Hand Care for Gymnasts

General Hand Care

Gymnasts will undoubtedly form callouses on their hands from working on bars. Hand Grips are recommended during gymnastics training and competitions to aid in the prevention of Rips. Please note gymnasts may still Rip under grips.

You can fin our Post on Grips, Hand Guards and Bar Loops here or alternatively contact us and we can measure, size and source these for you.

Alternatively Tape Grips can be made from Sports tape (50mm tape). Please note we generally don’t have time in class to construct these for Gymnasts however parents are welcome to supply these for use in training.

Delta Gymnastics have made this video on how to make tape grips using 50mm strapping tape.

Gymnasts should use an emery board or nail file to file down any Callouses as these will otherwise continue to grow over time until they “Rip”

Moisturiser, Vitamin E Cream or a custom Hand Balm can be used after training to help the elasticity of the skin on the hands. Moisturiser should not be applied before training.

Rip Treatment

Have the gymnast wash their hands to remove any chalk and surface germs. Yes, it stings, but it still has to be done. Pat the rip dry with a paper towel.

Have an adult carefully trim any excess skin using sterilized scissors and apply Neosporin or similar antibiotic ointment.

Cover with a soft gauze, tissue or band aid and then cover with athletic tape to keep in place. This should get the gymnast through the remainder of practice.

Once at home, we swear by tea bags to reduce the pain and speed the healing of the rip. Prepare a cup of black tea using a tea bag. Remove the tea bag and place it in the freezer for a few minutes to cool.

Apply the tea bag directly to the rip and leave it on there for 20 minutes or so. The tannic acid that occurs naturally in the tea is an amazing pain reliever! The tea bag will discolor the rip area, but only for a few days. It also helps speed the development of the new layer of skin.

Alternatively a cream such as Canesten can be effective in promoting healing.

Some recent advice is that hydrogen peroxide is effective at quick recovery and healing – but may not be pleasant.

Over the next few days be sure to keep the rip area moisturized to prevent cracking and reopening of the wound. A number of hand balms are available in our store that support hand care.

During practice, cover the rip with a bandage and athletic tape or make a tape grip so your gymnast can continue training. It really is good practice for gymnasts to learn to swing bars with a rip because undoubtedly at some point in their gymnastics career they will get a rip right before a meet and need to know how to work through it.

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