Preventing Rips

nasticsISlove 72 · #1 08-01-2007, 08:55 PM

i have been doing gymnastics for 3.5 years now, and i am now a level 5. bars has always been my weakest since i have started doing gmynastics. i can do basicly only 5 skills on it. what happenes alot is i get usually 4-5 rips everytime i swing bars. when i rip, they get really bad sometimes, even infected sometimes. i think thats the reason i am really bad at bars, because i always get alot of rips and then being about not to work my hardest because my hands hurt so much.

in other words, is there any way to help prevent rips?

Jea_bernadette · #2 08-01-2007, 10:12 PM

I am the exact same way. what i do is make tape grips and use them every practice and they REALLY help alot. another thing is there is this ointment stuff called bag balm and it is actually made for cow utters(i know thats really strange) but it really does help in healing your rips. and what you do is you put it on your rip at night and put a sock over it a just sleep with it on. you can usually find that stuff at a drug store.
hope that helps you out.

AnitaV · #3 08-02-2007, 06:51 PM

Try good quality panty hose under the grips. My dtr has been doing that for 2 1/2 years and gets about one - two rips a year and bars was her best event last season. It takes about a week to get used to the feel of it under the grip while swinging on the bars.

gracefulone · #4 08-02-2007, 07:25 PM

AnitaV, I have never heard of that before. Very interesting.

Personally, I don't wear grips. Bars has always been one of my strongest events. I have ripped about six times in my life, and have been doing gymnastics for 11 years. I don't use chalk either really. No one understands how I can do it. Neither do I. I love the feeling of the bar on my bare hand. I tried grips, broke them in, used them over the summer, then ditched them. I do take care of my hands though. My friends say I am lotion-obsessed as I have it with me at all times(backpack, purse, gymbag, locker, gym locker). Aslo I shave(razor) down my callouses once a week after soaking my hands in warm soapy water. I am an oddball....

skfleming255 · #5 08-02-2007, 07:29 PM

Our coaches say to use lotion every chance you can get (after hand-washing, shower, etc.). They recommend Eucerin cream (a very thick lotion). They, also, say to rub the Eucerin on before bedtime and sleep in gloves or socks on your hands. I've, also, heard to use chapstick. Hope this helps.

**hammy** · #6 08-02-2007, 08:09 PM

AnitaV, I've never heard of that before either, sounds interesting.

When I did gym I used to put Vick's Vaper Rub on my rips--it worked for me, kept them moist but dried them out at the same time.

purpleterah · #7 08-02-2007, 08:34 PM

Wow, I have heard some very useful things on rip remedies. One question Do you play on monkey bars outside of the gym? If so stop it! My DD coach said those monkey bars are the worse for lil gymnasts hands and you should stay away from them at all costs. If you done the punishment is rips...
Danielle

nasticsISlove 72 · #8 08-02-2007, 08:54 PM

thanks everyone for the great ideas, ill try some of them out. i just hate my hands because my skin is so easy to rip. today when we went to bars, when i finished setting the low bar i did a little glide thing, to get to the other side, and i riped, and i made one of my old rips bleed. and that was even before the rotation started!

gracefulone · #9 08-03-2007, 06:11 AM

If you need to heal rips really fast, use a teabag soked in warm water. It stings and turns the rip slightly brown temporarily, but it's works really well.

AnitaV · #10 08-03-2007, 05:32 PM


Quote:
Originally Posted by hammy AnitaV, I've never heard of that before either, sounds interesting. When I did gym I used to put Vick's Vaper Rub on my rips--it worked for me, kept them moist but dried them out at the same time.

It was my dtr's coach who recommended it as an older optional gymnast had similar issues and had good success with the panty hose as did my dtr since the goal was to prevent the numerous rips which in turn slowed the bar training. It's hard to describe but the coach cuts up the panty hose and loops it over the fingers/wrist into what looks like the kind of gauze grip I have seen some of the Europeans improvise or the "tape" kind and it fits right under the regular grip. They last about 5-6 months. And I had never seen this mentioned anywhere in these types of forums either.