Beginner Shoulder Grips

Here I'll be demonstrating 3 beginner grips used for beginner shoulder holds. Learning these will help prepare you for learning the shoulder mount in the future, if you like. I covered the hand and finger positioning in a previous video. In this video let's focus on where the pole is placed on the shoulder and the different options for hand positions/grips.

NOTE: Regardless of the shoulder grip you're using, the pole should always be next to the neck but not on the spine! It shouldn't be placed far out towards the edge of the shoulder either. Click here to learn more!

Cup grip - Fingers are all wrapped around with the knuckles facing behind/away from you, thumbs are down. Don't place the hands too low in this grip. Doing so will reduce the power, and it can also place more strain on the elbows. If using cup grip for a shoulder mount and your hands are too low, you might be more susceptible to slipping out of this grip too!

Veena grip - You'll find the Veena grip is awesome if you want a secure grip. It's great for shoulder slides and while I love it for shoulder mounts, it can be more difficult to use when you're new to shoulder mounts as more abdominal and hip flexor strength is required. Other names for this grip: Chinese grip

Claw grip. This is a nice grip for shoulder slides and to transition from shoulder mount into another trick. Other names for this grip are Princess grip, however in Princess grip you don't split the fingers.