Grip is one of the most- important aspects of effective handgun operation. Unfortunately, for some, a correct grip is made difficult by pain, weakness or injury; however, in many cases, simple exercises can improve the situation.
It’s important to note that you must balance the strengthening of your hands. Think of the steel guy wires supporting radio or cell towers: The tension in the wires must be balanced for the tower to stay aloft safely. The same can be said for the muscles of the hand. Imbalanced strength in the muscles surrounding a joint is often the source of the pain in the first place.
However, like the strong jaws of an alligator, the muscles opening the fingers are designed to be much smaller and weaker than those responsible for making a fist. You will need to train the opening muscles as well as the closing ones. You should not, however, strive to create equal strength between the closing and opening muscles.
Finally, and most importantly, before attempting any sort of strength-training regimen, consult with your physician or physical therapist. This is especially important when pain is present, since some forms of arthritis can cause destruction of the inflamed joints and exercising at the wrong time or too intensely can make this even worse.
Rice Bucket
Rice is an excellent tool for strengthening the grip and has been used by martial artists, rock climbers and pitchers for many years. This one exercise alone is perfect for maintaining the balance we referenced earlier because after every grip, you must open your fingers.
1. Pour enough dry, white rice into a bucket or container deep enough to allow the entire hand to be submerged above the wrist without contacting the bottom of the container.
2. Sit comfortably, with the bucket between your feet, and bury one or both hands in the rice.
3. Set a timer for 30 seconds.
4. Grip and release the rice as hard as you can without causing or increasing pain. It is probably best to start out slowly. Build up grip pressure and hold for one to two seconds before releasing.
5. Over time, you will have increased strength and endurance. You can now try gripping more rapidly and forcefully. You can also increase the time from 30 seconds to one minute. Consider introducing other motions, such as rotating your hands clockwise and then counterclockwise, flexing and extending your wrists (think of how a toddler waives), isolated flexing/extending of individual fingers (especially the trigger finger) and isolated motions of the thumbs.
Weights
The rice bucket alone is all you need but, if you have access to some dumbbells and want a little variety in your sessions, you could add some wrist movements.
1. Sit comfortably with a weight in each hand with your forearm resting along your thighs such that your wrists and hands extend beyond your knees.
2. For the first variation, face your palms downward. Lower the weight toward the floor slowly, being careful not to knock the weight into your shins.
3. Pause for one to two seconds.
4. Lift the weight as high as possible without lifting your arm away from your thighs.
5. Repeat this motion 15 to 30 times and you should feel the muscles in the top of your forearm working or “burning.”
6. By turning your hands over so the palms face up and repeating the same motion, you can achieve balance. It should be noted that the muscles working in this position (flexing your palm upwards) are usually much stronger than those that work when the palm is facing down.
7. To increase intensity and incorporate more finger strengthening, when your palms are facing up, allow the hand to open and the weight to roll into the fingers at the bottom of the motion. Be careful with this one, as you don’t want to drop the weight on your toes!
These exercises focus on the hands overall, but a follow-up piece will provide additional drills focused on thumb strength. In the meantime, I would love to receive your feedback on these exercises. Contact me at the NRA Adaptive Shooting Programs by emailing a[email protected].
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