The makiage kigu is a wrist roller. I know my high school weight room had one of these, so it's not exactly an original Okinawan invention, but it's super easy to make.
You basically need a stick, an old broom handle or a dowel. I used part of an old wooden closet rod. You cut it so it's the same length as your shoulder width for the most part. Drill a hole in the center and tie a rope through the hole and tie the other end to a weight. I used an old five pound plate weight that I had.
I won't explain how the exercise is done, because you can just YouTube it. You basically just hold it out in front of you and wind the cord up by rotating the handle like you were rolling up a newspaper.
I have to tell you that I thought 5 pounds was going to be too light. I was wrong. It's not too heavy, but my forearms are screaming by the time I've brought the weight up and all the way back down again. It's definitely going to be great for grip strength.
Grip strength definitely makes things a lot easier. Karate wise a good grip is essential for hikite, grappling, gouging and possibly finger strikes like the nukite. It makes a lot of none karate stuff easier too. I spent a significant amount of time moving furniture for relatives over the weekend, and it was pleasant having the hand strength to grip at all those weird points you end up grabbing when you move shelves, couches, nightstands and tables.
I recommend anyone add this to their training regimen mostly because it's cheap and easy to make, takes up little space and improves strength and health.
You basically need a stick, an old broom handle or a dowel. I used part of an old wooden closet rod. You cut it so it's the same length as your shoulder width for the most part. Drill a hole in the center and tie a rope through the hole and tie the other end to a weight. I used an old five pound plate weight that I had.
I won't explain how the exercise is done, because you can just YouTube it. You basically just hold it out in front of you and wind the cord up by rotating the handle like you were rolling up a newspaper.
I have to tell you that I thought 5 pounds was going to be too light. I was wrong. It's not too heavy, but my forearms are screaming by the time I've brought the weight up and all the way back down again. It's definitely going to be great for grip strength.
Grip strength definitely makes things a lot easier. Karate wise a good grip is essential for hikite, grappling, gouging and possibly finger strikes like the nukite. It makes a lot of none karate stuff easier too. I spent a significant amount of time moving furniture for relatives over the weekend, and it was pleasant having the hand strength to grip at all those weird points you end up grabbing when you move shelves, couches, nightstands and tables.
I recommend anyone add this to their training regimen mostly because it's cheap and easy to make, takes up little space and improves strength and health.
