Negatives

This is a classic post from 2011 on The Gripper Superstore page…

Q: Wade – I was reading your blog and noticed that you mention TNS and deep set negatives. How are these performed? Whenever I’ve performed negatives I cheated the gripper closed on my leg.

A: I only do negatives with grippers that I can assist closed with the off hand – rather than closing on my leg. I always used to use my leg but found two things: 1) I had a lot of pain in my knuckles – like small sprains – when I did this because of the pressure on the knuckles against the leg; 2) if the gripper is too strong to be closed with my off hand it is too strong for me to do a good negative.

TNS (table-top no-set) negatives are done by picking the gripper up and not touching at all with the off hand. You then bring the gripper as far as you can with no touch, then force it closed with the off hand. The gripper is in the same position as required for a no-set or credit card set close. This exercise builds strength through the full range of motion. It will require a lighter gripper or lower setting on the adjustable gripper because the handles are in a weaker (leverage) position in the hand. Hope this helps!

Wade Gillingham, founder of Gillingham High Performance and the GHP Brand, is world-renowned for his incredible grip. Wade answers hundreds of questions a year on the subject of grip strength. Ocasionally we will share some of his answers in this column. If you have a question for Wade please send us an email at wade@gillinghamhp.com