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WOD
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Complete for time:
20 Pull-ups
30 Overhead Squats, 115#/75#
20 Pull-ups
20 Overhead Squats, 145#/100#
20 Pull-ups
10 Overhead Squats, 175#/125#
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Matty V of 6am fame!
Hand Care for Pull-up Days!
Several of you guys have gotten your hands beat up the last several weeks. The best cure for torn hands is to prevent it from happening in the first place. Below is a complilation of tips posted over the years on this here very blog. We hope that it helps!
PREVENTION
These are some things you can do before you get to the gym or before the WOD starts:
Hand Grips: protecting your hands on high-volume days (more than 100 reps) should be a consideration. Rogue offers many options including gymnastics grips here. Everyone likes something different, I’m a fan of Natural Grips because they’re minimalist and don’t feel thick on your hands. You can also make your own using tape (video linked here).
File Down Your Calluses: Often times hand tears happen because your calluses get so built up and raised that they cause a tear to form below. Using a pumice stone, ped egg, Dremel, or even a razor to file off that raised callus will help. Beware, you don’t want to go so deep that you hit the soft skin below. We’re just trying to bring it closer to flush. This is best done right after a shower.
Tools: There are some newer things like the WODrod and Sand Bar that look promising. I don’t have any experience with these tools, but would love to hear from anyone who has.
Balms, Lotions, Creams: There is also a ton of pre-hand tear balms and ointments out there to keep your hands soft and ready to handle what you’re dishing out. Check out the full selection on Rogue’s site.
INTRA-WORKOUT TIPS
As we said, the best way to treat a hand tear is to not tear at all. So let’s say you didn’t take any of the steps above and you are worried that your hands might tear. What can you do?
Don’t use too much chalk. For some reason there’s a belief that the more chalk the better. This isn’t the case and we’ve seen it lead to tears many times. Too much chalk mixed with sweat creates a substance similar to concrete. This creates a large amount of friction and will often cause tears. A light dusting is all you need. If the pull-up bar looks like someone coated it with white paint after your workouts, you’re using too much chalk!
If you have to ‘re-grip’ the bar after every rep, let’s clean up your technique. The hands shouldn’t be moving on the pull-up bar every rep. The more excessive movement, the greater the chances of a tear happening. If you tear regularly, this may be a place to start.
HOT HANDS
OK, so you didn’t do anything to help your hands and now you’re half way through the WOD and you just KNOW your hands are about to tear. What do you do?
Stop The Pull-ups. We know you hate this and you want to finish, but a good tear will impact your training for well over a week. This is one workout. Stop the kipping pull-up. You can go to a strict pull-up or a ring row. This will save your hands while allowing you to still get a similar stimulus.
No, I Will Not Be Stopped. You can ignore the suggestion above. But you will more than likely tear. So see the section below.
I CAN”T BELIEVE IT, I TORE MY HANDS!
Yep, you tore. Now what?!
Clean Your Equipment. It’s gross now, and nobody wants your DNA!
Wash Your Hands. Yep, it will hurt but we need to clean those things up with soap and water. We also have some antiseptic spray available. It hurst too.
Cut Away the Dead Skin. We recommend removing the loose flaps with nail cutters or small scissors. We have some of these available as well. Don’t worry, we decon them after each use!
No Popping. If you’ve got blood blisters rather than a full-on tear, don’t pop them. Your body has provided you with a natural band-aid to protect that hot spot. Try to leave it intact.
Salt. Many of you have heard me say this and thought I was nuts, but if you want to speed up the healing process, pour salt on the wound and hold it there for a little while as you stomp the floor and scream like a baby. It hurst like hell but it also sucks the water out of it and starts to dry it out immediately. Healing time is improved by several days in my experience.
WORKING OUT POST-TEAR
You’ll want to keep hitting WODs, how do you do it?
Cover Them. Band-aids, tape, wraps, etc will help protect the area as it heals.
New Skin. You can buy this at any pharmacy. You paint it on and it provides a thin cover over the wound. This is a great tool to keep on with your training.
Be Selective. Substitute movements as needed to give your hands a couple of days to heal. Each time you rip open the healing hands, you’re going to increase the time of recovery and the time it will take to get back to normal training.
We hope these tips help you guys keep your hands in one piece. Here’s to high-rep pull-ups without tears!!
