hands. 3:49 PM

hands.

sunday, rest day. most of my sundays are spent catching up with reading books and articles. i understand rest is integral physically and mentally, allowing me to recover after an active and demanding week from both work and lifting. i understand rest allows my body to repair and strengthen itself. i understand it helps be recharge my batteries, giving me a good work/life balance. i understand it can help prevent over-training.
while sunday is a rest day, i become antsy and restless.
grip training is something i do often, as it is so easy to incorporate into my training. immediate benefits from various lifts; whether it's gripping a sandbag, swinging & lifting kettlebells (purposeful thick handles), thick bar or towel pull-ups. i'm very conscious of the importance of strong hands. seriously, how often do we use our hands?

MOVEMENT
barbell wrist curls
barbell wrist extensions
hand-to-hand stone pinches

WORK
barbell 2 x 10 reps
stone pinches 2 x 15 reps

barbell work for lower arm strength, build the forearms a little.
stone pinching to work fingers, especially thumb strength.

soundtrack: elvis costello "alison"

add. 7:37 PM

add.

medium day today, moderate presses, pulls & swings.
added pull-ups to this movement. strict, head above the bar, with no swing or kip. more challenging by wrapping a towel around the bar.
minimal rest between sets.

MOVEMENT
1a) kettlebell clean & presses @ 53# - 5 ladders x 5 rungs
1b) mixed grip thick bar pull-ups - 5 ladders x 3 rungs

2) kettlebell one-handed swings @ 35# - descending ladder
50l/50r
40l/40r
30l/30r
20l/20r
10l/10r

300 swinging reps altogether. one of my goals is to minimize hand switches.
the thick bar pull-ups & one-handed swings really taxed my grip endurance.

soundtrack: matt and kim "good ol' fashioned nightmare"