Stinky Kids

That means Heavy Hammer while they're in the tub. I took it easy and it felt good.

• Warm up, 2.5#, 10 reps front and side-to-side
• 2.5#, 10 reps front and side-to-side
• 5#, 10 reps front lever
• 5#, 10 reps front lever
• 5#, 10 reps rear lever
• 7.5#, 10 reps rear lever

Looking forward to RT, probably on Friday at this point. I will redo 115x15 and try to make it all the way through with fewer, or hopefully no breaks.

Grippers

Here is my actual grip workout, which felt pretty good considering the recent heavy pinch workout:

• HG150 x10, x10
• #1 x10
• #2 x4 singles
  
• T6 @1/4" CCS, x1, x1, x1, x1 (video), x1. All misses, but most as close as the video. Gripper is 136#.
  
• Filed GM @1/4" x3 singles, held for a neg, then let out to CCS and an attempt at a second rep.
  
• T6 @1/4", x1, x1, solid closes, held shut, then an attempt at a second rep. Also with a more generous set.

In general, the Filed adjustable BBGM is slightly harder than the regular one. Maybe by about 5# and then it's filed on top of that. I'll probably use it mostly with a more generous set. So, a pretty good start, I think!

The plan is to get consistent with the T6 and then slowly work up the mount until the gripper is back to 150-ish pounds. Then I will start work on the #3 and certify! It's always good to have a plan.

Thank You, Aaron!

First, I want to thank Aaron for the wonderful adjustable grippers! He takes the pins out of Beef Builder grippers and replaces them with set screws so the mount is adjustable. Phenomenal product. You can inquire here. Thank you so much Aaron!

So this video is my starting point with the adjustable BBGM. It's set at a 1/4" mount and calibrated at 136#. I think if I would not have had such a good pinch workout just a couple of days ago, this would have been closed.

Pinch PR Video

Here is the vid for the Pinch PR at 157.5lbs. I believe that's more than a 20lb increase over my previous best!

Pinch

Great pinch workout tonight!

Light bench warm up
Swung around 5x5s

2HP
75# x1, x1
125# x1
135# x1
145# x1
155# x1
157.5# x1 BIG PR
135# x1
75# x5
75# x5

Ring+Pinkie pinch on 2x10s (2 hands)
35# x1
45# x1
55# x1, x1

Pony thumbs x1, x1, x1

Thumb pad is getting stronger!

Grip-n-rip

I got my hands on a few phone books, so here and there in the past week I've been working on my form. I've been concentrating on the "grip-n-rip" technique that Clay outlines here. The phone books that I got are the Minneapolis Yellow Pages which are a bit thicker than what I can handle. So, I've been splitting each into two books and going from there. I can grip-n-rip these halves with some effort. For me this is mostly a wrist workout, which leads me to believe I need to work on my technique. I think I'm pulling at the wrong angle and fighting with more torque than is necessary.

Grippahz

Grippers today. One of the best gripper workouts I've had in a while. I worked with the new handle position, farther back in my palm. I used a minimal set and everything was from CCS or wider.

HG150 x10, full range, no set
#1 x5, 2 sets, full range, no set
#2 x10, singles with overcrush
#3 x5, singles, forced in for a negative

So, here is the intersting thing. Using this handle position and a minimal set, I could take the #3 down to about 1/8" on the best rep and 1/4" otherwise. And my left is pretty even with my right. This #3 is 152lbs. I will take a video next workout if I can.

This makes me even move excited for my BBGMs. The filed adjustable BBGM will be priceless. I can set them so that I can close them and work back to my current level, but I will be closing the grippers from CCS or wider instead of parallel.

This workout made my forearms ache in a way they haven't since I first started training grippers. Good stuff.

Sumthing Amazing

This is amazing to me.

I have been fascinated by Gabriel's closes since he showed up at the board. He mangles grippers lefty with no apparent effort. He also keeps the palm handle pretty far back in his hand. His closes are one of the main reasons I believe that the "close" is more trainable than I previously thought. He's basically closing grippers in the range of motion that most would call BTR. Remind you of anyone? Joe Kinney methinks.

I have long thought that heading this direction with my handle position is the way to go for me. I have short pinkie fingers. They are a full inch shorter than any other finger. Bringing the palm handle toward my fingers works fine for MMS, but for CCS my pinkie can't wrap until the handles are around parallel. It makes a CCS close nearly impossible unless I'm good for a 3 finger close past parallel. Moving the handle into a position like Gabriel's effectively makes my fingers longer. CCS is still difficult, but much more manageable.

