Workout to smoke your grip! page 2

[critta]

Just thought of another variation I have seen before. Use two towels and wrap them around your pull up bar. Then grip the towels instead of the bar. So you would loop the towel over the bar then grab both ends below the bar so your forced to use more grip. Then do your normal pull up activities.

Hopefully that describes it well enough.

[yodiewan]

I attempted the BUP today and man, those are hard! I was only using a 25lb KB and I could not balance it. Definitely one to work on. Any tips?

[Mike Gager]

Just thought of another variation I have seen before. Use two towels and wrap them around your pull up bar. Then grip the towels instead of the bar. So you would loop the towel over the bar then grab both ends below the bar so your forced to use more grip. Then do your normal pull up activities.

Hopefully that describes it well enough.

CC2 uses towels in its grip progression with the final level being the 1 arm towel hang

[Grafter]

Jeffc nailed it, there are a lot of different types of grip strength, though the big three named are:

1) Crushing strength (think lifting a heavy bb or db or the bonecrusher handshake)
2) Pinching strength (applying the force on a narrow area, like lifting a block weight or a 45# plate)
3) Support (i.e., wrist) strength.

BUP are a pretty wicked exercise and I can do them with my 35# kb with either hand (though I have never tried a walk and hold before, so may have to try that some time). If someone wanted to train for them, I would suggest some pulling crush grip work (like heavy deadlifts or shrugs without straps) as well as doing levering/weaver bar exercises to build up the wrist, so that you can balance the kb while it is upside down.

[FitMountain]

Just thought of another variation I have seen before. Use two towels and wrap them around your pull up bar. Then grip the towels instead of the bar. So you would loop the towel over the bar then grab both ends below the bar so your forced to use more grip. Then do your normal pull up activities.

Hopefully that describes it well enough.

Yes! I actually discovered this on accident last year. I started padding my home door-frame pull up bar and eventually started wrapping towels around the ends where the bar lies against the door frame. Also advantageous for keeping those pinched callouses in check.

[JeffC]

I'd stress again the importance again of balance in your grip workouts. Too many pullups, deadlifts, BUPS can really tax the crush grip type strength but lead to imbalances with opening grip strength and cause golfers elbow. I mentioned the rubber band workout which works to strengthen the muscles used to open (not crush close) your hands. Ironmind sells some high tech rubber bands in different strengths for this purpose but regular rubber bands work very well too. You can use them at your desk on a phone call or while watching TV. The imbalances can be magnified the more you ignore one kind of strength.

One thing that amazes me in the animal world is the alligator which this tremendous crush grip closing power in its jaw to basically snap a pig or probably a human in half. Yet, I am always amazed in these nature shows where an average man can keep the alligator from opening its mouth. Not that this really applies to humans but it is kind of a similar concept in an imbalance we can overlook.

If you are looking to even train individual fingers (might be important for musicians) Prohands Gripmaster allows you to do that.

Prohands : Dealer Search : Hand Exercisers : Prohands, Via, Gripmaster, Pro, Hand Exercisers, Flexibility, Dexterity, Strength

[critta]

I have also read that doing the rubber band type opening strength exercises can help for people how have carpel tunnel or other similar repetitive stress wrists issues. Muscle imbalances can wreck you so its definitely a worthwhile addition.

[Dirlot]

As above gripping the towel over a bar is a good thing as it brings the thump into play in a big way. Hanging from the bar has more emphasis on your fingers.
Along with towel hangs I would add some low rep fingertip pushups for hand balance.

[oxide]

Just want to throw in another thumbs up for Gripmasters. Great for musicians and martial arts and working out in general.

btw, Amazon has them.

[Bissen]

Towel pullups and ring rountines (you don't come off the gymnastic rings for minutes) - it's brutal and fries my arms EVERY time!