Ultimate Guide to Climbing Skin Care

[@PeakDistrictBouldering]

Useful video. Poor skin is right up there as one of my favourite excuses, along with: heavy legs; old age; shoulder injuries.... More seriously, I've found in cold winter connies I can 'over chalk' my hands. Rinsing the chalk off with a bit of water, reapplying some Rhino Spit, then chalking up again on clean skin made a lot of difference to me last season. Glad to see Ondra approves 🙂

[@HourRomanticist]

Absolutely. I usually overchalk if I'm very sweaty on a good hold in the middle or the beginning of a route, and that helps me. Otherwise, I make sure to rub and blow off excess chalk.

[@KaiMundsinger]

If you can't get hold of antihydral (which doesn't seem to do anything for me) or rhinoskin products or you're a cheap dirtbag you can get methenamine from camping stores. The white brittle bricks for solid fuel burners are usually methenamine (esbit for example) and cost next to nothing. Dissolve some in rubbing alcohol and apply it like rhino tip juice with a little brush. I have really sweaty soft skin and applying my diy tip juice twice daily is so far the only thing that actually thickens skin ok my fingertips.

[@Bertie.-_]

That name is dangerously close to something else lol

[@BigShelley]

I'm surprised iontophoresis isn't more talked about in the climbing community. It's a bit of an investment (although some people do DIY the setup), but it's basically a machine that sends a weak electrical current through water that you place your hands in and it stops your skin from sweating. After a few more frequent treatments to reach the desired effect, I now use it for 20 minutes every 2ish weeks and my hands don't really sweat at all anymore. (I also use it for my feet and underarms, so that made the investment more worthwhile). If your primary issue is sweating, iontophoresis can be an absolute game-changer and I highly recommend looking into it. If you also have issues with thin and peeling skin, iontophoresis doesn't do much to help with that (other than the improvement you might see just from not having damp hands all the time). Iontophoresis has made a huge difference for me, but I'm still looking for ways to improve my skin's durability. Everything I've tried so far has had very little effect and it doesn't how much I climb or how often, it just never improves. Staša Gejo is one of my favorite climbers because you can clearly see she struggles with her skin as well. It gives me some hope. lol.

[@chazott]

For sure it's different for everyone, but for me, the things that improve durability are: 1) liquid chalk as a base, applied a few times per session 2) portable fan or just swinging your arms around to get the skin nice and dry and cool before each attempt 3) taking a long rest between attempts to let the skin cool. If I try too many times back to back my skin is more vulnerable with each attempt until I let it cool and dry out again 4) using tape as a preventative measure. If I'm trying a sharp route and I know my skin only has 1 or 2 good attempts, I will tape it up for the warmup/rehearsal moves and only remove the tape when I'm ready to give it a hard redpoint try. 5) putting my hands on cold rocks to get the skin to cool down, if you can find one. However, all of these things fall apart when the heat and humidity get above a certain level, and my skin will peel regardless.

[@lolapplesauce]

One thing I love doing at the gym is washing my hands for 30 seconds in cold water, total game changer for hand dryness and skin temperature and its totally free!

[@pv3201]

Thanks for the video! You mentioned chalk with drying agents in it: usually this is silica (like in Metolius Super Chalk) and should be avoided. When inhaled it is seriously bad for your lungs. Especially if you're climbing inside at the gym do everyone a favor and get chalk without drying agents!

[@adrianodesouza4129]

Oh wow, I wasn't aware of this. Does this apply to current metolius super chalk or was it an issue in the past? They say it's 100% magnesium carbonate

[@panubrodkin7107]

As mentioned, the active incredient in many drying agents is methamine. Alternative names for it are hexamine, urotropin and hexamethylenetetramine. Widely available camping stove fuel tablets are of the same stuff. And indeed it works ! Take few drops water and use the fuel pellet to rub the desided spots of hands. This can be used just before climb to prevent sweating and thus moist hands.

