The World's Best Hand & Grip Strength Training Instruction
"The Functional Hand Strength Hand Gripper Buying Guide"
New to Hand Gripper Training but have no idea what gripper you need? Here's Everything you need to know to get started.
Dear Friend,
Our mailbox is constantly flooded with letters from folks looking to start some serious hand strength training with Ironmind hand grippers
but don't know which ones to get first. Here are some things to keep in mind when selecting the grippers you need.
We will begin by looking at the hand gripper level that most trainees are most familiar with: the "sporting goods store hand gripper." As pictured on the right, these
kinds of hand grippers usually have plastic or wooden handles and are ridiculously easy to close. While they do have their place, (warming up, for example) they are just about useless
when it comes to building a powerful grip. The average poundage on these is around 45 lbs- not enough to get a real workout in with.
A trainee with only average hand
strength can usually close one of the sporting goods models at least a few hundred times or
hold it closed for several minutes.
A plastic gripper next to the Ironmind Guide Hand Gripper
If you want to get the job done right, you need tools that are top of the line. When it comes to
developing "beyond natural" levels of hand strength, the Ironmind Captains of Crush hand grippers are your best training tools.
The Ironmind Guide gripper is almost twice as hard as the average sporting
goods store gripper. The Guide takes 60 pounds of pressure to close.
Most people, including many women, can close the Guide very easily but it still provides a significant
advantage over the plastic models.
Next up is the Sport gripper. The Ironmind Sport requires 80 pounds
of pressure to close. Like the Guide, the Sport can be closed by most people
the first time they pick it up. This is not necessarily a bad thing as
lighter grippers have a place in every training program.
The Ironmind Trainer follows the Sport in degree of difficulty. The Trainer takes 100 pounds
of pressure to close. The hand strength of the average man is around
115 pounds and most people can usually close the Ironmind Trainer once or twice when they first try it.
To others though, the Trainer may present a significant challenge so it is also fortunate that Ironmind came out with
the Guide and the Sport.
The Ironmind #1 is rated at 140 pounds. The #1 can be closed by most people with some solid training.
When you go beyond the #1, though, the going gets a lot tougher but the rewards become a lot bigger.
The next step is the #1.5 gripper, which offers 167.5 lbs of resistance. This is the first of the "tweener" grippers that help you advance between
the #1 and #2 grippers.
After that, you move on to the #2. When you can close the Ironmind #2, you have reached a level of great achievement. The #2
takes 200 pounds of pressure to close and has stumped many strong men.
The next step is the #2.5, another of the "tweener" grippers, rated at 237.5 lbs. Almost a must-have for those trying to advance from the #2 to the #3.
The Ironmind #3 gripper is the "gold standard" of hand strength feats. This is the gripper
separates the men from the boys...close it and you will take your place among the grip
elite. If you are a football player or combat athlete, having the ability to
close this gripper will turn you into a real "monster."
The ultimate challenge is just ahead, so you will need all of the help you can get in order to achieve greatness. That is where the #3.5 comes in. It is the
perfect tool to help you get to the pinnacle of grip strength. This gripper is rated at 322.5 lbs.
Closing the Ironmind #4 is the ultimate in hand strength. Quite honestly, the #4 gripper
is far beyond the reach of "normal" people and only those who are deadly serious about building
a "beyond normal" level of hand strength should think about getting this piece of equipment. For most
people, the #4 makes a good paperweight. Training to close the #4 gripper will
take a level of intensity and dedication that few people possess...Joe Kinney, the first man to close the #4, proved that it could be done.
A select few have followed Joe Kinney in closing the #4...Who's next?
Meet the Family. When you train with the Ironmind Captains of Crush Hand Grippers;
you know you are training with the very best.
Our suggestions:
In the next section, we are going to make some gripper choice suggestions for various types of people. Before we begin, please keep a
few things in mind:
1. We have found that to train with the hand grippers effectively, it is best to have at least three hand grippers at your command;
one that you can close easily for
a number of reps; one that you can close for a moderate amount of reps and one that you can just barely
close or can't quite close yet. Having a selection of grippers to work with will provide great variety in your program.
