Ripped hands

[Guest Euclid]

I ripped the #### out of my hands last week deadlifting in the rain.  So far, I've just kept lifting but the sores keep re-tearing.  When this happens, is it best to just work through it until they toughen up enough or give the hands a break?  I refuse to ever wear gloves or straps.

[Guest omniexist]

I say let them heal!

[Guest liquidtheorems]

first don't deadlift in the rain :-) however if you do make sure you have chalk and plenty of it.  Regardless of how bad your hands have been torn up, unless you have wolverine like healing powers, it will take at least a week.  I've done this same thing on many occasions, minus the rain doing heavy partials with no chalk.  It took at least a week before I could even come close to going back to doing the same movement.  Don't try and work through it, if you lay off movements that directly utilitze the part of your hand that is torn up you will be back in lifting shape in a week or a half.  That was usually the turnaround when I tore up my hands.  Hope they heal fast.

Bob

[Bob Lipinski]

Athletic tape works nice until your hands heal up.

[BarBender]

When someone mentioned electrifying your workout I doubt that the person intended for you to deadlift in the rain. Being hit by lightning while deadlifting will momentarily enhance the grip on the bar but completing the lift may become secondary to survival.

Problem areas that may tear or blister can be wrapped in athletic tape as Bob suggested.

[Guest kINGPIN]

If you can, focus on the squat to keep up the strength/developement in the major areas and let your hands heal.  Even if you are superman, the pain will always hold you back no matter how much you try and ignore it.  You don't want to be carrying any injury around forever so just let it heel and then get back to it with a brutish force and total concentration that you could never have when there is a nagging pain in a part that is not related to the exercise.

Just my opinion.

[Rick Browne]

You might want to try an old Longshoreman`s  trick  they used to toughen up the skin. That is; to soak the hands in a brine solution.

1/2 cup of salt in 3 cups water for 1-11/2 minutes. I remember reading an article on dockworkers and it was stated in the article that is what they did. (everyday too)