Best Strongman Grip Strength Equipment Reviews 2024

One of the core motions of many strongman events is the farmer's carry or farmer's walk. The athlete walks a certain distance while carrying a heavyweight in each hand. The name comes from how farmers carry bales of hay.Read more

As you can imagine, the farmer's carry works almost every major muscle group, without subjecting you to a complicated form. You can start at any weight that you're comfortable with. Grip will always be a factor, as the muscles in your forearms, wrists, and fingers will want to give out long before those in your back and calves. We'll talk more about the history and target muscles of the farmer's carry in our FAQ section.

The Titan handles are 60 inches long and weigh around 20 pounds each. Beginners can start with the handles empty, then load with Olympic plates to add progressive resistance. They have a handle welded in a frame to the bar, so these bars are not meant to be used for ordinary squats, military presses, bench presses, or other standard barbell exercises.

The handles are about 5 inches long, big enough for most hands to fit. The bars are sold in pairs. They are powder coated for durability and corrosion resistance. Each bar can support up to 500 pounds, far higher than most of our readers will ever need. Customer reviews are positive, with many noting the value at a decent price point.

This is a different method of carrying plates for a farmers walk, using straps instead of metal to let you hold onto your Olympic bumper plates as you walk.Read more

The capacity is not specified. Titan says the straps will handle virtually any weight.

The straps come in pairs. The price is lower than the Titan handles, but not substantially lower. The main advantage of straps over bars seems to be that the straps are more portable.

When the pair of straps arrive after order, you get two straps, each eight inches long, with a padded steel core handle on each. The rubber coating will be easier on hands than the bar handles. The straps also have sliding buckles, which make them height adjustable and also hold the weight plate in place. This means the weight will hang free without swinging around and bumping into your legs.

Reviewers indicate there is a learning curve. It will take a few tries to properly install and adjust the weight. You will also learn to walk so that the weight stays mostly immobile, which may be difficult but which will enforce good form so you aren't risking injury.

There are two kinds of grip in your fingers and hands, and this piece of portable equipment will train both of them while also helping you get stronger.Read more

Those two kinds of grip include:

Crush grip, the strength of closing your fingers in your palm. Think about making a tight fist.

Pinch grip, the grip you form by squeezing your thumb and any finger or fingers together.

To use the cannonballs, you attach the balls to carabiners using the kettlebell style handle molded into the round ball. The carabiners then attach to the tough synthetic straps. The straps can then connect to a pull-up bar, barbell, or ceiling hook for hanging by your hands. The best barbell exercise, with the cannonballs, would be a deadlift. You can't do squats or bench presses with these.

The cannonballs are made of solid cast iron. They are also suitable for farmers walks, though we suggest lightweight at first until you get used to a different grip and feel. Using the cannonballs will also strengthen your forearms and wrists.

Like the number three CFF Fit cannonballs, this smaller and less expensive model will build both your crush grip and pinch grip.Read more

The balls are made of steel, not cast iron, and are also powder coated to give them a polished appearance. The carabiners are smaller, and neither Amazon nor the Iron Bull site gives a weight capacity. In addition to strongman or powerlifting training, the cannonballs are great for rock climbers, Ninja Warriors, parkour buffs, and even wrestlers who need to grapple a lot.

The straps will attach to any barbell, dumbbell, pull up bar, or kettlebell. Farmer's walks are just the beginning. Actually, the number of activities you can do with these may be overwhelming at first, and you may not know what to do. If Iron Bull offers a how-to guide, wall chart, or DVD, they don't mention it on any of the seller sites.

The nylon straps on this product are simple to use, probably easier than any of the strap products we have looked at so far. You just take the bottom of the strap, where the carabiner connects, and thread it through the larger hole at the top. Then you can attach the balls to the carabiner. When you want to move to a different bar, you can quickly remove the steel balls and unthread the straps. These cannonballs are ultra-portable and you don't even have to go to a gym to have fun with them.

Moving on from our cannonball products, our next two picks are simple blocks that challenge you to hold on while you perform various resistance exercises.Read more

Pinch blocks often show up at competitions, where competitors show how much they can lift and how long they can hold on to the irregularly shaped surface. The block provides plenty of resistance by itself, but you can attach weight plates to the bottom where they hang flat. It's a completely different experience from lifting with a bar or dumbbell.

Holding on to the block means squeezing and pinching hard. Although it will take you to new heights, we imagine this tool will be hard to master at first and may even cause discouragement. The difficulty is the point. To build your grip muscles, you have to challenge them in new ways and be willing to work your way up, perhaps in small increments.

Weights attach with a carabiner connected to a long, removable steel rod. The bottom of the rod has a screw-on collar assembly to hold the weight in place. You'll do most of your reps with this block from a standing position. Once the rod is in place, the unit is not height adjustable and may present problems for taller or shorter than average users.

This product is a pair of rectangular pinch blocks, with straps and carabiners, that you can attach to a pull-up bar for a really substantial grip and upper body strength challenge.Read more

The product does not come with a pull-up bar, although it is usually pictured attached to one. You could use these at the gym, with a home trainer, or even outside if you can find a tree branch that's stout enough and just the right thickness. The blocks are two inches high, 3 inches long, and made of 3.5 mm steel.

