30 Day Takeoff: Day 14

Duration: 00:45:18

Enjoy this rest day for your body, now it's time to nourish your mind.

Pro tip: If you identify with the thoughts of never being good enough or you often come to your pole sessions with an attitude of "I can't", "I'll never" or "it always hurts" I have a podcast for you. Pole Dance RANTS "Are you sabotaging your pole progress"? is a great listen for anyone struggling with these thoughts. Spoiler, you're not alone, and I've personally been in this headspace. You can also watch and listen to all of my RANTS right here on the website.

I also feel now is a good time to talk about how to care for calluses and blisters. Prevention is key, but I've listed how to care for a tear first.

Rip/tear treatment:

• Clean: Rinse the rip, gently remove any loose flap, using a small scissors or nail clipper.
• Protect: Apply a skin balm. I’ve recently seen that gymnasts and weight lifters use this product RIPT Quick Fix. I bet Dr Bronners magic balm might work too?
• Keep it supple: Reapply balm regularly (about hourly day 1–2) so the new skin doesn’t crack.

Prevention:

• Prevent daily: When you shower, bathe, wash dishes, or you can soak your hands 5-10 minutes in warm water – use a pumice stone and finish with balm, like Dr Bronners after. Bonus you can add Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) to help with joint and muscle pain.
• Check training schedule: Avoid doing too many static rotations (spins) with the hands in one session. Learn your what your limits are and stick to it. This means if you’re following REPS in a program and you’re limit is under/less than, my suggested REPS abide by your limit! If you know you’re prone to blisters, split up your training so you have at least a day or two without any static rotations
• Balance moisture: Some grip aids will strip your hands of moisture causing better grip, but leaving you more prone to blisters!
• Try gloves: I believe there are several pole specific gloves available here are a few I know about: Mighty grip, Mipole, some sticky legging companies like Superflyhoney also offer gloves.
• Change your finish: The most blister inducing finish for me (I have cold, dry hands) is Brass. Powder coated can be bad, depending on the type, they’re not all the same, I had one power coated pole (it was a lil mynx custom made to sell here ages ago) that never caused calluses!!! Silicone and the rubber wraps can really take a toll on the hands. But any finish can be problematic for some.