Buyer's guide to gloves
There are many types of gloves, and they vary in durability, flexibility, support, materials and protection, so it is important to make a careful selection in order to avoid possible accidents caused by a lack of grip.
Size of gloves
Any kind of glove for fitness and strength training has to be a suitable size, and should be an easy fit to the hand and to the wrist so as to avoid movement and slips during workouts. Most gloves are fingerless, but there are some models that do have fingers and, although they offer greater protection for the skin, fingerless gloves often offer more comfort as they are not so warm and give greater ventilation.
Durability of the gloves
As gloves are used for prolonged and repetitive exercises, gloves are usually made of durable materials such as nylon, leather or neoprene. Nylon is the least durable of all these, and therefore are recommended for beginners. Athletes that need gloves with more resistance should choose gloves made of either leather or neoprene. Due to sweat generated during workouts, it is important to make sure that the gloves are washable.
A good grip is designed with anti-slip areas located at the palm of the hand, which provides traction for better grip during training, thus achieving repetitions with fewer slips and slides. Another important factor is that the material allows continuous grip even with the presence of sweat, to avoid discomfort when carrying out workouts. Many gloves have plastic surfaces with extra grip on the palms.
Some flexible gloves give greater freedom of movement, that is why they are recommended for aerobics exercises or workouts with small weights, and rigid gloves are ideal for lifting heavy weights and for strength training machines such as rowing or upper body machines. It is very important to choose suitable gloves for the use that you wish to give them, so as to experience greater comfort during each type of training.
For light workouts, with light weights, gloves made of thin, porous material are recommended, that give good ventilation, while gloves made of materials such as leather are more suitable for exercises with heavy weights, but have a shorter lifespan. In any case, neoprene is one of the best materials, as it allows the flow of air, is flexible, resistant, has good grip and does not allow sweat to build up.
When absorbing the pressure caused when lifting or pulling a little, gloves protect the skin and wrists, helping to make the effort more efficient and at the same time more comfortable.