arande2 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 First post: I'm 16 and I have become interested in grip training. Back almost a year ago, I ordered the Trainer and then got to the #1. Over a couple months I got up to about 17 reps right hand and 8 left hand. After that, I tried a number two, but progress was very slow and I hadn't made any improvements. It was icy outside and 3 weeks ago I slipped and slightly injured my right ring finger. So... I decided to take off a couple weeks to allow healing. When I tried resuming, my left hand was the same and my right hand can now only do 6-8 reps rather than 17 on the #1 gripper. And when I was doing my workout (two week break) yesterday, my grip gave out while holding 235 pounds (barbell) for about 20 secs when before I could hold 300 for about the same period. If I try to make a tight fist with my right hand I get extreme muscle fatigue in my forearm. I plan to get that mastery of hand strength book since it should help. Now that you've heard the story, do you have any recommendations of what to do? It's really annoying trying to gain strength without making any progress. I had a goal to close the #3 before my senior year. Also, I train extensors, wrist (levering), and pinch strength. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twig Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Simple answer? Change what you've been doing. But it sounds like you have an injury, so go see a Doc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arande2 Posted January 6, 2009 Author Share Posted January 6, 2009 Well my finger doesn't even hurt anymore, so I don't know. That's just it, I try to do something different every time, sometimes slow reps, sometimes a lot of reps, sometimes just one set, sometimes just one rep (max effort) for 2-3 sets. Holding the gripper closed for time.. Maybe I'm changing it too often? Also - in my workouts all my other muscles seem to have gotten weaker - I think it may be something else... Improper rest, diet, not enough water (that could be it).. Would you mean like a different type of exercise that works the same muscles? Like Farmer's Walk? Or maybe something else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arron-brewer Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Sounds like you might be over-training, and yes, you may be changing your routine too often to properly track progress. Also, are you warming up properly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AP Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Progress IS slow, especially in grip. Pick a few different goals, reasonable goals and work toward them. If you have hand pain you need to rehab it before moving on, breaks will not rehab a hand IMHO you would need to contrast bath or do light work in sand to fix it if its still a problem. Above all believe you can hit your goal no matter how long it takes, so find what you think will work for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAN PRAYDIS Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 i read an article that said everyone has a certain week in every month where they make a personal gain and there was a study on it but i cant recall what iron giant did it but he swears it works if anyone else read this let me know too . i slack off for certin issues too and seem to be stuck in a time warp most of the time keep training and you will get where you want to be good luck . dont feel bad im in the same boat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twig Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 I try to do something different every time, sometimes slow reps, sometimes a lot of reps, sometimes just one set, sometimes just one rep (max effort) for 2-3 sets. Holding the gripper closed for time.. Maybe I'm changing it too often?I would say so; stick with a routine until it stops working, then alter it and stick with a routine until it stops working; then alter it and...you can see a pattern developing, can't you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arande2 Posted January 7, 2009 Author Share Posted January 7, 2009 Do you mean overtraining as in not enough rest or too much each session? I tend to space it with 3-5 days in between each. I don't know if I'm warming up properly - I usually do 10 slow reps on a trainer then start the work sets in like 5 minutes. It is slow, but 5 months and only a very slight increase, if any? :blink Yeah okay thanks everyone I'll try sticking to one thing until it stops working, and focus hard on what I'm doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arron-brewer Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Do you mean overtraining as in not enough rest or too much each session? I tend to space it with 3-5 days in between each. I don't know if I'm warming up properly - I usually do 10 slow reps on a trainer then start the work sets in like 5 minutes. Overtraining can occur from either of those reasons or a combination of the two. Three days may be enough for some people, but not others. Also, it depends on what you just did in the previous workout. For example, if you just smoked yourself with Holds (like you mentioned earlier), and your next workout consists of some #2 attempts, and you're not fully recovered, then your sweep will be toast. Either way, you need to establish some kind of routine. For proper warm-up, check the forum. There was a topic on warming up just a couple days ago. You can start w/ the Trainer, but move up to the #1 before having a go w/ the #2. