As part of a challenge to test my dedication and also experiment with the results, I have decided to start using hand grippers everyday for the next 31 days.
The main aim of this experiment is to see what sort of effect it will have on my strength, wrist / forearm size and also if I can stick to it mentally!
The Aftermath - Q&A
To make it easier for you to get to the nitty gritty of this post I have brought the summary straight back up to the top. This will save you sifting through a whole months worth of grueling training. I will start by answering two of the most popular questions.
Would you do this again?
No, it's extremely difficult to stick to the training every day, especially when it starts to hurt... We will delve into that a little further down.
Did it improve your hand strength?
Yes, The strength gains are there to see, I have noticed a great improvement in my gripper endurance. At the top end I am now able to crush the GOG Hades gripper and COC 3 easier than before.
However.. It's a big however, I had considerable pain in my index and middle finger for around 2 weeks after, this really restricted my ability to lift properly. After some rehab with a few of our great accessories it has now completely gone.
Have you noticed any muscle gains / definition?
To be honest, I have noticed considerable improvement in definition on my right forearm and both wrists seem to look a lot 'leaner', my body weight is roughly the same so this is likely to be an improvement in tendon strength.
Which grippers did you use?
All 5 of the Godlike Grippers
The Beginning
I will be using our very own Godlike Grippers for experiment. You can check them out below.
Thinking of a structure for using grippers everyday has been hard as it is likely that there will be heavy fatigue not just in the hands, but also on the skin.
This post will be regularly updated over the next month or so with the daily training routine and a small write up on how I felt the training went! Using hand grippers everyday is exciting and I can't wait to see the results.
Get involved, if you fancy trying using hand grippers every day for a month, keep us updated on your progress! @godsofgrip
Preparation
The point of this experiment is to see if using hand grippers everyday is beneficial or detrimental. A couple of days before beginning I have taken my current max hand gripper strength on a few of our grippers.
Max Repetitions
Achilles 200lb Hand Gripper Max Repetitions:
- Right 21
- Left 13
Hephaestus 250lb Hand Gripper Max Repetitions:
- Right 8
- Left 4
Hades 300lb Hand Gripper Max Repetitions:
- Right 3
- Left 1
Wrist / Forearm Size
I have measured my wrist and forearm on both arms to see any changes over the next month. My diet will be consistent with how it usually is.
Right:
- Wrist
- Forearm
Left:
- Wrist
- Forearm
Final Words
People often ask how often should you use hand grippers? When should I use them? How long should I use them for?
The answer to this really depends on your goals, what grippers you have and how dedicated you are. We usually advise using hand grippers 2 - 3 times a week in our programs. One day will typically involve high repetitions with lower weight and one day lower reps with high resistance
Using hand grippers everyday will certainly be a physical challenge and one I am certainly looking forward to.
The plan I have set out starts off relatively easy then after day 10 it will start ramping up.
One important thing to take note of is, you should always properly warm up before training. Especially when taking on a challenge that will involve such a high workload. To warm up efficiently I will be using our Finger Exercisers and Grip Ring Plus. They are the perfect accessories to warm up / cool down after training.
KEY
For reference I have added the below
- Repetitions will be full closes of the hand gripper.
- Negative repetitions involve a regular close with a slow release of the hand gripper.
- Inverted repetitions are where the gripper is upside down in the hand.
- Partial repetitions are where the gripper is not fully released after a repetition.
- Set - This is positioning the gripper in a way that enables you to close higher resistances.
To learn more about any of the above check out our hand gripper training page.
Day 1 - 1/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 3 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 15 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
Today is the day we begin our journey and experiment into using hand grippers everyday! Starting off relatively easy today's routine uses 2 hand grippers and is a way of bedding in for the long ride ahead.
Poseidon is one of my favorite grippers as its comfortable to close and is perfect for warming up, more so than an adjustable gripper for me personally. This will be used most days at the beginning / end of a training session.
The total workout today took around 10-12 minutes so if you are one of those people who say's you have no time to train, just do hand grippers! Easy.
I really am looking forward to see what will happen strength wise on this journey using hand grippers everyday and its great to see some of you getting involved with us on Instagram.
Day 2 - 02/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 15 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 2 x 3 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
Entering day 2 I was eagerly anticipating my mid day training session, a few more reps on the cards today. The way I am trying to structure this training marathon is to not burn myself out early, keep it pretty simple and slowly increase it as the month goes on.
