It’s hard to argue with the Grip Strength enhancing capabilities of Block Weight training.

Block Weights make you lift with an Open Hand, so your fingers and thumbs work much harder than when training on regular-shaped barbells and dumbbells, plus they make your wrists and forearms work harder as well.

Most people train Block Weights with just one hand at a time, but if they are so beneficial, why not train with one in each hand (if you have them).

Last week, I posted some video on Blob Block Weight Holds for Time, even showing a cool weight-added variation with chains – SICK!!!

Today, I’ve got a couple more videos showing you how you can take your Blob and Block Weight Training to the next level.

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Double Blob Farmer’s Walk

If you have a nice lawn or a big gym to train in, try picking up your Block Weights and then carrying them as far as you can go, Farmer’s Walk Style!

It has been a very long time since I tried this out.

In March of 2008, I completed this run across the road from the Arnold Classic at Goodale Park.

Double Blob Farmer’s Walk – 2008

Double Blob Farmer’s Walk – 2014 – Part 1

After seeing Juha Harju having some fun with this test of strength recently, I decided that I had to give it a try as well. Below, I for my best distance in a very wet and hilly back yard.

Double Blob Farmer’s Walk – 2014 – Part 2

As good as 83 feet is in this lift, I knew I had more in me. So, a few days later, we carried the Blobs back outside, only this time it was to the front yard, where it was a bit drier and a little flatter. I was very happy with the results, making it over 100-feet 3 separate times.

The carry of 121-feet, as far as I know, is a new “World Record,” insomuch that it can be considered one, since it was done during training and outside of a contest format. Naturally, the tape is not flat either, making the distance somewhat subject, but sometime soon, maybe I will take the Blobs to a track or some other spot where it is flatter and we can get a more accurate measurement of the true distance.

Either way, the main thing is developing more strength. I have no doubt the training that I have been doing has been helping me develop more Grip Strength, specifically better Pinching Strength, which I will need on May 3rd at the Bragging Rights Grip Contest.

For more info on on the May 3rd Contest, go here => Bragging Rights Contest.

All the best in your training,

Jedd

Blobs and Block Weight Training are great for building hand strength.

Because you grip them with an open hand, they make your hands work harder than some other forms of training.

What’s even more awesome is having one in each hand!

Why have one hand just hanging out waiting for its chance to work, when you can have one Blob or Block Weight in each hand.

So, if you are looking for ways to bring up your hand strength, I definitely recommend Block Weight work, and the best resource available on it is Lift the Blob:

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That ebook will tell you not only how you can work up to one of the classic feats of grip strength, but also dozens of drills that will take your grip strength to the next level, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR MAIN TRAINING GOALS ARE!

Related to Double Blob Training, on May 3rd, Juha Harju and I are going head-to-head on the Double Blob Hold for Time.

Here is some of the recent training I have done with Double Blob Holds:

Double Blob Hold for Time Training

That was cool and all, but I wanted to take it to the next level, so the next thing I did was loop a chain over top of the Blob. This made the Blobs heavier, the higher I pulled them, plus I couldn’t get the same bite on them with my hands, since the chain made my hand sit higher on them this way.

Double Blob Holds Plus Chains

The Blob Lift Plus Chains shows up at the 4-minute mark. The first portion of the video. I ask about whether people would be interested in challenges held here at the site.

My buddy Juha tried a similar challenge, adding chains to the Blobs, but he did it slightly differently, with magnets. I thought that was a great idea, so I gave it a try myself.

This was super challenging, and I loved it. That is what Training is all about: CHALLENGING YOURSELF!

Misses Are Just Warm-ups: Double Blob Lift Plus Chains

Never forget that Misses Are Just Warm-ups. Sometimes you don’t get a lift on the first try – you need to try it multiple times. Go for it brother.

BOOM! I love getting a PR or other hard lift completed and then grunting and growling. I love the Intensity and feeling like an all-out Animal or Machine.

