Currently, the positive effect of compression on the formation of a postoperative scar and the prevention of its keloid transformation is used in the treatment of burns in plastic surgery. For the purpose of early immobilization to prevent the progression of tissue edema, it has found wide application in sports medicine and outpatient traumatology. However, the main area of application of therapeutic compression products, taking into account the prevalence and social significance of the pathology, is their use in chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) of the lower extremities.
Epidemiological data presented by many leading foreign clinicians indicate a significant prevalence of CVI. The latest data on the prevalence of chronic pathology of the veins of the lower extremities among Russians, published by a domestic group of scientists under the leadership of Academician V.S. Savelyev, clearly shows the scale of this problem. 38 million Russians suffer from CVI of the lower extremities. 15 million of them require surgical treatment. 10 million have severe forms of CVI, of which 5 million have severe forms. there are open trophic ulcers, 1.8 million are disabled as a result of CVI.
From the perspective of modern ideas about the etiology and pathogenesis of chronic venous insufficiency, adequate compression therapy is the foundation of complex treatment in this group of patients. The therapeutic effect of compression treatment is determined by a number of mechanisms of action: acceleration of venous outflow and reduction of pathological venous “capacity” of the lower extremities, due to a decrease in the diameter of the superficial veins and intermuscular venous plexuses. Elimination or reduction of venous reflux is realized as a consequence of improving the functional ability of the vein valves due to their diameter. An increase in the resorption of tissue fluid in the venous limb of the capillary and a decrease in its filtration in the arterial one due to an increase in tissue pressure. Increased fibrinolytic activity of blood plasma due to more intense production of tissue plasminogen activator.
Compression treatment is indicated for any form of CVI. Depending on the nature of the pathology and the goals pursued, it can be prescribed for a limited or long term.
Prescribed for a limited period of time for surgical or injection treatment of varicose veins, prevention of CVI during pregnancy, prevention and treatment of acute venous thrombosis in surgical, therapeutic, neurological patients, etc. profile.
Indications for long-term compression are post-thrombotic disease, trophic disorders, incl. open trophic ulcers of the lower extremities, congenital anomalies of the venous system, chronic lymphovenous insufficiency, in the presence of contraindications to surgical treatment of CVI.
According to many authors, there are no absolute contraindications to elastic compression. Obliterating arterial diseases (RSD <70 mm Hg; AFI <0.8) can be considered as relative contraindications; acute phlebothrombosis with pronounced disturbances of blood outflow due to insufficiency of collaterals (blue phlegmasia), up to the restoration of sufficient throughput of the venous bed; severe forms of cardiopulmonary failure, trophic ulcers of non-venous etiology (arterial, neurotrophic, malignant, parasitic, etc.).
Currently, the main types of compression treatment are compression stockings and elastic bandages. The advantages of elastic knitwear over bandages are obvious. Ease of use, comfort, provision of dosed compression due not to skill, but to the properties of the product, the absence of the need for medical participation and control in its use justifiably makes compression hosiery the method of choice in the treatment of patients with CVI, and even more so in the prevention of thromboembolic complications.
However, the widespread availability of elastic bandages, accessibility and sometimes irreplaceability continue to make them a necessary attribute in the daily clinical practice of doctors for the implementation of many therapeutic tasks. Until now, elastic bandages are the method of choice in the treatment of patients with trophic ulcers due to CVI. Difficulties, and sometimes the impossibility of using knitwear in the presence of pronounced venous or lymphatic edema, and individual structural features of the lower extremities determine the need to use elastic bandages. Therefore, it would be hasty to contrast compression hosiery with elastic bandages. In connection with this, there is a need for a detailed consideration of the indications for the selection and rules for applying elastic bandages.
Boxing bandage
By the end of this article, you should know everything to bandage your hands correctly the first time, as well as choose a quality pair of bandages without wasting money on low-quality products.
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Why trust me
During my athletic career, I have trained in MMA, Muay Thai and boxing gyms in many countries around the world, using many different hand wraps from at least 12 different brands. I used bands in both training and sparring. I've also tried other wraps that didn't have velcro and loops (old school) to newer brands you can buy, so I have a pretty good idea of what's good and what's not. This article is my experience and will give you a detailed guide on how to choose the right hand wraps.
Why use bandages
A good pair of boxing/muay thai wraps will protect your hand, fingers and wrist when impacted. Never put on gloves without wrapping them, as you could sprain your wrist, damage your knuckles, cause serious injury and be out of training for a long time. Properly protecting your hands is key, especially if you exercise regularly. That's why it's important to know how to properly wrap your hands before training. A good pair (actually several pairs) of hand wraps, besides your boxing gloves, is the most important piece of your Muay Thai equipment. And that's why you have to buy the RIGHT bandages. A bad pair of wraps will waste your time, provide poor protection, and chafe your joints.