No real soreness from yesterday but I wouldn't expect that yet! The main worry moving forward is the wear on my skin but that's a bridge we will cross when it happens.
Don't forget to tag us on your Instagram if you are joining us on this experiment.
Day 3 - 03/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (Negative Reps - 5 Second Release) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 20 |
Daily Review
Today sees the introduction of some negative reps. If you aren't sure what they are you can check out some of our other Hand Gripper blog posts which give a breakdown on a few of the accessory movements we will use over the next month!
During today's training session I did actually notice a little bit of pain on the palm of my right hand where the grippers seem to be rubbing on the skin a bit. Luckily I had some chalk handy and that seemed to help a little so it looks like I will be using chalk during training now.
I did initially think wear on the skin would be an issue but not this early on!
The training went well, I felt strong and the grippers closed easy.
Day 4 - 04/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon | 2 x 20 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus | 5 x 1 (Negative Reps - 2 Second Release) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 |
Daily Review
Another day another negative set of reps! Not my favourite accessory movement, but one that will give you great results. It also seems to make the closes after feel much easier.
Contrary to yesterdays ease today felt tougher. I did train a little later than usual so not sure if that affected me in any way. I did also forget my finger exerciser so did not get a chance to use that before training.
One thing to note is that the final set felt very easy and I felt like I could have gone on a lot longer than usual. Maybe my support grip is improving already?? (endurance)
Day 5 - 05/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 5 x 2 (Negative Reps - 5 Second Release) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 20 |
Daily Review
The second to last day of negative reps for this phase. Finding them mentally tough to think about I was not really looking forward to them today but got them done! Only 5 days in and I feel like I have been doing this for weeks! My strength felt good again and the grippers were moving nicely. The addition of chalk into my training seems to have helped the rubbing on my skin which is good.
I imagine it is also the reason I am finding it easier to close the grippers too! Don't forget if you decide to join us on this experiment tag us on our Instagram.
Day 6 - 06/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (Negative Reps - 5 Second Release) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 20 |
Daily Review
Pop the champagne, today is the last day of negative reps.. For now.. Feeling good and looking forward to completing the first week tomorrow. I did notice some discomfort in my forearms today during and after training. I will keep my eye on this make sure to recover properly and try massaging with a hockey ball in the evening to try and release a bit of tension.
Recovery is something I think is going to play a huge part in succeeding in this experiment. I want to go into every day at 100% and feel like i am giving 110% effort when crushing the grippers.
If you are following along the routine, always give your maximum effort during the reps even if you find it easy.
Day 7 - 07/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 10 |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 5 Set Closes (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 2 x 2 Set Closes (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 20 |
Daily Review
Hephaestus again today, It felt tough! Really tough on my left hand. A slight worry is there seems to be a small cut / stress mark on the palm of my left hand after training. I'm sure it will be gone by tomorrow, to be honest my left hand is doing a good job keeping up with my right as it is to be honest considerably stronger.
I will do my best to recover well tonight for the higher reps tomorrow. Week 1 down, so far so good!
Day 8 - 08/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 5 Partial Reps (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 20 |
Daily Review
Higher reps again today, the pain in the palm of my left hand seems to have subsided and training went well. I think if the gripper was 250lb + then the pain would have come back but Achilles 200lb is feeling comfortable for me at the moment.
Really looking forward to training next week and everything seems to be feeling good. My forearms are suffering a bit and seem to be looking a little bit leaner? Maybe its just some good lighting but all will be revealed at the end of the month!
Day 9 - 09/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 2 x 5 Partial Reps(60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 5 (No Rest) |
Daily Review
Lunch time training session today, I had scoops of my rice in between crushes. Fearing Hephaestus as I looked at the 5 reps, I managed just about on my right hand but the left hand failed miserably only getting 3 and 2 reps respectively, the pain also come back a little which is worrying but I will once again try and recover properly before training tomorrow.
Looking forward to the rest of the week I think a slight change in the programming will help reduce this pain, increasing the reps and taking the weight down for now
Day 10 - 10/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 3 x 1 10 Second Hold (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 20 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
Reps Reps Reps, I entered today ready to attack the rest of the week. The holds on this workout seemed to really burn out my central nervous system. I really felt the burn today, maybe I was a little tired? But i'm putting it into the 10 second holds. They are brutal. I suppose it's going to help build up my support grip too which if anything is my weakest of the 3 types of grip.
