WAG small hands

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Along4theRide

Proud Parent
My DD is one of those small, sturdy gymnasts...you know, the ones that are stout and feel like they are made of lead. But her hands are very small compared to the rest of her body....noticably smaller. As a level 6 she is up training some bigger bar skills. This week she had her first major peel off the pit bar and strained her upper back. I'm worried that the additional forces might be too much for her short fingers.

I wonder, are proportionally small hands something that other gymnasts/coaches have dealt with? Are there strategies for accomadating/strengthening small hands? (Wouldn't it be great if there were smaller bars for smaller hands! Pipe dream, right?!)

She has been wearing grips for over a year. I've casually asked her coach if current grips are good for dds small hands, and coach seems fine with current grips. ...but I wonder if a different brand would allow her fingers to have more contact with the bar? And if so, how would I suggest that to coach?

I'm mostly wondering if proportionally small hands simply means that bars will never be her thing. Or if there are other ways we can help her strengthen her hands or use different equipment to help her in the future. (Again, I really wish smaller bars were a real thing!!;-) ) Thanks for your advice!
 
How small are her hands? What brand grips is she using?

One of my dds has pretty small hands, and US Glove hotshots have been the best grips for her and the only ones she would ever use. They have a narrow palm and thinner leather than other brands. But if you are saying your daughter is small, and hands are very small compared to the rest of her body, maybe the smallest size would be too big for her....
 
ten - O pixies grips also come in a 000. (Dd used pixies her first 2 years with grips and now has used hot shots ever since)
 
Mine doesn't have that small of hands anymore, but she still wears the hot shot grips, now the ones with the leather cuffs.
 
We have a girl at our gym who competes Level 9 without guards due to having small hands. My daughter only got her guards on for Level 7 for much the same reason, but she's in 00's.

The girl who doesn't wear guards finds it easier to do the more difficult skills like eagles, reverse giants, blind change and releases. Its a bit maddening for the others in her team because she has to prepare the bar each time before use, but it works well for her. Maybe it's a confidence thing too?
 
Thanks, everyone! I'm not sure what brand grip she has now...but how do I nudge coach into letting her try other options? I guess it's dd's job to speak up for herself, right? Maybe I'll show DD some literature on the various brands.? And I love hearing about upper level gymnasts with small hands! I hope my DD finds her stride again on bars! And hand recommendations for hand strengthening exercises?
 
This is one of my favorite videos to reference for wrist and hand strengthening:

I have my girls do any three of the exercises in the video (I have them on a list), at three sets of 20 reps for each exercise. They must do it aggressively and dynamically, so the muscles really work.

They do it every day right after conditioning. It can be used as prehab and rehab.
 
This is one of my favorite videos to reference for wrist and hand strengthening:

I have my girls do any three of the exercises in the video (I have them on a list), at three sets of 20 reps for each exercise. They must do it aggressively and dynamically, so the muscles really work.

They do it every day right after conditioning. It can be used as prehab and rehab.

I have had the same rice for about 5 years! This is a great cheap and easy wrist conditioning station. One bucket and a few pounds of rice.
 

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