I go relatively heavy on them (fail on 6-8 reps) because my grip strength affects my bench press, however i have started to feel some moderate pain on my left wrist (joint), it happens when i try to squeeze something. Is this normal? Also are there any other exercises that possibly don’t use the wrist joint as much?
My previous trainer had me do a protocol he called “Billy big boy grip strength”. I have not found it discussed anywhere else but it worked a treat. But definitely keeps wrists fixed.
He had me work out how long I could dead hang for and then at the end of every workout session he would have me dead hang for 1 quarter of my max hang time every minute on the minute for 8 minutes. He said I could do this after every session no stress. I would increase the time regularly. I stopped doing them when my grip strength caught up to my deadlift (the lift I was having grip troubles with).
The timing is probably not feasible if you dead hang for more than say 2 minutes, but I would suggest this is more a beginner protocol than an advanced protocol. If you can dead hang more than 2 minutes then I would be surprised your grip is holding back your bench. Maybe in that case work on your deadlift as one of the other posters suggested.
Will try this, and I’ll be surprised if its even more than one minute because after my back workout, i am barely able to even hold on to the bar.
Edit: should I have my thumbs over or under the bar?
You focus should just be gripping so whatever is most comfortable, I tend to use an pronated grip with a straight bar, but I’ll prefer a bar that lets me use a neutral grip if possible. You’ll want to engage your lats to pull your shoulder blades together and down when you hang to take the load off your shoulders, so whatever grip helps you do that the most.
So my deadhang time was just 30 seconds ಠ_ಠ So a quarter of that would be around 7-8 seconds, so after every workout, i should hang for 8 sec, rest for 52 and repeat for 8 sets? And then increase the deadhang time every workout by a second or two?
Yeah that’s right. I think my first max hang was around 45, so not much more. You should see improvements to your grip pretty quick. If you get to through the last round easy then increase time the next session, if it’s a struggle to get through the last round then maybe use the same time.
I gotta say, it seems strange that grip strength would hold back your bench. One cue I found that might help is thinking about trying to bend the bar throughout the lift. It helps further employ your lats in the lift (assuming you have already engaged your lats to pull your shoulder blades in and down as part of your setup).
Actually it does feel like that I can grip the bar a bit more firmly now so it does seem to work
On the topic of grip affecting my bench, after reading the comments here, I think it has more to do with the fact that i don’t do deadlifts, i’ve had a lot of posture issues throughout childhood (it has improved tremendously through out the time I’ve been working out tho), and i’ve never been able to get the form quite right and i don’t want to risk injuring my spine, i’ll probably start doing them in a few weeks i think…
Sounds fair, I’m sure people have already said it, but in the off chance they haven’t, the Alan thrall and starting strength videos are great for helping get started. An experienced trainer is worth their weight in gold for getting it right though.
On the topic of grip strength, I found that eliminating my fifth day (arms) and consolidating it into other days helped a lot. The extra day of rest (4 training, 3 resting) had dramatically improved barbell row and deadlift for me.
Probably don’t need to be solid blocks of training and rest either. I’d imagine 2+1+2+2 would work just as well.
You can’t just jump into hyper focused workouts like that…
The point is to isolate a specific part that doesn’t get as much work in normal lifting.
Don’t just jump in, do a couple weeks of easy sets so the weak parts can build up.
That kind of pain is not normal. Deadlift is a great exercise for grip strength, as are grip trainers. Our wrists and forearms grow and strengthen naturally via routines where grip is essential, as above. Do not use straps. Chalk should be sufficient if having issues.
You could also try opening a rubber band with your fingers. It works the opposite direction.
Have you tried using wrist wraps or a brace to take the load off your wrist?
Are you doing your wrist stretches during your warmup? The recommended routine from bodyweight fitness has a great wrist warmup.
Do you mean using straps during wrist workouts or during presses, i do sometimes use them during presses however i don’t want to depend on them…
Idk if you are supposed to wear them during wrist workouts
I will look more into the warmup tho, i do the curls at the end of the workout so i never thought of it, seems like a good idea
During presses, nothing wrong with some extra wrist protection. You’re isolating muscles with each exercise and bench press isn’t a wrist exercise.
Don’t wear during wrist exercises, you should be starting out real easy and staying in the comfort zone to avoid damage.
Warmup is real important, everyone forgets the wrists but you’re using them for every exercise unless it’s leg day.
