When I started Calisthenics Training, I had no idea about liquid chalk. I used to just get up on the bar, moan about how much my hands hurt, and often start slipping off the bar the longer into my session I got.
When my old training partner introduced me to liquid chalk, I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread.
Liquid Chalk will help improve your grip, but make sure it is only on the surface of your hands!
Liquid Chalk Saves The Day
Liquid chalk is pretty amazing. It enables me to train longer because I can get a workout in without getting sweaty hands – the worst thing when you are hanging from a bar.
When you are doing calisthenics, your hands take a beating, that’s just how it is. Just like down the gym, a lot of pressure is put onto your hands to keep hold of the bar.
In the gym you run the risk of dropping the weight on your foot, with calisthenics you run the risk of slipping off and landing on your face/back/front whichever is closest to the ground at the time.
Liquid Chalk VS Regular Chalk
You can get powder balls and blocks of chalk as an alternative to the liquid stuff, but the liquid chalk wins in my book.
At gymnastics I am not allowed to use my liquid chalk, so I use the regular powder stuff. The problem I have with power is that you constantly need to reapply it, over and over.
But liquid chalk stays on your hands for the whole session. It is very rare that I put more than one squirt of liquid chalk on my hands.
Another bonus of liquid chalk is that it is pretty cheap. I spent less than a tenner on a bottle i got through amazon in January, I still have it today, it has lasted almost an entire year, and it isn’t just me using it. When my friends or some of the guys I am training come to the bars, they often use it too.
So liquid chalk is a great investment you can make to help improve your training. It comes in a little bottle you can stick in your bag or pocket if you are training light. It lasts for a long time and it is easy to apply.
Empty your pockets before applying liquid chalk or you will end up with chalk all over you
How To Use Liquid Chalk
When you use liquid chalk for the first time you will probably make a right mess of it. there are a couple of things to do right with liquid chalk to ensure you don’t waste it, or get it all over your clothes.
- Empty Your Pockets – There have been so many times where I have put chalk on then my phone has started ringing and i realise that it is still in my pocket. Avoid looking like a cocaine dealer by emptying your pockets before you put the chalk on!
- Use A Good Squirt – If you put too little on, you are going to need more, that is when it gets really messy. Get a good dollop on from the start, about a full teaspoon, don’t over do it though or you will have chalky icing drying on your hands for 10 minutes!
- Keep It On The Surface – You grip the bar with the surface of your palms and fingers, so don’t get it in the creases. Keep it on top by spreading it quickly when it is applied, then instead of rubbing it in, pat it to keep it on the surface, then shake it dry.
- Moisturise – Chalk dries your hands out, so wash it off with soap at the end of your session and then moisturise to protect your hands from drying out and keep them silky smooth.
- Let It Dry – Don’t be too eager to jump up on the bar once it is on. Liquid chalk looks like icing as it is drying and it acts like it too. If you get up on the bar before it has dried, the chalk will stick to the bar and it will stay there.
Liquid chalk is the ultimate training supplement for calisthenics, you don’t need a gym membership, you don’t need a locker or a kit bag. All you need is one of these bottles and you are laughing. You can take it anywhere with you – though I wouldn’t recommend taking it on flights – and it will enable you to train better and for longer.
Strengthen your grip, prevent sweaty hands ruining your workouts and build the strength you want with the help of liquid chalk.
Where To Get It?
Guys, I kinda wish I sold my own liquid chalk now, but I don’t. You can get liquid chalk everywhere though, and usually quite easily. Some training and supplement shops will sell it, Amazon has a never ending supply, I got mine from myprotein.com, but here are a few places that sell liquid chalk that you can check out:
There are loads more of these, you can find liquid chalk anywhere people are climbing, powerlifting, pole dancing, doing gymnastics and more.
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