Welcome to Grip
This program came into being from the need for more comprehensive wrist preparation for artists, athletes and movers who like to stand on, or otherwise put weight into, their hands.
My research into the concepts here originated from my own needs. Around 2007, when I was in circus school, I had persistent tendonitis in one arm from overtraining. I tried all the wrist and forearm exercises common in circus and gymnastics. I then came across an offhand comment by a Canadian strength coach named Christian Thibaudeau. The comment went along the lines that one of the common causes of tendonitis in the forearm is not training all functions of the forearm. This led me down a rabbit hole, searching old strongman manuals for forearm training. After coming across sledgehammer training and leverage-based training and putting it to use for one month, my issues had resolved and never returned.
Consider this program a gift to you, a homage to old time strength training. While I feel coming across an elbow issue at some point in your handbalance training is basically unavoidable if you push for the higher levels, this program will provide an added layer of insurance and possibly antidote to the issue.
Yours in staring at the floor,
– Emmet Louis and Mikael Kristiansen
Resources
MANUAL AND VIDEOS COVERING ALL THEORY AND PRACTICE
To get the most out of the Grip program, we recommend taking the time to fully read and comprehend the 30 page manual that accompanies this program. You can download the manual here.
The video library contains detailed demo’s and explanations of all exercises mentioned in the program templates. You can watch them as you please, or refer back to them as they come up in your training progressions here.
Training Templates
PROGRAMMING YOUR TRAINING
The Grip program can be seen as a specialisation program, in that we do not constantly run it alongside our regular training, but rather phase it in and out over a few months, and then keep it in the toolbox to top up our forearm resilience when needed.
The program consists of two phases. Each phase is done for 4 weeks, after which I suggest taking 4 weeks off between the first and second phase and then taking a break of 2-3 months before repeating. If you want, you can keep cycling them month on, month off for the whole time, but I find that doing this work 1-2 times a year to be sufficient for most.
If you are unsure about your progress or have any other questions about your training with Grip, feel free to message us on Facebook or Instagram.
If you have any questions regarding your training, feel free to get in touch via Social Media or via the contact form here. You can also tag us in your instagram stories for direct feedback!