Ultimate Guide to Climber’s Skin Care: Tips, Techniques, and Top Products
Climber’s Guide to Optimal Skin Care: Protecting and Healing Your Most Valuable Tool
Understanding Climber’s Skin: The First Step to Effective Care
As climbers, our hands endure rigorous demands, with skin being our primary point of contact with the rock. Understanding what happens to our skin while climbing is essential for maintaining its health and ensuring peak performance.
The Science Behind Climbing Skin
When climbing, the skin on our hands undergoes various stresses:
- Abrasion: Repeated friction against rough surfaces causes micro-tears.
- Shear Forces: Pulling and gripping can lead to calluses and blisters.
- Moisture Balance: Sweating can soften the skin, making it more susceptible to damage, while dry conditions can lead to cracks.
The key to skin care lies in balancing moisture, maintaining toughness, and healing damage effectively.
Preventing Skin Damage: Tips and Techniques
1. Regular Maintenance
Filing Calluses: Overly thick calluses can tear easily, while thin ones can blister. Use a pumice stone or a file to regularly smooth out calluses, keeping them at an optimal thickness. Many climbers use a razor blade to cut away the dead skin, but you must be very careful and experienced to do it safely.
Moisturizing: Apply a balm like Rhino Skin Solutions’ Repair Cream daily to keep the skin pliable without making it overly soft. The Repair Cream is formulated with natural ingredients that hydrate and strengthen the skin and help the healing process, preparing it for the stresses of climbing. Rhino Spit is also a great alternative, aimed specifcially to keep the hands moist and flexible. Based on aloe vera and lemon grass it really makes your hands feel fresh and not glossy.
2. Pre-Climb Preparation
Taping: Use athletic tape to protect vulnerable areas, particularly around joints and previous injuries. Taping can provide additional support and prevent the formation of new blisters.
Antiperspirants: Apply a product like Rhino Skin Solutions’ Dry to reduce sweating. This helps maintain a better grip and reduces the risk of softening the skin too much. The Dry spray should be applied a few hours before climbing to allow it to take effect.
Rhino Performance: Use Rhino Performance Cream before your climb. This cream toughens the skin without drying it out, providing a balance between durability and flexibility. Apply a thin layer on your hands the night before and a lighter application an hour before climbing.
3. During the Climb
Chalk Use: Use chalk to keep hands dry, but avoid over-chalking as it can dry out the skin excessively. Liquid chalk can be a good alternative for reducing overuse.
Chalk can make our skin very dry, and some climbers have a need to maintain the skin moisturized, but not sweaty. Rhino Skin Solutions offers a Rhino Spit designed for those with overly dry hands. Apply Rhino Spit to your hands a couple of minutes before climbing and rest assured that your skin will be pliable, durable and flexible.
Rest and Recovery: Take breaks to allow your skin to recover. This can help prevent overuse injuries and skin tears. Consider using a hand fan or towel to keep hands dry during breaks.
Post-Climb Skin Care: Healing and Recovery
1. Cleaning
Gently clean hands with mild soap and warm water to remove chalk and dirt. Avoid harsh soaps that can strip natural oils. A gentle cleanser will maintain the skin’s natural barrier while removing impurities.
2. Repair and Hydration
Repair Creams: After cleaning, use Rhino Skin Solutions’ Repair Cream to aid in healing cuts, splits, and abrasions. This cream contains natural ingredients like arnica and tea tree oil, which help reduce inflammation and promote skin regeneration. Apply a generous amount and massage it into the skin to enhance absorption.
Hydration: Drink plenty of water to maintain skin hydration from within. Well-hydrated skin is more resilient and heals faster. Consider using a humidifier in dry environments to prevent skin from becoming overly dry.
3. Nightly Routine
Deep Moisturizing: Apply a thicker balm or cream before bed to allow for deep hydration overnight. Cover hands with a breathable glove or wrap to enhance absorption. Rhino Skin Solutions’ Split is ideal for this, as it’s designed to treat deep cuts and splits, promoting rapid healing with its rich formula.
Effective Products for Climber’s Skin Care
Rhino Skin Solutions offers a comprehensive range of products tailored to climbers' needs:
- Repair Cream: Ideal for daily maintenance and post-climb recovery. It hydrates and strengthens the skin, promoting faster healing. Use this product daily for maintaining overall skin health.
- Dry Spray: A game-changer for climbers with sweaty hands. It helps maintain a better grip and prolongs skin durability during climbs. Apply it a few hours before climbing sessions for best results.
- Split: Specifically designed for treating cuts and splits. Its formula accelerates healing, ensuring minimal downtime. Use this cream at night for deep repair.
- Performance Cream: Enhances skin toughness, making it more resistant to the rigors of climbing. Apply before climbing for added protection and skin conditioning.
- Rhino Spit: A combination of liquid chalk and antiperspirant, providing excellent moisture control during climbs. Apply directly to hands for a solid grip and reduced sweating.
- Tip Juice: an antiperspirant that is meant for once-a-week application. It decreases sweating on the applied areas, thereby increasing your crimping durability. This product is something for our more experienced climbers and should be applied with care.
Skin-Prepping on Hangboards and Granite Edges
For climbers integrating hangboard training and granite edge practice into their routines, proper skin-prepping is crucial. It starts weeks before a climbing trip and is a ongoing part of a climbing training routine. If you don't get a chance to climb on real rock or use use Nature Climbing’s Granite Holds to simulate real rock textures, trying out a Stone Hanger is probably the easiest and cheapest solution to get your sking used to climbing on real rock.
If you want to introduce skin-prepping into to your home training routine, a Stoak Board or a Skin-Prepping Kit are probbaly the best solutions on the market. Beautofully crafter hangboards, to fit any climbers interior, are also extremely functional and helpful in skin maintenance routines.
Tougher sking is built by pressure, not so much friction, however hanging or rough edges helps you build pain-tolerance, pull harder and gets your skin used the irregularities of real rock.
Rhino Skin Solutions: A Commitment to Excellence
Rhino Skin Solutions is a brand that truly understands the unique demands of climbers. Born out of a passion for the sport and a dedication to optimal performance, their products are crafted with climbers and nature in mind, which couldn't be more close to our brand. The products are made from natural components and the brand has a very transparant way of producing their creams. We genuinly love and use them ourselves.
Quick Memo: Product Recommendations and Tips
Do this:
- If your skin is dry: Apply Rhino Skin Solutions’ Repair Cream daily to maintain hydration and skin pliability.
- If your skin is cracked: Use Split for deep cracks and splits. Apply generously at night and cover with a breathable glove.
- If your skin is damaged: Apply Repair Cream or Split+ immediately after cleaning your hands to promote faster healing and reduce inflammation.
- If you have calluses: Regularly file calluses to an optimal thickness and use Repair or Spit to keep the skin tough but flexible.
- If you have sweaty palms: Apply Dry Spray a few hours before climbing to reduce sweating and maintain a solid grip.
- If your fingertips are cracked or split: Use Split for intensive repair and Repair Cream for daily maintenance to prevent further damage.
Extending Your Climbing Trip
Effective skin care can significantly extend the duration of your climbing trips by 1-2 days. By maintaining healthy, resilient skin, you reduce the likelihood of debilitating tears, blisters, and cracks, allowing you to climb longer and push your limits further. Integrating Rhino Skin Solutions’ products into your routine ensures your hands stay in top condition, giving you more time on the rock and enhancing your overall climbing experience.