The Grip Bible ~ Grip it and Rip it!

[URL="http://getlifting.info/wp-content/uploads/grip-strength-workouts-1.1-800X800.jpg"][IMG]http://getlifting.info/wp-content/uploads/grip-strength-workouts-1.1-800X800.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
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It’s been a while since I posted the first part in this series but having been training for this novice comp in May my grip has been once again taxed to new limits. Lets just say after a heavy farmers walks session grip is very much on my mind. That and copious amounts of pain killers and/or alcohol. Honestly it’s like they’ve been designed to remove skin rather than perform as exercise apparatus.
Anyway, I thought the best way to continue with the grip stuff would be to talk about some basic grip exercises that everybody can do. The main problem when you get into the grip/hand strength world is that a lot of competitions require the use of some pretty specialist equipment (and in later articles I’ll talk about whats the best, where to get it, and how to use it) that not everybody has the money or inclination to buy.
Whether we’re talking grippers like the Captains of Crush by Ironmind, Fat Gripz, axle bars, 3″ handle dumbells or replicas of the legendary Thomas Inch Dumbell, theres block weights, europinches, bar bending, nail bending, battling ropes, David Horne’s Grip Topz (amazing stuff), or about a million other things on the market. One of the things I love about grip training is how inventive you can be, and the sheer range of tools out there are a testament to the ingenuity and ambition of enthusiasts.
But never fear! Theres a hell of a lot you can do in even the most mainstream of gyms to improve your hand, wrist, forearm, and finger strength. The exercises I’ll talk about in this article are only a few of a tonne of different things you could put into your programs. Like I said above – be inventive! Theres no right or wrong so long as you get results. Look at what you want to increase your grip strength for, and devise some weird and wonderful way to do it.
Theres a quick video of all these exercises at the end, because my descriptions make about as much sense as benching on a bosu ball.
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[B]Plate Pinches – [/B]Pinch grip is a big part of overall grip strength and pinching events appear at almost every major competition. One of the most basic ways of doing this is by simply using barbell plates. You can either do these two handed or one handed, it’s up to you. Get two plates of the same weight and size and put them together. If one of the sides of each plate is completely flat (most metal plates are like this) have those sides facing outwards. If they’re rubberized you’ll just have to go with what you have. Put your fingers together and keep them as straight as possible (only bend them at the first knuckle if possible) and do the same with your thumb. Slide your hand over the two plates, squeeze them together, and lift them up like a deadlift.
The main thing to be aware of is to minimize using the rims of the plates to help you – we’re training pinch grip, not fingertip strength! You can either do these as timed holds or for reps. Mix it up a little!
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[B]One Arm Deadlifts – [/B]Can’t get much simpler than this. Deadlift a bar off the floor as you would normally, but with only one hand. Place it a little off center, squeeze, lift. The balance can be a problem sometimes but stick with it and you’ll find a good spot. I would do these for reps or working up to heavy singles every few workouts. Hook grip is optional, and if you don’t know about hook grip you probably aren’t ready to use it anyway.
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[B]Thick Bar Rows – [/B]Training with bars that are thicker than normal is one of the best ways to improve overall hand strength. Some bars are so thick you have trouble simply getting your hand around them let alone lifting them. The poor mans way to do thick bar training is to utilize the loading ends of an olympic bar. You can do a variety of different things with these, but I find rows make the most sense because you’ll get some back training out of it aswell. Load one end of an olympic bar with weight as you would for a T-bar row but stand the other side (at the end) of the bar. Grab it, and row it!
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[B]Dumbell Hub Lifts – [/B]Hub lifting is great for finger strength, and is a bit similar to pinching. If you have metal plates in your gym you can do hub lifts with the central bore of the plate sometimes, and I recommend you try it because its great! If you can hub lift a 20kg (45lb) plate in this way you’re doing damn well, haha! As for dumbell hub lifts, this only works if your dumbells are plate loaded (or fixed with plates) with a small enough plate on the end. Pretty specific, eh? Turn the dumbell on its end, and lift it using this small plate.
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[B]Thick Dumbell Cleans/Snatches – [/B]This is a great one, and it’s not just useful for cleans and snatches. Grab a hand towel and wrap it around the handle of your favourite dumbell – voila! A poor mans thick handle! Now you’re ready to make pretty much any exercise a grip exercise. I like cleans and snatches because of the explosive element involved. These two exercises are pretty tough on the grip as it is, but with a thick handle they’re even tougher. The towel has a tendency to slide about a bit so make sure you squeeze hard.
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[B]Thick Bar Pullups – [/B]Much in the same vein, wrapping towels around a pullup bar is a fiendishly good way of frying your grip. Now the towel really will try its best to slide off so good luck! These are absolutely fantastic for building up your regular pullups aswell. Try them with added weight, or just hang from a thick pullup bar for time. Hell, do both, just don’t expect to be writing home for a while.
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[B]Towel Pullups – [/B]Finally, yet another use for that towel. I’m starting to think Douglas Adams was onto something here. Not only can you make your bar thicker, but you can dispense with it entirely by instead holding the ends of your towel (or towels) and doing pullups that way. Drape the towel over the bar or handles in some fashion, squeeze the two ends of the towel, and have at it.