Day 11 - 11/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 3 x 15 Partial Reps (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 20 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
A little happier and less 'burned out' compared to yesterdays session. Partial reps are on the other end of the spectrum compared to holds and are much easier to do. For me anyway, I breezed through the session and felt like I had much more in the tank.
As we approach the halfway point of training I feel really good, much less fatigue than I thought and the 'hand wear' seems to have been aided by the inclusion of our Godlike Grip Chalk.
Day 12 - 12/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 5 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 20 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
Entering the end of the 'rep' phase now I once again felt really good going into this session. I seemed to crush Tlaloc with ease and felt really comfortable with 10 reps for each set. This is the first time I have noticeably crushed a gripper much easier compared to starting out.
Day 13 - 13/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 5 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
Back with a bang. Achilles shall feel my wrath once again. I have been eagerly anticipating getting my hands on it again after the lower resistance repathon. I must say, and I don't want to jump the gun but it once again felt really easy. Much more comfortable than usual. I did use liquid chalk today as I was not at home but took my grippers with me.
Really happy with how training is going, who said using grippers every day was a bad thing? I certainly don't seem to be seeing any down sides at the moment. I will write a mid training review in a couple of days and touch back to how training is going in greater detail so keep an eye out for that.
Day 14 - 14/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 1 x 5 5 Second Negative (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
Daily Review
Achilles who? Another day another success for my crushing strength! I went in confident feeling like I was going to dominate and I was sort of right. 5 x 5 second holds on paper sounds really tough. At least for my mediocre support grip but surprisingly I managed it. I'm 90% sure at the start of this cycle I would not have been able to do this. To be totally honest my left hand did not manage the full 5 reps but I did finish them with a small rest in between.
Mid Cycle Review
I feel like this was necessary to give an overall review on how training was going so far compared to a day to day basis. I genuinely feel much stronger, I have noticed my forearm is looking much more defined and muscular. Especially after training the veins are beginning to erupt.
I was skeptical going in worried about skin damage and fatigue but so far there has been no real signs that I need to stop training so I will continue going strong and look forward to comparing results at the end.
Day 15 - 15/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 2 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 |
Daily Review
After all the boasting above today training did not go great. Hephaestus made a return to training after what feels like a long time. The 5 reps felt really challenging and quite tough on the skin / palm of my hand. There is a small bruise that seems to have appeared after training today that i'm sure will be gone by tomorrow but it's something I suppose I will have to keep my eye on.
Day 16 - 16/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 1 x 4 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 1 x 3 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hades 300lb | 2 x 1 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Hades is here, the peak of this mini cycle and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Using a small set I was able to crush it with relative ease. At the peak of my grip training last summer I also managed to crush it.. Probably easier than I did now but starting off with a max of 3 reps I felt I could easily match that. Very exciting but now comes more reps..
Hades has been conquered for the first time this month and hopefully will continue to be conquered throughout!
Day 17 - 17/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 5 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Today saw the re introduction of high reps. I suppose hitting the bigger resistance grippers was fun while it lasted but the reps are where the strength and foundation are built. It felt easy to start but my hands did feel tired today and the burn turned into a little pain on the hands as I squeezed out the last few reps.
Day 18 - 18/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 5 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Did I just get a de ja vu or does today’s training look exactly the same as yesterday? That’s right I felt like it was a really challenging day so just put it back in today to put myself through exactly the same pain and I really felt it. Tomorrow is definitely going to be a more comfortable day as the fatigue starts to set in.
Let’s keep positive and crush on!
Day 19 - 19/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 3 x 8 (60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 3 x 5 Inverted (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
As day 19 comes to a close I must say I’m starting to feel gripped out. My hands are tired and today I felt pretty weak. The question is do I just add a few easier days into the routine or continue pushing myself hard? If you have been following this journey so far it almost feels like I have been growing in confidence and seemingly strength but today hit me hard. Check back tomorrow!
Day 20 - 20/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 2 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 5 x 5 Short Negative (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Today feels like somewhat of a milestone, using hand grippers everyday has definitely been interesting for me so far. I’m happy I’ve been able to stick to it, keep going and hope you have been sticking along with me on this journey.