My plan for the adjustable BBGMs has been to start using a similar handle position and a wider set and then working my way back up toward #3 closing power. My "max" will drop for a while, but as Gabriel has shown, this range of motion is very trainable. This, I have realized, is my ticket to a #3 cert. I need to focus less on setting the gripper and more on setting myself up for success.

Rolling Thundah

Best workout ever.

Light gripper warm up
Light bench warm up

Rolling Thunder
45# x 10 swings, like you'd swing a kettlebell, but not as high
95# x 1
115# x 15

Pony Thumbs
David Horne-style TTK x 4 sets, thumbs are fried.

The Rolling Thunder was brutal. I did have to stop and start again a few seconds later on both hands so I will do 115# again and hopefully make it all the way through. I think I also learned that I need to have my wrist in line when I start to pull. I've noticed if it's cocked at all some thumb tendon snaps over some bone and it's really uncomfortable.

Tony the Tiger approves.

I saw this in David Horne's pinch DVD. Best way to end a thumb workout, I think. He uses a TTK, but I don't have one so I use my pony clamp that is set up like a TTK. It blasts them thumbs GRRRRR-reat.

Grippers

This workout started out feeling great. I think my MMS was as strong as ever. Too bad I split the workout in two to save time! I did the following in my car:

Grippers
HG150 xWarmup, no set reps
#2 x3 singles
#3 x3 attempts, miss, closed, miss

Then I finished at home this evening. I figured since my other workout was so short, grippers would feel good still. But I think the previous short workout took more out of me than I thought, and it was just enough to make my forearms a little achy from the workout on Thursday:

Grippers
HG150 xWarmup
#2 x5 singles
#3 x3 attempts, crap, miss, miss
MM1 @ 20mm x3, misses forced in

So I was really happy with the first part, and not surprised with the second part I suppose. Maybe time to hit RT again tomorrow. If I can get some RT or 2HP gains, I know I will have some gripper gains.

Did I mention..?

...that I am so freaking excited for the two adjustable BBGMs that I'm getting from Acorn. I know he's bogged down with orders, so I probably won't see these for a while yet. Still, every day, I feel like it could be the day they arrive.

I think the reason I'm so excited is because these will be phenomenally useful and I will be able to close them. I used to have an adjustable BBE and BBSE, but could barely do negs with them, so they were not very fun to own. I sold them to Paul Knight a while ago. I also hear Acorn has improved the mounts so the handles never spin. Sweeter than sweet.

This grip nerd is about to burst into flames.

Workout with Luke

Went to Lukes' house for a grip workout. Neither one of us were having a PR-setting night, but it was a lot of fun and we got some good lifts.

My right wrist is still sore from doing Heavy Hammer on Monday, so I think I will skip the next wrist workout at least.

We started with grippers, no news there. Then I played with the Blob50 a little. I can't believe people can lift this thing. I had trouble lifting it with two hands. Then we did a little 2HP, but it bothered my wrist, so I started working on a 5x10s pinch. I actually got it to about knee height before the plates fanned out. I was really happy with that. It was my first attempt at the lift. My left continues to be stronger on pinch.

Then we worked up to a max on the FBBC 2.5" Crusher that Luke just got. That thing is brutal. I think I got 100# off the ground. Then we swapped the handle out and kept going with Rolling Thunder. I went for a new max, but it wasn't happening at this point! As far as logging a workout:

Rolling Thunder
105# x15

I finished by doing R+P holds with 50# and increased to 60#. I had a cheat a little with the 60#. My R+P fingerpair needs to be a LOT stronger. I'm going to add these to my regular pinch workout. Overall, it was good to workout with Luke again. He's really getting FREAKISH all-around hand strength. I got some good pinch tips, workout tips, and training advice. Thanks Luke!

Surprised to be sore.

I was super sore today from the wrist work. Maybe the negs with 7.5# did it? Feels good. It's actually the tops of my forearms that are the most sore. I can really feel them getting involved on the wrist work, but was still surprised that they were sore and not my actual wrists.

Training with Luke tomorrow and it will turn into a gripfest I'm sure. So I'll just rest until then!

Kids in the tub.

That means Heavy Hammer.

2.5#, warm up, 10 side-to-side, 10 to the front.
7.5#, 5 negs, levers to the front letting the weight down slowly from vertical to parallel to the ground.
5#, 10 side-to-side, 10 to the front.
5#, 10 side-to-side, 10 to the front.

5# felt easier than last time, but I couldn't believe how heavy 7.5 felt. I'll keep increasing the working sets with 5# until I can work with 7.5. The negatives were basically trying to resist the weight and control the weight as it dropped forward. Ouch.

