WAG Grips - very confused

[IreneKa]

Thank you all for being so helpful!

 

[IreneKa]

I know it was IreneKa who asked, but I thank you for your information too!

I will cut off that rubberband when DDs come in. We do have wrist bands, and have ordered a 2nd pair, and of course, there's a 3rd pair she wants (OMG Mom!! they say LEVEL 4!!!!). So if they need to be washed, I guess I'm not crazy for her to have a few pairs.

Also - I read somewhere (who knows where, as I've been trying to learn so much about rips and grips), that moisturized hands help avoid rips? (I thought with grips she wouldn't get rips anymore... what do I know?). Is this true? Does it help to keep her hands moisturized?

I was just reading an article (can't find it now, been reading a lot too ) that said grips don't prevent rips. Who knew.

 

[MeetDirector]

My lvl 9/10 dd swears by Ginnasta. Since she just qualified to Westerns, I don't think she will be changing anytime soon.

Grips do not prevent rips; some of the worst rips have come with her grips. The only thing that prevents rips is proper hand care. They have got to build up the calluses, but also keep the calluses filed down. To this day she uses a pumice stone on her hands in the shower and she covers the calluses every night with, believe it or not, preparation H.

Good Luck.

 

[SignHere]

The bulldog kippers are for "beginners" in that the palm is narrower, they are dowel grips. My DD got her first pair in the spring, broke them in quickly, and competed a season of old 5 and half of 7 (scored out of old 6). So she used the grips almost daily for not quite 2 years, including doing giants, then they were starting to wear out and she needed new ones.

The replacement pair was the one she decided could have wider palms.

So, I think she got my money's worth out of them.

 

[IreneKa]

So, we decided to go with Ginnasta. DD liked the animal print, and I liked all I read about them not needing breaking in, etc.
We went with size 2. Her hand measures at 6 1/4", and Ginnasta size 1 goes only up to 6 1/8". If they don't fit, or the coach doesn't approve, we can always send them back and get a different brand/size.
Thanks again for all the help! I'll report back when we get them.

Oh, and we also ordered a bag with matching animal print, and personalized with DD's name.

 

[IreneKa]

Got the grips! DD loves them, they fit perfectly, and the coach approved.
A few girls got the English Bulldog, and their moms complaining of the finger holes being too small, so they have to sand them to make the fingers fit. We didn't have this problem, DD's fingers fit perfectly into the holes, so one more point towards Ginnasta.

 

[txgal]

@Ali's mom: Even with grips, you'll still get rips. DDs hands are more calloused than a lumberjack's. She swings bars pretty hard, with a lot of power, and holds on to the bar pretty tightly (she had a terrible peel off bars, pretty much did a level 10 dismount as a level 5, and landed hard on the floor. Thankfully, she has always been able to keep a tight body, so her biggest injury was a gigantic bruise across her abdomen where she 'bounced' off the low bar). Her coach tells her rips are a sign of someone who's working hard on bars so she should be proud of her battle wounds!

As far as grips, DD is 10 and very small for her age. She prefers the Ten-O single buckle grips as she would rather have the grips a little tighter on her wrists. Some of her teammates have Velcro grips and have had to replace them because the Velcro has 'worn out' (it's not sticky anymore). I purchased DD 2 sets of grips; both have been adequately broken in. She keeps one in her locker at the gym and one in her competition bag (so she never has to remember to get her grips out of her locker for a meet!)

Ultimately, the choice of grips is a matter of preference. DD's coach prefers Velcro grips for the younger girls (the youngest grip user in the gym is a 7 year old L4) because it's easier for them to put them on themselves. For the older girls, she prefers the buckle grips as the fit is a little better and they don't wear out as easily.

 

[3LittleGymmies]

I was just reading an article (can't find it now, been reading a lot too ) that said grips don't prevent rips. Who knew.

They definitely don't. My dd just started with grips a few weeks ago and she has more rips than ever. Who knew??

 

[Ali'sMom]

Got the grips! DD loves them, they fit perfectly, and the coach approved.
A few girls got the English Bulldog, and their moms complaining of the finger holes being too small, so they have to sand them to make the fingers fit. We didn't have this problem, DD's fingers fit perfectly into the holes, so one more point towards Ginnasta.

So glad you chose well!!! (It's so hard when ordering online...)

Thanks everyone for the info on rips! I think if I hadn't learned that here, if she came home with more rips I'd figure she was wearing the wrong size grips or something.

