Blisters, rips and calluses

[Dizzy_And_Lazy]

So this week at gym I got my first rip so I thought I should get some advice about calluses, blisters and rips.
Firstly, I have heard both not to moisturise your hands and to moisturise them as much as possible. I suppose not moisturising would keep the calluses which are what you are aiming for, but moisturising would help them go down so you are not going to get blisters as easily the next time you do bars. As I have eczema, I have to moisturise my hands a bit anyway, so I was wondering if I should do it as much or little as possible?
Next, at my gym you can chose which equipment/skills you want to work on, so if I knew blisters were forming on my hands, is it better to carry on regardless, or stop as soon as possible? I have found that running my hands in very cold water after I get home from gym makes my calluses less red in a shorter amount of time and ache less, does anyone else find this?
After getting my rip, I have been covering it with a plaster and using microporus surgical tape during the day and then leaving it open at night. I was wondering if this is the advised thing to do, or should I be doing it differently?
Also, I have heard that you should put Chap Stick (American lip balm?) over rips. Will this help, and if so what kind of lip balm should I put over it? And do I only put it over the raw bit of the rip (the bit which the skin is not covering)?
Lastly, I have never taped my hands for bars as no-one else in my class does it, and I have never been showed/told to do it. As I only do bars for ten to twenty minutes a week because my class is only one hour long, would it be worth it to tape my hands?
I know there are a lot of questions but any advice would be great! Thanks!

 

[Mack_the_Ripper]

I put chapstick/lipbalm all over my hands just because I figure it's basically the same thing as moisturizer. I put it all over any rips I have because sometimes (especially in the winter) my rips crack and rip inside themselves. That's annoying.
I would leave your rips open as much as possible and not cover them, unless they hurt too much to hold pencils and stuff. I don't know about the moisturizing - I have to moisturize during the winter or else my hands will crack, but I'm not sure what to do when it isn't too dry outside.

I wouldn't tape your hands since you're only doing bars for 20 minutes, unless you're doing circling skills like clear hips. It sounds like you're in a class, so the skills you're working on shouldn't be too tough on your hands.

 

[Dizzy_And_Lazy]

Thanks for clearing up about the lip balm, and whether to use tap. My rip has some skin left over it and it is becoming hard, should I take it off now that the some of the skin beneath is coming back?

 

[LiveLoveTumble]

My rip has some skin left over it and it is becoming hard, should I take it off now that the some of the skin beneath is coming back?

If you are talking about the flap that covers the rip, I always take it off as soon as it rips. My coaches always said to do that, and it makes it sting less.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

here you go folks. someone should sticky this since it gets asked so many times every few weeks.

Link Removed

 

[KyraGymnast]

I rip about every other week, but it also sounds like I practice bars more often than you do. I normall soak or rinse my hands under cold water right after I rip, and then again after I get home from the gym. At night or on days when I don't have gym I frequently apply Carmex (Medicated lip moisturizer) to the raw part of the rip, and the areas around it (to prevent cracking). I also reccomend always cutting off the flap of skin right afteryou rip because dirt or bacteria can get caught underneath if you don't.

Ifyou feel that you are going to rip frequently (more than once a month) then it would probably be good to invest your time into learning how to wrap your hands after a rip or make a tape grip.

Good Luck!