Grip strength can be used as a tool to have a rapid indication of someone’s general muscle strength. Grip strength is reflective of muscle mass and gives you an overall sense of someone’s vitality. In a clinical setting it can predict things in the future like post-operative complications and even death.

Looking at grip strength it is pretty obvious, using all five fingers that you are the strongest. Utilizing all five digits and making a fist is called the ‘power grip’. The next most powerful combination is using all the fingers without the thumb this is called the ‘hook grip’. Grip strength without the middle finger and without the ring and little fingers is the least forceful way to grasp objects.  

Training the ‘power grip’ on the Pendulum Gripper

Looking at contributions of individual digits to the total percentage of strength of the hand, the thumb, index, and middle fingers are 17%, 22%, 31% of the sum total and the ring and little fingers are 29%, respectively.  As you can see the middle finger at 31% is the most important contributor to total hand power. The next most important is the combination of the ring and little fingers.  

Train your hands using different combinations of finger grips to Get Strong.