# Question on grip..........James little help here!



## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Kinda directed towards James. Titor. I just started working grip (thanks to you ). I have this foam that I got from work. It is kinda dense, like me. Anyway I can do about 25 reps with it. Should I hold it at the bottom or just do as many as I can. Should I slow it down some or what. Should I go out and by a real grip. Anyway how many reps should I do? How often should I work the forarms? It is kinda fun to do it while driving. Get back with me, thanks.


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## Guest (Sep 26, 2004)

hey pal. welcome to the dark side (its very adictive this grip trianing). i would start by doing some plate pinching TBH mate. 2plates, clasped together by falt plam pinching them with your fingers on one side and your thumb on the other. flat side out, don't hook your thumbn/fingers under the lip of plate, and hold for 10-15secs. do about 10sets. you can either use light weigts (2x15kg plates) and hold woth one hand, or use heavy weights (3x20kg plates) and put both hands on.


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## John (Jun 5, 2004)

gonna give this a bash too


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

I feel bad but I am not sure what you mean. Am I holding two plates with one hand? I kinda wanted to be able to drive my car and train grip.


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## John (Jun 5, 2004)

dont try the plate thing then .


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

Funny John.

Steve, i think he means to have the lips facing each other and rely only on the pinching of the thumbs to the fingers.

You might have to start out with 10 lbs each side that would be 20 lbs total if that is too light then you will have to use the 25's and that would be 50 lbs.

I bought some grippers on Friday and used tham Sat and it kindof felt wierd typing after I went to failure.

I dont like the grips myself they need to be wider but I guess they will have to do for now.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

If I do the plate thing in the car how do I get the other arm? I quess I could hang it out the window............lol.

That is what I thought he meant. Thanks Scott


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## Guest (Sep 26, 2004)

hackskii:

handgrippers.co.uk

i have the 240ip. like crushing a brick.

winger:

you can't plate pinch and drive.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

James.Titor said:


> winger:
> 
> you can't plate pinch and drive.


What if someone else drives......................lol

What if Jimmy drives..............lol....times 2


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Hey James have you ever used one of these or a simular model? If so what was your reading? I did and it is nothing to call home to mom about.


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## zoidberg (Sep 14, 2004)

James.Titor said:


> hackskii:
> 
> handgrippers.co.uk
> 
> i have the 240ip. like crushing a brick.


I just got the starter set from these guys (100/130/160ip).

Can you close the 240 James ?

I can close the 130 but the 160 just laughs at me 

Oh and the knurling likes to tear your skin off !

-zoidberg-


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2004)

Zoidy,

i am about 3months off closing the 240ip. i can shut a CoC#2 (195ip) for 8 reps though 

Winger, no, never seen it. though i have had a go of somthign similar and my grip was off the scale. (not much off, but off none the less)


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

I think they go to 200. I can only bull 135. That was about average. Out of about 30 guys 2 pulled about 180. My grip needs work.


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## Hulkster (Aug 29, 2004)

the best training tool for grip imo is using a thick bar. id suggest that just using one will increase grip significantly if u add things like thick bar holds, lever holds, pinch gripping, towel hangs, farners walks using DBs and towels u should be looking at a very well devloped grip.


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## Hulkster (Aug 29, 2004)

WHY EVERYONE SHOULD TRAIN WITH A THICK BAR

Dinosaur Training

Lost Secrets of Strength & Development

By Brooks Kubik

CHAPTER TWELVE: THICK BARS

Pages 89-92

Why? Because using a thick handled bar is one of the very best things you can do to develop maximum muscular size and strength. The turn of the century strongmen-may of whom were enormously stronger than the vast majority of our modern "champions"-were well acquainted with the incredible effect of thick bar work. They thrived on it. The thick bar work allowed them to develop levels of upper body power virtually incomprehensible to those who train only with regular bars.

WHY THICK BARS WORK

Thick bars develop levels of muscular size and strength that cannot be duplicated with any other equipment. Thick bars are very difficult to control. Compared to an Olympic barbell, a bar with a 2" or 3" diameter seems like a log. Can you imagine bench pressing, pressing or curling a telephone pole? That's what it feels like when you use a thick handled barbbell. You cannot rely on style, form, timing or technique to complete a lift. You have to do it with sheer strength. To paraphrase Dr. Ken Leistner, "all you can do is lie back and push" when you bench with a thick handled bar. That's one reason why thick bar work is so effective. It imposes a tremendous burden on the muscles, tendons and ligaments-a far, far greater burden than a regular bar imposes.

THE MIND-MUSCLE CONNECTION

A second reason why thick bar work is so beneficial is that the bar forces you to involve your forearms, hands, wrists and fingers to a far greater degree than does a conventional bar. This in turn causes a stronger mind-muscle link, which inevitably leads to greater gains in muscular size and strength. Have I lost you? Stay with me, I will explain everything.