The blocks are hollow and open on the ends, which looks like it will enhance grip. Even if you are a gym veteran, you will need all the help you can get just to do one pull up with these blocks. The grip surface is 6.6 inches long, so there's plenty of room for hands of all sizes. The finish is both textured and powder coated for protection and appearance.

The straps are stitched nylon and are quite durable. They are 16 inches long, folding in half to install so you get 8 inches between your hands and the bar. There's no way to shorten them, which means you'll need a pull-up bar high enough to accommodate your height plus the strap length. Each block and strap combo weighs 3.3 pounds, making these blocks easy to transport wherever you find yourself working out.

Rather than attacking your grip muscles with an oddly shaped surface, the Axle Fat Bar is an Olympic barbell with a much thicker diameter to force your hands to grip tighter during routines.Read more

The bar has no knurling, meaning the part you hold is perfectly smooth to add to the grip difficulty. Plates load onto the ends, which are standard Olympic size. There is a round metal stop separating the standard ends from the thicker center working surface.

On Olympic bars, the collars will often rotate to aid in grip and reduce elbow strain by transferring torque. The Fat Bar doesn't do this. It is a solid piece of metal. This means it puts greater strain on your elbows and should not be used as a regular bar for all your workouts. This tool is specifically designed to enhance your grip. We even suggest using a lighter weight than your normal working weight, to avoid elbow or joint pain.

The bar weighs 44 pounds when not loaded. It is 7 feet long and will rest on any standard squat rack or bench upright. The bar is matte black, with a powder-coated finish, and made of solid steel. An important point of difference, between this and other fat bars, is the weight. Since this one weighs as much as an Olympic bar, it has a weight capacity of up to 1000 pounds. Many competing products will weigh 25 pounds or so, cutting down on their capacity and structural integrity.

This unique and effective grip trainer lets you use Olympic weight plates, with extra resistance from attachable latex bands. You can work both arms at once, or use a piece called the grip crusher to isolate one hand at a time.Read more

The latex bands are not the bungee-like resistance bands we see in a lot of compact equipment, either. They are thick and won't snap or stretch out of shape as they provide substantial added resistance time after time. Olympic plates load easily onto the pegs.

You don't need collars or spring clips, either. The plates sit on the floor, supported by the peg and the frame bottom. The bands are color-coded and go up in thickness, from the equivalent of 15 to 120 pounds of added dynamic resistance. The entire frame is just 20 by 26 inches, two feet high, and weighs 33 pounds. It seems a bit oddly shaped to take anywhere, but it could work in a hotel room, on an extended trip. Since it's a solid metal frame, it does not fold for transport or storage.

The frame is black, with a powder-coated finish. Customer reviews are favorable. The frame isn't for everyone--there are other ways to work your wrists without all the bending over. If you have a short stand, stool, or even an aerobic step, you can lift the Vice Grip Trainer off the ground without losing any effectiveness, although it will affect your range of motion.

Our last two products are more for everyday users than for powerlifters or strongman competitors. They will still give you an effective forearm and wrist workout while building your grip beyond what you'd get from a straightforward dumbbell or other resistance training.Read more

First up is the Sure Grip Trainer, by TRS. It looks like a pair of pliers, or maybe a nutcracker. There are units like it at every department store, and usually at fitness equipment stores which stock slightly beefier versions. This one is more durable, effective, and hard to keep closed than any foam padded handle one we have seen.

The durability comes from the solid steel construction. With minimal care and protection from outside weather, the Sure Grip will last you forever. Handles are knurled, with a diameter thin enough to fit in most hands. The knurling doesn't provide much comfort but does help ensure your hands won't slip. The handles are 11 and three-quarter inches long. They are longer than the department store models, meaning a bigger fulcrum for more resistance and more of a challenge.

There are grooves on the handle which you can use to make sure you are working the sets of muscles you want. Holding a different spot, giving yourself a wider or narrower grip as needed, helps work out all the small muscle groups in your hands and wrists. Overall, the Sure Grip Trainer is 20% bigger than most competing units. This trainer costs more than average, but it is worth the price to have something that will keep challenging you without weakening over time.

There are no internal springs or similar mechanisms, either. Springs can wear or loosen over time. Instead, resistance comes from a solid piece of coiled steel at the top, where the handles meet. It is just flexible enough to let you squeeze the handles together, without ever losing shape or effectiveness.

We believe strength and fitness are for everyone, so, to round out our buying guide, here is a grip trainer designed for seniors.Read more

The main point of difference with the Iron Grip is its adjustability. This is something we have not seen on other similar products. Resistance adjusts from 55 to 154 pounds. While 55 pounds sounds like a lot, the rules of physics mean that most beginners will be able to pull and squeeze at the lowest setting. This is a great tool for recovering from or living with a variety of chronic conditions.

In addition, you build up resistance by squeezing the brightly colored red steel spring situated between the jaws. Lower end units actually work by stretching the spring, which can lead to more wear and tear and can cause the spring to lose its shape over time. And since it's adjustable, you can save money by not having to buy up to six different grippers, with one resistance setting each.

Finally, the design and high-end parts of the Iron Grip mean it is completely silent during operation. You can use it at work, on the train, in a library, or any other place where you need a quick energizing workout or to give your hands something to do.