I made today’s training a really short simple one. I was juggling between negative or inverted style reps and in the end went for negative.
If you haven’t fathered already they are my go to hand gripper exercise for building all round strength and support. The session went well and felt pretty comfortable. After a bit of thinking last night and discussion with a few of the gods of grip team I decided to ease off the next few days before adding in some heavy weight again towards the end of the last week. Stay tuned.
Day 21 - 21/03/2020
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 2 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 5 x 5 Max Effort No Rest |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Day 21 how time flys when your crushing hand grippers everyday! So this morning prior to training I had some pain in my left palm and decided not to train with my left hand. Remember to always listen to your body, there is a huge difference between training when injured and training when tired or suffering from DOMS.
If I’m doubt just use the day to recover, you don’t want to cause a more serious / long term injury just for the sake of one training session.
The right hand felt good, max effort is a great way to train those fast twitch muscle fibres.
Day 22 - 22/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 3 x 3 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Achilles is back and so am I! Although the world seems to be going a little mad with the coronavirus I still got my training in today. The introduction of Achilles back in to my training was mentally tough for me to prepare for, I’m not sure why but I almost felt I was going to struggle to close it.
However, that certainly was not the case, I crushed it, like it was nothing. I’ve never heard the handles of the gripper smash together so hard before. It was like a weight lifted from my mind and I even did a couple more reps on the right today . This bodes well for the rest of training as I hopefully come to a peak.
Day 23 - 23/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 10 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 3 x 5 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 15 |
Daily Review
Here we go! Entering into the last week and I must say, although I have enjoyed using hand grippers everyday... I’m looking forward to giving my hands a rest. Today is probably one of the if not the highest rep total left in my training now, I want to keep it low and slowly creeping up towards the dreaded hades.
Training felt good, the grippers were moving nicely and I’m feeling confident on what’s to come.
Day 24 - 24/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 2 x 2 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 1 x 1 |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 5 |
Daily Review
Short but sweet, I blasted today’s workout In what felt like record time. We also introduced Hephaestus back into training which was good, to be honest it felt tough but seemed to close nicely. I can definitely feel the fatigue again in my hands forearms and wrists. I plan on using some ice tonight to help recovery and will also use the finger exercisers as usual.
Day 25 - 25/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 2 x 2 (60 Second Rest) |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 5 |
Daily Review
First of all, sorry for the delay getting today’s update out I’m actually writing this on day 26. Yesterday marked my 25th day using hand grippers everyday. I can’t quite believe it really, my skin has stood up to the test which was a major concern at the start, the addition of chalk has definitely helped this.
Training was good nothing of note really, my left hand is still hurting every now and again but I’m not sure if this is due to hand gripper training or general training.
Day 26 - 26/03/2020
Training Routine
| Hand Gripper | Sets / Repetitions |
| Poseidon 100lb | 1 x 10 ( 60 Second Rest) |
| Tlaloc 150lb | 1 x 5 (60 Second Rest) |
| Achilles 200lb | 1 x 2 (60 Second Rest) |
| Hephaestus 250lb | 1 x 2 |
| Poseidon 100lb | 5 x 5 Max Effort No Rest |
Daily Review
With the end In isn’t my journey of using hand grippers everyday is coming to an end. I don’t even care at the moment if my strength has gone up or down but one thing I can tell you is the muscularity in my forearm has gone through the roof. I wish I would have taken a picture but at least I can see if there is any size difference at the end. Training feels very comfortable right now as I wind down the reps as honestly the hard work is done now.
The main thing now I’m focusing on is recovery and just keeping the hands healthy.
Day 27 - 27/03/2020
Training Routine
Day 28 - 28/03/2020
Training Routine
Lockdown....
3 comments
Tom
Hi Joy, I wouldn’t say so unfortunately. However with increased muscle mass on the forearms this will definietly help tone them up which could help tighten the skin.
Hi Joy, I wouldn’t say so unfortunately. However with increased muscle mass on the forearms this will definietly help tone them up which could help tighten the skin.
Joy
Hi,do hand grips tighten loose skin on the arms and forearms
Hi,do hand grips tighten loose skin on the arms and forearms
Zyzz
GJ
GJ