Thor Hammers Aren't Always Needed To Smash

Working on the grip is an essential part for building overall health and strength. I have written about why building grip is needed to succeed in many aspects of training but not all exercises are created equal. When it comes to grip strength and conditioning, very few can match the Sledgehammer. Now you don't always need to smash a tire with one or even hit the ground with those rubber ones or smash into the sand, a sledgehammer or even a Thor Hammer for that matter can be used like a Club or Mace or even a Kettlebell for that matter.

Whenever I use a Thor Hammer or in this case of it's Viking Name: Mjolnir, I love working exercises like a club or a mace because with the thickness of the hammer, it's working more than just the shoulders and core, it's hitting the grip with a vengeance. Whether it's nearly 14 lbs or 30 lbs, either way this thing will make you stronger in ways that even the gods would be impressed by. Just today, I worked with the lighter of the two hammers for up to 200 reps of various exercises that really hit the spot. Mainly in the 10-20 rep range each way or per exercise, that's quite a bit cause you're squeezing the handle with every swing and that's putting solid stress on the tendons and ligaments.

They say, the more muscles you use in an exercise, the better your overall health will be. There's a time for isolation (like rehabbing or isometric training) but from a big picture standpoint, hitting multiple muscles at the same time really gives you another perspective of strength training. Thick Grip Training has reaped many benefits and workouts don't have to take as long because when you work with a Thick implement, you're forced to stabilize your body and be in complete control otherwise you'll end up dropping the implement or falling in the case of pull-ups or something. 

Having Mjolnir in your hands is an incredible but also an intimidating feeling. You can't get sloppy with it otherwise you'll pay a price so whether you're hitting a tire or swinging it like a club, mace or even a kettlebell, be careful but also pay attention to what you're doing and treat it with respect or else it'll bite you in the ass or in this case, dropping on the foot, stabbing you with those sharp corners and hitting the legs. If you want powerful forearms and a grip like a vise, this is the implement that will get you there. 

While you're at it, to really kick things into high gear, take the Thor Hammer Formula before your workout and notice the surge of energy coursing through you. Be strong, have a blast and be Amazingly Awesome. 

The Power Of Your Fingers

             What you may not realize is that your fingers have more strength and power in them than you can imagine. What most people do in training is they grip weight in a tight fist or lay down on a bench and lift with the hand slightly opened or they do most bodyweight exercises with an open hand or tight hand squeeze such as push-ups and pull-ups. When you train the fingers however, you're not just building your body, you're hitting a specific place at the same time.

            Our fingers are mostly in tuned with nerves, tendons and bone and the muscle is within the lower arm and the hands. When our brains construct the nerves to move our hands, it sends signals to billions of areas so we can use the hands to build things, lift, carry, throw and many other things. The strongest finger as far as I know is the thumb because it carries more padding and strength in the hand than any of the other fingers.

            When we build strength in our fingers, it helps carry over to other things we didn't think of before. Some don’t know this but I had spinal meningitis as a baby and because of this, my brain went haywire and had some damage somewhere and now I have trouble in some of the nerves in my body especially in my hands. I’m mostly left handed and have great dexterity in that hand plus have more strength on my left side but on my right side, I have trouble moving my right fingers individually. When I was little I used practically nothing but the left side of my body and my brain damage has caused me to think in ways I can't explain but that’s another story.

            Training your fingers in a totally different format can put a whole new perspective in the way you train. The next time you lift a barbell or dumbbell, try lifting with your fingers, it’s very different and very awkward but there’s a point to it. Instead of doing regular push-ups using your palms, do them on your fingers, it’s harder and requires more stability, balance and strength. I like to do animal type movements on my fingertips such as bear crawls and gorilla walks/jumps. I want to work my tendons more and be creative with it so I can do some of the strength feats I do. When you move or train the fingers more in your lifts or exercise you're building powerful grip strength, finger power and turn your fingers into eagle’s claws.

            When you become crazy strong working the fingers in certain lifts, you can lift most likely more weight using your fingers than the rest who use two hands. One of the strongest men that ever lived was Hermann Gorner who not only did great feats but accomplished some using only his fingers including his still world record of a one-finger deadlift of 727 lbs. Most men can't lift that much with two hands so you see, the fingers have more power in them than we give credit for.

            A favorite exercise of mine is doing fingertip push-ups, if you get good at using 10 fingers, you'll want to reduce more of them to add resistance. My best is using 4 fingers (2 of each hand) doing a few reps. I felt compelled to take it to another level. I've tried doing explosive push-ups where you come down and jump with enough power to have the hands leave the floor. What if I tried doing the same thing but on my fingertips? I did it and it was awesome, hurt a little but I kept at it and here’s a video to prove it.

