Left Hand Knuckle Pain

[PuttyMasher]

Been closing grippers for about a month now, but about 2 weeks ago i felt pain in the base knuckle of my left middle finger Seems to go away after doing a few warmup sets, but leaves me concerned on whether i'm doing something wrong.

Is this due to the right turn torsion spring pulling away from my left hand? Anyone experienced something like this?

[EJ Livesey]

I'd say because you're new to the sport. All the important stuff; tendons, muscle, skin, bones and joints aren't used to the stress.

[Sam Radford]

I had this on my left hand too, I was doing high intensity (RRBT) and using the #1.5 and #2 and it got to the point where I couldn't do any LH closes.

My advice . . . use contrast baths [hot and cold] daily and use a heat rub [tiger balm] but most importantly REST!! Don't be tempted to try light grippers either, just totally deload from it. That's what I did and it worked.

[Fist of Fury]

I agree with previous posts.

Try doing lighter gripper workouts for a while (if you can, if not rest completely) so you can recover, increase the resistance slowly. Heavy training is harder on tendons, joints etc so you need to take it slow in the beginning so that they can get used to the stress.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Fist of Fury

[EJ Livesey]

If you choose to do contrast baths remember it must be HOT and COLD. it should be almost too hot to tolerate and it must be almost too cold to tolerate. Normal water from the tap won't do it normally.

[Fist of Fury]

Normal tap water should be providing enough heat, just might need to wait a while before it gets hot. The cold part might need some ice or you could put the bucket in a freezer if you have space for it.

Do it several times per day. If the pain doesn't go away then contrast baths will not help you get rid of it but it's still good to do them.

[Justin Matney]

I had the same thing when I first started. It will go away.

[PuttyMasher]

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. So is there any chance the pain is on the left knuckle due to my left hand being weaker than my right or because of the orientation of the torsion spring? Or maybe both factors? Curious because i heard of the Left Turn grippers by Iromind, and was wondering if it would make it easier to close for the left hand.

Also my left hand can close grippers of the same resistance at a faster speed than my right, even though my right can pump out more reps.

Edited December 4, 2015 by PuttyMasher

[wobbler]

Try super cissus and maybe msm. The cissus will reduce pain for sure, and its not that expensive.

[EJ Livesey]

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. So is there any chance the pain is on the left knuckle due to my left hand being weaker than my right or because of the orientation of the torsion spring? Or maybe both factors? Curious because i heard of the Left Turn grippers by Iromind, and was wondering if it would make it easier to close for the left hand.

Also my left hand can close grippers of the same resistance at a faster speed than my right, even though my right can pump out more reps.

Sounds to me like you need to justify buying a LT gripper. If you want one buy it. But it won't magically make your knuckle stop hurting. Only time will make that happen.

[Fist of Fury]

No I don't think it has to do with the spring turning a certain way. LT grippers are good to have but you could just use a normal gripper with less resistance for you left hand. The reason your knuckle is hurting is because you're new and not used to this type of training, not because of the equipment. It's completely normal. No pain no gain as they say, just take it easy for a while until it feels better.

[PuttyMasher]

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. So is there any chance the pain is on the left knuckle due to my left hand being weaker than my right or because of the orientation of the torsion spring? Or maybe both factors? Curious because i heard of the Left Turn grippers by Iromind, and was wondering if it would make it easier to close for the left hand.

Also my left hand can close grippers of the same resistance at a faster speed than my right, even though my right can pump out more reps.

Sounds to me like you need to justify buying a LT gripper. If you want one buy it. But it won't magically make your knuckle stop hurting. Only time will make that happen.

Nah i am not interested in getting a LT gripper. Just curious. Just ordered some regular CoCs from CPW during their black friday promotions.

[exarmy]

I have the exact same pain. intact now I'm not touching a gripper with my left hand for the next 3 months!

It started off as a niggling pain that first appeared when doing KTA, but it was manageable and used to go away after a few reps. then one day I didn't warm up properly and started using the #2 and it hurt a lot, then the following week it hurt just picking things up, not tried anything other than the trainer for ages.

I can't help but feel it's my fault for just neglecting the pain and carrying on, I should have done more contrast baths and warmed up better

[HandsMcHanderson]

MP joints (the knuckles) are less naturally stable than PIP and DIP therefore rely on the ligaments more heavily (though they are stable in flexion). Given the amount of work you are putting your hands through it's perfectly natural and not due to spring direction. The pain is likely some inflammation and will go away, just back down the intensity/volume some as it needs time to heal.

[PuttyMasher]

Just did my grip session for today on my right hand. Tried a few reps with my warmup gripper on my left hand and felt the pain coming on, so i did not proceed to work my left hand today. I am gonna heed everyone's advice and let my left hand rest for awhile. Hope it heals by the time my right hand completes my goal gripper. Don't want the strength difference between both hands to get too wide.

[Fist of Fury]

Just did my grip session for today on my right hand. Tried a few reps with my warmup gripper on my left hand and felt the pain coming on, so i did not proceed to work my left hand today. I am gonna heed everyone's advice and let my left hand rest for awhile. Hope it heals by the time my right hand completes my goal gripper. Don't want the strength difference between both hands to get too wide.

Sooner or later the strength difference between your hands will be greater. The stronger you get the bigger it usually gets. Unless you're a very ambidextrous person

You can try to practice setting for your left hand, take a very easy gripper and practice the setting a lot if you're able to do that without pain.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Fist of Fury