1) Gloves. After your first couple of training sessions, you’ll notice that your hands will begin to develop blisters. The only way to prevent this is by wearing weight gloves (or alternatively, golf gloves). Keep in mind that your hands will adapt to wearing gloves. They will never get a chance to toughen up and calluse over.

2) Sponges. Sponges are a cheap way to protect the hands during a workout. They come in different sizes, but the 4 X6 by ½ inch variety will probably work best. Place a sponge in each hand and grab the bar, dumbell, or machine handle. The sponge will protect the skin on the hands from blistering.

3) Wraps. No matter how conscientious you are about maintaining proper technique, your joints will still suffer a tremendous amount of stress. Many people find that by wrapping common “trouble areas” - such as the knees, wrists, and elbows - reduces the possibility of injury to the joint. Wraps come in many shapes and sizes. Some are elastic in nature and have a pre-set tension. Others are nothing more than simple first-aid bandages that allow you to adjust the tension. It’s probably a good idea to experiment with wraps on such bodybuilding exercises as squats, deadlifts, and bench presses.

4) Belts. The most popular piece of weightlifting equipment is the belt. We suggest treating belts like gloves – only use one if you really need to. Wearing a belt at all times never allows the lower back muscles to become stronger. Our advice is to only wear a belt for lower back protection on exercises such as squats, deadlifts, and barbell rows (average cost of $30 to $40) and will offer solid lower back support.

5) Straps. Straps are short (one and a half to two feet) pieces of woven cloth that wrap around the barbell or handle on a machine. You’ll discover that on exercises such as deadlifts, shrugs, rows, pulldowns, etc, your forearm grip will be the ‘weakest link’. Straps allow you to handle more weight in these exercises. You can buy a set of wrist straps for $15-$20 or make your own.

6) Headbands. Also called sweatbands, headbands are another simple piece of equipment that will make a big difference to your workouts. Nothing is as irritating as getting salty sweat in your eyes. Even training in an air-conditioned bodybuilding gym does not make you immune to having beads of sweat rolling down your forehead. Investing in a headband will prevent this problem.

7) Chalk. The next time you watch a gymnastics competition, take a close look at the hands of the athletes. They are virtually white with chalk. The body’s primary cooling mechanism is to release water to the skin’s surface in the form of sweat. While sweat does wonders for cooling the body, it makes gripping actions difficult. Weightlifting is like gymnastics in that a firm grip is an absolute necessity on all exercises. Chalk is cheap ($2-$3 for a six-inch block) and is extremely effective at absorbing sweat. Just check with your gym’s policy on chalk before buying.

8) Water Bottle. The human body is about 90 percent water. While we have water conservation systems, there are times when our hydration levels will fall dangerously low. Always consume copious amounts of water when training. You can use the gym’s fountain, but that creates a lot of potential germs. Buy a water bottle and keep it filled. Rather than gulping large amounts, try sipping it throughout your workout.

Bob Howard expert on bodybuilding and steroids. Are you looking for more of his bodybuilding articles? http://www.bodybuilding-news.net ©Bob Howard 4/7/2006

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