b-rock Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 I did a few searches but didn't turn up much - Wondering about the efficacy of hand strengtheners - spring loaded doohickeys, the BD 'donut', etc. I'm not looking to pull tiny crimps and monos, just to help beat back the pump for those longer efforts. Obviously climbing is the best answer, and stepping the cardio up a notch would also help. But is a hangboard routine better? Wrist curls with free weights? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downfall Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 There are alot of different types of hand strengtheners esp for people who are in to grip strength or strong man comps. I find that spring grip trainers are good for overall hand strenght but don't translate well to climbing since most grip strentgh in climbing is static power and not really dynamic (i.e., you don't close your hand while climbing but hold it static on a hold). Iron Mind (www.ironmind.com) is going to be the place to really dig in to what kind of tools and training are available if you want to get serious about grip strength. I have their Captain of Crush Trainer and #2 grippers which I keep on my desk at work. I've never seen anyone even close the #2 (~195 lb of force neede) though its definitly doable by mortal you just have to work hard to get there. They go up to #4 which takes about 365 pounds of force to close. Here is a link to their grip tools: http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/departments.asp?dept=7 You'd probably be good by figuring out how to work static grip strength either with some of their tools or by coming up with some technique of your own. They publish a monthly web column by John Brookfield called Grip tip of the month, this article is awesome, but beware that it's a bit addictive and you might referring to you "Crushing strength" in normal conversation. http://www.ironmind.com/ironcms/opencms/IronMind/GripTips/griptip.html Click on the "more" link at the bottom to scroll through the previous grip tips. I wont even go in to the bending nails . . . (and no I don't work for iron mind I just really like their stuff and think grip strength is cool though I'm really just a grip gaper.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Flash_Amazing Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 I did a few searches but didn't turn up much - Wondering about the efficacy of hand strengtheners - spring loaded doohickeys, the BD 'donut', etc. I'm not looking to pull tiny crimps and monos, just to help beat back the pump for those longer efforts. Obviously climbing is the best answer, and stepping the cardio up a notch would also help. But is a hangboard routine better? Wrist curls with free weights? Thanks. If you're interested in keeping the pump at bay, a hand/grip strengthening thingus isn't going to do a damn thing for you. What you need to do is climb a bunch at a time and get your body used to doing a lot of moves. Start easy and ramp up the difficulty, or do routes near your limit with little or no rest in between. Getting on a hangboard might help you get used to doing pullups off of a sloper or two-finger pockets or whatever, and could help build your grip up, and weights will help develop your muscles, but there is no substitute for actually climbing. Train accordingly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott_J Posted February 8, 2005 Share Posted February 8, 2005 http://www.1tonhooks.com/JackHammer.htm?source=ovjh Here ya go. Get the Jackhammer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b-rock Posted February 8, 2005 Author Share Posted February 8, 2005 What you need to do is climb ... Duh. But right now it's February and I'm in no mood to kick down the duckets for a gym membership... Getting outside consistantly is tough... But there's plenty of time to squeeze chew toys while I review poorly thought out code... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Flash_Amazing Posted February 9, 2005 Share Posted February 9, 2005 What you need to do is climb ... Duh. But right now it's February and I'm in no mood to kick down the duckets for a gym membership... Getting outside consistantly is tough... But there's plenty of time to squeeze chew toys while I review poorly thought out code... Don't worry, chief, Dr. Flash Amazing sees just how you are. Your initial post mentions the usefulness of climbing in sort of a tentative way, and then goes on to ask whether a hangboard might be better. So it sounds like "duh" more succinctly sums up your own question. If you don't want to shell out the dough for some plastic punishment, then you can expect to be really good at sqeezing a rubber donut by the end of the winter. When you get shut down on your warmup on your first day back outside, don't forget to collapse in tears and remark aloud that "climbing is so complex!" ala Wolfgang Gullich! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b-rock Posted February 9, 2005 Author Share Posted February 9, 2005 Damn you're easy to ruffle! Or are you just grumpy because you hurt your finger in the gym, in the middle of the winter? Well I guess I can understand that. See now Doctor I'm looking for alternatives to actually climbing indoors for a few months, and would like to do all I can to get strong in the meantime, speciffically with regards to holding on. I've got plenty of ways to keep the rest of me in shape... Do you really think absolutely nothing other than climbing will help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Flash_Amazing Posted February 9, 2005 Share Posted February 9, 2005 Do you really think absolutely nothing other than climbing will help? Um, totally. Like, CLIMB OR DIE, SUKKA!!! Maybe a hangboard and a weight belt, but try not to blow your tendons out like an idiot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sketchfest Posted February 9, 2005 Share Posted February 9, 2005 Yo b-rock, despite what the mythical Dr. feelgood says, I think you would do well to get yourself a racquet ball. while a tennis ball is usually to big to fit well into the palm of your hand or to hold in the crimp position with your fingers, a racquet ball fits the bill perfectly AND isn't prone to developing soft spots after many hours of squeezing. The technique that I found to work the best for developing a solid pump was to do several sets of slow squeezes and hold at the apex of each squeeze for a count of ten. I tried to do several sets of 5 or so with each hand. my.02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexual_chocolate Posted February 9, 2005 Share Posted February 9, 2005 Type-writers on a hang-board; pull-ups on a hang-board; timed sets on a hang-board. Pump and Power. Such fun. Isolations, etc. Spring-loaded clampy devices? Bah! (Although I could see a properly designed gadget develop mad pinch strength....) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gender_Bender Posted February 9, 2005 Share Posted February 9, 2005 Im gonna have to defenitely agree with dr. flash here. Sharma did not become god of rock scaling by squeezing chew toys. Plus everything has develope together squeezing a chew toy is nowhere near the same thing as burling down on a crimp and it does very little if anything for contact strength. Plus it doenst do much to prepare your joints for crimping cause it doesnt matter if you can crush the shit out of a chew toy if your joints cant handle it. Climbign makes your fingers and joints/tendons stronger at the same time. Id say go for the hang board and work your way up to using weight. But seriously climb if you want to climb strong. And leave the grip toys for highschool kids looking to equalize lefty with overdevloped righty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Flash_Amazing Posted February 10, 2005 Share Posted February 10, 2005 And leave the grip toys for highschool kids looking to equalize lefty with overdevloped righty. 'nuff said! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 Having owned the BD donut it's much more useful bedside as an accessory for your Johnson than to strengthen your hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b-rock Posted February 17, 2005 Author Share Posted February 17, 2005 now that's more than we need to know... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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