(We have heard reports of someone who bought several hand grippers (not from us, thank goodness)
who opened them up one by one. He tried them in order and immediately asked for a refund for
the ones he could already close. Hmmm. That is the kind of attitude that
will never allow someone to get strong hands.)
2. In case you're wondering, strength developed in most other types of training does not "carry over" to gripper training and vise versa.
For example, just because you can deadlift
a lot of weight doesn't mean that you will automatically be able to shut the #2 or #3. It is going to take specific training with
grippers to get good at them. The whole point of having hand grippers is to use them as a training tool...a tool that will allow you
to gradually build up your hand strength levels. Develop the strength so you can apply it effectively in a particular sport or activity.
Skill work, however, can only come
with practice of that activity.
3. If you have been active with your hands or have been training for several years, chances are you will have the strength to close
the #1 gripper at least once. For training purposes we recommend starting with a gripper one level below the one you can close at least one
time.
Again, the key concept to remember here is "training"...It is very difficult to train progressively with a
hand gripper that you can only close once, this is why it is a good idea to have more than one level of gripper to train with.
(Just about every serious grip trainer ends up getting a full "set" eventually.)
It is important to have as many training options as possible.
If you have never used hand grippers or trained your hands before:
We recommend getting the Guide, Sport and Trainer. The lighter grippers
are simply a better choice when starting out, especially for those with little or no experience.
With these hand grippers, you will be able to
develop your technique as well as use them for high-rep skin "toughening" training which is
especially important for rock climbers where tough skin is very valuable.
Toughening your skin is also necessary if you ever hope to become a master at tearing phonebooks or tearing playing card decks or
driving nails with your hands or closing heavy grippers. Those who are adept at these advanced strength stunts will tell you how
important it is to have tough skin.
If you have prior hand training experience but not with hand grippers or by training with sporting good grippers:
We recommend starting with the
Trainer, #1 and #1.5. (Keep in mind that almost everyone gets a whole set at some point so it is probably a good idea to get them all at once.)
As we mentioned previously, the lighter grippers can be incredibly valuable. Don't underestimate their importance.
If you are a woman:
We recommend the Guide and Sport. The Trainer is usually (but not always) too tough for
women to use as a training tool. No, we are not sexist.
However, we have found that many women are generally not as strong as men nor do they have as much training experience.
Also, many women have significantly smaller hands than most men.
For some women
it may also be necessary to get a sporting goods store gripper in addition to the Guide and the Sport.
Regardless of the sport, we feel that
every serious athlete should have a full set of hand grippers, at least up to the #2.
If you are training to close the #3 gripper, you face a very difficult task but with perseverance, hard work and an intelligent plan it can
be done.
Recently, a good friend of ours took a Trainer, an Ironmind #1 and an Ironmind #2 to the Arnold Classic Strength Expo.
He had all the top professional bodybuilders have a go at them. As big and impressive as those guys were, only
one of the top guys was able to close the #1 and none of them could close the #2. (We're talking about guys
with forearms bigger than most people's legs!) Functional muscle? I don't think so. It is true that these men were put on the
spot and that they very likly had little hand gripper training experience. However, it is our
opinion that when you are serious about training you should be every bit as strong as you look.
Training with the Ironmind hand grippers is one of the very best ways to develop strong hands.
There are few accomplishments in all of strength training that are as satisfying as hearing the "click" of
the handles of a gripper that you have been struggling with for a long time.
This article should answer many questions about which hand grippers to choose. If you have any questions about anything
not covered here, please send an email to info@functionalhandstrength.com
Train hard.
John Wood
P.P.S. Each Captains of Crush Hand Gripper from Functional Hand Strength, comes with membership to our Gripper Training Email
Newsletter. In addition to mountains of solid gripper training information, Members will be eligible for discounts and special offers
which will not be available anywhere else.
Iron Mind Captains of Crush Grippers - Only $19.99 each (plus $7 S&H)
For training purposes, we recommend having at least 3 hand grippers - one you can easily close for high-reps (20+) for warmups,
one that you can close for moderate (8-10) reps for working sets and one that you can just barely close or can't quite close yet to
function as your "goal" gripper. Use this form to expedite the ordering process.
If you have never trained with hand grippers before, we suggest the "Sport, Trainer, #1 combo Set)
