Grip sport · explained and tracked
Stronger hands
start here.
Learn the sport from zero, find the right gear, and follow the meets, records, and feats that matter — whether it's your first gripper or your fiftieth contest.
New to grip
Your first four steps
- 1
Learn the four disciplines
Grip isn't one thing. Know what crush, pinch, support, and wrist mean and you can read any meet result.
See them below → - 2
Get one tool
A gripper or two smooth plates is enough to start. You don't need a garage full of gear.
Choosing a gripper → - 3
Train it two or three times a week
Short, focused sessions with rest between. Hands recover slower than you'd think.
Beginner program → - 4
Respect the tendons
Warm up, progress slowly, and stop at sharp pain. Grip injuries take a long time to heal.
Safety basics →
The basics
Grip is four sports in one
Crush
Squeezing with the whole hand — fingers closing toward the palm.
Benchmarks
- Captains of Crush grippers
- Other torsion-spring grippers
Pinch
Thumb against fingers on a flat surface, with nothing to wrap around.
Benchmarks
- Two-hand plate pinch
- Pinch blocks
- York blob
Support
Holding on to something heavy — and not letting it slip.
Benchmarks
- Rolling Thunder
- Axle deadlift
- Inch dumbbell
Wrist & hub
Wrist strength, leverage, and fingertip lifts off a plate's hub.
Benchmarks
- Hub lift
- Levering
- Wrist roller
Speak grip
Six words you'll hear at every meet
Pick these up and forum threads, meet results, and records start making sense.
- Close
- Squeezing a gripper's handles until they touch.
- CoC
- Captains of Crush — IronMind's numbered gripper line.
- Set
- Positioning a gripper in the hand before the squeeze.
- Blob
- The end of an old York dumbbell, lifted by pinching it.
- Hub
- The raised center of a plate, lifted with the fingertips.
- Axle
- A thick 2-inch bar that won't let you wrap your fingers.
Community
Train with people who get it
Post a close, ask about a set, find a training partner, or get talked into your first meet. The Colorado Grip Discord is open to everyone.