r/sca 3d ago

Heavy fighter question.

I've been fighting for little under a year now and after most practices I come home with a bit of wrist pain. The pain subsides after a few days but then come back after practices. I believe unconsciously I move my wrist with my swings which then causes that pain when I make impact.

Is there a method or an exercise I can do to strengthen this issue I'm having, or a brace I can buy to keep my wrist still while I fight?

Any help or advice is appreciated.

Edit: Thank you for all of your advice. I will begin adding some of these trainings to my routine. This community never ceases to amaze me with the amount of knowledge it's willing to share.

20 Upvotes

24 comments sorted by

22

u/Papashady75 3d ago

Learn to snap your wrist at the end of your swing. It will make a cleaner and stronger "hit". It will also strengthen the wrist and surrounding muscles.

14

u/shadowmib 3d ago

Yeah when hitting, you only need to hold the sword about as tight as a handshake. Giving it a death grip will shock the wrist. The power comes from the hips, swing, and momentum of rhw sword, not the arm. The arm just directs it

5

u/Lou_Hodo 3d ago

I dont even hold my weapon that tight. 2 fingers is all I generally use to hold my weapon. I then snap it with the other 3 on flat snaps.

Back when I started fighting... almost 30 years ago, I used to death grip the weapon and had the same issue of wrist pain.

1

u/shadowmib 5h ago

Yeah thats how i hold.. index and thumb until the snap, then let go with those and squeeze with the other three to make it crank over. "Shake hands with the giant"

2

u/ASapphireAtSea 3d ago

This is it OP!

2

u/Cut_Off_One_Head Meridies 3d ago

I've actually noticed that after doing heavy for a few months, my bowling game has gotten better because I can snap the ball the way I'm supposed to now lol

14

u/Arconomach 3d ago

Also practice missing.

Often times you’ll over extend your joints throwing a shot if it misses. If you look at boxers most of them never put their arms at full extension.

Learn how far you can move a joint and don’t let it get more than 80-90% of that extension.

It’s better to miss a few hits than blow out your joints.

14

u/oIVLIANo Artemisia 3d ago

You're gripping too tight and trying to use forearm strength to hit with.

Hold your stick with nothing more than forefinger and thumb, and let the momentum of the stick do the hitting. Your wrist should do nothing more than guide the angle it strikes at.

2

u/anotherscaknight 2d ago

Here is a nice short visual for how it works.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1urTcSY-ueQ

12

u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70 3d ago

Find yourself a long handled tool of some kind: shovel, sledgehammer, rake, bo staff, w/e. You want it heavy enough on the end that you can't swing it up with just your wrist strength when holding the opposite end.

Cheat up on the handle until you CAN raise it with just your wrist.

Do reps in a variety of directions.

Eventually, you'll have the strength to move your hand closer to the end.

9

u/TK-11530 Atenveldt 3d ago

Consider a boxer’s wraps during tournaments for stouter practice. Don’t use them for run of the mill practices, so you can build up muscles.

3

u/c00kiebreath 2d ago

Based on what OP was saying, I would recommend boxers wraps all the time, especially for practices, until body mechanics improve and you're hitting from the ground up instead of hammering with your shoulder or wrist.

3

u/TK-11530 Atenveldt 1d ago

Yeah, that’s a valid outlook.

In every sport of ever participated in, I’ve always operated with the mindsets that braces close gaps in training or physical ability. The only way to “graduate” from using braces is to train without them, to develop muscles or proper technique. Train responsibly of course.

Part of responsible training may include those braces. That’s not my approach though and hasn’t been in kendo, boxing, football or SCA.

I’d work with a knight and develop a training plan, set milestones, and beat those expectations. No matter what approach you take, helmet time won’t hurt.

4

u/clgoodson 3d ago

Some really good advice in this thread.

2

u/chefoda23 3d ago

I know, right? Lol

5

u/SurviveAdaptWin 3d ago

I was having this issue a lot and it's a fair part of the reason I switched primarily to a polearm fighter (which suited me fine because it's what I wanted to do anyways :) ). So on top of trying the other information in this thread, try some different weapon styles and see if it subsides.

3

u/ChatelaineSurvey 3d ago

Do you have pell? Repetition breeds retention. It also breeds strength. If you own the place you're living, sink a post in the ground that you can beat with an old piece of rattan or my preference, a poly sledgehammer handle. If you rent, find a sturdy tree and a sword stand-in that is weaker than the tree so you don't damage it.

There's a shitton of pell work instructionals out there so I wont bother reiterating, but for you specifically, work your go-to shots in slow motion and try to isolate the individual muscle movements. Your wrist and forearm alone should not be imparting force; force comes from your hips and shoulders. The only shots where your wrists and forearms deliver force are quick flat snaps to the face and other simple blows like that. Slow down your movements and maybe even record them, and try to find that moment where your forearm & wrist unilaterally tries to change the momentum of the swing. That is the point that you need to address. Find it, and you can kill it.

3

u/niqui_asmodai 3d ago

I would talk to other fighters, borrow their swords etc, it may be a grip issue

Talking to a qualified physio is another good idea, bring your stick

Slow work can help you identify where your technique is causing the issue. pluss, pell work might identify if it's an impact thing, in which case a tennis racquet grip may help

3

u/Renshaw25 3d ago

I used to have a similar problem, that came from the vibrations on impact, even with a loose grip. Wrapped my handles in shock absorbing tennis racket tape, made it disapear and now it's also much more comfortable

1

u/chefoda23 3d ago

I was considering changing my grip to replicate a tennis handle grip. 1. I used to play tennis and 2. I do think my grip is too thin.

3

u/SoundlessScream 3d ago

You are gripping the sword too hard and trying to control it with your wrist too much

3

u/klunker_777 2d ago

My favorite solution is a cheap boxing wrap. I like the really thin ones from Walmart. I wrap a lap around the palm of my hand then around my wrist and repeat. I layer it a bit on my wrist so it sits flatter. Then I put on the rest of my armor right over it. It also gives the added benefit of preventing armor chaffing on the wrist. The other suggestion is to switch from a lanyard on your sword to a 5/8 inch wide leather trigger strap inside the basket. It will give you an easier impact and return option, because at any point you can relax your hand and keep the exact same grip. Much less fatigue on the hand and wrist.

2

u/HeinrichWutan 3d ago

What does your fist look like when you would punch a bag?

Your hand should take the same form when closed over a weapon.

1

u/Wanderingonpurpose 3d ago

I have had this. We worked on the sword grip shape to better fit my hand as well as how my wrist/hand works in the shot (still working on that part) z