18y/os grip journey

[Tomas_3]

Hello, I’m Thomas a 125 pound kid ready to embark on my grip journey. My father and uncle were pro arm wrestlers back in the early 2000’s, and being surrounded by that I did tons and TONS of self study. From arm wrestling I found this forum which definitely peeked my interest and gave me the motivation to start my grip journey; however I work at a movie theater so I’m limited on what I can buy equipment wise so on Black Friday I bought a few toys (iron mind block and hub, Amazon rolling thunder, loading pin, arm wrestling attachment for pronation and supination). I also have a adjustable gripper and Captain of Crush grippers from ranging 1-2.5. 

My current goals are to get 13in forearms and to close the 2.5CoC 

If you have any advice or tip please feel free to let me know

[Tomas_3]

For consistency sake I’m going to put the workout I did today which is the first day trying this grip training journey 

12/10/2023

Amazon rolling thunder (10 second holds)

Warm ups- {note: I did it with both hands}

Flexor and extensor stretch

(15 seconds x 3) each hand 

10 pushups 

(10lbs x 1)(30lbs x 1)(50lbs x 1)(80lbs x 1)
 

Working set-

(85lbs x1) 3-4min rest (85lbs x1)

Cool down- 

(50lbs x 1) (30lbs x 2) adjustable gripper on 1/4 tension till I feel my forearms getting just a little warm

Flexor and extensor stretch

(15 seconds x 3) each hand

10 pushups 

[John Knowlton]

Welcome and nice work

[Terry Conjugate Iron]

9 hours ago, Tomas_3 said:

Hello, I’m Thomas a 125 pound kid ready to embark on my grip journey. My father and uncle were pro arm wrestlers back in the early 2000’s, and being surrounded by that I did tons and TONS of self study. From arm wrestling I found this forum which definitely peeked my interest and gave me the motivation to start my grip journey; however I work at a movie theater so I’m limited on what I can buy equipment wise so on Black Friday I bought a few toys (iron mind block and hub, Amazon rolling thunder, loading pin, arm wrestling attachment for pronation and supination). I also have a adjustable gripper and Captain of Crush grippers from ranging 1-2.5. 

My current goals are to get 13in forearms and to close the 2.5CoC 

If you have any advice or tip please feel free to let me know

Welcome! You got yourself a very good starter kit. 

I'm a big armwrestling fan, been watching religiously for nearly 15 years and much like in that sport, grip takes time to build that tendon and ligament strength. 

So be passionate but be careful not to overdo it as well. 

[Tomas_3]

1 hour ago, Terry Conjugate Iron said:

Welcome! You got yourself a very good starter kit. 

I'm a big armwrestling fan, been watching religiously for nearly 15 years and much like in that sport, grip takes time to build that tendon and ligament strength. 

So be passionate but be careful not to overdo it as well. 

Yeah, the last thing I need is a setback at the start of my journey. When I was 15y/o I injured my left hand playing with the 1.0 CoC. I would go back and forth closing it with no warm up, and had to go to the doctor for inflammation and rupture of a pulley in my left hand; haven’t touched the CoC grippers since, but I plan to soon!

[Tomas_3]

6 hours ago, John Knowlton said:

Welcome and nice work

Thank you!

[Tomas_3]

12/11/2023

No training today tendons feel a bit sore from the Amazon rolling thunder yesterday however I did do some reps with the adjustable gripper at 1/4 tension till I felt blood flowing later followed by some flexor and extensor stretches and a little forearm massage to help with blood flow and muscle stiffness. 
 

I believe even on off days doing super light work is beneficial for recovery. My doctor always told me movement is medicine!

[John Knowlton]

Yes, your DR. is so right, keep moving.  

[Blacksmith513]

Sounds like you’re off to a good start man. Welcome aboard. 

[Tomas_3]

6 hours ago, Blacksmith513 said:

Sounds like you’re off to a good start man. Welcome aboard. 

Thanks for having me!