[@Langlykek]

Nurses trick for those that have to apply hand sanitizer all day everyday leading to dry/cracked skin: Put on your moisturizer and then put on a glove to cover your hand all night. Helps stop you from rubbing whatever cream off you are using and keep moisture locked in.

[@BiggFanDDD]

I'm quite a sweaty person but I've never really found problems with my skin being too wet.. but what I can certainly say is that for anyone with eczema, avoid drying agents as much as possible.. the itch will be irresistible. Something like liquid chalk with powder chalk should be fine even on the hottest days out

[@teemunnee]

I have had by far and away the sweatiest hands off all my friends, you have no idea how helpful this is. Thanks so much. I'll be checking out some of those higher intensity products for sure.

[@jhy8191]

I live in an extremely dry climate where the humidity is typically under 20% and so my skin is always dry and fragile. My best advice if you live in a dry climate is to buy a diamond callus file, keep your calluses down and "slug" your hands at night. Slugging is where you coat your hands with an occlusive moisturizer like Aquaphor (my favourite) or Vaseline. I do this at night and wear cotton gloves. You can put another moisturizer underneath the occlusive to enhance the effect. This is the only thing that helps keep my hands from falling apart in the winter!

[@matheusribeirorios3332]

Hello friend! I liked your tip. It's been four months since every time I go for a climb my skin starts to peel off about 4 days after the session. I've tried several creams and still haven't had any improvement. I hope it works out!

[@toddgreen6862]

One suggestion for splits is to use a cuticle trimmer rather than nail clipper. IMO, they are much sharper and precise. But yes, this is a game changer!! Your mind says "don't cut away precious skin", but the reality is that the dead skin around the split seems to hang on forever, but if you cut it away, it heals in days. As far as tape rolling, in my experimentation, it is the width of the strips and how tightly you wrap it that matters the most. I wrap so tightly that my fingertip turns purple, but the tape stretches as soon as you do your first pitch. I like that the overlaps when you go from knuckle to tip form ridges that bite/catch on crimps. (I use Johnson & Johnson Coach/Zonas tape, YMMV on thicker/different tape.) I also have *super* dry skin if that matters. I've tried Rhino Spit, but honestly it didn't seem to make that much of a difference on grip, but I'll give it a second go and see about how it helps with elasticity and damage. The best thing I found was called "Sticky Skin", but of course they stopped making it right after I discovered it.

[@roystem]

Good video! I also suffer from very sweaty hands! Was really limiting my ability to climb harder. Now I've been using Antihydral for over a year. It works like nothing else. Here is how I use it. I sand my palms and fingers under the shower with a pedicure file. Then once I'm done showering and before bed I wash my hands with a regular soap bar to remove the oils from the skin and immediately apply the Antihydral. I've found this promotes absorption and efficacy of the active ingredients. I rub a light coating over the palms and fingers and let that dry and apply a thicker portion on the finger tips. And leave it trough the night. In the morning I wash my hands again and apply a hydrating skin cream. This puts the moisture back in the skin but the sweating will have been reduced significantly. With this method I only have to apply it once per week and I don't risk tearing the folds of the skin when climbing. After each session I wash my hands with soap, sand the skin lightly and apply cream again to promote healing. This keeps the skin healthy and grippy but stops the sweating.

[@BigShelley]

When I used Antihydral, I found my fingers would get so ridiculously pruny when my hands got wet. A good hand wash was enough to trigger it somewhat, but after a shower I found the feeling almost unbearable - I definitely have some sensory issues though. Do you experience that at all (whether you find it bothersome or not)? I found the same thing happened with Rhino Dry, to a lesser degree, but Rhino Dry was also not very effective for me. I use iontophoresis now to stop my hands from sweating (which has been super effective for me and I highly recommend looking into it for my fellow sweaty people - hands, feet, and underarms), but it doesn't really do anything to improve my skin's durability. I'm thinking about trying Antihydral again for skin-thickening purposes, but I hated the pruny feeling so much, I might rather just have crap skin.

