c.) most are also older as well or d.) are rock climbers. Go figure.

[mobsterone]

Grippers do require skill but to say they don't test functional hand strength or they aren't a good measure of hand strength is silly. The last part of the close is the hardest part so I don't understand how the portion where you have to be the strongest is the most useless??? If people would check their egos and actually show people how to set them, before testing them and the test-ee would actually listen, we'd see some different results. Also, think about who all the big dyno scores belong to and then compare that to their ability on the grippers. It's not like somebody is going to miss a #2 and then bust a 200 on the dyno.

You might but no tester wants to have to train individuals in using an item. With most dynos a simple setting of the handle is enough. Variations +/- 5% etc are always allowed for anyway.

True, but he's not saying that people should use them over dynos, just stating that the they aren't as bad a measure as some people would have you believe.

I did emphaszie the section I was commenting on in my reply.

[superfeemiman]

Grippers do require skill but to say they don't test functional hand strength or they aren't a good measure of hand strength is silly. The last part of the close is the hardest part so I don't understand how the portion where you have to be the strongest is the most useless??? If people would check their egos and actually show people how to set them, before testing them and the test-ee would actually listen, we'd see some different results. Also, think about who all the big dyno scores belong to and then compare that to their ability on the grippers. It's not like somebody is going to miss a #2 and then bust a 200 on the dyno.

You might but no tester wants to have to train individuals in using an item. With most dynos a simple setting of the handle is enough. Variations +/- 5% etc are always allowed for anyway.

True, but he's not saying that people should use them over dynos, just stating that the they aren't as bad a measure as some people would have you believe.

I did emphaszie the section I was commenting on in my reply.

I know, he never said dynos weren't easier to use, and you were implying that dynos are easier to use by commenting on the simple setting, which no one disagrees with.

[mobsterone]

Thus backing up mine and other comments as to why a gripper test is not a good idea.

[superfeemiman]

Thus backing up mine and other comments as to why a gripper test is not a good idea.

And no one disagreed with that (or at least that it's not as good as a dyno test).

[thearm95]

Also when a person unfamiliar with grippers grabs a gripper, the thumbside handle is usually so badly positioned, that your joints should allow for ROM way past the point of hand beeing closed in a fist. That is what I was talking about when I said the last little bit beeing the least functional. It is. Sorry I wasn't precise about that before.

yeah, the person (who is unfamiliar with grippers) just picks it up and holds it in such a way (with the thumb handle way back in the palm) that it sort of twists in the hand and the handles dont line up. The handles stay about 1/2" apart and it is impossible to close any further no matter how strong that person is. This problem doesn't occur on a dyno.

[mobsterone]

Thus backing up mine and other comments as to why a gripper test is not a good idea.

And no one disagreed with that (or at least that it's not as good as a dyno test).

Then the reason for posting earlier was??

[superfeemiman]

And no one disagreed with that (or at least that it's not as good as a dyno test).

Then the reason for posting earlier was??

lol. Which posting? Mine, or before that? My first post was because you were giving reasons as to why dynos were better which seemed to be in a way that was correcting or arguing with jad, and I was just saying that jad was never saying or implying that grippers were a better test to show how good random, unskilled (with grippers) people's hand strength was. His point was that they could be a much better measurement if the people were trained to set when they were tested. That was why I first replied. Now as to if it's good, that's pretty subjective, good doesn't mean the same thing to everybody for everything.

[lloyd80s]

Like, I'm sure that 100 years ago, grip strength in the US or the UK was probably profoundly better than today.

Hell, you don't even haffta go back 100 years - go back 50 years or to a time where physical manual labor was the rule of the day.

If you wanted it, YOU picked it up and moved it - by hand. Back then, people knew what it was like to pick up 100 pounds. Today, the average person wouldn't know what 100 pounds felt like if it came up and bit them in the butt!!!

IMHO, we are getting weaker as a whole (population wise) each and every year. Those who choose an activity to progressive resistance - such as weightlifting - will have a definite bodily advantage over those who don't, now and years on down the road.

I couldn't agree more, most people are weak and as you say with the jobs most people do now means they sit on their asses getting weaker year after year. Even young kids are fatter and lazier than they would have been 50 years ago, Playstation generation kids need to sort it out.

[lloyd80s]

Grippers do require skill but to say they don't test functional hand strength or they aren't a good measure of hand strength is silly. The last part of the close is the hardest part so I don't understand how the portion where you have to be the strongest is the most useless??? If people would check their egos and actually show people how to set them, before testing them and the test-ee would actually listen, we'd see some different results. Also, think about who all the big dyno scores belong to and then compare that to their ability on the grippers. It's not like somebody is going to miss a #2 and then bust a 200 on the dyno.

Closing big grippers requires skill but for true brute strength they don't as the gripper should be closed TNS. To test all men fairly the gripper should be placed in their hands and then see how far it can close it with a simple no set close. This way the skill part is taken out and you get a true reflection of the crushing strength.

[lloyd80s]

I don't know but at least half of my friends seem to close the #1 first try and quite a few get the #2 with a little coaching on technique. I have to admit most of my friends a.) have done physical labor type work for a living - b.) have lifted weights for years c.) most are also older as well or d.) are rock climbers. Go figure.

Many climbers have grips that would shame people here, I suppose when you're hanging from a cliff edge with 1 hand you need to be pretty confident you grip wont let you down!! Vids guys hanging from 1 finger must be close to closing a #4 it terms of toughness??

[climber511]

I don't know but at least half of my friends seem to close the #1 first try and quite a few get the #2 with a little coaching on technique. I have to admit most of my friends a.) have done physical labor type work for a living - b.) have lifted weights for years c.) most are also older as well or d.) are rock climbers. Go figure.

Many climbers have grips that would shame people here, I suppose when you're hanging from a cliff edge with 1 hand you need to be pretty confident you grip wont let you down!! Vids guys hanging from 1 finger must be close to closing a #4 it terms of toughness??

Actually climbers aren't that good on grippers (but very very good in other areas) - and the better ones seem to do the worst. I think for a couple reasons one - better climbers are smaller people and two - climbers do not use a grip like a gripper in their sport or in training for the sport very often. Open hand and closed hand strength are two completely different things. Climbing seems to develop static strength or strength without movement better than strength with movement.

[twig]

I should imagine that trawl fishermenmen and net fisherman would have hands most adapted for grippers as they pull on narrow gauge ropes all day.