Post: #1

A hangboard is a pullup like device often used by rock climbers. You can certainly do pullups from it but that is not the main goal. Most people do static holds of 5-15 seconds using varied grips. Its tough. Think wind sprints for your fingers.

I've always wanted to have an incredibly strong grip. Captains of Crush grippers are good, Farmer's Walks are even better. But nothing has given me grip strength gains like what I've gotten from a hangboard.

There are many hangboard variations out there and I would imagine they all work fine. Its important to choose a hangboard that has many varied grip positions so it will be able to constantly challenge you, both now and in the future.

Hangboards are usually pretty cheap. (between $40-$100) They can be somewhat tough to hang but each situation is different so I'll leave that up to you. Trust me though, the results are worth the minor effort.

Its also a good idea to get some chalk as well. Chalk makes a significant difference and will enable to you to have more effective hangboard workouts.

*Side Note* For maximum results, combine hangboards with rock climbing. Grown men will cry when you shake their hand. Most climbing gyms have hangboards as well.

You may notice your other lifts go up as the grip is integral to overall strength. I *strongly* recommend you give hangboards a try.

Post: #2

Smashing post; my neighbor has one of these, and the last time I remember shaking his hand, I may have been lifted a few inches off the ground in the process by his grip. Of course, my neighbor was in his early 30's, and I was maybe 16 at the time, but nonetheless the hangboard provides an excellent workout for grip strength and arm endurance. This Youtube channel has a bunch of 90-minute workouts for the hangboard, specifically this one model called the Beastmaker 2000, which seems to be a hangboard for the pros. Hopefully this thread gets more attention in the next few days, as it deals with an element of fitness that guys might not get to work with in traditional gyms.

Post: #3

Those hangboards really are pretty awesome. That gets you the kind of grip strength you won't get from a traditional gym routine.

Will also say that chalk makes worlds of difference, once your hands get sweaty it can be nearly impossible to get a grip on certain holds.

For those who are interested in things like Ninja warrior and Sasuke, climbers have been smashing it when other fitness freaks have failed.

http://www.climbing.com/news/climber-isa...a-warrior/

Post: #4

What's your take on fatgripz being put onto bars to thicken them? Do you think they improve grip strength etc?

Post: #5

(05-22-2016 04:20 PM)Moma Wrote:  What's your take on fatgripz being put onto bars to thicken them? Do you think they improve grip strength etc?

Fat grips do improve grip strength but I'm not a huge fan because I think they compromise training too much. If you want to use them, I would only do so on accessory movements and never on your main lifts. I prefer to focus on my grip strength separately from my actual training.

Fat grips have some utility in specific circumstances though. For example, my gym dumbbells only go up to 125 pounds and I have no way to do heavier farmers walks. I'm able to add on fat grips to make it tougher. At the end of the day, they're just another tool in your toolbox.

Post: #6

Fat gripz have killed my elbows. I never had so much joint pain in my elbows & wrists until I put fat gripz on my bar for deads, rows, mil presses & curls. I had to take two weeks off because the pain was so unbearable.

I googled around and found no one else who had the same experience though, but I can't use them anymore due to the sharp, shooting pain they gave my wrists & elbows.

Post: #7

(05-22-2016 05:28 PM)monster Wrote:  Fat gripz have killed my elbows. I never had so much joint pain in my elbows & wrists until I put fat gripz on my bar for deads, rows, mil presses & curls. I had to take two weeks off because the pain was so unbearable.

I googled around and found no one else who had the same experience though, but I can't use them anymore due to the sharp, shooting pain they gave my wrists & elbows.

That's interesting. I found the grips took any pressure off of my joints. Do you use the red or the blue? I use the red for everything but pullups as I can only muster about 2 with the red. I have recommended them to others and they've had nothing but rave reviews about them.

Post: #8

Great post. Any recommended brands?

Also are there any ones that can hang from your chinup bar?

A few other tools and tips for training fingers and grip:
- Finger push-ups - start with knees, then normal, then weighted vest then handstand
- Towels are a cheap alternative to FatGripz
- Lots of great resources for training can be found when you look up "how to do a one-arm chinup"

Post: #9

(05-22-2016 05:36 PM)Valentine Wrote:  Great post. Any recommended brands?

Also are there any ones that can hang from your chinup bar?

Almost all brands should be fine. Obviously use your judgment but I've used most of the big brands at my rock climbing gym and have had no issues whatsoever. Hangboards tend to be very well built unlike some of the pullup bars I've had over the years.

There are lots of things you can hang from a pullup bar depending on height and desired exercises. Standard rings are always a good addition.

There is also something called rock rings that you can use.



Rock rings can actually be tougher than a hangboard because they move and aren't bolted to a wall.

You can adjust how far they hang from the bar and do pushups as well. Don't be surprised when they're much harder than you would expect.

Rock rings are relatively cheap and I would also recommend them in addition to a hangboard.

There are all sorts of fun things you can add to a pullup bar/hang from. Here's what I hung from today



Lastly, if you have a backyard, I would recommend you hang some ropes from a tree. Some climbing gyms have ropes but if you have a backyard, you should put one up. Rope climbing is an *excellent* upper body exercise.