I have been doing other training with Double Blobs lately. I will post it up soon.

All the best in your training.

Jedd

Hello DIESELS!

Blob Lifting Update for you guys.

I want to show you a huge PR that I recently accomplished and at the same time give you some more information I have found out about the Blob itself.

First the Feat – Blob Snatch

The video below is a Snatch of the Blob. This particular one is one of the Next Generation Blob variety.

For an explanation on the different types of Blobs, go here = > Summer Strong and the Blue Blob.

I actually accomplished the Snatch shown above the same exact day I did the Farmers Walk with the Blob and Inch Dumbbell. I just never got the chance to post the video.

The day I did this, I knew I would be rolling into Nationals in pretty good shape with the chance to break the record in the Two Hand Pinch again. I just didn’t anticipate the back injury, which as you can see by how graceful I am in the clip above, was feeling fine that day.

I’ve come close to doing this feat in the past but never got it strong enough to go out on a limb and really claim the feat. I am glad to have finally gotten this done though.

New Blob Information

Fellow Blob Lifter, John Eaton took a micrometer, a device used to measure the diameter and thickness of things, to his Blobs’ handles, (he owns both next Generation and Fatman Blobs) and posted some of the findings.

If you have a 50-lb Blob and if you are not sure whether it is one of the original-style Fatman Blobs or a later model, maybe these measurements can help you out.

John says on both of his Fatman Blobs the handles are 1 & 1/16″ in diameter.

John also says on his Next Generation Blobs that the handles are 1 & 1/8″ in diameter.

This goes right along with what Richard Sorin has said about the Blobs and their handles.

So, if you come across a 50-lb Blob in a possible transaction, if you can’t make a good judgment of whether it is a Fatman or a Next Gen, measuring the handles might be the factor you want to consider in making the decision.

All the best in your training.

Jedd

P.S. If you want develop Pinch Strength to lift Blobs, you might want to check out some of the training methods I employed training for the Two Hand Pinch record in Late Fall / Winter of 2009. I do more than just Two Hand Pinch training to build thumb strength in my program. Click the banner below…

Hello DIESELS!

This week there will not be a Grip Strength Challenge.

I am working on tying up loose ends for Grip Nationals which is this weekend.

Plus I will be away from Internet Service most of the weekend. We will pick back up with the Grip Strength Challenge next week!

However, that does not mean I do not have something cool for you to try.

I dug through the archives of Diesel Classic Footage and grabbed something from summer of 2003.

How I Got My First Blob

Shortly before making this video, I had bought my first Blob from Rick Walker. We had met at the Olive Garden in Horseheads, NY, and Rick, Rick’s Mom, Smitty, and I had a nice afternoon lunch, and then the Blob transaction was made. Once out to the parking lot, I fumbled around with the Blob for a bit until i finally picked it up after 3 or 4 attempts and walked several steps down the parking lot with it.

That was a great day!

A few workouts later, I brought the Blob up to the Gym in Horseheads and tried some crazy combination lifts with the Blob, one of which you will see below, along with a keg.

A few more points about the video (that I can remember)

• The Keg weighs roughly 150. We filled it with water out of a hose, but I can’t remember how we got the water in
• This was like the 4th damn try. The Blob kept slipping out of my hand.
• I was weighing like 226. I had just cut down from like 240 in order to compete in my first strongman contest in the lighter weight class so i didn’t get too badly schooled. Abs were RIPPED back then.
• Hair was highlighted. Do I lose cool points for this?
• That Song is “Tyler’s Song” by Coal Chamber. That’s one of my Top 10 Favorites. In the beginning of the Diesel Video Explosion, YouTube was not around, so we streamed all the videos off the site. Also at that time, I didn’t know how to capture the audio along with the video, so it was either bad Coal Chamber music or dead air over top of awesome strength feats.

I’ve got hundreds of more videos in the Diesel Archives. If you have been watching the site for a while and remember a Diesel Classic you’d like to see again, leave a comment below and I will try to find it and upload it for all to enjoy!

