• Thanks for stopping by. Logging in to a registered account will remove all generic ads. Please reach out with any questions or concerns.

The Grip Strength Superthread- Read Here First

  • Thread starter Thread starter vancouverjoe
  • Start date Start date
AH MY GOD i failed the hand grip for fitness  :crybaby: Are there any exercises besides using a stress ball to increase strength in grip? ahhh this is so pissing. just hand grippp
 
Chin ups help.

Do sets of both overhand and underhand grip to workout your entire forearm. To focus on increasing grip strength, throw a towel over the chin up bar.
 
MEC carries a training item for Rock Climbers that may be useful:

Rock Empire Forearm Trainer

4003932s.jpg


They run for $5.50 Cdn

Basically you place this item between the palm of your hand and your fingers and squeeze!! You can replicate the same motion that the Hand Grip Dynamometer tests.
 
You could also take a low weight dumbbell and start flexing your wrist.
 
is it just your forearm that gives you the strength to grip hard?
 
For the most part, yes.

Here is a link for some exercises you can do for your forearms, which will increase your grip strength.

http://www.exrx.net/Lists/ExList/ForeArmWt.html

Also, as ghostwalk said do chinups, those help a lot.
 
man i am so pissed. my forearms like bigg and i failed  :crybaby: well thanks for the info
 
Never knew Hand Grip was such a biggy...Sorry to hear about it man and thanks for the heads up...Considering m getting myself ready.

Edit:  Hah scuse me for being a nooby...What do they require you to do for hand grip?
 
they make you squeeze a thing called "dynosomething." Anyways it looks like a "D" haha bad description. Yea it sucks. All my friends who dont even work out have a stronger grip  :crybaby:
 
Maybe it's just technique. I'm not a body builder by any stretch of the imagination, but I have a stronger grip than most people. You need a total of 75 to pass, when I was 21, I could get 72 with my right hand and 68 with my left, much to the dismay of the 2 ex-Airborne guys that were on my BOTC. I think those guys almost hurt themselves trying to beat me.

The dynamometer can be adjusted to fit your hand. Adjust it so that your fingers are about an inch or so from your thumb/palm when you're holding it or whatever is comfortable. Just make sure it's not too big, it shouldn't feel like you're holding onto a pop can, more like holding a hockey stick. Then place the "trigger" part on the middle section of your fingers in between the two knuckles, know what I mean? Then just squeeze like a mofo.

 
Just another question. Is there something wrong with my hand because my grip is so weak and I workout my forearm. I feel like the bones in my hand have to do with something.
 
Go rock climbing if you can. I rock climb regularly (few times a month), am a skinny guy, but got 106kg on the hand grip. Even after only 1 week of rock climbing you'll notice a difference.
 
Well youll have to wait six months for a new physical unless you want to pay the $32 for a new one.

Answer to your other question, have you ever had any problems with the bones in your hands?  This probably isnt the case, you just need to start working on the muscles that will help improve your gripstrength.  When I did my physical in May I got 43 on my right and 40 on my left, (pretty damn crappy), but when my physical expired i did a new one on the 5th and I got 57 on my right and 54 on my left after working on my forearm and grip strength.  You will see improvement if you work on it.
 
go to fitness depot or some store like that, get the thermodyne balls( @12.50 ) each, and start squeezing, you will be really amazed on how fast the grip improves.  Not a word of a lie, but last friday, I did a 71 Right 68 left, and after a week I did the "dyno" and now have 73 Right and 70 left............might be because I was more rested, but I really think after a week of ......squeezing the balls...(lol, sounds wrong, but you get the idea).......Another idea is go and get those hand grip things at CND TIRE and squeeze them together so you can hang on to a loonie without it falling,  start at 10 secs and work your way up, got that idea from a rock climber friend( he can do it for 60 mins).

cheers
 
tie a weight to a rope and a stick or something (not really a stick, something solid that you can hold , like a bar) and roll the weight up and down with the bar... it works out your forearms  pretty well =p
 