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arande2 Posted January 9, 2009 Author Share Posted January 9, 2009 Thank you I've never tried setting a gripper before, but from what I hear (more ROM=more difficult) I don't really want to Training extensors doesn't seem to ever make sense (ie I don't know how to do it right or effectively). And on thumb strength, I can't seem to find any info on training other movements of the thumb besides pinch and extension - I mean it seems to me different muscles move it side to side as well (not sure). And do you recommend getting the book Master of Hand Strength and if not is there one you would? Thanks guys I'm still not quite understanding of this after 10 months or so of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwils Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Thank youI've never tried setting a gripper before, but from what I hear (more ROM=more difficult) I don't really want to Training extensors doesn't seem to ever make sense (ie I don't know how to do it right or effectively). And on thumb strength, I can't seem to find any info on training other movements of the thumb besides pinch and extension - I mean it seems to me different muscles move it side to side as well (not sure). And do you recommend getting the book Master of Hand Strength and if not is there one you would? Thanks guys I'm still not quite understanding of this after 10 months or so of it. Any open handed lift should work the thumb, ie -pinching, block weights, thick bar etc., but as was said previously you really should try to come up with a definitive routine and stick with it for a bit. Come up with your goals and build a routine around achieving them - keep a journal to track your progress so you'll be able to see what's working and what isn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cemery Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Sometimes the same thing happens to me. When one disciplin starts to plateau, concentrate on another disciplin for a while. Also, breaks are good, but sometimes you have to take 1 step back to take 2 steps forward. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
climber511 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 What's your overall body workout look like? Grippers all by themselves don't offer much stimulus for growth. Bring up your squat and DL numbers - and your grippers might come up also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arande2 Posted January 9, 2009 Author Share Posted January 9, 2009 a journal - good idea Developing a solid routine really seems to be important The heavy exercises I do on Mon are DL/Clean, Wed Squat/Calves, Fri Bench. I am aware that the body produces more testosterone when you do those heavy exercises I guess we'll see tomorrow (grippers), but today is sledge levering. This really is helping I'm sure I'll be much better off from your help in a month Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grippster Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 You should run or bike for a bit before you attempt grippers. The blood flowing quickly through your body will significantly improve your strength. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wes Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t291/we...searchfirst.gif Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueviper42 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 Make sure you are warmed up properly before you start your grip workout. Do some chins/dips/pushups/squat/ anything just to get your blood flowing. Don't fatigue yourself or do anything max, just a few sets to get your blood flowing and your body pumped. I have found that if I do a few sets of chins or dips before grippers, I feel much warmer and my closes are better. For other things, make sure you have a consistent training schedule for your grip. If you start to plateau, switch it up. That doesn't mean you should be doing a random schedule so as to not plateau, only switch after the plateau. It will be easier to guage progress and see results with a consistent routine. Also, start working with your #2 more. You may feel stalled on it because you are used to your #1. The stress received by your hand and supporting strength is much more with the #2 than with the #1. You need to condition your hand and supporting strength to handle the stress of the #2, much like if you were to move from the #2 to the #3 (however the jump from #2 to #3 is significantly larger than #1 to #2). I saw that you do sledge work for wrist strength, and this is a good idea. However, you might want to try to add in some wrist curls for more wrist and forearm support. Contrast baths could also help you recover better. However, I don't know your full situation, but you may have suffered from some overtraining. I noticed you said when you clench your hand you feel muscle fatigue in your forearm. Maybe someone more experienced can comment on this, but this sounds like a sign of overtraining. You might need to lay off for a week and see how it goes from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsmiley Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 I have to agree with Wes on this one (funny stuff btw). The best way to get the info is search the boards, many of the best grip athletes keep a blog of the workout routines that have got them to where they are at. One blog that comes to mind is a blog from a man who is closing a number four gripper right now and that man is Teemu Ilvesniemi, you can search for him on the board, or just google him and you should be able to find his blog. There is a great deal of information in the grip faq section of the board as well. Good luck with your journey Frank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arande2 Posted January 11, 2009 Author Share Posted January 11, 2009 Yeah I should've done searching more BEFORE I posted, but I'm still learning a lot from this thread as well as from reading logs and searching. Aha! Plate Wrist Curls, I shall do those - it's just that one time I did them and felt a pop that hurt a lot in my wrist on the way back down (maybe doing it wrong) And also #2 work should help - I'll try to get a better idea of how to do all this stuff from logs I had already took a week's rest and my hand still felt that way, but it seems to have gone away now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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