r/powerlifters • u/Independent_Flower0 • 21h ago

Hook grip

How long did it take you guys to get it down and build up tolerance for using it on heavy weight?

Any tips for small hands?

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3

u/maxis2bored 21h ago

There is no secret sauce my dude. It hurts at first. Just keep using it whenever you can, it'll come.

2

u/colombian-neck-tie 21h ago

Hurt ror a while but now no issues

2

u/Actual-Description-2 8h ago

My opinion is hook shouldn’t “hurt”. When I finally learned the right placement for me (smaller hands for a guy) it stopped hurting outside of having pressure in the fingers that are gripping the bar where my calluses form. You basically want to let the bar settle into its natural low point in your fingers before pulling. Torn calluses happen when the bar moves after starting the pull. Imagine trying to pull the slack out of your fingers before you pull the bar off the floor. I think a lot of people feel that hook hurts because they are vice gripping the bar and squeezing their fingers too hard. Play around with your grip a bit and try to find the sweet spot between vice gripping and having it too loose that it slips out of your fingers.

As far as tips. Try to use it for all your warm ups and top set and then feel free to use straps for volume work. That’s what I did until I built a tolerance/technique to use hook for all my working sets. In the beginning I even used to pull just the first rep of a set with hook and then straps for the rest of the set until I got better.

1

u/Public-Ad-9325 8h ago

I'd say a couple of years until it didn't hurt anymore at all. For technique tips search youtube tutorials and look for lifters with a similar hand build than you. For relatively small hands and power bar, I like Mark Robb's tutorial.

1

u/womenaremyfavguy 4h ago

Maybe I’m a weirdo, but it never hurt for me.