10,001 ways to strengthen the fist

[Lucas]

so after i was done doing pull ups yesterday, i decided to just hang out. litterally. I started hanging with solid grip, then after a bit I moved to the first joint on my fingers, then the second then the third.

some good stuff.

rock climbing is also super hardcore for your kungfu grip.

another:

I believe it was Dale Dugas, a poster here, who linked some vids of some grip exersizes he has using a sledge hammer.

Ive picked that up, although I use a length of bar bell that I change the weight around on and mess around with.

I'm not at work so I cant verify any youtube based clips, if I have time when I get home, ill try to link what I'm talking about.

[uki]

I believe it was Dale Dugas, a poster here, who linked some vids of some grip exersizes he has using a sledge hammer.

definitely a quality master-instructor kinda guy... has a weak stomach when it comes to reading posts he can't understand yet.

here's a cool mason sledgehammer trick... take sledgehammer, hold end of handle(on extended arm) in the vertical position(head at top), slowly lower the head down onto your forehead-return to starting position... obviously make sure your wrists are strong enough or else.

i juggle 3 trowels sometimes.

[Mr Punch]

This thread takes me back.

Used to cut a lot of wood as a forester and for my hearth at home. And hedging, which I would suggest is also very good for some aspects of strike power. With chopping you go all out to go through the wood, with hedging you have to leave the vital strip of bark at one side of the main stem or trunk but quickly (when you have several hundred metres of hedge to lay), so you need the strength, penetration if you like and a tweak of control at the end, then you have to grab and pull/bend/twist the stem down into shape. Even better than climbing for variation of forearm work I'd say.

I used to climb a lot too, even at work in the mouldy basement of a hospital where I would practise for the rocks by climbing around the huge rolling bookshelves without touching the ground.

Not convinced about juggling: used to do a lot of that too, for performances at times - and while it's a surety that it helps your reflexes for things esp in your upper and outer gates, the actions are a little limited. I'd suggest good for uppercuts, elbows and some grabbing strikes... ahh, maybe not so bad.

I do still chuck 5 kg bags of rice all the way home from the supermarket with different grips.

So, for my 'original' contributions:

1) Hedging

2) Wing chun pole exercises

3) Wringing the sword from JMA (prob can find it in CMA too, don't know)

May offer more detail when I have time. Too much rambling for now.

[uki]

with over 19,000 members, it will only take each person roughly half an idea to get to 10,001 techniques... interesting thought, is it not?

[uki]

here's a set using iron balls to do twisting push-ups. the start and end positions can be changed up; arms can be closer or further apart... get creative. for added burn, squeeze and release the balls during up and down of the twisting push-up.

[Lucas]

I'd like to add the taiji ruler. basically a piece of bamboo/ratan/wood about a foot long. TONS of things you can do with a stick. But for this thread ill just mention it for the various grip exersizes you can practice.


I would also like to add archery. its not too varied, but a bow will improve your grip.

[uki]

This thread takes me back.

Used to cut a lot of wood as a forester and for my hearth at home. And hedging, which I would suggest is also very good for some aspects of strike power. With chopping you go all out to go through the wood, with hedging you have to leave the vital strip of bark at one side of the main stem or trunk but quickly (when you have several hundred metres of hedge to lay), so you need the strength, penetration if you like and a tweak of control at the end, then you have to grab and pull/bend/twist the stem down into shape. Even better than climbing for variation of forearm work I'd say.

i look forward to hand splitting all 8-10 cords of wood every winter, plus with the price of oil, we save a bit of cash for other things... we made 100 gallons of oil last over a year.

I do still chuck 5 kg bags of rice all the way home from the supermarket with different grips.

i used to practice juggling cans of soup in the supermarket lines in berlin.

before my goat died, i used to practice punching him in the forehead as he tried to head butt me... goats are awesome training partners.

[Mr Punch]

before my goat died, i used to practice punching him in the forehead as he tried to head butt me... goats are awesome training partners.