[Tomas_3]

12/12/2023

I worked night shift so throughout the shift I would use a extensor band or my adjustable gripper at 1/4 tension to get some blood flowing and when I got home I did flexor and extensor stretches and some pushups. My forearms though are still sore, and my hypothesis is my body is just trying to adjust still which sucks and I’m trying not to be impatient. I have heard about training hard and resting/recovering harder. I can’t wait to play with my grip toys!

[EmilBB]

2 hours ago, Tomas_3 said:

12/12/2023

I worked night shift so throughout the shift I would use a extensor band or my adjustable gripper at 1/4 tension to get some blood flowing and when I got home I did flexor and extensor stretches and some pushups. My forearms though are still sore, and my hypothesis is my body is just trying to adjust still which sucks and I’m trying not to be impatient. I have heard about training hard and resting/recovering harder. I can’t wait to play with my grip toys!

Hardest part of training grip is waiting for the next grip session but it's necessary to rest to get good results 

[Blacksmith513]

1 hour ago, EmilBB said:

Hardest part of training grip is waiting for the next grip session but it's necessary to rest to get good results 

Truer words have never been spoken.  

I still have so much to learn. But if I knew at his age what I know now. 

[DrBartlebee]

I think it's awesome that you are getting into grip and are willing to seek out advice from others. That's a really rare quality for 18 year olds haha. 

I'm still learning a lot but I feel like some of my biggest takeaways so far have been:

Grip (especially grippers) is not like other training. Inconsistent progress is very normal, even over the span of months. You will have a lot of (what feel like) bad workouts, and it is helpful to log progress here to contextualize a rough session. Sometimes it feels like you have been stuck on a particular lift/gripper for a really long time but it has only been a couple weeks.

The tendons in your hands need to get used to grip training. As in, it will take a while to build up a base of strength in your tendons to bulletproof them against injury and allow you to keep getting stronger. I think there are two camps as far as what makes them stronger goes. I have read that low volume, high intensity builds tendon strength, as well as the reverse. Personally I use high volume low intensity (like squeezing a stress ball hundreds of times) for rehab. When I was first starting with grippers, I just paid close attention to my hands and took the day off if they didn't feel right. One of the ways I knew my tendons had gotten stronger was the ability to do more attempts with a gripper close to my max without a drop off in power. Your muscles can generally output around the same force multiple times with enough of a break, but if your tendons get tired your strength will just suddenly drop off.

Learning to warm up for grip training was especially tough when I first started out. Light calisthenics is not enough for me. I usually go for a ~30-45 minute walk, until my hands start to get all puffy haha. Maybe I just have bad circulation, but making sure I'm really really warmed up has made all the difference. If I don't warm up like this, there is a high chance that I just have a bad workout, or even hurt my hands a little. But you need to find what works for you. If you don't need it, you don't need it!

Lastly, I think branching out makes it all a lot more fun. I got into grip training through grippers and now I have all sorts of toys. Looks like you picked some other training tools up, so that's great! If you have a bad day with one, you'll probably have a better day with another.

[Tomas_3]

4 minutes ago, DrBartlebee said:

I think it's awesome that you are getting into grip and are willing to seek out advice from others. That's a really rare quality for 18 year olds haha. 

I'm still learning a lot but I feel like some of my biggest takeaways so far have been:

Grip (especially grippers) is not like other training. Inconsistent progress is very normal, even over the span of months. You will have a lot of (what feel like) bad workouts, and it is helpful to log progress here to contextualize a rough session. Sometimes it feels like you have been stuck on a particular lift/gripper for a really long time but it has only been a couple weeks.

The tendons in your hands need to get used to grip training. As in, it will take a while to build up a base of strength in your tendons to bulletproof them against injury and allow you to keep getting stronger. I think there are two camps as far as what makes them stronger goes. I have read that low volume, high intensity builds tendon strength, as well as the reverse. Personally I use high volume low intensity (like squeezing a stress ball hundreds of times) for rehab. When I was first starting with grippers, I just paid close attention to my hands and took the day off if they didn't feel right. One of the ways I knew my tendons had gotten stronger was the ability to do more attempts with a gripper close to my max without a drop off in power. Your muscles can generally output around the same force multiple times with enough of a break, but if your tendons get tired your strength will just suddenly drop off.

