Screwed by the Hook Grip

[anti]

Intro: (Feel free to skip the next four paragraphs.)

I have small hands and grip has always been a weakness for me. When I discovered the hook grip most of my grip problems went away so I haven't been paying any attention to grip strength for a while.

My 5RM deadlift is 150kg with a hook grip and grip wasn't even slightly an issue. It felt like I could have done 5x200kg - grip wise.

However, the other day, I was warming up for deadlifts with the regular double overhand grip and 5x120kg damn near killed me. I think I looked like I was trying to pull 200kg on every single rep.

I guess I thought I'd be fine grip wise if I just did enough pull-ups but that obviously wasn't the case.

Anyway, my gym access for the next three to four weeks or so is going to be erratic and I probably won't get more than a couple of workouts in so I thought I might use these next few weeks to improve on my grip with my CoC grippers (T and #1) I bought last year and basically forgot about.

On a good day I can close the #1 with both hands (just barely with my left and I probably fail more often than not) and I just did the following with the trainer:

Left: 15xT, 7xT, 6xT
Right: 15xT, 15xT. 15xT

Where should I go from here? Keep going until I can get three sets of 15 with my left hand or do something else? What kind of recovery should I be expecting to need between sessions seeing as I'm obviously a novice when it comes to grip training? Training every other day? Once every three-four days?

P.S.
I know about Steve Gardener's book, but I'm in the middle of finals so I won't be reading that any time soon. Besides, I don't expect to get huge into these grippers, it's a temporary phase for me and I'd just like some opinions, please.

[Daniel Evans]

The hook grip is promoted everywhere yet I find the concept totally impractical and a liability for thumb damage which can potentially result in grip performance decline.

I'd go about working with the bar itself and adjusting other areas of your training to work on your support grip. i.e change chinups / pullups to hanging towel chins, employ static holds, invest in a scaffolding pipe / thickbar / fatgripz.

Gripper work is supplemental but should offer some carryover to the bar provided you up the intensity. Maybe work the #1 with assisted closes.

[Gary Gibson]

Whoops, sorry. Responding to other post. Threadjack killed!

You have only to delete the quoted portion of your post and we can pretend this never happened.

[anti]

The hook grip is promoted everywhere yet I find the concept totally impractical and a liability for thumb damage which can potentially result in grip performance decline.

I'd go about working with the bar itself and adjusting other areas of your training to work on your support grip. i.e change chinups / pullups to hanging towel chins, employ static holds, invest in a scaffolding pipe / thickbar / fatgripz.

Gripper work is supplemental but should offer some carryover to the bar provided you up the intensity. Maybe work the #1 with assisted closes.
Thanks. The problem is I won't be making able to make it to the gym for a few weeks to work chin-ups/pull-ups, bar work, et cetera. That's why I'm asking about specific gripper work. - Once I get back home and have regular gym access I'll be more careful with my grip work.


The hook grip takes some getting used to. And sometimes your grip is just not going to be recovered in time for another session.

The hook grip is touted because it's the only way to remove the thumb as the weak link and let you pull more with a double overhand grip. Weightlifters HAVE to use a double overhand grip due to the nature of their pulls. Ultimately a hook grip lets them pull more. Powerlifters can use a mixed grip, but personally I reserve that for my heaviest pulls because I like to avoid the other problems a mixed grip can cause when used all the time (uneven lat development, biceps stress and possibly biceps tear, etc.); I use a hook grip for all my actual deadlift training. Again it just takes some getting used to.

Why can you pull more with a mixed grip or a hooked grip? Simple. Your thumb is ALWAYS the weak link in holding on to a deadlift. With a straight grip, both your thumbs are on the same side so that's the direction the bar "wants" to roll down. You can feel the bar taking this path of least resistance as your thumbs give out. With a mixed grip, the thumbs are on opposite sides so the fingers of each hand get to reinforce each other; you "lock it in" with the strength of four fingers on each side. With a hook grip, the fingers of each hand lock in the thumbs and once more eliminate the thumbs as the weak link. The mixed grip is usually the strongest (which is why I use it for my third attempts in meets) but the most likely to cause a biceps tear or slight asymmetrical development; while the hook is the second strongest (which is why I use it in training and my first two attempts) but it can be really painful where the fingers dig into the thumb for the first few weeks or months you use it.

There really is no way that the thumb will ever be as strong as four fingers. So it follows that you will ALWAYS pull more when you eliminate the thumb as the weak link with either a mixed or hook grip.
Completely off topic but okay...