[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iH7p-2ji2fc&feature=player_embedded"]YouTube - Basic Grip Exercises[/nomedia]

So there you have it. A handful of exercises to target a few different areas of grip strength that don’t need any special equipment. You can integrate these into your training any way you like. If you’re fairly new to this type of training i’d put one exercise on the end of your regular workouts for a while rather than having a workout dedicated to them. The hands and wrists are pretty resilient in terms of recovery but if you over-tax them and get an injury it can take a long time to fully recover.
Tendonitis is another thing to watch out for in the elbows so if you start feeling that sort of pain stop right away and get some ice on it. If it happens often you might want to reduce your grip training volume/loads/frequency and build up more gradually. Theres a few supplements that can help, too, but like I said in a recent article on that subject…well, go read it yourself.
Hopefully you’ll enjoy these exercises as much as me, and more importantly I hope you’ll get some strength gains out of them! Like anything else grip strength is a constant building process, and while I consider myself to have an above average grip I’m still a tiny fish in a huge pond relatively speaking.
Get gripping!

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Good stuff.

I have an issue when i grip the rod and trying to push it up. I loss my balance after consultation now i am doing little bit well.

Techniques for better gripping
Grip The Bar Correctly
Read more: [URL]http://stronglifts.com/deadlifts-callus-formation-treatment/[/URL]

Grip the bar correctly
Use White Knuckling
Use chalk
Use the Mixed grip
Pull more over hand
Do Static holds
Start using straps
Regards
Use White Knuckling. Meaning yo
Read more: [URL]http://stronglifts.com/7-ways-increase-deadlift-grip-strength/[/URL]

Grip The Bar Correctly
Read more: [URL]http://stronglifts.com/7-ways-increase-deadlift-grip-strength/[/URL]

Grip The Bar Correctly
Read more: [URL]http://stronglifts.com/deadlifts-callus-formation-treatment/[/URL]


Use Chalk.
Read more: [URL]http://stronglifts.com/7-ways-increase-deadlift-grip-strength/[/URL]
Use White Knuckling. Meaning yo
Read more: [URL]http://stronglifts.com/7-ways-increase-deadlift-grip-strength/[/URL]use

Techniques for better gripping
Grip the bar correctly
Use White Knuckling
Use chalk
Use the Mixed grip
Pull more over hand
Do Static holds
Start using straps
Use weight lifting wraps

^^^^ Great info! Thank you for posting.

[SIZE=5][B]7 Tips to Increase Your Grip Strength For Deadlifts [/B][/SIZE]

by Mehdi on March 25, 2011

Heavy Deadlifts start with a strong grip – it doesn’t matter if your arms and legs have the strength for Deadlifting heavier weights, if your grip can’t hold it, the bar will stay on the floor. A strong grip is therefore crucial for heavy Deadlifts.

As a 500lb raw Deadlifter at 165lb body-weight, here are the 7 quickest ways that I’ve found to build massive grip strength for Deadlifts.

[B]1. Grip The Bar Correctly. [/B]If you Deadlift with the barbell in the middle of your hand, the weight is more likely to slide down and open it. Not only is the risk of losing the bar higher, you also get bigger callus from the increased skin folding.