All the best in your training.

Jedd

Hello DIESELS!

If you’ve been checking my site out for a while, you have seen me writing about the Blob quite a bit.

In case you are not familiar with the Blob, here is a run-down…

Richard Sorin Lifting The Blob

The Blob is half of a 100-lb York Dumbbell that has the sloping sides. The first Original Blob belongs to Richard Sorin, and it is just the first one that had broken off, as far as I know. That is The Blob.

A Fatman, Original-Style Blob

Original Style Blobs are half-100’s that were produced during the same era and have the same dimensions and shape as that first one that Richard named. These are also called Fatman Blobs.

New/Next Generation or Second Generation Blobs

The York company changed the shape of their dumbbells slightly making the non-handle side slightly straighter. This new type of Blob is often called a Next Generation Blob, Second Generation Blob or something like that. They are easier to lift with this straighter edge.

A Legacy Blob

York stopped making these Blobs in 2004 or 2005, and did not produce dumbbells with slopes again until about 2007, which are called Legacy Blobs. This time one side was even straighter still and lifting them with the thumb on the super-straight side makes them much easier than the Next Generation Blobs.

The Blob50

There is also a piece out there called a Blob50 which a fellow named Gordon Visecky got produced from a cast of a Blob. They are marked on the top with Blob50 instead of the York or 100 that is found on actual York-produced 100-lb dumbbells. The Blob50’s vary in difficulty because some are smoother than others, but they are still quite challenging.

Blob Clone

Finally, a fellow named Chris Bowman replicated an actual Original Style Fatman York Blob in 2009 and came out with the Clone or Blob Clone. I own one of these and mine is a pretty accurate shape-replica of the Fatman style Blobs, but it is also quite a bit heavier.

I believe I am the only one to have lifted the Clone I own. I know Dave Thornton tried after GGC 2009, but I don’t think he got it. Some of the Clones came out lop-sided, such as the one that Dave Thornton owns. As far as I know only he, Chad Woodall and myself have lifted it, but we all placed our thumb on the very rough portion of it, which made it much easier. I want to give that one a try again so bad!

So, there you have the complete run-down of all the Blobs that I know of. Originals Blobs/Fatman Blobs, Next Generation Blobs, Legacy Blobs, Blob50’s and Blob Clones.

Here are some of my past videos lifting some of these Blob variations…

39 Reps with a Next Generation Blob

Double Blob Farmer’s Walk – 2 Next Generation Blobs

Giant Kettlebell and Next Generation Blob by the Face (Almost)

Next Gen Blob Plus 20-lbs

Double Fatman Lift

I’ve got TONS more Blob Lifting video. If you want to see them, check out my Blob Lifting Video Playlist = > Blob Lifting Videos

Common Blob Questions

Which one should you try to get?

Any of them. They are all awesome for training the hands, although many will not be able to lift them from the beginning. If you do any Blob or Block Weight training, ease into it, as you can mess your thumb up pretty bad in Block Weight lifting positions.

Where do you go to get one and how much do they cost?

First off, you need to find someone willing to part with one of these beauties. They are pretty dear.

You will pay out your ass for a Fatman, unless you find somebody who has no idea what they have. The price will be pretty high still with the Next Generation Blobs, too.

Even Blob50’s and Clones are pretty expensive, in the $100+ range easy, so they are pretty high-priced items.

If you want one, I suggest going to jails, old gyms, yard sales and flea markets, looking on Craig’s List and eBay, and checking out forums. None of these items are cheap unless you find someone who is quite frankly clueless about what they have.

I hope this has been helpful. Believe me, my hands are strongest when I am doing lots of Blob lifting, but don’t think you only need some form of a Blob to get the benefit of the training – any Block Weight style implement will do for awesome gains!

Got More Blob Questions? Post ’em below DIESELS!

All the best in your training.

Jedd