Index finger in a pole grip?!?

Meg Smith started this discussion · 4/21/2014

Please can someone tell me i have not been doing it wrong for the past 7 months....?!? I have been led to believe that the index finger should point directly down on the bottom hand while doing most grips? (like my pic i zoomed in on you can see my index finger is straght. UNTILL i have just read a few people talking on a fb group about how you should never do that (they gave no reason to why. I must point out this same group i saw someone telling someone a flat jade split is only doable if you have an over split! FALSE! i have a flat jade but not even a split)..... Sooooo guys whats is right?!? I remember why i stick to veena, as the advice is generally as consistent as can be in the unknown pole world! Meg x

16 replies

johnssdeere · 4/21/2014
I do the same thing! But I don't know if it is "right", but my finger won't evenwrap itself around the pole due to injury.
RobynPoleDancer · 4/21/2014
I teach "magic finger", I've never known anyone to have a problem with it. It aligns your wrist to keep it neutral. I did hear of someone saying it was dangerous "because if you fell blah blah blah", I didn't catch the other half of what she was saying. I KNOW that if you don't keep your wrist aligned, your bottom hand can crumple down, you end up trying to grip just between your thumb and forefinger.
chemgoddess1 · 4/21/2014
Magic finger! Been taught this from the get go and for the exact same reasons......better alignment of the wrists you do not torque it.
Meg Smith · 4/21/2014
Thanks all i will keep on doing it! Amiloo i am sooo not flexible apart from a have always been able to get my legs around my head so i had a good head start with the leg being pulled close to the head. Just pure luck and my very long legs help in this move i think :-)
chemgoddess1 · 4/21/2014
If you bring your leg more to the side of your body as opposed to straight like splits you can give the illusion of a flat jade without having actual splits. Lay on your back and try it just on the floor. Just another "cheat" I was taught many moons ago.
Veena · 4/21/2014
I call it the gun grip and yes it's good alignment.
Cecilie Printz · 4/21/2014
I do this too! I've always been taught that. As the other say it helps you align, which I think helps with the balance. :-)
Polefanatic678 · 4/21/2014
I've always done that too and I had someone tell me it was wrong because it puts strain on the tendons in the index finger.. I feel like that might happen from overuse like with any muscle or if you weren't strong enough through the rest of your hand/arm I'd rather have my wrist aligned and feel stronger in my grip any day :) Magic finger FTW
korinne · 4/21/2014
We call it the 'trigger finger'. :) I love all the names for it!
Meg Smith · 4/22/2014
Brill thanks for all letting me know! And chemgoddess1 is 100% right - if i pull my leg slightly to my right it looks a lot flatter! as you can see in the pic it is (quite clearly) pulled to one side which also gives you extra grip i personally find.
jkpolegirl · 4/22/2014
I am a "trigger finger" drill sargent!! You should definately continue use it The possibility of injury to the tendons of the finger are kind of true. Anytime you have a split grip, the bottom hand should always be the "pusher". You should not have a death grip or be taking all of your weight in the lower hand. When you do, that's when you increase the chance of injury. And usually people who are doing that aren't strong enough to do the grip properly. Your little index finger is not ment to take all the weight of your body!! Anytime your not strong enough to do a move properly, u increase ur chance of injury
leyrose · 4/25/2014
I was never shown this when I first started poling and have since tried to use the trigger finger and I can't do it! I feel insecure in my grip... It could be that I'm not used to it. I guess my question is, is it wrong to not use it haha
korinne · 4/25/2014
Leyrose: the answer I give people- If you've been doing that for years(I don't know how long you've been poling) and not had any problems, you're probably fine. I have seen quite a few pros grip it without trigger finger. If you're doing the move with an appropriate amount of strength in your upper arm, there shouldn't be enough pressure on your bottom hand for it to cause a problem. However, I would learn that grip because I find I use it in any grip when I'm bracing myself with the bottom arm (ayesha, butterfly... i can't think right now.)
leyrose · 4/25/2014
Thanks so much for your reply Korinne! I've been poling for 8 or 9 months now but fairly advanced... I've learnt Ayesha, iron x, extended butterfly etc. and have never used the trigger finger. I think I'll start trying to use it on more basic moves and see how I get on
michaelaarghh · 4/25/2014
We also use trigger finger!! I've been told as well as helping with alignment, it's to stop from over-gripping with that bottom hand. Like jkpolegirl said, to help push with it and not bear down your weight there. leyrose - I used to find it really weird and didn't like it, but now I do it without even noticing!
Lucca Valentine · 4/26/2014
Putting both the index and middle finger facing down helped me immensely with this. I'm not sure if my wrist was still twisting or something with the one finger, but maybe give that a try?