Whether you have already ripped your hands at cross training or seen it happen to one of your friends, chances are you have seen the significant impact it can have.

Not only does a ripped hand look painful, but it is often incredibly painful. In some instances, ripped hands can prevent people from training for several days and potentially put them off gymnastics movements altogether.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Here are some tips on preventing ripping your hands when doing functional training gymnastics.

Moisturize

The first way to prevent rips from occurring when you execute gymnastic movements at cross training is to ensure that your hands are adequately moisturized.

If your hands are dry, there is a much greater chance that calluses will occur as your hands become worn and torn from repeated reps.

Creating calluses is not the main issue that causes ripping. You need some calluses to harden your skin and prepare it for the rigors of cross training gymnastics. However, bulky calluses that create ridges on your hands are likely to cause ripping.

Photo: ctto

File and Shave

One way to remove those bulky calluses is by shaving and filing them down. This form of hand care is one of the most important for preventing rips, yet it is an aspect that many people often overlook.

Callus shavers are not expensive on sites like Amazon, and level your callous’ out to stop friction rips.

Allow Your Hands to Heal

Sometimes, it doesn’t matter what you do, but your hands decide today is the day to rip. Rather than beating yourself up about it and leaving them to heal on their own, which could take a long time and cause long-lasting damage, you need to heal your hands as quickly as possible.

For example, it’s probably not smart to come into the box the day after ripping your hands and start trying to work on your toes to bar!

Instead, use one of the many hand-healing CrossFit lotions and creams available online, and give them breathing space to heal.

Keep your hands clean and avoid using them where possible. That doesn’t mean you can’t train; you might have to temporarily scale some workouts until your hand has healed.

Remember, there is no shame in scaling a Cross Training workout!

Use the Best Accessories

Finally, the best option for preventing rips from occurring when doing cross training gymnastics is to invest in a high-quality pair of gymnastics grips.

Our premium-grade, carbon fiber, fingerless gymnastic grips protect your palms from ripping during pull-ups, muscle-ups, and more. You can check out our range of colors here.