Best Muay Thai - Boxing Bandages
If you are looking to purchase a new pair of hand wraps, I suggest you get stretchy cotton hand wraps. These are the best wraps for boxing and muay thai. They are a little more expensive than non-stretch cotton ones, but they don’t cost a lot of money and they can be bought at any sports store or ordered online.
Benefits of Bandaged Hands
Bandages will help:
- Fix movable joints, insuring them from severe sprains.
- Relieve muscles and ligaments.
- Protect gloves from contamination, extending their life.
- During active training, bandages absorb moisture.
- Fix the assembled fist so that the blow is delivered and strong.
Professionals do not recommend using bandages without gloves. This is due to the energy that is released during the collision of the surface of the bandage with the punching bag or projectile. Subsequently, this will lead to a decrease in the protective functions of the bandages.
Boxing bandages
If you intend to get confused specifically, then here are my TOP 5 hand bandages:
Fairtex bandages
Firetex
is the leading Muay Thai brand in Thailand because they offer quality products that are built to last. Fairtex bandages are elastic cotton that allows the bandages to stretch.
Top King bandages
Top King is another Thai brand that makes excellent hand wraps at a reasonable price.
Winning bandages
Another good recommendation is bandages from the Japanese factory Winning. Winning is an established boxing brand and they make very good hand wraps.
Ultimatum Boxing gauze bandages
UltimatumBoxing is a good Russian boxing brand. More expensive than fabric ones, but superior in every way, providing better wrist support and a stronger grip on the hand and knuckles. This is what professional boxers use before training and before fights. Gauze feels like a second skin, providing excellent support to the joints and wrist area. You will need your trainer or assistant to secure the bandage with tape.
Ultimatum Boxing Bandages
Good bandages are excellent value for money. Suitable for both beginners and experienced boxers.
How to wrap bandages
In my experience, there are three effective ways to wrap bandages. The first method of hand wrapping is the traditional Boxing method.
Yulia Kovalevich Muay Thai coach
Boxers usually wrap their hands with extra support around the wrist, creating the feeling of one solid fist. The second method of hand wrapping is the traditional Muay Thai method that many Thais use.
This method involves making a special pad/cushion for the knuckles and then wrapping a bandage around the pad. Although this wrapping method takes a little longer, it provides excellent support for the hand and wrist joints. The third way for the pros is to use gauze bandages and taping. As a rule, this method is used by experienced fighters. To save your hands as much as possible during the preparation for battle. Instead of writing down step-by-step instructions on how to wrap your arms, see three methods and choose yours. Keep in mind that every fighter has their own variation of arm wrapping, so don't try to count the number of turns, etc. follow the technique, catch the meaning. Because the length of your bandage determines how to wrap your arms.
Method number 1 - Boxing method
You will notice that special attention is paid to securing the wrist, hand, and thumb. This is one of the easiest effective ways to wrap bandages that I use.
Method number 2 - Muay Thai method
The main point of the Muay Thai method is the initially prepared fist pad. When you make this pad, it will provide you with an extra layer of protection when hitting a punching bag or wall pad. One of the reasons for the extra protection on the front of the fist is that many Muay Thai fighters use small 8-10 ounce gloves. And using small gloves does not provide sufficient protection when working closely on heavy punching bags. If you learn how to wrap your arms this way, you will never have problems with your arms after training.
Method number 3 - the pro method
For this method, you will need a Cutman assistant - a person who knows how to make a special tape. My wife became this person, since she is always there and there is no need to attract a person from the outside. In order to make a tape correctly, you will need to make special blanks in the form of tapes from adhesive tape. Prepare a gauze pad for the front of the hand. And also have medical scissors to remove excess parts of the tape.
Watch a video,
- How to apply tape before a professional fight in Thailand. Video
How do you know if your hands are wrapped correctly?
If you wrap the bandages correctly, everything should feel comfortable. If you are punching a punching bag wearing only wraps, you should not feel your wrist bending under the impact. It is important that everything is neat, but not squeezed too tightly, otherwise blood circulation in the hands will be disrupted.
Common mistakes:
- Wrapping bandages too tightly. After a while, you will feel that your hand is going numb, this is a sign that blood circulation is becoming difficult. Remove the bandages and re-wrap them, try not to tighten the bandage so much this time.
- You are not wrapping the bandage tightly enough . In this case, your bandages will simply dangle and unravel very quickly. Unwind them and tighten them a little tighter.
- Wrapping the bandages with the wrong side down - each bandage has a side that you wrap up and down. If you start winding from the wrong side down, you will notice at the end that the Velcro is upside down. Then you will have to turn the bandage the right way to fix the Velcro.
- Don't clench your fist (at certain points) during the wrapping process - If you watch the first and second wrapping videos, you will notice at what point you need to clench your fist. This helps to press the bandage tightly in the fist position and ensures a good fit.
