Take Care of those Hands

MANI-CURE??

Crossfit challenges us with large quantities of pull ups, climbing up ropes, sumo deadlift high pulling and repping out those toes –to-bars. These great movements can sometimes leave our hands battered and bruised with the occasional blister. There are ways to prevent hand injuries from occurring and also ways to take care of injuries that couldn’t be avoided.

“I want to build calluses because it will toughen my hands”

The build up of calluses is usually the culprit of superficial hand injuries. Ideally, we’d like to have nice smooth hands with an even surface throughout. You can purchase callus shavers or pumice stones online, or at your local pharmacy to shave down any excess skin. Soaking your hands or showering before shaving will work best.  As another preventative measure, be sure to wash all chalk off of hands after workouts and use moisturizer such as bag-balm,  to prevent drying out of the hands.

Athletic tape and chalk also work to improve our grip and prevent and protect any cuts on the palm. If you know a lot of pull ups are on deck don’t be afraid to place a few strips of athletic tape or chalk in your trouble areas to help prevent ripping. Don’t become overly reliant on tape and chalk, use it only as a precaution!

Sometimes we push ourselves so hard that hand injuries occur even after careful maintenance of our precious hands (a small price to pay for the great things we are doing for the inside of our bodies). If a hand cut does occur, use warm soap and water to clean the area, apply antibacterial ointment, and cover for the first few hours. After that, remove the dressing and let nature heal the rest. Also, don’t forget to wipe down your pull up bar or barbell after the WOD if you did encounter a mid workout hand injury and kept going, what a beast!

Just like everything we do here at CrossFit Southie, preparation is key. Don’t stop pulling!!

Strength
Overhead Squat
3-3-3-1-1-1

WOD
5-4-3-2-1
Squat Snatch (155,105)
Bar Muscle-up

Level 3 (135,95)
Level 2 (105,65), 15,12,,8,6,3-C2B Pull Ups
Level 1 (75,45),10,8,6,4,2- C2B Pull Ups

Ca$h Out – 800m run for time