advice needed on dd hands

[sally]

Hi just wondering if anybody could give me some advice on what to do about my dd hands. Today she came home in tears (never seen her this upset). I was told that she had to keep doing her chin ups as she kept slipping off the bar. When I looked at them there was heaps of blisters on them. I asked the coach about what to do, however she said there is nothing to do and that she is a gymnast get use to it.

What I want to know is there anything you can do to make your hands tough or at least to be able to hold on to the bar with out it hurting.

thanks

 

[bogwoppit]

Ow, I know it really hurts. The coach is right they do get used to it and their hands do toughen up.

If I see blisters on my girls hands I put handy balm on, which is basically a medicated onguent, they put gloves on and sleep like that. FOr gym I just out some tape on so they can do some bars at least. Cooling hands down between turns on the bars helps too, as the blisters are worse when the hands are hot, so an ice pack to hold really helps. You can ice her hands a bit at home if they are really red.

When the blisters break be careful of keeping them clean.

My youngest, refuses to wear grips, has hands like steel. Callouses etc, she uses a pumice in the bath to keep them down.

Poor little thing, it will get better, but it is no fun.

 

[niknak]

Its an unfortunate part of gymnastics. I don't really like grips myself, as I think it makes it much more difficult to "feel" the bar, so I remember the period of toughening up my hands as being horribly painful. It does get better. I second the suggestion of ice to cool down your hands. I also have used the neosporin with pain relief, and covered my hands in a kind of tape called duoderm.

Antibiotic Pain Relieving Cream | Walgreens

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[sally]

Thanks for that, I will try that tomorrow with the ice pack. I don't really want her to use grips, I know a couple of mothers said to use them. I feel though if she can get her hands tough, in the long run it will be better. I just feel very sorry for her, it must be very painful.

 

[bogwoppit]

I think it is wise to avoid grips until they are on to more advanced skills. Many coaches think that L5, after the kip, is about right!

 

[sally]

ok thanks, she is learning kip at the moment.

 

[NotAMom]

I know this sounds weird but before long she'll be bragging about her rips rather than crying over the pain. Just do what the others are suggesting, she'll be fine. Just give her a hug for now.

 

[mariposa]

I have read the original post twice and still feel the same way. I don't think the coaches should have made her keep doing chin ups if her hands were that bad. That is just cruel. I would be upset if my DD came home and told me that. Whenever she has had something like that happen (big blisters or something) her coaches always tape her hands so they won't hurt as bad or she does something else. Maybe I am just over protective, but I don't like that they made her keep doing chin ups after slipping off because her hands were so sore from the blisters.

Yes, blisters and rips come with the territory in gymnastics, but no need to be cruel.

My DD just went back to doing bars after 4 weeks off due to an injury and her hands are really blistered and sore. They have been taping her hands and letting her do other stuff sometimes that doesn't cause pain.

Hope her hands get better soon.

 

[sally]

I thought so to. I was a little concern as well. I have tape so I will tape it myself tomorrow and my grandfather reccommended epson salts so I will try that tonight.

 

[gymgurl]

Im really sorry i don't have much advice but what i used to do to dry out blisters is to pop them but only with a small hole and let the blister dry up and tape whilst at gym.

now because i rip an awful lot i have just learnt to deal with the pain and focus on the skills and not think about the pain.

 

[Bobby]

I'd be upset if it was my DD. Yes I agree that to a point they really do need to learn to live with it in terms of training bars skills which can't be practised any other way. BUT what bothers me here is that it was just conditioning. I agree conditioning is important, but it seems silly to cause pain and aggravate actual injury to the skin when alternate exercises (off bars) could probably have reasonably been substituted in this circumstance for the same benefit.
Or maybe the coach wasn't aware at the right time? Maybe you need to reassure her it's OK to keep the coach updated about the state of her hands so he can provide alternate activities where possible??
WARNING: Now I'm going to wander slightly off topic. Sorry.
As a former gymnast, I also have to say there is a point (usually when a rip is fresh or you have multiple new blisters) when the mind cannot overcome the pain and it's genuinely too dangerous to attempt a skill/routine. It's crushing when it happens at a big comp - but it will happen to most gymnasts sometime over the years..... unless newer grips have changed all this?? If not, little ones should probably be taught to recognise the difference between times they can soldier on, and times they really shouldn't.
In my personal experience (which is ancient) taping only helps under grips.

 

[Bobby]

PS: I personally used to cut the whole blister off (on palms only). That way you control how much skin you lose. Otherwise it (or they) will rip - and you may have a rip an awful lot bigger and deeper than the original blister. And the drying out process goes much faster.

 

[sally]

thanks for that. Yes she has heaps of little blisters all over her hands everywhere. The coach did know, but said there is nothing you can do about it. She seems better today did chin ups no problem today. I bathed them with epson salts, they feel like they are going to turn to calluses.

 

[gymcoach34]

The only way to toughen up her hands is to let them rip then callous over. This happens very often when kids are really starting to swing for kips, tap swings, etc.

I would stay away from soaking them. If her hands are soft, they will rip even more.

Its certainly a rite of passage, but I do make tape grips for them, or if they are just too bad, I have them do something else. Chin ups should not have bothered her hands too much, there isnt any swinging involved.

 

[kimmy4]

We use Vitamin E, gel. Rub on at night and much improvement by morning!!

 

[gymjoy]

Our secret is this:

Zim's Crack Creme® - Natural Skin Care Products That Really Work!

Don't laugh at the name

Get the original in the spray bottle. You can find it at places like CVS.
It is amazing on dry, cracked hands and feet. It absorbs right in and doesn't leave hands feeling greasy or slippery. Plus it contains arnica which helps relive soreness.

 

[BreezyGymnast]

You can try either the spray or rub on new skin. but sometimes it burns when you put it on. and have her hand taped when shes on bars. after a while you dont get rips anymore and youre hands get really tough. i dont think i've had a rip in almost a year! just lots of callouses! hopes she heals quickly!

 

[staceyb]

If she will let you try surgical/methylated spirits onto her hands, I've used it in the past for both my feet and my hands to help toughen them up. Although it will sting but not as much as the blisters themselves.

 

[sally]

funny that you say that, as that was what my grandfather said lol.

 

[Bobby]

In the olden days we used to use metho with a good dash of eucalyptus oil (which supposedly made the skin dryer, harder, with the addition of being more elastic).