MissDevious started this discussion ·
Okay, so this is kinda weird...I know. I have compulsively sweaty hands. Its a freaky condition called hyper-hydrosis. Since sweat and poles aren't a great combination, is it possible to wear gloves that would allow for a better grip? Or is this a no-no?
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Tabbycat ·
I read on pole exercise.co.uk that you can use lambskin leather gloves. I don't think It's recommended for use ALL of the time, But for learning new tricks and what not they really give you that extra grip. I just clean my pole a lot, But I know It doesn't help if you're in the middle of a routine, Or doing something where you can't take a break. 🤔 Here's the article if it interests you at all: http://www.poleexercise.co.uk/2007/04/20/5-ways-to-beat-sweaty-hand-syndrome/
Journey ·
My hands sweat really badly, too, and am currently on a quest for the perfect pole glove. I suspect I have that same condition you do - my hands are always sweating, and I'm even leaving wet streaks on the keyboard right now (it's gross!). I've tried hand antiperspirants (Dry Hands, Tite Grip, etc.) and nothing has stopped the sweating for me. And the sweat negates every other grip aid I've tried. Even if I dry my hands off completely and immediately before a move, literally 2 seconds later they are just as sweaty and I lose my grip. Once I start sliding, there's no stopping it. People generally look down on using gloves because it's better to learn without it, but when you have an actual condition that you can't do anything about, then you really don't have much of a choice. It's not like you're being lazy or taking shortcuts, or even that you need to learn to relax so the sweat will stop, you just can't stop your hands from sweating! And it can be dangerous if you can't control it, and I don't think that any amount of grip strength training will completely help in this case (although you should probably still work on strengthening your grip, anyway). Right now I'm modifying a pair of leather batting gloves to meet my needs - cutting the fingers off, sewing the raw edges, and pulling the extra padding out of the palm. They grip really well when I want them to grip but slide a bit too easily, but I do like that I don't have to sacrifice my spins. Most gloves grip too well so that you can't spin in them. My goal is to have a glove that grips like my skin so I could do an uncut dance if I wanted to, and not have to skip moves because of too much or too little grip. In addition to this, I'm looking into getting a 45mm pole (easier to grip with hands) and I bought one of those powerballs to help strengthen my grip. Mighty Grip makes pole gloves, with and without "tack" on the palm, but I've heard you can't spin with either glove. Golfing gloves are great, maybe just a smidgen too sticky, but the palms are extremely thin - I've tried a pair but I was afraid they would rip. Joel (Poledancefan) told me that quarterback gloves are perfect, but I haven't tried them. And for the UK peeps, Nomis 1/2 finger gloves are supposed to be awesome, too. Generally, find something with either a sticky palm, or something with the smooth, soft leather. Don't get anything with the fuzzy kind of leather - they slide (been there, tried that). I'd recommend going fingerless and something with a couple layers in the palm but without extra padding - that way you get the grip but your hand can still get a feel for the pole itself, and it won't be so thin that it rips. Also decide what you're looking for, as in if you want gloves just to help with your holds or if you're looking for a glove that does everything like I am (warning: I had a heck of a time trying to find my everything glove.... not fun). I'd also recommend still working on moves without gloves as long as you feel you can do them safely, but don't beat yourself up if it doesn't work out. Oh, and be prepared to spend money on this whole thing. You'll be trying and returning gloves and probably wasting money at some point because you're going to have to experiment to find your preference. And this is just my experience, I'm no expert... Amcut is another glove junkie, maybe she'll chime in... 🙂
Journey gave you a lot of good advice. I don't have a lot of experience with gloves yet, but I'm starting to try them out because I get pretty sweaty too when I pole. That in combination with a pole that is kind of slippery on its own (stainless steel, plus the weather here is still pretty cold sometimes,) I have some major grip issues. I don't think I actually have hydrosis, but I've always been really sweaty when I work out--I noticed recently when I started bringing my boyfriend to the gym with me that he and I could work out at about the same intensity for the same length of time, and he'd be a little damp while I'd have this nuclear reactor glow going on. So it's definitely been a bump in the road along my pole dancing journey. I would recommend trying a bunch of different grip aids first; you never know, you might find one that works really well for you. I will caution you though that I at least seem to sweat through a lot of them pretty quickly--usually before a routine is over, so within about five minutes or so. I've tried liquid chalk, Grrrip, Dry Hands, No Sweat, Prince, and several different spray-on anti-perspirants as well as continuously soaking my hands in rubbing alcohol, which just ends up drying out my already parched knuckles even more and eventually leads to painful splitting. So far none of them have impressed me all that much. Liquid chalk seems to be the best, but I can't spin with it on, and it rubs/sweats off very quickly, so I have to be really careful when I'm dancing with it on--for instance, I can't really walk much around the pole, because the friction between the pole and my palm wears it off quickly, and when I do floorwork I have to be careful not to drag my hands along the floor. But you and I are not the same person, and while I've gone through several grip aids, I haven't tried every single one on the market, and there might be something out there that works for you. I think I'm going to give the Mighty Gloves a go next, even if you can't spin in them. There are some static holds I want to brush up on, but it's hard to do that when I have such a hard time with my grip; I'm afraid I'll slip and it will lead to an injury. Anyway, good luck with whatever you try. I know what a pain in the ass sweaty hands can be, but it's not the end of the road for you; it's just a matter of finding what works for you.