And I just found out last night that until she does 5 kips in a row, she can't wear the grips... She tried last night, but still has a healing rip, so couldn't manage them all.
Tonight we're going to try Anbesol and see if it helpsthe topical pain.
Poor thing just wants to move forward

 

[lovelife]

A video about the rubber band on grips

 

[MaryA]

- Get some long, fluffy wrist bands and wash them regularly!!!!!

Man... we're supposed to wash those things? But if I wash them they won't be able to crawl across the floor and climb back into her grip bag on their own power...

Wrist bands, they never get dirty. The longer you wear them the stronger they get.
Some times I think I should wash them but something keeps telling me don't wash them yet!

 

[2gymmies]

My dd would rather die than let me wash her wristbands... according to her it's bad luck so don't do before a meet or just after learning a new skill (LOL)! Also, we use rubber bands religiously, especially my Level 10 dd. Beginner grip users wouldn't need to unless they have super skinny fingers and whoever said the finger holes were tight, they will stretch and then be too big if you aren't careful - too big is a huge problem, too small is a minor inconvenience. English Bulldog kippers (single buckle) and Reisport (double buckle) are what we use! And grips just create new places to rip - the wrist is a big one and the thumb is too. My dd's use preparation H ointment on open rips and joshua tree salve on sore spots that haven't ripped but are just tender or hot. Good luck!

 

[IreneKa]

My dd would rather die than let me wash her wristbands... according to her it's bad luck so don't do before a meet or just after learning a new skill (LOL)! Also, we use rubber bands religiously, especially my Level 10 dd. Beginner grip users wouldn't need to unless they have super skinny fingers and whoever said the finger holes were tight, they will stretch and then be too big if you aren't careful - too big is a huge problem, too small is a minor inconvenience. English Bulldog kippers (single buckle) and Reisport (double buckle) are what we use! And grips just create new places to rip - the wrist is a big one and the thumb is too. My dd's use preparation H ointment on open rips and joshua tree salve on sore spots that haven't ripped but are just tender or hot. Good luck!

DD got a huge rip last week (before she got her grips), and I went to the pharmacy and bought Preparation H, because I've been readying so much about it. She screamed like crazy that it stings (and she usually has pretty high pain tolerance). Does it really sting that much, or did I buy the wrong kind?

 

[Canadian_gym_mom]

DD got a huge rip last week (before she got her grips), and I went to the pharmacy and bought Preparation H, because I've been readying so much about it. She screamed like crazy that it stings (and she usually has pretty high pain tolerance). Does it really sting that much, or did I buy the wrong kind?

We have always been told to use diaper cream on rips.

 

[2gymmies]

DD got a huge rip last week (before she got her grips), and I went to the pharmacy and bought Preparation H, because I've been readying so much about it. She screamed like crazy that it stings (and she usually has pretty high pain tolerance). Does it really sting that much, or did I buy the wrong kind?

I think it does sting, but ultimately soothes and helps it heal. Anything on a fresh rip is going to sting, like water from the shower will sting like crazy. I've heard of using chloroseptic sore throat spray on a rip to numb it, but we've never tried it (same with baby teething gel). On wrist rips, we've used gel burn pads, too. It will get better. Good luck finding what works for you!

 

[Ali'sMom]

Thanks for the video about the rubber band!!!

This weekend I'm going to get preparation H. I want to be prepared

 

[sce]

Why do girls' grips have the elastic band but boys' don't?

 

[Deleted member D3987]

Why do girls' grips have the elastic band but boys' don't?

what? come again?

 

[shelovestoflip]

Man... we're supposed to wash those things? But if I wash them they won't be able to crawl across the floor and climb back into her grip bag on their own power...

Wrist bands, they never get dirty. The longer you wear them the stronger they get.
Some times I think I should wash them but something keeps telling me don't wash them yet!

OK, but seriously, are we supposed to wash them??! I've NEVER washed them! I think I've bought an occasional new pair (hard to find in stores and I never think of ordering online). Really, my daughter has been wearing grips for 4 years now and maybe only one pair of wrist bands a year...every other...never washed??!!!

Well, she has no rash so I assume ok???!!!

 

[shelovestoflip]

DD got a huge rip last week (before she got her grips), and I went to the pharmacy and bought Preparation H, because I've been readying so much about it. She screamed like crazy that it stings (and she usually has pretty high pain tolerance). Does it really sting that much, or did I buy the wrong kind?

I think the Prep H is for BEFORE the rip!! As in, my daughter uses it almost nightly on spots that looked inflamed/potential for rip (as opposed to callouses). I can imagine Prep H would be awful on a rip! If my daughter rips she uses some neosporin and then covers it the next day or so. She also uses Vitamin E every night...and pumice stone...and clips some of the callouses if they are too big.....