What is Grip Strength?
The ability of your hand to hold an item. It is the force created by the muscles of the arm including the fingers, hand, forearm and upper arm.
Why is it important?
Grip is relevant to activities that are performed everyday, including but not limited to holding utensils/pen, turning a key, opening a jar, holding your cell phone, rock climbing, etc
How is grip related to the forearm?
The muscles of the forearm cross over the wrist and are directly related to gripping ability.
- Flexor digitorum profundis (FDP) : helps to bend your fingers
- Flexor pollicis longus (FPL) : helps move the thumb
- Extensor digitorum communis (EDC) : helps to straighten the fingers and wrist
Why does grip matter for rock climbing?
Shoulder strength and endurance primarily affect the ability and potential for rock climbing but finger, hand, arm and core strength are also essential. All of these muscle groups work together to increase rock climbing ability and decrease the risk of injury in other areas. The ability to hold on to rocks and maintain control come from grip strength and endurance which can vary depending on wrist movement.
It has been found that it is important to train the full upper body when performing activities such as rock climbing. There are many different exercises that can be used to increase strength, control and endurance of these muscles.
Grip strengthening can begin with squeezing and pinching of different resistances such as a digi grip, ball, putty.
Holding weights for upper body strengthening exercises also progresses grip strength and endurance. Depending on the angle or grip the weight is being held can change the goal of the exercise.
Body weight hanging exercises are useful to include to strengthen the whole upper body from grip to shoulder girdle.
When participating in activities such as rock climbing it is important to increase your wrist and grip strength to improve your ability to perform and to decrease risk of injury in the hand, wrist and elbow.
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MacKenzie, R., Monaghan, L., Masson, R. A., Werner, A. K., Caprez, T. S., Johnston, L., & Kemi, O. J. (2020). Physical and Physiological Determinants of Rock Climbing, International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 15(2), 168-179. Retrieved Aug 8, 2022, from https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/ijspp/15/2/article-p168.xml
Assmann M, Steinmetz G, Schilling AF, Saul D. Comparison of Grip Strength in Recreational Climbers and Non-Climbing Athletes—A Cross-Sectional Study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(1):129. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18010129
Ambike S, Paclet F, Zatsiorsky VM, Latash ML. Factors affecting grip force: anatomy, mechanics, and referent configurations. Exp Brain Res. 2014 Apr;232(4):1219-31. doi: 10.1007/s00221-014-3838-8. Epub 2014 Jan 31. PMID: 24477762; PMCID: PMC4013148.
