MattYvip Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 I've been using Kettlbells for strength training for a long time. I've noticed a big increase in grip strength as well. I've also seen people using those squeeze balls and grip masters. I heard from a pro a while back that if you increase your grip strength by 20% you'll notice a huge difference in recoil management. Anybody else use kettlebells/gripmasters or anything else? Also thoughts on the benifits of improving grip strength as it pertains to shooting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I started grip training years ago when I used to play guitar. But that was more just to keep finger strength and dexterity.I used the gripmasters but those always seemed too easy. A while back when I started shooting more I figure grip strentgh would help with recoil and I ended up buying a Grip Pro which was more stout than the gripmaster but by no means a challenge. Shortly after that I found the Captains of Crush grippers and those are challengeing to say the least. I have the Bob Vogel DVD where he talks about his views on grip strenght. He mentions on there that he uses the Captains of Crush. He has great recoil control so I figured it didn't hurt to work on grip strenght. Thats an excerpt from the DVD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 Just remebered reading on this forum a while back on the same issue. http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=110197&st=50 If you look at page three Bob Vogel chimes in and explains his thought on grip strenght. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmine Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 I work on my grip strength by doing open palmed push ups. The idea from my Yoga instructor. ;-) I guess it's a Ying and Yang thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonovanM Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 I wrote a somewhat in depth look at how grip strength can make you a better shooter here. Let me know what you think. http://doodieproject.com/viewtopic.php?f=74&t=59 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
21 shooter Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Has anyone with tendinitis used any of the these methods/tools and noticed a flare-up of said tendinitis? I have used dumbbells in the past but after a short time, it starts to hurt. Or it could just be I'm old. My grip strength is pretty good but a little improvement would not hurt anything. Mods, if this strays to much delete it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonovanM Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Has anyone with tendinitis used any of the these methods/tools and noticed a flare-up of said tendinitis? I have used dumbbells in the past but after a short time, it starts to hurt. Or it could just be I'm old. My grip strength is pretty good but a little improvement would not hurt anything. Mods, if this strays to much delete it. If you suffer from tendonitis common wisdom says you should balance out your strength gains by also working your flexors. I posted a few methods in the post I linked to above, I've been using the Ironmind Expand Your Hand Bands. They work pretty well and offer a good bit of resistance to work with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe_Atlanta Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Has anyone with tendinitis used any of the these methods/tools and noticed a flare-up of said tendinitis?..... Or it could just be I'm old. In about a week's time both my thumbs got bad hotspots in their bases. I've backed off and I'm working lighter weight to build general endurance before going for the heavy squeezes to build strength. I alternate with (flexor, extensor?)work with rubber bands.And yes, it's hell getting old, slow, dumb and cripple all at the same time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garyg19 Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Has anyone with tendinitis used any of the these methods/tools and noticed a flare-up of said tendinitis?..... Or it could just be I'm old. In about a week's time both my thumbs got bad hotspots in their bases. I've backed off and I'm working lighter weight to build general endurance before going for the heavy squeezes to build strength. I alternate with (flexor, extensor?)work with rubber bands.And yes, it's hell getting old, slow, dumb and cripple all at the same time! I can identify with your last sentence, but would also like to add blind. My front sights just seem to get fuzzier and fuzzier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjb45 Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I enjoyed Jessie's retort to Bob's comment. Having been beaten by most of the top female shooters (Doni, Kippi, Lisa, Jessie, Randi, and Sara, I can say, grip strength was not a contributing factor in their beating me. They just did everything more accurately and with more efficiency. I would venture that Max, Travis, Dave, Bob were more physically mobile than Robbie but Robbie sure does win a lot of matches. So physical prowess is important but accuracy and efficiency seem to be more important and achievable for the average USPSA shooter. BTW: I got my COC from Manny Bragg. He was great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick romero Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I've worked on my grip since i was a little kid in wrestling, one thing my dad and coaches had me traing with were grip masters and tennis balls. when i was younger my dad would buy tennis balls and punch a hole in them with a needle, i would then have to squeeze the ball 3 sets of 30 each hand. as i got older he stopped punching holes in the balls but kept the same reps. it has helped me in alot of ways in my everyday life as a mechanic and shooter. just my experience and suggestion also increases forarm muscle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris iliff Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 (edited) I'm up to a # 1 CoC. I've got 3, ...G,T & the 1. The G is more for therapy I think. It is very easy. The T (trainer) was very challenging when I first got it. I can now do it easily. The 1 I can do, but not a lot of reps. I think there is a .5 and I'd like that. I think it would help me bridge the gap. Since I started using them I do feel they have helped me control the gun. I don't have a routine. I put them in the living room and use them a couple to three times a week while watching the boob tube. Edited July 12, 2012 by Chris iliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xander Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 Since I got back to weight training again my grip strength improves, and I got stronger. I only train with my CoC once a week Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kouzi Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 Hi, I would also recommend hammer-tyre-slamm training. It's nice for grip, wrist, forearms and shoulders. Take at least a 8kg hammer... :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffWard Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 20 years of lifting... If you can shrug 365 lbs for reps with no straps... you can control recoil! JeffWard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daves_not_here Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 Don't forget the pull-ups with the dip belt. DNH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PEC-Memphis Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 (edited) Just remebered reading on this forum a while back