            One of the upcoming strongmen today has some of the strongest fingers I've ever witnessed on film. His name is Matti Marzel of Ferocious Strength who’s done many feats using the fingers such as handstands, push-ups, pull-ups, v-sits, gymnastic bridge and plenty of others. These things have helped him make certain strength feats like a cakewalk such as tearing decks of cards, bending steel, ripping phonebooks, levering hammers and juggling kettlebells. If there ever was a man in the 21^st century who can teach you about finger training it’s this dude here. Build your fingers to create strength that most men can’t imagine and see where it carries to other things in your life. Shatter your personal records and build super strength using the power of your fingers. 

An Epic Review

          

            This is a special treat because I rarely ever write reviews for a certain product so today you’ll get an un-cut and uncensored review of the Epic Sledgehammer from Stronger Grip. Granted in this review I will not hold back how I feel about this Hammer and why it is one of the most awesome tools in no nonsense grip strength and conditioning that it is not to be underestimated.

            When you have a Hammer of this size & power and you have it in your hands; it strikes into your very soul because its beauty is without equal and its strength is unmatched. There are many great tools in the world of strongman but like with Highlander, there can be only one that hits you with ferocity and the power to take you down if you don’t have the guts to withstand it.

            It is not to be underestimated. Sure it looks awesome and has a mystic to it that even the folk legend John Henry can smile about but at the same time, you will either be handle it or you won’t and if you can’t, you don’t have anyone to blame but yourself. People believe that to get strong you need weights or machines to do the work and slug off anything else that seems to extreme or not enough for them and I say bullshit. This one tool has the power to give you crushing grip that be used in many sports like Football, Baseball, Hockey, Golf, Wrestling, MMA you name it because when you strike it at a high volume or work it in different positions it tackles the mind more than anything else.

            I've held it in my hands and did quite a few exercises that don’t require a tire and I can tell you first hand it is brutal and your lower arm will get sore. It’s not a tool for just sports but to build that functional and enduring strength with a powerful grip, hand-eye coordination, lung capacity increase, shaping the body of a man with mighty tendons and super muscle. When you begin to train with this bad boy, your body will never be the same again. It takes effort to swing it, it takes to endure it and it strengthens your mind in ways most tools can’t. This Hammer is a tool of the gods that only one man has the guts to create and does it with style and class (and a bit of nerdyness) and that’s Ryan Pitts. He has built some of the most powerful tools in the world of grip strength and if Thor, Zeus and many of mythology’s famous gods were around today, they’d look to him to build the strength for the people and the strength that we all have within us.

            It is up to you if you have the guts to take on a challenge that could very well be the most fun and powerful challenge in your quest for physical strength.

Falling For The End-All Be-All Crap

             For the most part in fitness, you read in the magazine about this workout or in sports you hear about this or that way to throw, shoot or kick a ball but in the end it all boils down to the individual. We don’t have the same structures and our bodies handle things differently than others. That one size fits all bullshit is just getting you to pay up for their little schemes.

            Who can you trust when it comes to your goals? I like to believe that we can always use a coach, a friend, mentor or someone to show us the ropes. We learn and we get to see in action what is being done, however; once we learn a thing or two, it’s up to us to figure out how to put into action according to our own feeling and how we see things for ourselves. I have been trained by some of the strongest and athletic people in the world and learn a ton from them but I don’t always do things their way because if I did, I’d just be a guy that follows yet I rather build my own style from the things I learned from them.

            I've come to learn that there is never one way to do things. A lot of what we see today is generic and not very imaginative. You learn certain things and you get a feel for how they work for you. There is always something different and it’s important to understand that but not many accept it. I love certain methods like Hindu Style Conditioning, Animal Exercises, MovNat, Gymnastics and Grip Training for example but I don’t always go by what I’m told to do and for some it pisses them which I’m fine with. Once you get to a certain point in your training or whatever where you’ll begin to see things from a different perspective, some might see it very clearly right away for others it takes a while. You are one person, you don’t have the same strength as another, you don’t have the type of injuries or setbacks they've faced and you certainly don’t have the same capacity to try and keep up with them. The only thing you should keep up is yourself and what you want to go after.

            There’s always a challenge in training and in life no matter what. If everything were easy it be (in the words of Danny McBride in Your Highness) tedious and boring so find the right challenges for you and don’t try to compete with anybody else. Be creative and utilize what you have learned into forming your own personal quest and not following someone else’s. It can be demanding at times but it’s more rewarding when you set something apart from the general population. There are things I've seen friends do that I would never attempt to do but there are things that I can do that they can’t, that doesn't mean either one of us is better than the other, it just means that we have different views on our goals an we set them to what can be achieved just for us.

            If you have practiced a variety of methods, you’re on the right track to expanding your mind and learning how body handles itself in certain situations. If you just focus on one thing and that’s all you know and ever want to do more power to you but you’re also narrowing your mind set and you’re shrinking the plethora of knowledge that is out there. Some people are just full of themselves and think only their style is the best and everything else is crap. Be objective and expand your horizons. You’ll be surprised what you might find.