[@matthewsevers5862]

I get splits on my middle fingers at the first crease (end of first pad), and I’ve found that neosporin and bandaid while I sleep, then remove in morning works very well to promote healing.

[@inMuro]

i do not climb but i row - same issues. really helpful vid

[@halenray]

Thanks for the breakdown guys!

[@1lomi901]

Yeeeees finally someone's gonna talk about it ! Thank you very much guys !

[@henryjb1572]

Just a side note on the “Ondra trick” - I used to skateboard an awful lot and this reminded me every time my fingers/thumbs would come in to contact with the grip tape I’d develop lil calluses and hard spots - was wondering whether low grit careful sanding of the fingers may be beneficial for some.

[@AranelEruvyreth]

My mom used to rub her fingertips on the sidewalk to form calluses as a kid when she was learning to play guitar. It definitely worked for her.

[@ebachini]

I’ve been using Antihydral for about 7 years now and the biggest issue I found with it was after applying it at night I’d wake up the follow morning with little to none still on my fingers. Then about 3 years ago a friend gave me a pair of cotton gloves to wear at night. I believe they’re easy to get hold of and affordable too and means you’re not wasting your time and money.

[@tsasquid]

Which cotton gloves did you get? Are they special cotton gloves or just ones you can get from CVS or Amazon?

[@elosozelo]

yea, rubbing one's skin before sleep - heard about that 😅

[@adribier]

yeah, it definitely gets hard after that...

[@Makahan]

There is also a antihydral Spray which is super good to apply shortly before climbing. Also I have less problems with dosing the spray compared to the cream

[@brendangarson9732]

Omg this vid was perfectly timed, I was wondering if I should pay attention to my skin care

[@terraflow__bryanburdo4547]

I'm working my hardest project ever in warm weather this will really help!

[@Hannah7Banana]

A GREAT way to toughen your skin on the sides of your fingers is to tie figure skating laces. Back when I figure skated the sides of my fingers were pretty tough because I had to grip the laces really hard to lace up my skates. If you don't figure skate, you could probably artificially create the same effect by tying lace around a post or something and wrapping the laces around your fingers and pull really hard as you let the lace slowly slip off your fingers. It hurts, but it definitely works.

[@dalcowboiz]

Tbh I've been pretty beaten down by my skin quality lately. I feel like now that I've gotten back into climbing I find my skin dries out a ton, but at the same time I get calluses on the middle segment of my finger and I constantly get flappers and giant under skin tears where it forms a blister or a blood blister, and at the same time I also can have sweaty hands. I feel like my hands are nuts. I will moisturize more and see how that helps. I was kind of hoping my skin would toughen up and figure things out a bit and gain some resiliency. I'm a heavyish guy at 170lbs and I don't have great grip strength, I have bad finger strength, and it makes it hard to progress. I guess with tape I'm managing alright. I'll make sure I'm following your tape direction tip over the flapper areas, and I guess for now since I'm struggling I'll try to be more preemptive with the tape since my skin seems pretty sensitive to flappers. Thanks for the video!

[@fredericp64]

I use Drysol on my hands before bed. Works for about 3-4 weeks. Works wonders in winter, less in summer because of the humidity where my hands get clammy faster.

[@camillabrimble8264]

Super handy, been wondering how to manage my thin, damp fingertip skin in these warm conditions!

[@ivanlongoria7839]

Can you show us how your tap your skin flaps? I have the same problem. I use just a simple method, but if you do anything special please share. Great video, thank you!

[@codyallen9878]

Thank you!

[@jimmylsperry9952]

Great video!

[@henrywilliams5186]

Great video! Quick (or not quick) question: I have super sweaty skin and I've been using waxy/oily repair things like climbOn at night to heal faster, but I also just started using rhino skin and have already seen some improvements. However, I don't really get how to use both. Would I alternate putting on rhino skin (I'm using performance not tip juice) and climbOn or is there a better way to use rhino skin but also heal faster?