- Insufficient wrist support. If you don't wrap enough around your wrist, you won't have the support you need at impact and could end up spraining your wrist.
- Forgetting to wrap around your thumb - It is important that you wrap the bandage around your thumb to secure it. Since the most common injuries are to the thumb when it hits the elbow or forehead.
- The choice of cheap bandages is made from rough material. Low quality bandages, when wet, can chafe your knuckles to the point that the skin abrases, causing open sores. This can be avoided by using longer bandages made from soft materials.
How many pairs of bandages should you have?
The minimum number of bandages you should have is at least 2 pairs, preferably more. The reason you need multiple pairs is because you should always use a fresh pair of bands when you train. Don't use hand wraps that stink that are not fresh, because they will transfer the bad smell (sometimes mildew) to your gloves. Have as many pairs of bands as you train during the week. If you train 5 days a week, you should have 5 pairs of bands. If you are in Thailand and train 6 days a week, 2 times a day, you will need 12 pairs of bands. Using fresh hand wraps during every workout will ensure that your gloves stay clean and won't deteriorate after months of use.
Broken knuckles
If you use short wraps or small gloves when using the punching bag, you may find that your knuckles will be bruised and bruised. If it's worse, you'll be peeling the skin off your knuckles. Soreness is common because your bandages are not thin, stretchy material, but thick, cottony material that rubs against your skin when your joints get wet. This happened to me in Thailand. It hurts and can take you out of training for a few days or a week (this will leave you unable to throw with your hands). There are several things you can do to soothe a bruised fist:
- use 4.5 meter long Mexican style wraps and remember to wrap the joint area 5 to 7 times for extra support;
- use 12 ounce gloves to hit a heavy punching bag;
- choose high-quality soft hand bandages;
- using a quality pair of boxing gloves known for their padding, such as Winning or Ultimatum Boxing gloves;
- use gel inserts under bandages or gel hand bandages.
The best accessories for bandages
Good but optional bandage wrapping items that will save you a lot of time and effort. I have each of them and some I recommend you buy.
Meister Mounted Easy Hand Wrap Roller
Roll up your bandages in less than 30 seconds with this device. It may take 2 to 5 minutes to roll 4.5 meter bandages. At best, it will take you 1-2 minutes. If you are confused - 5 minutes. A HUGE time saver is to buy a packaging roller. It's basically a small device that allows you to insert one end of a bandage and roll it up by turning a handle in less than 20 seconds. I have this video and it's the best 1500 rubles I've ever spent. I spent about 10 minutes at a time fussing with my bandages, either trying to untangle the curled ones or unroll the washed ones to straighten them. Now I just use the device to roll the washed bandages and within 30 seconds they are rolled. There are two types of videos - portable (portable) and stationary , for fight clubs. The stationary one is even faster and is good to install in the gym or at home.
A portable one is more convenient to carry or store near the washing machine or dryer.
Wash your bandages in a special bag and do not allow them to get tangled with each other or other laundry. Saves a lot of time. If you have ever washed your bandages, have you seen the result, how they were tightly wrapped around various things, each other and the washing drum? It can be even worse if you wash several pairs of hand wraps at once. You'll spend five to ten minutes trying to untangle and untie the bandages from other laundry items and from each other. Why this waste of time? This can be avoided by using a laundry bag. This is a special mesh bag in which all dirty bandages are stored. You simply fill it with the bandages you want to wash, zip it up, and turn on the washing machine. The bandages will wash well and will not get tangled in other laundry items. This prevents them from being stretched and damaged by other clothing. And the bandages will last you much longer.
Gel bandages
I don't like the feel of these bulky wraps, the way they fit on my arm. But if you have damaged your knuckles and still want to train, then you need these bandages. To give them a few days to heal. I wouldn't recommend using them all the time. If your hand joints hurt when hitting the punching bag, then these gel bandages may come in handy.
Gel pad
Used together with a bandage. An excellent device that creates additional protection for your fist and knuckles. Using a pillow is somewhat reminiscent of the second method of wrapping bandages, where we made an overlay from a bandage. And with this gel pad there is no need to prepare a pad, it is very easy to use. You simply put it on the brush and wrap it with a bandage on top, pressing the gel pad. It's worth purchasing and having one in your equipment.
Bandage, orthosis, splint
Modern medicine also uses ready-made orthopedic devices made of plastic - bandages, orthoses, splints. Wearing such a retainer is used to treat pathologies and eliminate the consequences of mechanical injuries to the extremities; in addition, plastic prostheses are used to prevent tissue destruction. A bandage is a rigid elastic bandage with straps that can partially limit the mobility of the injured area. The orthosis has a rigid base with fastenings similar to a bandage - elastic straps or Velcro fasteners. The splint has a one-piece capsule design and is made primarily of polymer fibers that can ensure a tight fit of the retainer.