Grippers, Crush Day

Crush day on grippers. Hooray!

Warm ups, 20# kettlebell swings, HG150, Filed #2
Double-stamp #3 MMS attempt x1, miss (bad)
Luke's #3 MMS attempts x2, both 2mm misses
Double-stamp #3 in choker, 20mm x1, x1
Opened choker to 23mm, x1, x1, x1, x1, x1
Opened choker to 25mm, x1 might have been shut, x1 miss
#2 x5 reps with an overcrush on the final rep.

Here is the video for that 25mm choker attempt. You be the judge. I think it was a miss.

Why I'm doing wrist work!

I was writing my friend Hugo about doing wrist work and mentioned something I read at Wes Peart's blog recently. This is exactly why I'm working my wrists:

"Wrist strength is very important! It's like the transmission in a truck. What would happen if you put a Geo Metro tranny in a F-350? You'd gas it and then be fucked."

Beautiful, Lazarus.

There's a first time for everything.

For the first time ever I feel like I completely destroyed my thumb pad. In a good way, of course.

2HP
75# x5
125# x1
125#, held for 5 count x1, x1, x1
135# x1, x1
105#, held for 5 count x1, x1

Negatives with one hand
75# x1, x1, x1

Wooden pinch block
50#, held for 5 count x1
60# x1, x1, x1, x1

Pony clamp to finish it off. My pony clamp is set up like a TTK and I fried my thumbs doing something I saw in David Horne's pinch DVD--if I remembered it correctly. All at once he did 10 full range reps, then 10 quick baby reps, then 10 more full range reps. I did two sets of that. Served up the thumb pad well done.

Oh yeah!

I just remembered that I have two BBGMs with Acorn to get modified. One is filed one is not. The filed gripper would be about 5-10# heavier than the other even if it was not filed. The sweet thing is that once they are both adjustable, I can put the filed handle on either spring and vice versa! These two grippers, I believe, will be HUGE as I work toward a #3 cert. The spring was originally flush on both so the adjustability should be in the 135-155 range, which is perfect.

2HP tonight.

Heavy Hammer

Wrists again while the kids were tubbin. I forgot another 2.5# weight in the basement, and couldn't hardly leave the kiddos in the tub to go get one, so I upped the reps instead and I think that was a good choice.

Heavy Hammer:

2.5#, 10 reps, side-to-side and to the front. This feels like nothing now.
5#, 10 reps, side-to-side and to the front.
5#, 8 reps, side-to-side and to the front.

Wrists were good and fried. I can really tell my wrists are getting stronger. I can swing the weight around any way I want.

Rolling Thunder

Guilt won the day! I starting thinking to myself, "How long could it possibly take?" So I got my ass in the basement and did the workout.

Rolling Thunder
95# x5 Warm up
105# x15

I'll go up to 110# next time. You might be thinking to yourself, "Is he really that weak on RT?" Yes.

In the gym

Did a workout in the gym today. Lat pulls, shoulder press, rows, chest press, all machines. It was a good workout.

I'm still in physical therapy twice a week and that is a good lower body and lower back workout. So I try and get to the gym twice a week and hit my upper body as well. Weighed 169# full of food and water. That's a high body weight for me. Ha!

I was going to do a 15 rep set of Rolling Thunder tonight, but that ain't gonna happen. Tomorrow!

Grippers

HG150 xWarmup
#2 x2 singles
RB240n x2 singles
#3 x5 attempts, all misses but attemps 1,2,5 were so close they felt closed.

Gripinator singles set at CCS width:
25# x2
30# x2
35# x1
40# x0, then set the handles just inside CCS.
40# x1, 0, 1, 1

Messed around with TUGs. Finished with HG300 x5. On the Gripinator, Wes has told me that 80# is a good target to make sure you could CCS most #3s. That seems a long ways away. The feel of the Gripinator is really heavy in the sweep. 40# is very easy to close, but difficult to get to parallel.

...camera! ...action!

I said action! Ship my camera!

I ordered a new camera last week based on advice from my friend Luke. Canon Powershot SD750. Got a great deal on a refurb from eBay. For me, this is a "big ticket" item. Ha! 160 bucks. The biggest reason for the camera..? Clearer gripper videos! It was supposed to arrive yesterday and didn't. Only then did I notice an email from the seller saying I ordered a silver camera and they only have black and if that is okay. Uh, yeah! I'd rather have black anyway. I thought silver was the only choice. So, my inaction caused the delay. Oh well, now it should ship this week.