[@LatticeTraining]

Good question. Speaking from what I have tried, apply the performance or tip juice, let it dry and then lightly coat with ClimbOn (or similar product). The other way round would likely prevent the active ingredients in Rhino Skin being absorbed and working. But the ClimbOn can still create a healing barrier over the skin if applied second.

[@panndis6641]

Would love to know this answer. I use climb on after sanding down and my hands feel amazing. But i would like to start using Rhino to try up my hands as they are super sweaty when climbing

[@AriPaul]

Fun fact I just learned from googling: the active ingredient in rhino skin (methanamine) works by gradually decomposing into formaldehyde which is a powerful astringent.

[@santi_super_stunts2573]

How funny , I got my very first flapper yesterday and now this video comes out

[@Harris.L]

Hi guys! It has been a while I have been wondering if you could do a video about breathing techniques and tips. It happens a lot that I see climbers online and their breathing is sometimes a bit chaotic. So its mine then I thought. There are many sports where breathing is very important, do you think it's the same for climbing?

[@LSDerek]

Antihydril has been amazing for my sweaty baby skin fingertips. Climbed my first 7A right after I first applied it a week before. The only downside is that my grip on plastic sloopers is worse, but I guess I just have to try harder indoors..

[@Garthydude12]

Okeefees working hands is like witchcraft, crazily effective for repairing split skin for me!

[@tispokes1563]

Antihydral is cheap in Germany. Shouldn’t be a problem to order a bigger batch to reduce shipping costs.

[@matheusrios4248]

Have you ever seen something like climbing chalk allergy? I climb to 2 years, but in the last 5 months, always after climbing my skin starts to peel off after about 3 days and it gets very dry. I tried changing my chalk, and even climbing without. But it's always happening. And I'm careful to be moisturizing it on a daily basis.

[@tophmyster]

Hey! Late reply, but one of the kids I coach in my squad has a similar issue - I believe it's very likely the drying agents featured in most chalks out there. The only things that worked for her were some liquid chalks (as most are just alcohol and pure chalk) or certain brands that advertise as pure magnesium carbonate and heavy metal free (such as 8b+)

[@matheusribeirorios3332]

@@tophmyster Entendo I understand, I started having this "allergy" after they started producing a chalk here in my city. Even when I use other brands, there are remnants of it in the grips and it provokes a reaction. The difficult thing is that in my city there is only this climbing academy, so I can't escape it.

[@unknownentity8256]

From my experience the X taping stays on much better then a spiral. Furthermore X taping gives more mobility.

[@hyau23]

Whens the Lattice branded mini fan going on sale? ;)

[@wh0ei]

How do you know if your skin is dry or moist? People talk about this as if it is obvious. When it’s warm I get sweaty fingers but how do I know if it’s more so then others? And how doni know if it is too dry?

[@eileenonward]

when i look up Methenamine (the active ingredient in rhino skin and antihydral), I keep coming across it being labeled as a Formaldehyde Releaser (decomposes into formaldehyde). When I google formaldehyde, I see "carcinogenic and highly toxic". Does anyone worry about that?

[@andrej_capko]

Also, do you think it's worth using drying agents for thin skin that is already somewhat worn down but not hurting or bleeding? (say in training some time before a trip as a preparation) Or would it be better to let it grow first and then use drying agents? Does using a lotion after a drying agent essentially cancel out its effect, as it traps in moisture?

[@lota4591]

personally i prefer to apply a drying agent when my skin is in good condition, i like to use dry spray by rhino skin solutions, it works really well and the effects last about 3 days, i usually put it on at night the day before i go climbing (btw don’t apply multiple days in a row unless u have super sweaty hands), and i like to use lotion after most climbing sessions, especially if i have a drying agent on, my personal preference is repair by think skin solutions (if u can’t tell i like their products a lot lol), for me it has never interfered with the drying agent, also some other good lotions/balms (imo) for climbing are climb on, climb skin, and joshua tree, from what i know its usually a good idea to avoid bigger brand moisturizers because they weaken calluses. lastly id still suggest doing some of your own research/experimenting because what works for me might not work for u, but anyway i hope this helps 😊

[@plurrr1752]

Magdust is amazing.

