It is the night
before the state championship gymnastics meet. You have been
doing well at all the preliminary meets leading up to this meet
and there is a real chance that you can win big. You enter the
gym feeling really good. Your coach is there and he takes you
through your routines on all the events. Your timing is right
on, you are sticking your landings. Everything is going great.
"Okay,"
your coach says, "That's enough, let's save something
for tomorrow.'"
"Can I do just
one more dismount on bars?"
"All right,
just one and then let's call it a night."
You jump on
the bars and do a long hang kip to the high bar, front
hip circle, and a nice high cast for your flyaway dismount.
Swinging down under the bar you feel a tearing sensation
in your hand. The dismount is a little wobbly but you
keep it under control.
"Oh no!" you think
as you pull off your grip and stare at a flap of skin
the size of a dime that is bleeding in the palm of your
hand. You've ripped! |
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Great, just what you
needed, especially the night before a competition. Why did it
have to happen now? How are you going to concentrate on doing
your best in the routine tomorrow with the pain of a rip constantly
making itself felt? You know that you are capable of doing the
routine with your hand taped, but that edge of pain can be just
enough to take your mind off doing the best routine that you
can.
Chances are this situation
has happened to all of us at some point in our competitive -
It is almost certain that all of us have ripped during workouts
and have been told by the coach to clean it up and get back
to work on our routines. This situation could happen in a meet
and we need to learn how to deal with it so we can continue
to compete effectively.
Rips are a common,
though painful occurrence in the sport of gymnastics. Everyone
gets them from the beginner to the elite level performer. For
the novice gymnast, rips normally occur because the gymnast's
grip on the bar is too tight through fear or lack of familiarity
with the skill. Advanced gymnasts usually rip because they allow
an excess of callous to develop on their hands.
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A
rip is a separation of the upper layers of skin in the
palm of the hand from lower layers of blood rich tissue.
An excessively tight grip or callous buildup allows the
skin to bunch up as you are swinging around the bar. The
force of the swing pulls the upper layer of skin away
from the lower layers causing a pocket to form which may
become a blister or fill with blood. Whichever occurs,
you can be. Sure that a rip is imminent. According to
Bill Martin, an athletic trainer at Sports Physical Therapists,
Inc. of Newtown, PA, prevention is the key. Martin believes
that the rip can be as disabling as a big injury. He compares
the gymnast's rip to a blister on the heel of a marathon
runner - a disastrous situation that can ruin the race. |
For the novice gymnast,
simple training in appropriate swing techniques and grip change
will help alleviate several rips. For the more advanced gymnast,
a daily regimen of hand care must be put into effect to minimize
rips and keep bar workout times more effective.
Before You Rip
- After every workout wash your hands with soap and water,
then rub hand lotion into the front and back of your hands.
- Prevent excess callous from building up by rubbing the
affected areas with a pumice stone. To find the areas of
excess callous, soak the hands in water for about ten minutes
and you will be able to notice areas on the palm that retain
a whitish color while the rest of the skin stays pink. Use
the pumice stone only as necessary. Excessive use will cause
the hands to be constantly sore during workouts.
- Rub hand lotion into your hands at night before going
to sleep and, if necessary, when you get up in the morning.
Always keep your hands moist.
When You First Rip
- Remove the excess skin carefully. A sterilized pair of
nail clippers (to prevent infection) should work nicely,
then wash with soap and water.
Don't put hand lotion on a fresh rip. Martin advises that
you cover the rip with some "over-the-counter" antibiotic
ointment rather than Vaseline so the injured area has a
chance to breathe. Some pharmacies carry products called
"Second Skin" or "NuSkin" that comes in patch or liquid
form and may be placed directly over the rip.
- Before going to sleep that night, put some antibiotic
ointment on the rip and cover your hand with a sock or glove
with the fingers cut out to keep the ointment off the sheets
and out of your eyes. This treatment should continue until
the rip is covered with new skin.
After You Have Ripped
- Once new skin has covered the rip, continue using hand
lotion as described above. If the rip is allowed to dry
up, the skin will crack and you will continue to rip in
the same spot. Sometimes rubbing Chapstick over a drying
rip can also prevent cracking.
- If you must workout again, after ripping do not cover
the rip with the sticky side of the tape. Instead lay a
small piece of tape sticky-side up over the rip so it. comes
in contact with the tape you are using to protect your hand.
On nights when you
have particularly hard workouts on bars and your hands are hot
and throbbing it is a good idea to soak them in cool water or
hold ice cubes in your hands until they melt. This will help
the inflamed tissues to cool off. Just before a competition
you can deaden the pain of a rip by keeping an ice pack on it,
or soaking the hands in a slush bath of ice water for ten minutes.
This will help keep your concentration on the routine instead
of the pain of the rip.
However, Martin cautions
that the hand should return to normal warmth before the actual
competition.
There is a saying
I have heard, "Discipline weighs ounces, while regret weighs
a ton." Discipline yourself to take care of your hands before
and after every workout so that when your chance comes to make
it big in the championship meet, you will be fully prepared.
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