Boxing wraps - what type to choose, what length and how to put them on?
Boxing wraps are an absolute must if you use any training gloves. Many people try to train without the use of boxing wraps, because they do not want to tie, put on, take off, while this is one of the most basic mistakes when it comes to taking care of the hygiene and durability of boxing gloves, instrument gloves or even MMA gloves, because also in the case of MMA gloves you can and even should use boxing wraps.
Why use?
They have two basic functions. First - safety-related function, it is about additional stiffening of the hand, wrist, thumb, metacarpal bones. This is an important issue from the point of view of ensuring one's safety during training.
Second an issue that is often forgotten is the quetia of hygiene. Remember, during training, the hand sweats, especially in boxing gloves, if you do not create a layer of insulation, between the hands and gloves, the gloves will quickly become sweaty. Sweaty gloves are an ideal place for the growth of fungi, mold, and this results not only in an unpleasant odor, but also creates dangers of allergies or other conditions.
Remember, if you take your sweaty hand off such a soiled glove, rub your face with your hand, the final of these molds, bacteria and other damned things can get into your mouth, and ultimately into your body, so it is really worth taking care not only of the safety of the hand itself, but also the safety of the whole body.
Well, if you already know that you should use boxing wraps, you're probably wondering which ones to choose? What length, what type?
As far as length is concerned, the standard length is three or four meters long wraps. I think that four-meter wraps are the optimal choice for boxing gloves, while for MMA gloves you can afford slightly shorter lengths, for the reason that in MMA gloves you can't stiffen your hands too much, as it's all about maintaining grip ability, however. I think that for MMA gloves, two-meter or three-meter wraps will be sufficient.
The second thing you need to pay attention to when choosing boxing wraps is the composition from which they are made.
The first type of wrappers are the cotton. Cotton is characterized by very good absorption of moisture, sweat, so such wraps will be very good at absorbing moisture reducing sweaty gloves. On the other hand, these wrappers are quite stiff.
The second type of wraps are the flexible. They contain in their composition not only cotton, but also polyester. Usually this ratio of cotton to polyester is 40 to 60. Sometimes these proportions can be different, depending on the manufacturer. The addition of polyester to the wrappers makes these wrappers flexible, however, as the wrappers contain polyester, which has a slightly lower moisture absorption capacity, such wrappers may absorb less moisture absorption. This has its advantages and disadvantages.
On the one hand, with shorter use of the gloves, it will make your palms more sweaty, but if you train with gloves for a long time, it has an advantage. In the case of standard cotton wraps, the moment they stop absorbing sweat anymore, because there will be too much sweat, the excess sweat can get into the boxing gloves. With polyester wraps, on the other hand, this absorbency is less, and thus more sweat will be left on your hands, in that layer between your hand and the wraps. It is less likely that during long use of the gloves, some sweat will get through the wraps into the gloves.
Which wrappers to choose?
There is no definite answer, there are supporters of cotton wraps, the reason is that they like the hand to be stiffened uniformly all the time. There are also proponents of elastic wraps, they argue that it is easier to stiffen, it is easier to tighten these wraps, they hold better on the hand.
I think the optimal solution is to buy both types of wraps and test which will be more comfortable in your case, in which you will feel better. The cost of such wraps is small, so I think you can afford to buy cotton and elastic - then you can decide personally.
Let me show you another third option.
An alternative to traditional boxing wraps, namely inner gloves.
Inner gloves (here gel gloves) are a great alternative to traditional wraps, they are first of all much faster and more comfortable to put on. They have the shape of ordinary gloves, which, after putting on, we can additionally stiffen with a strap around the wrist or thumb, depending on which way of putting on you prefer.
The advantage is not only the convenience of being able to put on and take off more quickly, but also the extra cushioning layer in the impact zone.
In the ankle area we have an additional layer of foam and gel, which makes this type of solution better at absorbing strong impacts than is the case with ordinary wraps.
I think this is an excellent alternative. if you don't like tying wraps too much, I highly recommend this solution.
On the other hand, if you have wraps and have no problem tying them, it is also worth testing this option. It is not an expensive purchasing option, and it really is an excellent solution in many cases.
Regardless of what wraps you will use, their length or type, remember: the most important thing is to put them on correctly. Only properly applied wraps will do their job. Check out the video on how to put the wraps on correctly - starting at 7:30min.
