Grip Training for Track and Field Throwers
Tuesday, August 16th, 2011This is a guest post by Matt Ellis at Primal Athlete Training Center. To follow up with Matt on this article, or to bounce other ideas off him, send Matt a note at Matt@PrimalATC.com
The Fingers are the Last Part of the Body that Touches the Shot – They HAVE TO BE STRONG!
No matter what event you throw, the last thing that touches the implement is your hands and your fingers.
In the Shot Put, Discus, Javelin, and Hammer you need to have the implement in your hand as you begin your throw and release. As a track coach or athlete, you use proper form and technique that allows your entire body to work together as one cohesive unit. There can be no weak points.
Unfortunately, with many throwers, the hands and fingers become those weak points.
How many times have you seen a shot putter move through the circle with so much power only to watch the shot bend back their fingers and leave them clenching on to their wrist in pain? After almost 18 years involved in the sport of track and field, I have seen it far too many times.
As a thrower, you need to focus on getting the entire body stronger and more explosive. Every thrower out there understands the clean and press, bench, squat, and deadlift. Every thrower uses dumbbells and plyometric movements.
How many actually train their grip?
Every athlete who trains with me at Primal Athlete Training Center works their grip after every session. This doesn’t mean they stay after for an extra half-hour banging out rep after rep of multiple movements. Every day they select one grip exercise and perform that exercise for three sets. Usually this only adds 5 minutes to the end of their training.
The video below outlines some of the most common grip exercises throwers should do as part of their training. These exercises use very basic equipment that can be found in any high school or college weight room, any “big box” fitness chain, or in any homemade garage gym.
As you can see in the video, no fancy or special equipment is needed.
Keep in mind, any of the grip exercises in the video can be altered to be tougher. You can make dozens of grip exercises from the 6 that I show in the video.
Here is a list to help get you started:
- Two-Hand Plate Pinch
- One-Hand Plate Pinch
- One-Hand Behind the Back Plate Pinch
- Plate Pinch Farmers Walk
- Hex Dumbbell Holds
- Hex Dumbbell Hold Farmers Walk
- Hex Dumbbell Hold Clean
- Hex Dumbbell Hold Clean and Press
- Hex Dumbbell Hand to Hand Pass
- Two Hand Plate Crusher
- One Hand Plate Crusher
- Plate Crusher Static Hold
- Heavy Kettlebell (or Dumbbell) Holds
- Heavy Kettlebell (or Dumbbell) Farmers Walk
- One Hand Bottoms Up Press
- Two Hand Bottoms Up Press
- One Hand Bottoms Up Clean
- Two Hand Bottoms Up Clean
- One Hand Bottoms Up Clean and Press
- Two Hand Bottoms Up Clean and Press
So there you have it. Great grip training for throwers that can be done in just 5 minutes a day at the end of a typical training session. No special equipment for you to buy. All you need is what you have lying around at home, at the gym, or in your high school or college weight room.
The last thing that touches the throwing implement is your hand and fingers.
Eliminate the chance of injury and make your hands and fingers strong as steel. In a sport where the difference between first and second place can be an inch, you need every advantage you can get.
About the Author…
Matthew Ellis, Owner, Primal Athlete Training Center, www.PrimalATC.com
Originally from Coventry, RI, Matt learned the meaning of hard work at an early age growing up on a small ranch owned by his father and mother. Hauling 50 and 100 pound bags of grain, cutting and stacking firewood, loading hay bales, and walking with full 10 gallon buckets of water quickly became part of his daily chores.
After graduating from college in 2002, Matt began working at M-F Athletic Company and Perform Better. He has spoken to thousands of coaches and athletic directors at many of the largest state and regional coaching clinics around the U.S. on topics such as functional training, kettlebell training for athletes, proper active warm-up, mobility drills, and proper technique in the various throwing events. Articles written by Matt have appeared in coaching magazines, books, and websites around the world. He is a certified Underground Strength Coach through Zach Even-Esh. He is a certified kettlebell instructor. Matt is constantly investing in his coaching and training education to bring the latest techniques to the athletes he trains.
Matt decided to leave his position at M-F in 2009 to pursue his love of training athletes. He opened Primal Athlete Training Center in 2010. Matt has an aggressive, blue-collar style to his training that improves strength, endurance, and explosive power in all athletic movements.
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