offermann Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 I'm not sure if this is the correct subforum but I will just leave it here and see what happens. I started heavy lifting and grip training about a year ago and since then my hands have become much stronger. This goes without saying, thousands of pullups, heavy deadlifts, and grip work have taken it's toll on my hands. I'm only 17 so I am fortunate enough to not have to deal with arthritis but it is something else. I used to have the mindset that "whatever doesn't kill you just makes you stronger" so I would subject my hands to the most painful things purposely. Now I regret that. I'm sure that my hands look baby soft compared to some of the vets on this forum but you can definitely distinguish my calloused and blistered hands from those of another teenager. It's difficult to articulate this, but closing my hands just doesn't feel the same anymore. A year ago I could close my hands with ease and no pain. Now, everytime I go to close my hands it just feels weird, borderline pain. There is nothing wrong with my joints but it's something with the skin. My hands don't look terrible, just the expected callus grouping at the base of the digits, but when I close them just hurt. Is it normal for calluses to hurt when you poke them? Closing my hands just feels like all my dead skin/callus is hitting each other and it doesn't feel good. I use sandpaper on my calluses and that works at least aesthetically but no matter how much I wear them down they always seem to provide some degree of uncomfortableness. I'd really just like to be able to close my hands again without thinking about the slight pain/uncomfort that comes with it. I'm really not sure if it's the callus or maybe scar tissue beneath. Don't get me wrong, this isn't terribly painful by any means but it's rather uncomfortable to close my hands. If you guys have any tips for hand maintance I'd love to hear it. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrickmeniru Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Well, although you haven't had any joint trouble, if you carry on not taking care of your hands then it's only a matter of time in all likelihood. I would start doing some light extensor work, just throw a few elastic bands round your fingers and expand your hand for a couple of sets of 30 reps or something similar (rice/sand buckets also work well, just stick your hand in and expand/squeeze for reps or time). I would also do some wrist stretching regularly, i do some each day, which has really helped my elbows (you might not get pain there atm, but you will know what i mean in time). These stretches work great and only take 3 mins: http://www.gymnasticbodies.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=5960 As far as the skin issue goes, although i'm no expert and haven't had anything similar, it could be that you just need to moisturise your hands each day, especially if you're using chalk - it just helps the skin recover and won't reduce how tough your hands are, just make them more comfortable and the skin healthier (IMO). Anyone else feel free to rebut me if i've got anything wrong... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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