Learning to warm up for grip training was especially tough when I first started out. Light calisthenics is not enough for me. I usually go for a ~30-45 minute walk, until my hands start to get all puffy haha. Maybe I just have bad circulation, but making sure I'm really really warmed up has made all the difference. If I don't warm up like this, there is a high chance that I just have a bad workout, or even hurt my hands a little. But you need to find what works for you. If you don't need it, you don't need it!

Lastly, I think branching out makes it all a lot more fun. I got into grip training through grippers and now I have all sorts of toys. Looks like you picked some other training tools up, so that's great! If you have a bad day with one, you'll probably have a better day with another.

I love the positivity you radiate man! Thanks for the input I’ll definitely look at my inconsistencies and warm up more thoroughly next session for sure . I already find it helpful to write down my off days to internalize how I’m recovering and what habits I should pursue for my grip training, and I never thought of it that way with tendon fatigue during workouts it’s a good change of perspective honestly I’ll definitely have to pay attention to tendon and muscle fatigue separately. As for the approach for building tendon strength in general I think my body responds better to low sets high intensity having trained once before for a one are pull up I definitely received more results from high intensity work outs.
 

I definitely will get around to having fun with all the toys in my arsenal

[Tomas_3]

12/13/2023

My forearms felt pretty good today nice and rested and ready for some training!

Warm-up

flexor and extensor stretch 15 sec x 3 

1st and 3rd “exercise” from this video https://youtube.com/shorts/ZD6cVlyPSvg?si=sNBalRZAkn6OzWCC

extensor band for 15 reps each hand and a 5 second hold at the end

adjustable gripper 1/2 tension for 5 reps normal and 5 reps inverted 

adjustable gripper max tension for 5 reps normal and 5 reps inverted

(for the CoC grippers I inserted a card [54mm] before closing cause I feel like it is the best display of grip mastery for a gripper)

CoC #1 x 1 both hands with a 5 second hold at the end

Working set

CoC #1.5 x 1 with 5 second hold 

(right and left hand successfully)

CoC #1.5 x 1 with 5 second hold

(right hand successful, but left short by a few millimeters)

CoC #1.5 x 1 with 5 second hold

(right short by a few millimeters, and left to parallel)

Want to add my CoC #1.5 is a Hard 1.5, it is almost identical to my 2.0 (my 2.0 is in the ball park of 102 and my 1.5 is probably 97-99)

Cool Down

CoC #1 x 3  (Card set and each hand) 

adjustable gripper max tension 5 reps normal 5 reps inverted

adjustable gripped 1/2 tension 20 reps normal 

extensor band 15 reps with 5 second hold at the end

Flexor and extensor stretch 15 seconds x 3

1st and 3rd “exercise” from video at the top ^^^

Extra

Did some rising curls arm wrestling style with 10 lbs for 10 reps each arm 2 sets to feel my brachioradialis and funny enough I think it is a weak point for me (if y’all have any tips to isolate the brachioradialis please let me know )

 

[John Knowlton]

NICE WORK

[climber511]

Welcome to the world of Grip Strength training.  Slow and steady wins the race.  The thing that caught my eye was the 13" forearm goal - this is so dependent on body weight, overall size and genetics - but truthfully has less to do with the strength you can have than you might think.  To me the first several months should be spent working on your base levels of overall hand, wrist, and forearm development - and save the specialized implement work for later.  David Horne has a beginners program that is quite good - you can't go wrong listening to the Grandfather of Grip Sport (David Horne).  Good Luck!

[Tomas_3]

10 minutes ago, climber511 said:

Welcome to the world of Grip Strength training.  Slow and steady wins the race.  The thing that caught my eye was the 13" forearm goal - this is so dependent on body weight, overall size and genetics - but truthfully has less to do with the strength you can have than you might think.  To me the first several months should be spent working on your base levels of overall hand, wrist, and forearm development - and save the specialized implement work for later.  David Horne has a beginners program that is quite good - you can't go wrong listening to the Grandfather of Grip Sport (David Horne).  Good Luck!

