My first introduction to hand strength was when I, as a 13-year old, joined an Olympic
wrestling club.
Grip strength in Olympic wrestling is massively important and the coach used to start each training session with a good grip workout. Often my hands would be so exhausted after a session that I would get cramps in my palms during the night.
A strong grip is always an advantage as it improves control of hand tools and is a key component in sorts as diverse as golf, wind-surfing, skiing and climbing.
In the jungle a good grip is necessary when moving outside established footpaths, where you have to hack your way with the
machete.
In this series of postings I will be showing several hand strength exercises that I use and have had good results with.
I will cover
warm-up, stretching and main workout.
Warming Up
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhexZnlVKoZ_sAXz4eOkW8TYrml4TXzKuWX_AZ9C6Z5zMiugYwDorug1pFScbWEyF8Ek3PJhHWMbKAGbn067T2QuRDQOSzaf-CpiaVp2DFth_vFjfKM7Mn2cmATzqJD4Iv60GDgel7mv6ve/s320/DSCF0003.JPG) |
Normal Grip - Open. |
As with all body parts I always try to warm-up before my main hand work-out. One of the tools I use for that is a pair of hand grips. People often don't realise how versatile these things are and that they can be used in a variety of ways to achieve the desired result.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimCl4zg7UYfP4qPnwUg4naE9P19505dR4Wp8P0qhbL8eRitMD_Rvk6pFNQjYZduD5LuSLP-HZ1jr-r5I4yNaNp-VY__-oecQyXXGNQ3rs5I7_1s1M1Po8KO1PHMXdelIazgnyN1lvA_VID/s320/DSCF0004.JPG) |
Normal Grip - Closed. |
I start by using a "normal" hold using my whole palm and do a few reps with each hand. This exercise favours the fingers further from the thumb so I then reverse the grip to work index and middle fingers.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii071xADzMk9sSBbNT3sUCqdcN4XiyuL-U8_FHxaznPRHBOovpsgLPl5q0RVaXWVi5icxN9hw5v2LFdt42fsCUqjC2i6wh0RIJmv6uSv7Sg3tZo5EcNps5XmoxW0bpWonzO2Xf5w4bB5fF/s320/DSCF0005.JPG) |
Inverse Grip - Open |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtjkWXAVNb9TrpMQW79m9vb720emcml6PUnIrxI8_dXCZXUQd-LWgE6jkNaWsgnMDtkyFeGlIEjLnJb8hyENXfeZhSATxqx1NlPh5iglxHznJvluN2LEV563elfkfZIU_2yoB8_ATuF3N/s320/DSCF0006.JPG) |
Inverse Grip - Closed. |
I then move on to work the thumb itself. Note the modified grip I use.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-7TgoWCp5f53__vlS-YMcbTyI02Bz1KyzpaidWScizUtaSpVR_xwNjkEwFsg9p6v6YVzQOeMjh3cI5nLaZ8AaUQfYY_trg4Ne5vMa6DD_tpEXFXBJVvS_CGFO2mlGUVkz-48VBGw-B38F/s320/DSCF0007.JPG) |
Thumb - Open |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0fcb1s94Ax431VBd7oojuAstmp5_Ewfo7gSJWx7s2CJVHt1xFkYJAQ-qlNsQrf5OIAxvqQSGUHky8CGryQdbPBS_frR_OHYIYj2ZRWVS0Kg7V2AsW0ok_mERm91SqKq8pvnmWDDBD90f/s320/DSCF0008.JPG) |
Thumb - Closed. |
Then I begin to isolate the top two or bottom two fingers like so:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0gmftCAMEuxXQKX9SioyEp5vzgWO7wmGW7djs0CbuB9ah0CzSxwA3p6wryKQRsVQKGpmbKt7v3epRY-86GCnOmo3N-WSSfDo727Gj_NOE0TJyMklLZJAfETwGYGhaQQFmLtHT0MOaNFSO/s320/DSCF0011.JPG) |
Top Two fingers Only - Open |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZseWcxqPyiLLd5lBxTMgb4Qr-hTEzYUD7HAao2zuKOkI3PRdLcKXCGU65w8Vyva2vHpas1kn3PtToampEi2s1oNAxjq19p9-Acf8mYmmDGq-yQD6Moa79gz7NlyY8ThyphenhyphenRWVyHE0vkWjF7/s320/DSCF0012.JPG) |
Top Two fingers Only - Closed |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHr0XK6cAA8fR8ilobOKHF2uvlnIOTiiqwYGkOD5X3fZUzkS3TE6OyJoknLJogu9q4O19hA6yg90_Kc5SYat97nq11S5AWq-4Ij4e1DWMZQQe2xjqyzQ4m_En3b1Xa3XVhyVvZZ9XvFTLb/s320/DSCF0009.JPG) |
Bottom Two Fingers Only - Open |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqlIyOeENhC1UlJ2b9xePKQ6V52iiWWiKFFV7uXRd10sUMqqMtFWYySaTa_IwX2qZSkSlM3fG9cc7Ob6VhEZLspUIYX0zQNCjF8bOrKNXAhYUDDqShy3CNbQKBO1HbHbol-kX2oTCJusJ/s320/DSCF0010.JPG) |
Bottom Two Fingers Only - Closed. |
There are different "strength" hand grips on the market and I make sure to use the appropriate strength for a warm-up, i.e. not too challenging.