[@rara58524]

Very helpful topic, thank you, guys! What about nails, specifically? I tried going to a doctor about my nails, but it seems it's the same doctor as for the skin - dermatologist. My nails get incredibly brittle, they break all the time in weird shapes, and then anything I touch, they get hooked into - so they break further and also tear my clothes etc. It's like a serious problem, not just one broken nail that I normally wouldn't care about. The doctor couldn't really help me either - he was suggesting to stop climbing. :(

[@SammyMakepeace]

That's pretty extreme... what's your diet like? That definitely seems like deficiency of some kind? What kind of job do you have?

[@MP-bx3uj]

Does anyone here have super uneven skin? I develop deep internal callouses that are hard to sand paper down, but they catch on everything and my hands feel bruised from it. I can get through ~5 routes after a spray wall warm up and then my hands are so painful I have to stop. Been using Rhino Dry, but not sure what else to try??

[@lhitman2222]

Can I combine rhino skin with another hand cream?

[@chazott]

pretty basic stuff here. I was hoping for some more specifics such as: how skin care differs by climate / season, how friction can be improved for different hold and rock types, when it makes sense to spritz water on your skin, skin temperature effects on friction

[@LatticeTraining]

Hmmmm 🤔. I think these things are getting very individualistic and we try to cover a huge variation in skin types and conditions already. Optimizing friction for your skin type on a specific type of rock, in a certain season, at a certain temperature will be very individual and take some self-experimentation. In general, thicker skin for course rock types, add moisture in dry seasons, use drying agents in hot seasons, keep skin cool in most situations for less sweating and more friction. And the water spritz only really applies to people with dry skin and more so in cold conditions/seasons. Watch out for dry-firing on holds as an indicator for using water/Spit.

[@chazott]

@@LatticeTraining thanks for the reply. Hopefully more research will go into this in the future since it seems like a lot can be gained from skin care alone. Ways to measure skin quality could be useful guidance for knowing when to thicken skin, when to file it down, when to apply salves, etc. Mani the Monkey had some interesting things to say about his skin changes due to different training protocols also. Particularly, high-frequency low intensity hangboarding (2 per day) led him to thicker skin which improved performance on small edges but decreased performance on slopers / slimpers. He also observed changes in his skin associated with seasonal humidity changes. He was able to make these observations through obsessive tracking and repeated measurements, but it was not very scientific and sample size was only 1 guy.

[@paulhoulden]

You want dry skin? come and do a few shifts on the cement site with me, I constantly wear gloves, but do all sorts like welding, cutting etc. cement soon dries you out, its actually horrid

[@benscott1982]

I suffer with relatively severe dermatitis which seems to have been trigger by either aggressive chalk or maybe contact with cement at the day job, so I have been using Unicorn dust fine gold chalk which is relatively pure (and bloody expensive) haven’t used enough different types to determine it’s performance but it seems to be having a positive effect over all, any other tips ? Last time it flared up I had to have 3 weeks off climbing because I couldn’t make a fist or open my hands, back at it now though hopefully for a while longer, I use o keefes and Aveeno moisturisers but struggle to add any thickness to my skin, incredibly dry

[@LatticeTraining]

Sorry Ben, no experience working with dermatitis. You are doing the right thing by trying different chalks. Though I have found Unicorn Dust really drying. If you have dry skin maybe try a chunkier chalk (Goriallas grip, Bam Bam?) or use a chalk ball so it regulates the amount of chalk a bit better. Also I think limiting time of sessions will help with less chalk exposure.

[@camillabrimble8264]

Cement dust is a killer for your skin! I have had contact dermatitis and eczema on my hands whilst climbing and it’s killer. I did actually try climbing chalk free when I could, because at that time my skin was super dry. Though liquid chalk often has alcohol in it, if your palms are not irritated, you can apply it directly to areas where you want it, unlike powdered chalk. Unfortunately experimentation was the only way to find what chalk works for you!

