Hand Grip Exercises

By penny | July 22, 2013
Hand Grip Exercises

The hands are one of the most important limbs in the body as they play a huge role in how effective we are when attempting to carry out physical tasks.
The "grip strength" is one of the more important aspects of the ability of the arm to be able to carry out these tasks and is also considered to be one of the more defined aspects of measuring an individual’s overall arm strength. Grip strength is primarily the force applied by the hand to either pull or suspend objects once the objects shape is optimized to allow the individual to wrap his or her palm around it.

In our daily lives, we regularly encounter objects that are optimized to allow the hand grip to aid us in being able to accomplish certain physical tasks. For instance, the stair case railings in most stairwells will usually have a specifically engineered diameter that will help a person achieve a strong and stable grip on the railing to avoid a fall in the event that the individual were to lose his or her footing.

Tools are also objects that are specifically designed to allow the operator to have as much control as possible on the tool. Having a loose grip will mean that the individual will not have the correct amount of control over the object in order to wield it properly. For instance, when a person does not have complete hand grip on a hammer, there is always a good chance that the hammer can slip out of his or her hand - potentially causing damage. “Grip strength” is also a very important aspect of various sports such as the javelin, rock climbing, football as well as many others. Grip strength exercises are a very important part of the training for all these sports
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition that is known to significantly affect a person's hand grip. As a result, hand grip exercises during carpal tunnel syndrome recovery are something that is taken very seriously in the rehabilitation process.

Types of grips

Before getting into the benefits of hand grip exercises, it helps to understand that a person's grip can be broken down into three main categories: the crush grip, the pinch grip and the support grip.

All these types of grips make use of different combinations of muscles in the palm and require different amounts of strength used to carry them out.

The crush grip is the variety that is most closely associated with the term "grip strength". It is this grip that is used when a strong handshake is performed.

The pinch grip is performed with the fingers placed on one side of the object and the thumb on the other allowing the individual to lift an object without letting it touch the palm. The support grip is usually employed when trying to grasp objects that are much larger and would require the use of more than one hand. This grip will usually require more muscle endurance than any of the other types of grip.

Because of the fact that the "hand grip" is such an important aspect of being able to achieve certain physical accomplishments, there are a number of commercially produced hand grip exercise devices that can be used to measure the grip strength of an individual. The hand grip dynamo-meter is one such device. It requires you to hold the instrument in your arm at a right angle with the elbow at the side of the body.

The base of the instrument will rest on what is known as the metacarpal and the individual will be required to squeeze the handle of the instrument with four fingers and maintain the grip for a period of about 5 seconds. A dial gauge at the top of the instrument will record the amount of strength that the individuals grip has.

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  • A hand grip exercises ball is one of the most effective objects used in the recovery and not only helps strengthen the grip of the individual, but also helps in alleviating stress that is likely to collect around these tissues. Incorporating a hand grip exercise routine into your daily schedule will go a long way into making sure that you are able to grasp objects properly and confidently. Unknown to many, hand grip exercises and high blood pressure are also closely linked. Medical research shows that regularly practicing hand grip exercises will help lower your blood pressure count.
  • Hand grip strengthening devices are available at any sports equipment store. Squeeze and hold the contraption for a period of about 2 minutes. Rest for the same period of time. Perform 4 sets of this about 2 to 3 times a week to significantly increase your grip strength as well as lowering your blood pressure count. Since tension is a very common part of our rather hectic lives, it helps to know that hand grip exercises and hypertension also has a link. Hand grip exercises can also be carried out to lower levels of hypertension.
  • Fingertip pushups are another very effective form of hand grip exercises that will help optimize the opening and closing ability of the muscles involved in grip and strengthen the finger as well. It also improves the bone density in the arm, but it is important to remember that you approach these forms of exercise rather carefully as they can prove to be dangerous when not performed adequately.
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