That’s what I thought.
This past spring, my buddy sponsored by Manimal Wear gave me a pair of their wrist wraps. I’ll admit that I had no idea what the fuck these things were for at the time. So they just stayed in my gym bag in its plastic bag for a good 2 months or so.
Then around the summertime, I hurt my wrist (again) going for a 1 rep max power clean. I think I was going for 235#. At around the 225#-ish mark is when my wrist safety would go to shit on cleans. It was one of the main factors that held me back in my clean development.
At least I was able to figure out it also had to do with my rack flexibility. My shoulders were able to get to the proper positioning over time thanks to a bunch of videos on Mobility WOD. But still…my wrists were still prone to injury if my catch positioning messed up just one tiny bit. On top of that, anything overhead – jerks, snatches, overhead squats, etc. – was affected by these small wrist strains I’d experience here and there.
That’s when it hit me…uh…I should give these wrist wraps a shot.
…but at least for me, they give me that extra room for error when improving my form as I get heavier in cleans and overhead lifts. With this extra leeway, I was able to get that 240# power clean, 185# overhead squat, and banging through an ascending ladder of 135# thrusters was actually possible in a recent WOD.
Everyone at the box keeps asking me if they help.
Um…yes.
I honestly can’t see myself without them for any workouts that could hurt your wrists. They provide enough support during those heavy and/or high reps, while giving you enough mobility for more technical shit in the same WOD. Yep, I’ve managed to string my double unders with these wrist wraps on.
Most of the CrossFit products out there are unnecessary. Rarely do I spend money on this shit unless it really does help, like the right pair of shoes, a jump rope of my own, and a comfortable pair of underwear. I don’t see a need for sweat-activated, graphic t-shirts or expensive handcare products when old, ready-to-dispose-of gym clothes and a foot file + moisturizer do the job.
They actually protected me from a bunch of injuries and really stepped up my CrossFit progress. Having a pair was like a paradigm shift for me.
Plus, wrist wraps are cheap as fuck compared to most CrossFit gear out there. I don’t mind dropping $12 every time a pair gets too smelly from the sweat.
Kip it real, my friends.
First of all, I just want to say that I am NOT associated in any way with Again Faster. This is simply my own review of the Again Faster Grips. I don’t make any affiliate commissions from this.
At first, I was all about these grips. I hated normal lifting gloves because they ruined my grip, whether we’re talking pull-ups or barbell movements. I was constantly ripping my hands at the time, so I needed a solution. Admittedly, I wasn’t taking care of my hands – filing calluses down, moisturizing, etc. – as well as I should’ve been.
So a few months ago, I spent $19.95 or so (they’re now $21.95) and decided to give them a shot. Since it was a reasonable price for the pair, I didn’t really care if they didn’t work to my liking. For once, my hands didn’t hurt during pull-ups! My first test was a good WOD, too. If I remember correctly, it was an AMRAP of pull-ups and overhead squats. Even during the OHS’s, I was pretty impressed.
Then after a while, I realized that while my hands were more protected, my grip suffered. I had to squeeze the bar harder to maintain the grip, although my hands didn’t hurt. Going for high volume pull-ups was rough because there would be a bit more strain on my forearms.
That’s why for the past few weeks, I honestly stopped using them. If only the grips were a bit thinner, then maybe I’d enjoy pull-ups with them more.
The last 5 minute AMRAP of our WOD consisted of 10 toes-to-bar and 5 ring dips…two of my least favorite movements. After 2 rounds, my hands were in so much pain from the past few days, so I ran to my gym bag and snagged my grips. My toes-to-bar weren’t pretty, but I managed to get through the last 3+ minutes of the AMRAP. No rips thanks to the grips 🙂
Generally, I prefer not using any gloves or grips whatsoever. However, there are situations where you just need some protection (lol). That’s when you might need something like the Again Faster grips. While I don’t think they’re for everyone, they’re cheap enough to try out.
Again Faster, if you guys are reading this, I just wished the grips were thinner! Even though it may not seem much, its current thickness makes it a lot harder for me to stay on the pull-up bar. I’d be all over a thinner version 2 of these grips 🙂
Do you feel these grips might be for you? You can find out more here.