What do I mean when I talk about a "mind-muscle link"? I mean the connection between your brain and your nervous system. Whenever you lift a weight, the lift begins with the brain consciously directing the muscles to push or pull in a particular direction. The message from the brain is carried to the muscles via the nervous system. When the muscles receive the message, they respond by pushing or pulling in the manner directed by the brain. That's the mind-muscle link: the connection between the brain, the nervous system and the muscles.

Messages from the brain to the muscles are transmitted by nerve impulses. The strength of each individual nerve impulse, the total number of nerve impulses, and the frequency with which nerve impulses are transmitted from brain to muscle is one of the most crucial factors in the amount of force you can exert in any given lift. I have no research studies to cite and no way to prove that my opinion is correct, but I firmly believe that using thick bars in your training causes an increase in the strength of individual nerve impulses, the total number of nerve impulses and the frequency of transmission of nerve impulses.

As I noted above, thick bars are terribly awkward and extremely difficult to handle. You have to adjust the bar's path constantly as you lift it or else you will get hopelessly out of the groove almost immediately. There has to be constant feedback between the brain and the muscles. I believe that the necessity of constant feedback causes a stronger mind-muscle link and I believe that this is one very important reason why thick bar work is so incredibly productive.

GREAT FOR THE GRIP

Thick bars are terrific for strengthening the forearms, wrists, thumbs and fingers. Any exercise you do with a thick bar automatically becomes a test of hand and finger strength. Pulling movements are almost impossible with a thick bar, curling movements are incredibly rugged and even pressing exercises are downright nasty when you do them with a thick bar. As a dinosaur, you will be doing plenty of specialized grip work, but be aware that you will work your grip savagely by simply using a thick bar instead of a regular bar for your upper body movements.

THICK BARS AND SPINELESS WIMPS

There is yet another important thing about thick bars. Wimps, yups and wannabe's won't go near them. Muscle pumpers and drug babies wouldn't touch a thick bar on a bet. The chrome and fern crowd would rather give up their Evian water and celery sticks than try to lift a thick handled bar. You may think I'm kidding but I'm deadly serious about this. Before I started training in the sanity of my basement gym, I took my 3" bar to the gym where I trained and I was always amused by the reaction.

Some guys literally ran away whenever they saw the thing. They were very obviously intimated by the large, thick mass of iron. They always went over and found solace in the chrome plated dumbbells the gym owner had purchased from a women's spa that went out of business. The only guys who ever wanted to use the thing were Ted Solinger and Bruce Bullock, who later became my training partners in my home gym. In other words, the thick handled bar was a great way to tell who was serious about training and who was content to "sculpt" and "shape" and do meaningless movements with chrome-plated baby weights.

If I ever open a gym I will stock it with thick handled barbells and dumbbells. Doing so would be a great way to discourage the wimps and yups and talkers from joining the gym. One look at the thick handled bars and the twinkie crowd would run for cover. So would the muscle pumpers-they would immediately realize that lifting a bar like that required STRENGTH and pumpers as a group are about as strong as undernourished kittens. The only guys who would go to a gym that featured lots and lots of thick bars would be the kind of guys who were interested in strength, power and physical challenges. Come to think of it, the gym would cater to dinosaurs and nobody else. Not a bad idea!

HOW TO USE THICK BARS

Use thick bars for all of your upper body exercises. Always use a power rack for thick bar bench presses and set the bottom pins to catch the weight in case the bar slips. NEVER do thick bar benches outside the power rack!

Use your head when you begin to incorporate thick bar work. Drop the poundage at first. You will NOT be able to handle your regular poundage when you first begin thick bar movements. The first time I tried thick bar benches, all I could handle was 365 pounds-and it almost killed me. With a regular bar I was handling 405-410 at the time.

A three-inch bar is too thick for some lifters to curl. If the bar is too thick for you, your elbows will let you know! Be alert to this and do not hesitate to drop from a 3" to a 2" bar if your elbows protest.


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## big (Sep 14, 2004)

Handgrippers are good. I have the 70/100/130 set but now they're a bit weak for me. I can rep the 70 and 100 all day long and can get 10 with the 130's. I need to get hold of some 160s and see if they laugh at me 

I don't do as much grip work anymore though as I'm more interested in hypertrophy so use chalk and even straps on many exercises which I used to do raw.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Hulkster said:


> the best training tool for grip imo is using a thick bar. id suggest that just using one will increase grip significantly if u add things like thick bar holds, lever holds, pinch gripping, towel hangs, farners walks using DBs and towels u should be looking at a very well devloped grip.


Nice mate, I also checked out your pics, very well put together and ripped, looking awsome


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## Hulkster (Aug 29, 2004)

thanks winger. good luck with the grip training, if i can help in any way let me no


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Hulkster said:


> thanks winger. good luck with the grip training, if i can help in any way let me no


Mate you have helped me a ton (figure of speach I cant do a ton lol) already. Really nice to see some new faces and good advice. Thanks mate.


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## Cookie (Sep 14, 2009)

The ultimate in grip training and sheer classic physique


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