Is it OK to use a hand towel to help with the grips?

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#984

My question has to do with using or not using a towel to help hold your poses with your hands. For example in wind removing pose, standing head to knee, tree pose and standing bow pose, I often lose my grip due to the constant sweat. This causes great frustration for me. The teachers in my studio tell us not to use the towels to help with grip because we need to build strength and we one day will be able to hold on through the sweat. I find that this is just not happening for me and the result is that I am missing the full benefit of the poses. What do you suggest? Are they correct in saying this and therefore I need to be patient to gain that strength?

Best Regards,
Tanya
Posted by Tanya on 01/24 at 12:58 PM

Hey Tanya

Oh boy! Well you know, they are right! I am guilty though of using a towel when I first started my practice. It was the thing to do in the studio I went to. Everybody did it. Then one day I was told not to and I persisted. The only pose where it is always your choice is Rabbit pose, use it or not, just make sure you don’t slip.

For me, I found the only pose where I went through pain and grip slippage was actually Standing Bow. I found that while I was building the strength in my fingers that my shin was hurting at the site of the grip and so were my fingers, in their very poor effort at holding on! However through that difficulty I learned to build strength. But only after I let go of the hand towels.

Now here’s something you might be interested in…

When I opened my studio I never said to anyone that they couldn’t use a hand towel. The thing was, that I never said that they could use one either. So as a consequence no one EVER thought of using one. They just worked their way through it all. True story.

Sooner or later you are just going to have to let it go! You decide, but I think, sooner better than later.

Warm regards from someone who has been there and thought the same thing
Gabrielle 🙂

[Robert Scanlon (Webmaster)]

#2774

Oh yes! This is a great question!

I remember being really attached to my hand-towel – especially in Standing Head To Knee, Standing Bow … gee that brings back memories!

Gabrielle is right though, it is really freeing to lose it – and the strength *does* come. I’ve regularly practiced in well over 80% humidity and you might have noticed it’s the men who often perspire more – well my large towel would drain a great deal of water after class, so I guess what I’m saying is there was not much grip.

Yet I never once thought about using the hand-towel that I used to automatically grab many years ago – until you asked this question.

So yes, I think it really is worth doing your best to move past your immediate frustration with losing the grip – I would bet it would only take a half-dozen classes for it to stop being frustrating and start amazing you!

Keep us informed … 🙂

[Restored Content]

#2775

Posted by Ela

OK…but what I supposed to do IF I cannot grip my foot.
I am beginner and I have big problem with all the poses I need to grip my feet.
If I do not use towel I would do nothing, just standing.
Please let me know what to do in both bow poses. Simply I am not flexible to grip my feet or foot and I feel like I would never would do that. Standing and waiting to pose pass doesnt help. How to make progress????

Ela

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#2776

Hello Ela

Well of course you would use something! :cheese: I hope I didn’t mislead you. Nobody wants to just stand there when they don’t have to.

I recommend a strap or a towel. It really depends on how much further you have to reach…
I have a particular student at the moment who has to use a strap and she finds it easier than a towel to grip and find some pull.

Obviously it would be better if you didn’t need to use anything. The original response above was for someone who can reach her feet 😉

Please be aware when you use any grip prop of the way you use your arms. Always aim to keep relax your shoulders.

Ela, if you have ANY questions about specific grips with different poses then post something in the specific pose headers, I will be happy to help.

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

[Restored Content]

#2777

Posted by Ela

Gabrielle,

You are GREAT!
I will post my questions for specific poses,

Thanks!

Ela

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#2778

You are welcome!

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