LOL, hope it didn't contribute to his demise! I used to punch my great-aunt's boar in the snout: he loved it. Scary ba stard, mind, glad he never took offense since he was nearly my height at the shoulder (6'1).

BTW, not sure how useful any push-ups are for punching. You seem to do a lot. Do you use them as fist strengtheners? Of course, they'll develop your core abdomen and some lower back muscles, but other than such a general benefit the mechanism is completely different to punching. What do you see them as doing?

[uki]

LOL, hope it didn't contribute to his demise!

no. he got a blockage and couldn't pee... poisoned himself with his own waste, it was too far progressed when i realized the problem... his name was wang.

I used to punch my great-aunt's boar in the snout: he loved it. Scary ba stard, mind, glad he never took offense since he was nearly my height at the shoulder (6'1).

big frick'in pig!!

BTW, not sure how useful any push-ups are for punching. You seem to do a lot. Do you use them as fist strengtheners? Of course, they'll develop your core abdomen and some lower back muscles, but other than such a general benefit the mechanism is completely different to punching. What do you see them as doing?

by strengthening the fist you must take into account that the rest of the body is connected to it... honestly i hardly ever do push-ups, but one of the laborers at work was ranting one day so i've been coming up a ka-zillion different ways to do them and have been sharing them with him... my training schedule is as spontaneous as the rest of my life... some days it's all sword stuff, other days it's all iron bar... the only consistent routine is the iron ball juggling... everyday. i easily get bored and must practice something else... certain times of year bring different types of training... in the fall it's nice to practice the straight sword by practicing piercing the falling leaves, and the winter is a blast to practice forms on ice.

[Lucas]

start in a standing position. bend down like you are going to touch your toes. dont bend the legs. put finger tips on the ground, and inch forward on your fingertips, keeping your legs straight, all the way to a push up position, keeping on your fingertips do the push up, reverse, and crawl back to toe touching position, keeping legs straight. stand. repeat this process till your fingers feel like they are going to explode.

[Lucas]

i dont know if this counts, but im going to go ride my bike up a mountain to see 2 women in french maid outfits in a giant snow globe full of feathers.

[uki]

i dont know if this counts, but im going to go ride my bike up a mountain to see 2 women in french maid outfits in a giant snow globe full of feathers.

bike riding uphill would most definitely count... the hands have to steer and direct the bike... this sounds similar to the cave-babe scenario.

[Lucas]

lol. so, I made it up the mountain (i found out its really a volcano) without having to stop. it was 100 degrees out here too.

but let me tell you, it was well worth it.

I do think the cave man scenario is applicable here.

This was an adult soap box derby. totally fun.

[uki]

pushing wheelbarrows full of concrete.

pulling your kids in a bread crate across the beach.

digging holes for piers in 2b stone with a flat shovel.

shoveling sand onto a truck... and then shoveling it off.

moving 5 cubes of block(108 per cube) in one day, atleast twice... sometimes onto scaffolding... then taking it back off if the count was off.

pulling concrete.

pushing concrete.

pardging a wall.

pulling stone up to a roof line with a pulley...

in other words... just go and be a mason... paid training all day long.

[Lee Chiang Po]

moderation is the key... well one of them... the other is simply, mind is the path. having said that; it's all in the DNA.

so do you have a technique to share that will eventually cripple our hands?


Well, pounding on cinder blocks covered with straw mats comes to mind. That and hitting head bones squarely with the knuckles as hard as you can muster. The knuckles of the hand will build themselves up to withstand the impacts, but they foresake dexterity in the process. I guess it would all come down to what you do for a living. Some people depend strongly on their hands and the ability to use them. I never really had that problem, but it became a problem with other things. I make a pretty decent fist with the left hand, but the right hand will not fold. I can use the palm and the palm edge as well as the fingers. I can darn near stab one to death with my right hand, and I can slap the snot out of him, just can't punch him with a fist with that hand. Being right handed, I probably abused that hand more than the other, and the large knuckles of that hand are very large and will not allow the finger to curl into a fist.