Traditionally, the road to improving grip strength has been relatively straightforward. Progressively load and fatigue your hand, wrist, and forearm muscles and you'll eventually see change.
This process can take a couple of weeks to bear fruit and obviously requires commitment and consistency to succeed.
Conceptually, we work from the idea that our initial baseline grip strength level is relatively normal. That, without prior injury or trauma everything is at it should be. And we slowly add more strength and conditioning to this baseline to whatever level we see fit. Overall, it's a solid model that genuinely works.
However, I'm finding something interesting clinically with my patients. Thanks to our modern sitting/sedentary lifestyles, a large proportion of people's initial baseline are well below where it naturally should be. So instead of starting normal and adding extra grip strength, most are starting below where they should be. This means we're often working hard just to get back what we've lost before improving further.
And the reason behind this relates to the function of the neck. The muscles that determine a strong grip are supplied by the nerves at the base of the neck and upper back. Any joint stiffness at these levels can essentially inhibit normal grip function. This is much in the same way as a kink in a hose does to water pressure.
So by finding and decreasing these restrictions we can often see an immediate increase in grip strength with re-testing. Obviously, all grip strength training is still important. But I find I can quickly improve my patient's grip strength initially while they work on it over time.
This is great for anyone who needs a quick performance boost when a lack of grip strength might be getting in the way of achieving specific goals.
So, I thought it might be helpful to create a video on this idea. I hope it gives anyone who wants a stronger grip a slightly different perspective to consider. Just to re-iterate, strength-work is clearly important. But it might also be worthwhile focusing on the neck to see if there's a hidden handbrake!
Hope this is useful!
Topics covered in this video:
- How the neck can inhibit normal grip strength
- How to improve your grip strength in less than 30 seconds
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- Grant
Related: The Hidden Cause of Leg Muscle Cramps: Is it Back-Related?
Helpful equipment:
- Lacrosse Ball: To mobilize those stiff neck joints.
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