novice advice

what advice would you give to a new novice getting into the sport of armwrestling

Be prepared to suffer many defeats and to take them on the chin.
We've all got to lose in order to improve.

What Mark said. Almost everyone I know who used to armwrestle but isn't involved in the sport anymore left because they couldn't handle a loss.

leon wrote:

What Mark said. Almost everyone I know who used to armwrestle but isn't involved in the sport anymore left because they couldn't handle a loss.

Thats a good way of putting it Leon... people in this sport have to have that mental strength to take a loss because everybody gets beat eventually.
My advice for a new novice would be to pull slowly and get strong so your joints get used to that sort of pressure being put on them

Train hand and wrist hard, so you can get to the position where you are strongest and actually start to armwrestle. Otherwise you will be picking the bones out of what your opponent decides to leave you.

Listen to Nick Hall.

That would be the first thing I would recommend to any novice wrestler. Not just Nick but any of the pro's are a world of information and knowledge. I haven't met one yet who doesn't want to pass on some of what he has learnt.

Training with stronger guys will help,acclimatising you to the feeling of losing every week - but also giving you something to strive for.

Another suggestion would be to assess your genetics early and decide whether you will primarily train to be a hook puller or top roller - play to your strengths early on and you will see the benefits much sooner.