66. GLOVES
Uunless you are used to manual labor, you'll notice after your first few training sessions that your hands will develope blisters. The way to prevent this is to wear gloves. You can use gloves specifically made for weightlifting or you can substitute gold gloves. Keep in mind that once you start wearing gloves you are committed to them. Your hands will never get a change to toughen up and calious over. Forget your gloves just once and it's back to the blisters. Unless you need soft hands for your job or hobby (i.e. musician or surgeon), our advice is to give the gloves a pass.
67. SPONGES
Sponges are a cheaper way to protect the hands during a workout. Go to the kitchen section of any store and for a buck or two pick up a package of sponges. They come in different shapes and sizes but the 4 X 6 X 1/2-inch variety will probably work best. Place a sponge in each hand and grab the bar, dumbbell, or machine handle. The sponge will protect the skin on your hands from blistering.
68. WRAPS
No matter how diligent you are with proper technique, your joints will be subjected to a tremendous amount of stress. The soft tissues at the joints will occasionally start letting you know that maybe you should take some sort of preventive measure. Many bodybuilders find that by wrapping the common trouble areas such as the knees, wrists, and elbows, they can reduce the chances of injury to the joint. Wraps come in many shapes and sizes. Some are elastic in nature and have a preset tension. Others are nothing more than simple first-aid elastic bandages that allow you to adjust the tension. While we don't recommend wrapping yourself up like an Egyptian mummy, you may want to experiment with wraps on such exercises as squats, deadlifts, and bench presses.
69. BELTS
The most popular piece of weightlifting equipment is the lifting belt. However, wearing a belt at all times never allows the lower back muscles to strengthen. We suggest that you use one only if you really need it. Our advice is to only wear a belt for lower back protection on such exercises as squats, deadlifts, barbell rows and overhead standing presses, and only when using heavy weight.
70. BENCH PRESS SHIRTS
If you decide to test you ego on the bench press, you might want to invest in a bench press shirt. These specially made shirts are usually made of polyester and about two or three sizes too small! By compressing the arms, shoulders, and chest muscles, the upper body is put into a better leverage situation, enabling you to lift more. Some powerlifters will add 50 to 100 pounds to their bench press with the aid of a bench shirt.
Bookmarks