How to Win at Arm Wrestling: 3 Beginner Tips from Coach Ray

Want to beat your friend, your brother or the guy at school? You don't need to be a pro. Coach Ray's most-watched video (over 1.6 million views) is three simple tips for exactly this situation: two beginners on a table. Here they are, plus the two basic techniques that win most matches.

Tip 1: Pull, don't push

Almost every beginner thinks armwrestling is pushing your opponent's arm sideways. It isn't. Armwrestling is mostly pulling: either over the top (the toproll) or inside (the hook), but always towards yourself. That's why armwrestlers call a match a "pull". Pushing is the weakest and most dangerous thing you can do.

Tip 2: Load up before "Go"

When you take the grip, pull your arm slightly up and towards yourself so your muscles are already tense. Most beginners will push inside on "Go". If you're already loaded, you can block them and take over.

Tip 3: Take a high grip

Many people press their thumbs together and grip as low as they can. From there it's very hard to get on top. Instead take a normal grip, keep your thumb knuckle visible, and get your hand as high on your opponent's hand as you can. The higher you are, the easier it is to put pressure on their fingers and open their hand.

Put it together: the toproll

The toproll attacks the hand, not the arm. You go over the top and roll your opponent's wrist back.

1. Take a high grip and put pressure on your opponent's fingers.
2. Pull back towards yourself. You don't need to come forward.
3. Once their fingers and wrist open, go sideways to the pad.

Coach Ray: "If you don't put stress on his fingers, you need to be very, very strong to open them up." Against another beginner the grip and wrist are usually weaker than the arm, so a little pressure on the fingers is often enough.

The other option: the hook

The hook is the opposite. Instead of attacking the hand, you attack the arm.

1. Take a slightly lower grip.
2. On "Go", bend (cup) your wrist hard. If someone says that's not allowed, they're wrong: wrists must be straight at the start, not during the match.
3. Stay close. Don't let your arm drift away from your body.
4. Pull your opponent's arm towards your side and finish.

What if they're stronger than you?

Against a stronger beginner, technique really helps: most untrained people push inside with a weak wrist, and a high grip and a fast toproll can beat them. Against a stronger, experienced armwrestler, technique alone usually isn't enough. At high level the sport is about strength in the right positions. See is armwrestling technique or strength?

Want to get properly good?

• How to start armwrestling: a beginner's guide
• Toproll technique and exercises
• Hook technique and exercises
• Armwrestling terms explained