While you may look forward to your daily workouts and the overall feeling you get from the experience, barbell lifts, such as deadlifts and shoulder presses, can leave your hands in pain. The texture of the barbells and nature of the barbell exercises place stress on your hands that can potentially cause calluses. However, you can follow basic preventative steps to avoid a callus.
Step 1
Wrap tape around your fingers where you normally get a callus. You can rip a piece of athletic tape in half so it fits between your joints without affecting your overall grip and control of the bar. Common areas that you may need to tape include the inside of the thumbs and bases of the fingers.
Step 2
Apply gymnastics chalk to the palms of your hands. The chalk helps improve your grip by filling your skin folds, which prevents your skin from being pressed down and slipping, which can result in a callus. Check with your gym or fitness club before using chalk as some facilities prohibit its use.
Step 3
Grip the bar with a comfortable, loose grip. Avoid allowing your skin to fold underneath the grip or having any excessive pressure on one location or finger. Experiment with different grip styles until you find a grip that feels comfortable on your hands.
Step 4
Stop the exercise immediately if you feel pressure or a callus forming. You can always stop the exercise to re-grip and start the exercise again. Taking the time to fix your grip can help you avoid a callus.
Step 5
Wear weightlifting gloves during the workout. Some people don't like the feel of gloves during a workout, but they can help you avoid a callus. You can still use tape and chalk with weightlifting gloves, but you still need to use a comfortable grip that doesn't pinch any skin.
Step 6
Care for the callus by shaving the calluses with a pumice stone and moisturizing your hands. Removing the dead skin from your hands and keeping the skin moist helps prevent a callus from forming.
Things You'll Need
- Athletic tape
- Gymnastics chalk
- Pumice stone
- Hand lotion
- Weightlifting gloves
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