While the best physical attributes for grappling and grappling sports are speed, flexibility, and agility, strength should not be overlooked. With so much on your plate, strength training tends to fall by the wayside in most wrestling programs; That’s right. Athletes who have brute strength as their best attribute are easily outmatched by faster or more precise technicians. However, when strength is improved in any athlete, overall performance is also improved. When programmed and executed correctly, fight sports-specific strength training will produce athletes who are bigger, faster, and stronger in any arena. Grappling training, for example, applies directly to many aspects of wrestling and is easy to fit into an already busy schedule.

Oddly enough, grip training has an interesting side effect; In addition to giving you an iron handshake, it will make your whole body stronger. As your hand strength improves, the strength of the rest of your body will also increase a bit. For a fighter, stronger hands and wrists will allow full control of your opponent when he grabs you. When fighting with the hands in a standing position, the wrestler’s holds are challenged by catching their opponent’s wrist or grabbing the back of the head for complete control or a hard snap. Defensively, if your grip is better than your opponent’s, you’ll be able to take their hands off their wrists when they try to take you down after you’ve broken out of the bottom position. If your hands are strong enough, your opponent will never get away once you’ve established a hold; likewise, he will never be able to maintain his control over you, as your stronger hands can break his.

Fortunately, improving your grip strength is easy and can be done with very little specialized equipment. However, significant strength gains in your hands will never be achieved with the generic pliers that can be purchased in the ‘sports section’ of Kmart; Grip training is a bit more complicated than that. There are several different types of grip training, all related to different functions of the hand. For example, the actions of pinching, squeezing/crushing, and holding must be trained differently to achieve the most complete and functional grasp. The combat sports of wrestling and grappling use a variety of different grappling functions, so all aspects must be addressed when developing your training program for the best success.

Breaking your opponent’s hold on your arm requires being able to force your thumb or fingers between your opponent’s hand and your arm to open your hold. This action requires a combination of manual force to crush and pinch. To improve this, emphasize training by focusing on the pincer grip for both the thumb and fingers. Great exercises to use include mat stands and timed plate stands. These are done holding two 5-10 lbs. weight lifting plates squeezed between thumb and fingers for 30 seconds to 1 minute or longer if possible. Do 3 sets and try to increase the time or weight each time you do this. Another great way to train the pinch grip (which benefits the fingers more than the thumb) is to rip up phone books. When ripping phone books, start small and work your way up to thicker and thicker books; Work on ripping the binding of the book first, then rip the rest of the pages.

Crushing grip strength is noticeable in a firm handshake and is developed by squeezing things with your hands. Super strong crushing grip strength is important for fighters so that they can dominate combat by controlling their opponent’s wrists/arms. It is also the easiest to train. Initially, you can significantly increase your crushing grip strength simply by focusing on tightening your grip harder on your opponent’s arm and weightlifting bars while you’re training. This is the most functional way to train crushing grip strength, however you can get even greater improvements by using manual grippers for additional training. The best manual tongs are called ‘Captains of Crush’ as ​​they are rated for strength athletes; they can be purchased from a company called Ironmind.com. They come in various strengths so you can work your way up to the strongest model and record your progress as you go. Once you can close a Captains of Crush grapple ten times, you should start training with the next level grapple. While slightly more expensive than generic claws, Captains of Crush are virtually indestructible and will stay strong throughout your run; they are a good investment as they will definitely improve your grip strength.

In many cases, wrestling and mma grappling often require controlling your opponent’s wrist or martial arts gi for an extended period of time. Grappling training to improve hand strength over a sustained period will have a direct impact on a fighter’s performance very quickly and should be added to every program. This is trained by holding weightlifting bars, preferably the thickness of a human limb (any size bar will do, but the thicker the better) for increasingly longer periods of time. A wrestler’s grip must be conditioned for a sustained force lasting more than 6 minutes in case the match is prolonged. An excellent tool for training a wrestler’s grip is with a towel. Use the towel as a replacement for certain handles in the weight room; use a towel for pull-ups, on a lateral pull machine, and when training your arms as much as possible. You can also use a towel as a grip for triceps extensions and wrap a dumbbell or kettlebell for hammer curls.

You can also use a towel on its own for grip training if you don’t have access to the weight room. Using an oversized beach towel, fold it (long) and simply roll it up and down, paying special attention to tightening your grip as hard as possible with each turn of your wrist. You can also improve your smash grip and wrist strength with a water-soaked towel. Dip a towel in a bucket of water, hold the wet towel vertically with both hands placed side by side. Next, squeeze all the water out of the towel by turning it upside down as you go; keep doing this until the towel is completely dry. If you do this correctly, just a few sets of this will exhaust your hands and totally fill your forearms with blood. Another great training tool for wrestlers for the wrestler’s grip is the rope. Climbing ropes, doing rope pull-ups, and training with battle ropes are great for producing a strong, sustained grip. For best results, use rope that is 1 1/2″ to 2″ thick (2″ thick is best).

While improving grip strength will go a long way for wrestlers and wrestlers, developing greater wrist strength should also be prioritized. Having super strong wrists makes it nearly impossible for your opponent to break your hold or run away once you’ve locked on. Wrist strength can be developed using a wrist roller; These are easily made with a thick piece of PVC pipe and string attached to a weight. This exercise is done by winding the rope while twisting the PVC pipe up and down. You can also build strong wrist strength by holding one end of a pole or bar with a light weight on the other end. Simply increasing the weight for numerous reps with radial and ulnar deviation works great for building wrist tendon strength. A large skillet or cast iron skillet is also a great tool for this exercise.

When programming grip training into your program, be careful not to overdo it. Remember that a lot of grappling work is already being done during your regular practices. You should never start your wrestling practice or weightlifting session with grip training, as this can ruin the rest of your work that day and easily lead to overtraining. Grip training should only be done at the end of a workout. Add only 1-2 exercises for 2-4 sets per piece and only on days that allow it. In other words, if your wrestling practice session focused on hand wrestling that day and everyone’s grappling is tired by the end, make a decision to do less or no supplemental grappling training that day. In that sense, training your grip will only be effective if done on a regular basis, so it pays to push it as often as possible.

When incorporating additional grip training into your program, rotate different exercises to produce the best overall strength. Effective grappling training is easy to fit into a fighter’s schedule. Add a few sets of battle ropes at the end of practice one day a week. Another day scoop water out of a towel until your hands are exhausted. For the third day, practice the pincer grip by doing 3 sets of discus grips for 1 minute each. After three weeks of this, switch to different exercises. It’s also smart to tailor your grip training for a specific athlete’s need if you can figure it out. If your wrestler is having trouble breaking another’s grip because he has weak fingers, supplement his training with exercises like plate holding and ripping phone books to improve his pinch grip and thumb strength. However, most athletes will respond with very little additional grip training and simply adding some to their program often produces amazing results.