UKC

Hi
Just wondered what the general opinion is on the gyroscopic 'powerball' trainer? I have both powerball and traditional hand grips and am trying to build general finger strength and conditioning. Has anyone tried both and had better results with one or the other?
Cheers

Phil

In reply to Philo22:

They're both good for recovering from injuries when your fingers are still too weak to climb on, but for developing finger strength they're pretty poor in my opinion.
Rock rings or a fingerboard would be more beneficial.

In reply to deacondeacon:

I did think the powerball would be good for injury rehab. Considered using it a week or two back after straining my wrist drumming (honestly!).
Agree a fingerboard would be best, unfortunately not got anywhere to mount one.

In reply to Philo22:


Could you fix some rock rings to a cantilevered pull up bar?
I'd post a link but I'm on my phone.

In reply to Philo22:

I don't think they would do anything at all for climbing specific strength. Mount a fingerboard/ rock rings or do something else!

In reply to deacondeacon:

Interesting idea. I have alot of floor space so something free standing could work. Link appreciated if you have a minute!

In reply to Philo22:

youtube.com/watch?v=S_80tYkX9Bs&

They're pretty cheap in Argos style shops and don't damage the doorframe at all. Surprisingly.

In reply to Philo22:

There are dozens of threads and articles about this. My recollection from reading them is that gyroscopic balls are useless for finger strength, and hand grips not much better.

In training of any sort, one of the fundamental concepts is specificity - training a specific movement will improve performance for that movement. Neither gyroscopic balls nor hand grips really mimic any of the typical stresses your muscles suffer when climbing, so they aren't going to be much help.