on the same issue. http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=110197&st=50 If you look at page three Bob Vogel chimes in and explains his thought on grip strenght. Hope this helps. From one of Mr. Vogel's videos, I purchased one of the CoC grip trainers. A challenge to say the least. While reading Bob's response, I noticed he is classified as "looks for range" - I'd say he's already found it. Edited July 16, 2012 by PEC-Memphis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunBugBit Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 I train 3 times a week with CoC grippers, plus with another grip device with parallel handles that my dad bought me in 1980. The CoCs build you some nice calluses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackey Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 purchased the CoCs after reading vogels post. using the #1 right off the bat is challenging to say the least. after a couple days i was able to close it completely and now starting to implement the 1.5. id like to say given a couple months, ill be able to use the #2 then go into a maintenance regiment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nightrod Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 +1 for jeffward. I just don't use strap when i work out that helps my grip strenght Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grapemeister Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 Establish your normal grip on the gun with the arms extended, squeeze the gun as hard as you can, and then relax. For me, 2 or 3 sets of twenty reps (squeezes) gives me a pretty good workout. I also have several hammers, and sledges of various weights that I hold out in front of me, lift up and down, and side to side. I like wadding up newspapers, too. The Wall Street Journal was the best at one time, but it has shrunk like so many other newspapers, and the paper isn't as heavy as it used to be. I have a rubber ball that is about 5lbs, and is about the size of a small bowling ball. I can barely grip, and hold it with one hand. Just gripping the ball is a pretty good workout, but I also throw it around, and catch it with just the fingers of one hand. Oh, by the way bowling balls can be used to work out the forearms, but I wouldn't be throwing them around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHA-LEE Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 I am currently working on my grip strength. I got a 5 CoC gripper set from Iron Mind (T, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5). When I got the grippers I could just barely close the #2 gripper with my Strong Hand and couldn't close it completely with my weak hand. Since then I have been using the #T for high rep/set training then grip and hold closed the #1. Right now I use the #T to do three sets of 25 reps on each hand. Then use the #1 to grip and hold closed for 30 seconds each hand. After doing this workout my forearms are pretty much wasted. I am doing this three times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri) for a couple of weeks now. Right now I can close the #2 fairly easy with my Strong hand and can close the #2 fully but not as easy with my weak hand. I can just barely fully close the #2.5 with my strong hand. I am going to keep up my current #T & T1 training regiment until my forearms are not completely nuked at the end of the workout. After that I will move up one step and use the #1 for the sets/reps and the #1.5 for the hold. My long term goal is to be able to close the #2.5 gripper with both hands without too much effort. I think once I get to this level of trip strength then I will be able to grip the gun quite a bit harder with a "normal" firm grip which would equal the grip force of an average shooters "Death Grip". Muzzle Flip??? Whats that??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunBugBit Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 Right now I can close the #2 fairly easy with my Strong hand and can close the #2 fully but not as easy with my weak hand. I can just barely fully close the #2.5 with my strong hand. This puts you high up on the scale of grip strength! Congrats. I just got the #2 closed with my strong hand a couple of evenings ago. I've had the CoCs for a few weeks -- long enough to build up a righteous set of callouses, not too different from how my hands were when I worked in a door & window warehouse as a 19-year-old lad (53 now). The #2 seemed totally out of reach earlier this summer, so I was delighted to close it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E K Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 I am currently working on my grip strength. I got a 5 CoC gripper set from Iron Mind (T, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5). When I got the grippers I could just barely close the #2 gripper with my Strong Hand and couldn't close it completely with my weak hand. Since then I have been using the #T for high rep/set training then grip and hold closed the #1. Right now I use the #T to do three sets of 25 reps on each hand. Then use the #1 to grip and hold closed for 30 seconds each hand. After doing this workout my forearms are pretty much wasted. I am doing this three times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri) for a couple of weeks now. Right now I can close the #2 fairly easy with my Strong hand and can close the #2 fully but not as easy with my weak hand. I can just barely fully close the #2.5 with my strong hand. I am going to keep up my current #T & T1 training regiment until my forearms are not completely nuked at the end of the workout. After that I will move up one step and use the #1 for the sets/reps and the #1.5 for the hold. My long term goal is to be able to close the #2.5 gripper with both hands without too much effort. I think once I get to this level of trip strength then I will be able to grip the gun quite a bit harder with a "normal" firm grip which would equal the grip force of an average shooters "Death Grip". Muzzle Flip??? Whats that??? That is pretty impressive. I have a #1 that I bought last year after taking a class with Bob and watching him destroy the #3!!! I stopped doing them after I hurt my hand. I need to get it back out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHA-LEE Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 The way I see it there is not a negative to having more physical grip strength when it comes to shooting. The stronger your grip is the more you will be able to manage the recoil and minimize the muzzle flip without feeling like you have to grip the crap out of the gun while doing it. I think that the ultimate goal is to grip the gun with a what you feel is a firm grip. But from a physical grip pressure perspective is actually a very high amount of grip pressure due to your increased grip strength. The less tension you have while gripping the gun means that you can shoot from a more relaxed state. Not feeling like you have to grip the crap out of the gun in order to properly manage the recoil goes a long way to shooting without tension. Will I ever get to a point where I can close a #3 CoC Gripper? Maybe. I think that being able to close a #2.5 with both hands would be more than enough grip strength to effectively manage Major PF recoil while shooting fast with very little induced tension. The only thing I worry about is over doing the grip training and end up with tendonitis or some other hand injury by going overboard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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