Pinch work = I like

One of the things I'm looking forward to train when I get the bulk of my kit out of storage in Gloucester into the new 'gaff' (slang for place where you live) in Wales is the Euro pinch. I like it and not only (but mostly) because I was good at it.

My all time best on the Euro set up (see image below) is a 117.5-kilo effort (matched minutes later by WSM competitior and current Britain's Strongest Man Laurence Shahlaei). As far as I know this is still No 2 on the worlds records list. 

It takes around 100-kilos to get you into the top 10 or so and even with a 100+ competitors taking part in the last World's Strongest Hands event I think only 3 or 4 did over 100kg.

Humidity and surface texture play a huge part in how good you'll grip will be on any given day but that's true for ALL the athletes competing and lifting.

The part in bold below includes text from a half-finished bit I did for another site:

I love to pinch!! Not the kind involving girls asses... ok that too but not in that way. Nah, when I say pinch I mean one hand pinch and two hand pinching (esp) of the kind I might just get a world record in one day.


Image of two differing widths box pinches and a thin plate pinch.


In simple terms it's literally a folding of the hand, fingers and thumbs flat, and with nothing other than a flat pressure through the same. There are wide versions including Blob pinches

Grip equipment varies but includes:

• 2 hand pinch on the Euro set (as per David and Mikeal's creation)

• Weight plate pinching - one and two hand (smooth sides outwards)

• Thin plate pinching

• 2 x 45lbs / 2 x 20-kilo plate pinch

• Super thin pinch - needles (usually a knitting needle thickness)

• 4, 5 and 6 ‘dimes’ (10lb or 5-kilo plates) - image 3 plates

• 'Penny Pinch' (specialized equipment based on an old Victorian Penny welded to a small plate with a clip fastened to a loading pin. Great fun at expos. Indeed I’ve been asked if I brought mine to the last 2 events I’ve done as customers wanted another go.