Recently I wrote articles about both the prevention and treatment of tearing of the skin on your palms. One of the tools I recommended was leather hand grips. There are a variety of hand grips on the market, but most are designed for gymnastics. The best general exercises hand grip I have seen is the Rage Leather Hand Grip.
The Rage grips are very simple in design. They cover your palm with a pliable piece of soft leather, while a Velcro strap allows for you to tighten the grip down around your wrist. Your middle two fingers will slide through the finger holes of the grip and the Velcro strap can be adjusted for any wrist size.
While they will take some getting used to, these hand grips are helpful with a variety of exercises. The most popular use for them, of course, is while doing pull ups. They can help you prevent tears, or in the event you already ripped your palm, they can protect your skin while you heal.
In addition to pull-ups I have seen students use them for deadlifts and kettlebells. You can potentially find an application for these grips in any exercise that is grip intensive.
At first using the grips will feel awkward and the leather, while not stiff, will not be as soft as you would like. With use and time, the grips will soften up and become much more comfortable.
Rage Leather Hand Grips come in three sizes. You measure for your size by measuring the distance from the edge of your wrist to the base of your middle finger.
Small – up to 4”
Medium – 4”-4 ¾”
Large – Over 4 ¾”
It has been my experience as a coach that none of my most of my adult students will use either a medium or a large.
Rage Leather Hand Grips are a great addition to anyone’s gym bag.
Rage Leather Hand Grips are available for $15.95-19.95 at RageFitness.com.