Yeah it does have a lot to do with genetics and lucky for me I have decent muscle bellies and long arms for my height (5’7). My wing span is around 6’5 and my forearm is just over a foot long so I have some hope to fill out my frame. As for the foundation for my hands, wrist, and forearm I plan to work in wrist curls and all types of stuff but for right now I’m just testing all my equipment and find strengths and weaknesses so I have a more tailored path for me.

I’ll definitely have to look into David Horne sounds like a blast!

[Tomas_3]

12/14/2023

My forearms today feel pretty good despite the soreness and being a little tight. Tendons definitely took the brunt of the “fatigue” but still not as bad as the rolling thunder holds I did last week. Over all I worked night shift today so throughout the shift I would use my adjustable gripper at 1/2 tension and use my extensor band to get some blood flow and when I got home did flexor and extensor stretches with 10 pushups slow and controlled. I’m starting to see extra dryness in my hands from all the stretching and stuff so imma have to use Vaseline so it doesn’t lead to any cracking.

Hope everyone had a good week!  

[Tomas_3]

12/15/2023

Today my hands feel really nice, and I don’t know how to describe it other than “smooth joints” maybe it’s just placebo though. Over all I worked night shift again and use my adjustable gripper at 1/2 tension and extensor band for blood flow. When I got home I did some flexor and extensor stretches with the exercises I mentioned in my last work out (the YouTube link). Feels like tomorrow my arms will be ready for more training!

[Tomas_3]

12/16/2023

This is kinda late but I worked night shift and got home REALLY late so I didn’t have the energy to work out (worked a double) but I still throughout the day used my adjustable gripper at 1/2 tension and extensor band with a light flexor and extensor stretch when I got home.

[John Knowlton]

Hey  something is better than nothing 

[Tomas_3]

12/17/2023

Today I definitely found my weakness in my forearms. 
 

Warm-ups

Extensor band 20 reps with a 5 second hold at the end each hand 
Adjustable gripper 1/2 tension for 10 reps each hand

Followed by the exercises in this video https://youtube.com/shorts/ZD6cVlyPSvg?si=sNBalRZAkn6OzWCC (I really find these helpful to warm up my wrists)

10 pushups slow and controlled 

 

-Wrist curls 

10x1 (20lbs 2 hands)

-Reverse Wrist curls

5x1 (20lbs 2 hands)

-Rising curls (arm wrestling style)

10x1 (10lbs) (done with both arm)

Working sets

-Wrist curls

20x2 (40lbs 2 hands) {want to add I feel a slight click in the medial side of both wrists in relation to the exercise}
 

-Reverse Wrist curls

13x2 (20lbs 2 hands) {also want to add I feel a slight a slight click on the lateral side in relation to the exercise}

- Rising Curls

13x2 (20lbs) (done with both arms)
 

Cool down

Started with the video exercises from above ^^^
followed with 20 reps with my adjustable gripper at 1/2 tension each hand and 20 reps with the extensor band with a 5 second hold each hand.

Lastly 10 slow and controlled pushups 

Extra

I think the popping during the wrist curls and reverse wrist curls might be my form to be honest but let me know. I need a more knowledgeable person in wrist curls to give me a little run down.

[Tomas_3]

12/18/2023

Hope everyone’s having a good day! Today I had a morning shift so I got to have the day for myself. Overall wrist muscles feel good with a exception of my “rising” muscles which I’m pretty sure is the brachioradialis predominantly but, mainly just fatigue in my tendons. Training this past week or so has definitely showed me that my tendons are way weaker than my muscle and definitely need time to catch up which sucks and I wish tendons recovered a lot quicker.
Anyways today I did a few sets of the adjustable gripper at 1/2 tension to get blood flowing. I brought down the tension to 1/4 or a little less and did some thumb exercises with pinching it with my thumb and index finger and few other variations. It gave my thumb a good pump and one of my coworkers asked me why I have a muscle between my thumb and index finger . When I got home I did the stretches from the video I put in my last post with 15 pushups after and also I incorporated a static finger push-up position that was honestly really challenging to maintain form. I feel that the finger pushups add a different type of simulation to the joints and connective tissues.