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In 6 Dragons Kung Fu’s trapping method (read Trapping [MINI-GUIDE]), we generally try to avoid as much as possible to grab the opponent with our fingers but when we have to (or when we have a good opportunity): we want to be sure that our grip is not only solid but also able to directly inflict pain / damage.

For example while:

Executing Chin Na techniques (read Chin Na)
Executing a throw (read The 3 phases of a throw)
…

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

Here are some exercises that, with the time, will make our fingers more and more powerful.

Exercise 1

Let’s take 1 walnut
Let’s close our hands as fists with the idea of breaking it
Let’s execute rapid sequences of contract-release compressions
Executing this move let’s include a complete muscle chain (a consequential contraction the whole arm and the rest of the body, read The Muscle Chain (for martial arts) [MINI-GUIDE])
Let’s move the walnut freely in our hand (in order to learn to immediately identify the breakpoint, the type of firmer grip and the better pose to release the power)
Let’s always include the warrior’s breathing (read Breathe Yoga: the warrior’s breathing)

Exercise 2

Let’s grab a walnut with the fingertips of one hand
Let’s compress it, with 1-2 finger at a time against the thumb
The thumb must be bent and the other fingers must not interfere with the effort
Let’s pay attention to the way we impress our energy (the grip must be strong / stable) and the direction in which we put the force

Exercise 3

To develop the explosive power of fingers, let’s take 2 walnuts and let’s throw them in the air (a few centimeters, this is not a full-body spatial intelligence practice)
Let’s grab them with our hands and let’s close them aggressively (with the idea of breaking them)
Again, let’s try to involve the warrior’s breathing, the whole arm, the rest of the body in the compression

Important execution details

Some tips (especially important for the beginners of this kind of conditionings):

When our hands hurt us it is absolutely necessary to stop the exercise (a consistent growth requires patience)
The exercises that stress the muscles of the hands should never be executed for consecutive days (every 3-4 days is ideal)
Let’s avoid too long times of muscle tension (10 minutes for exercise are fine; at the beginning, we can even mix the practices for a total time of 10 minutes)
Let’s listen to the messages of our body, we have to give our hands time to recover (we must always be efficient enough to fight)
Let’s always take 1 walnut per hand, 2 in a single hand are very easy to break
…

A note by Master Kongling – Let’s be careful when we become able to broke the walnut, even if we are far from the real skill, we start to risk to involuntarily cause damages to the weak people (eg. while shaking the hands it is better to do not compress it, we have nothing to demonstrate).

In-depth video courses

Hand grip strength conditioning – A visual and detailed guide to improve the grasping capability of our hands
Chin Na: Principles and Learning – The starting point for a serious Chin Na learning
MUSCLE CHAIN for MARTIAL ARTS: How To – A step by step path to the development of effective muscle chains

In-depth articles

Conditioning check for the impact – What does it mean to be conditioned for impact
Hands conditioning: first approach with a bag of rice – An impact conditioning practice for the hands

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

How do you feel your fingers after these exercises?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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