Grip the bar correctly – not in your handpalm, but low in your hands and close to your fingers like in the picture below. This grip technique not only applies to the Deadlift, but also to other pulling exercises like Barbell Rows and Pull-ups (that means NOT on push exercises like the Overhead Press or Bench Press).

If you’ve Deadlifted with a wrong grip so far, it can feel uncomfortable at first to pull this way. Stick with it for at least 3 weeks so you get used to it.

[B]2. Use White Knuckling.[/B] Meaning you grab the bar as hard as you can until your knuckles turn white. Here’s why: the bar is less likely to move in your hand, AND gripping the bar hard by itself boosts strength. So start gripping the bar as hard as you can on all exercises, not just Deadlifts, and don’t be lazy about it.

[B]3. Use Chalk.[/B] Less callus formation, no more sweaty hands. It’s not uncommon to see a 30lb increase on Deadlifts just by introducing chalk. If your gym doesn’t allow it, get an eco ball (it leaves no dust). Best is to chalk up once the weight gets too heavy to Deadlift without it, because as Andy Bolton says:

[INDENT]The reason for generally not using chalk until my top weights is because I think it builds better grip strength.
- Andy Bolton, 1008lb Deadlifter.[/INDENT]

[B]4. Use The Mixed Grip.[/B] With the normal grip you have 8 fingers on one side of the bar, and 2 thumbs on the other side. So when your grip gives out, it starts with your thumbs. The mixed grip – one palm facing you, one facing away – puts 5 fingers on both sides which creates an instant strength boost: you’ll be able to Deadlift the weight that didn’t want to leave the floor with the overhand grip.

Which hand should be facing up? Elite Deadlifters Andy Bolton and Konstantin Konstantinov always pull with their right hand facing up. So do I because I feel strongest using this grip (I’m right-handed). So dominant palm facing up, weak facing down like Bolton in the picture below. Don’t waste your time alternating which hand is up on each set to prevent imbalances, just follow tip #5.

[B]5. Pull More Overhand. [/B]Don’t start to Deadlift every single set using the mixed grip now that you’ve read tip #4. You should pull your warm-up sets overhand-style and only Deadlift using the mixed grip on your last heavy sets. Using the overhand grip as long as possible will boost your grip strength. Personally I don’t use chalk until there’s 315lb on the bar. Then I chalk up but keep pulling overhand until I hit 375lb. Only when I’m past 400lb and my hands can’t hold the bar anymore will I start using the mixed grip.

[B]6. Do Static Holds.[/B] Boost your grip strength by holding the weight at the top of your Deadlift for a few seconds. Let’s say your work weight is 285lbs on SL5x5 – pull all your warm-ups with an overhand grip, then use the mixed grip and chalk for 285lb. After you’ve finished your 5 reps, stay standing with the barbell in your hands for 5 to 10 seconds before returning it to the floor.

[B]7. Stop Using Straps. [/B]Straps are an invaluable tool when your legs and back have the strength to Deadlift the weight, but your grip is the limiting factor. Yet if you use straps on every single set, on every single exercise, including your warm-up sets and even Pull-ups, your grip will remain weak, forever.

Use straps ONLY on your last heavy set, when you can not Deadlift the weight using the mixed grip and chalk. In all other cases: no straps, no gloves.

Don’t let small hands serve as an excuse. I might have big hands even though I’m only 5’8″, but StrongLifts Member Jake (18y, Canada) has small hands and yet he Deadlifts 600lb. The fact is that any guy can accomplish a 400lb Deadlift, even if he has small hands, and without doing any kind of specialized grip work. Only at the highest level do details like hand size matter. Keep it simple.

Read more: [B][url]http://stronglifts.com/7-ways-increase-deadlift-grip-strength/[/url][/B]

I want to increase my strength in bodyweight rows, using rings of course,is it ok to grease the groove on body weight rows and still work pushups pike handstand pushups and pullups 3x5 every other dayor dos GTG exclude all other exercise,i am beginner

What's the point of getting your grip stronger?

[QUOTE=Sexybeast777;2195211]What's the point of getting your grip stronger?[/QUOTE]

try gripping the bar harder on curls. Feel a better contraction in the biceps? There's your answer