Wonder why doctors test your hand strength to determine if surgical procedures were done correctly? Or to decide when someone is ready to safely return to work after an injury? Well grip strength suggests a great correlation in shoulder stability and upper body strength. This does not include how hard you can squeeze someones behind! Or maybe? In any case, with 27 bones, 33 muscles, and 30 joints, the hand is one of the most important parts of our body for survival. You probably wouldn’t notice the importance of your hands until you woke up one morning with paws. That’ll teach ya.
Repetitive movements (like typing), force exertions (like a tennis swing), bad posture and poor techniques can all lead to hand and wrist injuries over time.
Ever notice when someone gets extremely angry they ball up their fists? Or when someone is going through intense pain or discomfort they clench their fists? These actions determine the amount of strength they will exert or how great their defenses are. So imagine having a weak grip while doing pull ups. Or a weak grip when doing a bench press. Have you noticed your difference in strength when doing a leg press without holding on to the handles at your side versus holding on? The stronger your grip, the more stable your shoulders are, and more signals are sent throughout your body to prepare for exertion. How can you effectively train the lats without a strong grip? Never mind the guys who look like they’re doing a snake dance while doing pull ups. Your strength is considerably compromised when doing a bench press or a dumbbell curl with your wrists bent backward. Bottom line is you can get your target muscles stronger if you strengthen your grip. Ladies, consider that you can hold more shopping bags with stronger hands!
So the next time your in a gym, you may want to throw some hand and grip strengthening exercises into your routine. Things like fingertip pushups, farmer walks, using thick bars, and block weights to name a few. You can, in the privacy of your home, squeeze your significant other and say it’s a certified exercise. (That just takes a lot more work☺)
What do you think? Email me!
All the best and God Bless,
Ammo Athletics