Grip training advice

[ldavis]

HI all, I'm new to gripboard and am looking for some advice on grip training. I have been into strength training and powerlifting for the past 8 years, since I was about 17. I do a lot of grip work and my biggest goal is to certify on the captains of crush #3. I am so close but just cant get the last 4-5 mm of the #3 closed. I have worked with captains of crush grippers for about the past 6 or so years, but I have not improved at all in the last 2 years on them. I train grip once a week. The first reason is because my recovery seems to respond best to this and secondly because of doing heavy rows and deadlifts through the week hit my grip too. I have done basic heavy working sets with the grippers, fat bar work where I just load a bar up with weight and put fat handles on it and hold onto the weight, worked with grippers with the handles filed down, chocked grippers with a hose clamp, heavy negatives and singles on the grippers, and have taken my working set gripper and held it shut as long as I could after doing max reps with it. I'm just not sure where to turn now, but any advice on how some of you guys broke through a grip training plateau would be greatly appreciated! thanks!  

[Paul Savage]

Its hard to say off just that info but you may be doing too much. From what I can gather you are doing the deadlifts and rows bare handed? If so try switching to straps and just training the grip once a week doing the grippers between sets of squats.

You can also go away from grippers for 3-6 months doing other forms of grip training, pinch, thickbar, wrist work etc Or just do heavy gym training for 3-6 months (only using straps for top sets), eat more, gain some muscle and then come back to the grippers.

The reason for this is because eventually the body will simply not respond so either of these will give you a bigger base to peak off, resulting in a higher peak. Good luck.

[Jörg Keilbach]

Have you watched "How To Set A Gripper" by Paul Knight on YouTube? If not do so.  Perhaps it is only your technique that is holding you back. 

[ldavis]

thanks for the reply Jorg I will have to give that a look on youtube. And thanks for the reply paul, I do deadlifts and rows with straps, and that does make a lot of sense about taking a break from the grippers to build a better base to peak off of, I think I kind of lack in terms of thick bar grip work, so maybe I could take time off from the grippers like you suggested and build a good base with that especially, and also build a good base with other forms of grip training. I love grip training but it seems to be the most stubborn thing for me to train lol.

[Fist of Fury]

Yes, definitely focus on something else for six months. I was stuck with grippers and started to focus on thick bar with my left for almost a year. I recently started working with grippers with that hand again and I'm already stronger than before, only after a month of dedicated training, twice a week.

Grip training is very complex and to keep progressing  you need to work all areas of grip. The problem is that working thick bar and grippers at the same time is very difficult. 

[Josh O'Dell]

I actually just started grippers again after a two year break and I'm hitting bigger PR' s after only a month back in. Take a break.

[KapMan]

Whats worked for me is reps. 60-65% of your 3s rating. Mine is 144. I was programemed 20 reps each hand and then the next week go up 2 and do that for 3-4 weeks. And now i destroy it pretty regular. Technique is very very very important. Aside from paul knights video, Jedd Johnson also has one. 

If your goal is to cert on the 3 then you probably should train for that cert. CCS is tough. Im not even sure whats a good way to train CCS. I gotta learn too. But i was pretty close when i tried. 

[Josh O'Dell]

Training MMS has ccs carryover, I have never only trained ccs. I actually never tried a ccs when I first started and only did mms i ccs my 3 after 3 months of grippers.