Gorilla Grip Strength (Add-On)

Every gym has that guy with a super glue grip, who's more likely to tear your gi than give up that cross collar. Wanna be like him? Then this program is for you!

Everyone knows that grip strength is important for BJJ. But what type of grip strength is needed, and how exactly do you squeeze it in to your workouts?

Contrary to popular belief, the maximal isometric (squeezing) grip strength of elite BJJ athletes is not much higher than the general population. How can this be?? BJJ athletes train grip all the time!

BJJ is much more about being able to MAINTAIN a high percentage of your max grip strength for a long period of time, also known as muscular endurance. This quote from research by Andreato et al. on grip strength in elite BJJ athletes helps highlight this fact:

"Maximum isometric strength does not seem to be an important characteristic in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, due to the fact that athletes who practice this sport, do not reveal substantial handgrip strength, although the athletes are able to maintain a high percentage of their maximum isometric handgrip strength until the end of the fight."

With that in mind, this 3 day template is designed to be performed in addition to our other training services as a "burnout" or "finisher", or can also be done on its own after training on the mats. Focus on maintaining a strong grip through increasingly higher training volume, and feel free to shoot for a longer duration or more reps than are listed for an additional challenge!