[@benscott1982]

@@camillabrimble8264 cheers for the assist guys, trail and error is the way forward, one things for sure sure as heck not giving up climbing now haha

[@matheusribeirorios3332]

It's been 4 months since my skin peels off after a climbing session. Never before had anything like this happened. In case you have gone through something similar, do you have any golden tips on how to solve it? My skin always starts to fall out 4 days after the last climbing session.

[@williamcullumcodes]

Guys get a job in tiling for a few weeks. Just moved into the industry myself and never had drier skin haha

[@LatticeTraining]

Ah yeah, I've heard brick laying does the same thing. Hands like leather gloves!

[@Teraku1503]

Do I need any of these agents if I am not sweating a lot on Boulders? I usually only sweat a lot when leading….

[@LatticeTraining]

If sweating is not holding you back, probably not. Chalk is sufficient for many.

[@matthewontherocks]

Where can you get Anti-Hydral in the UK?

[@LatticeTraining]

I've not looking in a long time but Amazon has sold it before.

[@adrienneborchelt]

Great video, but it's basically just forming callouss, no? Carpenter hands.

[@LatticeTraining]

Not quite. Climbers should sand down callus that builds up by the joints as this tends to catch on the edges of holds and rip off, causing bad 'flappers'. We want tough skin but even across all pads and often less dry and brittle. So its quite a bit more nuanced I think.

[@clown5911]

Didn't climb for 3 weeks and then went too hard today and got my first flapper in a long time :(

[@PazurKury]

For folks with very dry skin and skin problems like psoriasis, moisturisers with urea are the game changer! It's been the only cream so far that leaves a baby-soft skin on my heels, without any peeling whatsover. I see a huge difference after a bouldering session when I keep the routine versus when I'd forget one or two days. Usually it's enough for me to apply it (almost) every night on hands, 2-3 times a week on feet (wear socks!), and to always, always, wash the skin properly and apply the cream on clean skin after training.

[@MegaBanannaman]

What if my answer to your 1st question is "Yes, I would and do climb massive s sessions in holey shoes!" ?

[@garryreed2725]

Tom your first comments regards to dear I say Shit Shoes I know someone just like that and expects to climb well............. Could'nt agree more with that comment your making Tom.

[@simonlpoisson]

They seems pretty tired, I would not be surprised if you tell me that you record just after an hardcore session ^^

[@charmetroldendk]

So if you didnt watch the entire video, they mention in the very end (23:45) that they're sponsered by Rhino skin... do with that info as you please

[@LatticeTraining]

So we are not sponsored by Rhino Skin. We simply bought some of their products to sell in the UK because they are not as easily available and we believe in the products for performance. You can see we linked to their direct website too and we make absolutely no commission. We also suggest loads of alternatives so hopefully we don't come across as too biased to a certain brand while also offering free value in the content of the advise.

[@Painsoreal]

❤‍🔥

[@Tom.Climbs]

Bad skin ? Congrats you're a climber that loves climbing 🤣

[@Nagria2112]

i dont really get your video. on one side you dry your skin every night, on the other side you apply wax and oils to repair and a bowl of water before climbing?! whats good now - moist OR dry? cant be both on one side you instantly and after session remove all dead hard old skin, on the other side you rub it and file the tips to make it grow fast and thick...?! whats good now - climbing on filed off new skin or build up that layer by rubbing? you video is kinda confusing. whats good? you literally did oposing stuff to your skin. dry/moist and file/build-up

[@LatticeTraining]

We discuss lots of different tactics because it is a varied and complicated subject. Some people have very dry skin and need to find ways to make it more mailable and moist. Others have very sweaty skin and need to make it drier. Some forms of climbing suits very dry skin e.g. sharp holds outside, whereas some holds suit slightly wetter skin like indoor volumes. We didn't intend for the video to be confusing but it is likely not all topics discussed will apply to everyone. Just focus on the bits that are relevant to you.

[@Nagria2112]

@@LatticeTraining aaaaah thanks. I Linda missunderstood. I thiught its all for everybody and Not specific