Grip strength

In applications of grip strength, the wrist must be in a neutral position to avoid developing cumulative trauma disorders.

In athletics, grip strength is critical for rock climbers and is an important factor in strongman competitions and weight lifting.

Grip strength training is also a major feature in martial arts and can be useful in various professions where people must work with their hands.

The pinch grip is used when grabbing something like a weight plate or lifting a sheet of plywood by the top edge.

This type of strength is epitomized by the Farmer's walk competitive event, where the bucket is filled with sand or water, and carried over a long distance.

Grip strength is not optimal if one's arm is extended backwards beyond the resting position at the body's sides.

The purpose of this testing is diverse, including to diagnose diseases, to evaluate and compare treatments, to document progression of muscle strength, and to provide feedback during the rehabilitation process as a measure indicating the level of hand function.

[3] The World Health Organization has identified Grip Strength as an indicator of vitality for aging populations.

[7] Grip strength is also used to measure the degree of rehabilitation from injuries; all other things being equal, it will vary with general condition.

[11] Strengthening the grip strength helps players recover from sport injuries such as tennis elbow.

[12] Six studies correlating grip strength with the six minute walk test determined "slow" to vary between 23.2kg [51.1lb] to 39.0kg [86.0lb] for men, and 15.9kg [35.1lb] to 22.0kg [48.5lb] for women.

Sports in which grip strength are included within the secondary focus include the following: movement-based climbing, calisthenics, gymnastics, pole dancing, horse racing, powerlifting, strongman or arm wrestling; ball-based baseball, gridiron football, rugby, canoe polo, badminton or tennis; and combat sports such as wrestling, judo, brazilian jiu-jitsu, boxing or fencing.

From their beginnings as odd performances at fairs and circuses, grip feats have recently gained acceptance as a sport in their own right, with competitions being held with increasing regularity.

Events include one-arm deadlift (rolling thunder), nail bending, the closing of torsion spring hand grippers, v-bar (vertical bar) lifting, and standardized pinch apparatuses.

The reasons are primarily based on the interplay of the tendons and muscles and the lack of "down time" or rest that most people's hands get.