Weightlifting is a sport that constantly requires you to handle barbells, dumbbells, and sometimes even kettlebells and pull-up bars. All of that gripping can, unfortunately, lead to a lot of damage on the hands, more specifically – a ton of calluses that are sometimes so painful and raw that they turn into actual wounds.
With that said, over time, as your hands adjust to the workload and your skin toughens up, it’s likely you will experience them less and less often, but it’s still with knowing how to take care of your hands properly so that you don’t end up tearing your skin and having to lay off training for at least a few days.
In this article, we’re going to go over the fundamental ways you should take care of your hands to prevent calluses from occurring and how you can treat the ones you already have, so that they don’t end up causing tears. Before you ask who we are to give advice, we’d like to mention that this piece is written in collaboration with our friends from the Warm Body Cold Mind blog – https://blog.warmbody-coldmind.com/, who are professional athletes and trainers in weightlifting and other strength sports.
So now, without delaying further – let’s get started.
How Can You Avoid Calluses When Lifting
Calluses are a completely normal occurrence that happens naturally when you put repetitive friction and pressure on the skin. Typically, when you’re lifting weights, you tend to develop calluses on your hands from gripping the barbells tightly, which is a natural response that your skin has. With that said, there are several things you can do to prevent them from becoming wounds and a potential injury that hinders your training process.
Use Chalk
It’s not a coincidence that all elite weightlifters use chalk – not only does it help you get rid of the sweat in your palms and give you a better grip, but it also reduces the amount of pressure you put on your hands, thus reducing the chances of getting calluses. Having said that, it’s crucial that you don’t overdo the chalk – putting too much can have the opposite effect and may lead to even more friction and more calluses.
File Your Existing Calluses
This is definitely not a pleasant process, but it’s one that can help your hands feel better and less callused. What you need to do here is shave off the excess hard skin on your palms – typically with some kind of a knife. Alternatively, you can file down your calluses with a pumice stone, which is definitely the easier way to go about this procedure. By doing so, you prevent large lumps from forming on your hands, so there’s a lesser chance of the skin ripping off and leaving an open wound.
Get Grips
An alternative way to protect your hands is by getting a pair of gymnastics grips. They will protect your palms from friction with the barbell, as they give you a kind of padding that reduces the pressure you put on the skin. With that said, you have to keep in mind that lifting with grips takes getting used to, and it’s not ideal in many situations, especially when you want to set personal bests.
How To Take Care of Callus-Caused Wounds
If you didn’t take the right measures and you’re already dealing with a ripped callus that left an open wound, there are a few things you should do:
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- Disinfect the area: Clean your hands thoroughly and then disinfect the open wound with rubbing alcohol to prevent an infection from happening.
- Moisturize your skin: Get a good balm or hand cream to soothe the skin of your palms – it’s a good idea to invest here, as you will want a cream that creates a barrier but isn’t super greasy at the same time.
- Rest: If your hands have suffered sufficient damage and you feel pain when gripping any objects, the best course of action is to take a break from lifting and let your palms heal.
In Conclusion
Missing training sessions and failing at competitions because you got a callus and you didn’t do it the right way and on time just sounds ridiculous. However, getting rips and tears happens frequently to all lifters, especially those who don’t know how to take care of their palms. Hopefully, this article helps you learn all the tricks and tips on how to not only prevent calluses from happening in the first place but also how to deal with them once they’re already impacting your performance.
As always, for more informative articles on weightlifting, health & fitness, make sure to read all our other blogs. and we’d also love to hear from you in the comments section – how do you deal with calluses and what tips and tricks help you the most? Let us know.