Post: #10

Awesome, just what I'm looking for. If I like the rock rings then I'll install a full hangboard after.

What are those green cones called?

Haven't done much specific grip training in a while, now looking at my old notes I definitely want to improve my pinch grip also. Would be cool as hell doing rafter pullups:

Post: #11

(05-22-2016 05:31 PM)Moma Wrote:  

(05-22-2016 05:28 PM)monster Wrote:  Fat gripz have killed my elbows. I never had so much joint pain in my elbows & wrists until I put fat gripz on my bar for deads, rows, mil presses & curls. I had to take two weeks off because the pain was so unbearable.

I googled around and found no one else who had the same experience though, but I can't use them anymore due to the sharp, shooting pain they gave my wrists & elbows.

That's interesting. I found the grips took any pressure off of my joints. Do you use the red or the blue? I use the red for everything but pullups as I can only muster about 2 with the red. I have recommended them to others and they've had nothing but rave reviews about them.

The blue ones. Makes a 2-2.25in bar.

Post: #12

Misc out here beating me to it.

My sister got big into rock climbing a couple of years ago and I've been using her hangboard to get those forearm gainz. This is what she uses:



The chalk I use with this is generally Unicorn Dust or So iLL's Chalk Sak, the latter being less messy and more ideal for guys working out in home gyms who want to keep the place looking nice.

Pro tip for guys just starting out: Buy hangboards that feature deep, wide slots that you can fit your fingers deep inside (like Misc shows), or (preferably for quick forearm strength) buy the ones that are rounded and force you to squeeze your whole hand to maintain the grip. From there, you can do hanging knee raises, etc. That dynamic movement while hanging not only engages your forearms more, it forces your core to work extra hard to keep yourself from swinging, because if you swing too much, your grip will fail.

Also, it'd be a good idea to familiarize yourself with the various grips and holds rock climbers use, and try to train these in order to ratchet up the intensity of your hangboard work. I'll post some links of the different kinds of grips below. If you're start trying some of the crazier grips and you can't hang for even a second, instead of trying to hang for longer on easier grips (like the rounded slope ones), just assume the grip position and lean forward to gradually increase the weight your grip is supporting. Then, you can move on to picking one foot off the ground, squatting to put more pressure on the grip, etc. until you finally get it.

General overview of the kinds of holds rock climbers are faced with (and what you can use on your hangboard, depending on what kind you buy).

More in-depth look at the different kinds of holds, and which ones are more challenging.

Also, when working grip strength via a hangboard, I incorporate it into my work out by putting the static holds in an interval structure that goes at the end of my workout, right before my cool down. I've found that's the best way to throw it into a pre-existing program.

Post: #13

(05-22-2016 05:28 PM)monster Wrote:  Fat gripz have killed my elbows. I never had so much joint pain in my elbows & wrists until I put fat gripz on my bar for deads, rows, mil presses & curls. I had to take two weeks off because the pain was so unbearable.

I googled around and found no one else who had the same experience though, but I can't use them anymore due to the sharp, shooting pain they gave my wrists & elbows.

Use them too much and that'll happen. Welcome to some sort of problem, in your case it manifested as wrist tendinitis. It's not that you can't use them you just used them wrong. Unless your goal was building popeye forearms during your back work lol...Fat gripz are a good tool, use them for bi work...if you must have a change up in your routine and you decide you wanna give a pull exercise a go with them on knock yourself out but keep their use outside of bis to a min and don't make their use a consistent thing while pulling. Also don't bother using them for push exercises, they don't add anything unless you are somebody who has serious shoulder problems. In that instance the fatter bar can make it a more comfortable push. It is way overkill to be doing multiple heavy compound movements with them as you found out. Add in a good stretching routine for your wrist and forearms, and use them for bis and you'll be able to use them successfully again.

Post: #14

You probably could make one of these for pretty cheap. Glue a couple boards together to make it thick and drill a bunch of different sized holes in it. Drill it to some rafters in the basement or garage.

Post: #15

If you're going to make your own thing might as well make mini campus board. These are pull ups on Crack. Once you can manage going up one hand at a time you bounce up them with both hands until you're able to skip a rung or two on your way up. To make them harder you also reduce the size of the rung.

Post: #16

I built myself one (or at least something like it) out of two 1 x 4s glued together.

I havnt installed it yet (made it to fit my door frame). I have been lazy. I need to get off of my ass.

Post: #17

But will it make you death grip when you jack off?

Post: #18

After I resign the lease for my place Im going to build a bouldering wall in the living room and it will for sure have a hang board front and center.

Post: #19

(05-23-2016 10:54 PM)cascadecombo Wrote:  If you're going to make your own thing might as well make mini campus board. These are pull ups on Crack. Once you can manage going up one hand at a time you bounce up them with both hands until you're able to skip a rung or two on your way up. To make them harder you also reduce the size of the rung.

I remember first trying to use them at CragX gym in Victoria BC. Couldn't even hold for 1 second. Then I see guys like this and it makes me want to scream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRyjzL1mrSc