Many people ask me how to get started doing feats of strength. They see me or someone else performing a phonebook tear or nail bend and they decide that it would be something they’d like to do. In this article I want to lay out a plan for how to get started.
Before we begin its wise to have a base of some hand strength. Now most feats of strength are whole body moves but the weak point tends to be in the hands. By spending a little time with a basic hand and wrist training program you’ll be much better off when you start the feats of strength.
Closing grippers, using thick handled weights, any sort of pinching, and wrist curls would be a few options to get started with. Most can be done without any specialized equipment. Just focus on these for a month or two before the strength feats begin.
When you feel you are ready to begin, my advice is to pick one feat and work on that solely until you have some level of proficiency. Of all the different feats of strength, what most people want to do is one of the top three. That is phonebook tearing, tearing decks of cards in half, and bending nails.
Pick the one that interests you most and focus on it. By working on one at a time you’ll not only build the strength specific to that feat, but get enough practice on the move itself. If you went after several different feats you would be lacking the necessary focus. After you can do the one feat to a level you are happy with you can add in the next feat.
Another common question is what is the trick to the feat. Well, unless you are cheating there is no trick. But there is technique involved. And you need to practice this technique in order to be able to pull off the feat.
In my opinion, phonebook tearing is the easiest feat to get started with. You can read my page on phonebook tearing here to get you started.
For tearing decks of cards start on this page. It’ll point out resources including where to buy fairly cheap but high-quality cards.
For bending nails, check out this article for more information.
Each of these pages also features a video showing a demonstration of the move. Of course it will also point to outside resources where you can get more information and instruction.
If you want to do these moves right you need the proper instruction. And then all it takes is starting from your current level and building from there. Depending on your prior training you may even surprise yourself in how fast you progress.
You get these three feats of strength down and you’re well on your way to being able to pull on a performance. And then there are many others you can choose to work on.
If you’ve been wondering how you should get started you now have your answer.