It sounds like there is more of an underlying issue.....  You're probably going to have to wait a few month before you can take the test again right?  (nod your head)  In the meantime, get yourself a gym member, or if your school has a good weight room, use that.  If you don't and just pass the test next time, it may be a sign of these to come.  Train hard now, so that when you go to do your basic, you can rock and roll through it, instead of gasping for air after a good run, having you leg muscles just about to give up during a short ruck march, or having your upper body screaming after a PT session.  Wouldn't you want to cruise through the physical stuff instead of just barely getting buy and relying on buddy a little too much?  Just don't overtrain, don't do the same body part more than twice a week and cardio 3-5 days a week is good.  You may not see results right away, but give it a couple weeks, you will and others will notice... 
 
Fill two litre pop bottles with sand, or water, and hold them infront of you. Keep your forearms straight and your arms pointed down. Do not let your arms bend a little bit, keep them straight.

Another good one that you can do anywhere is this, do it as you read this.

hold your hand in front of you
squeeze it into a fist
now shoot out your fingers so your hand is open
now fist
open
fist
open


do that as fast as you can as hard as you can for as long as you can. After about five minutes you will find it difficult to get your hand open,
 
Seil said:
Just another question. Is there something wrong with my hand because my grip is so weak and I workout my forearm. I feel like the bones in my hand have to do with something.

You do forearm curls right? You need to get your thumb involved. I bootlegged this off the internet. I think I just googled grip strength.

"Power Rack Grabs:   Take the pin of your power rack, and set it to just below your hip.   Now, get a heavy duty bucket, and make the handle nice and thick, but make sure it still rotates.   Place the heel of your palm on the pin, and dangle the bucket from your fingers with some plates in it.   You will be able to develop some demented hand strength with this exercise.

Hangs:   Grab a chin up bar....and hang. : )

Pinch grips:   Take two plates, put them together so the smooth side is out, now grab it so your thumb is on one side, and your four fingers are on the other.   When you get up to two 25's, your getting strong.   When you get up to two 45's (long way off for most of us), you'll have vices instead of hands.

Lever lifts:   Take an object like an axe, and hold it either in front of you, or sticking behind you.   Now, lever it up and down.   The further a way the weight is from your hand, the harder the lift will be.   For the front lever lift, just try a baseball bat at first.   For the rear lift, try an axe holding it halfway.   When you get used to the movement, go heavier.   Your wrists are in a little bit of a delicate position with lever lifts, be careful.

Plate Curls:   This is one I never heard of until I read _Mastery of Hand Strength_, by John Brookfield.   Take some Olympic plates, grab them with a pinch grip (one in each hand), and curl them, it's that simple, in explanation at least.   Wait till you try this exercise, you'll be shocked at how hard this it is.

plate curls explained: According to grip expert John Brookfield this is the absolute best exercise for the wrists. What you do is pinch grip one plate and just curl it up*remember to keep your wrists tight, dont let them sag back* If you can curl a 25lb plate in this fashion you have pretty strong wrists"

All I do is I have been wrapping tape around my dumbell handles until they are about three inches in dia. Then just lift weights as per normal and your grip is trained incidentally. The farmers walk is good too, take a couple of big plates, or four and pinch them together, and walk around for half a minute. Maybe the reason I can almost do 70lbs with each hand is because I used to be a farmer.

Those Canadian Tire grippers might help you although they are a bit easy, if not, Ironmind has grippers that are unreasonably stiff.
 
Hey, 

On the last course I was on, three of us failed the PT test becuase of the grip test.  We were all under 5'6" and the worst score in each event was 9.5 on the run, 45 push up and 50 sit ups, the remainder of the scores were equal or higher than those (all respectable).  I can do the least chin ups with 7.  We all failed.  Two of us climb and none of us are slackers in the gym.  In the end, we were all given passes (because the equipment was assumed to be broken), but most of use think that the machine was set to large for our collectively small hands, giving false readings.  Their was a post more earlier in the thread that mentioned how to adjust the grip test it sound very accurate.

On a side note, how many people feel the grip test is an accurate way of testing fitness, or could a better exercise replace the grip test?  Or who would just like to see chin ups come back?

J
 
Back
Top