Your Nails and Jewelry Are Destroying the Apparatus

Pop Quiz!

This is a quickie today, Dear Danglers! Multiple choice pop quiz!

Do you wear jewelry when you train? (watches, rings, belly-button rings, intimate piercings, etc.)
- Yes – every damned day.
- No – I remove the metal from my body before I train.
Do you have very long finger (or, gross) toe nails?
- Yes – I love my long fingernails!
- No – my nails might make a manicurist weep, but they’re great for aerial work.

Answer Key

If you answered anything other than NO to the questions above, you are probably responsible for at least one tiny hole in my fabrics. Watches, rings with protrusions, and long nails can snag fabrics, interfere with grip, and get in the way of certain wraps. Necklaces can get caught and tighten painfully around the neck, belly button rings can tear out (I’ve seen it – it’s horrifying), earrings can be pulled out of lobes, and intimate piercings can, well, use your imagination. Ouch.

What’s fine? Plain rings (think wedding bands) with nothing that could snag the apparatus, and small stud earrings (do note though that, if you injure your fingerand it swells, the ring may need to be cut off). Nails – toe and finger – are best kept short-ish; if you really hate the thought of giving up your nails, try to find a shorter length that makes you happy, but still allows for productive aerial work. If you don’t want to take your belly button ring out (I get it!), cover it with athletic tape or something similar so it can’t get snagged. If you have intimate piercings, you may just have to bow out of certain moves, depending on the nature of the piercing and the move being contemplated.

So, play nicely with other people’s things! No jewelry + short-ish nails = a happy coach! 🙂 Love and pull-ups, Laura

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2 comments on “Your Nails and Jewelry Are Destroying the Apparatus”

Alisha R February 19, 2015

I always trained with my belly ring in but I only keep very tight small captive rings. Otherwise I think I would have had an issue. I had it in during flying trapeze as well and the training belt didn’t bother it. I think it very much would be an issue on silks though. So much wrapping around the belly.
Aerial Hoopla February 21, 2015

I’ve had a belly ring for many years and I would hate to get rid of it because it looks nice and I love it. But sometimes I feel it really hinders my training on pole and lyra. For example, I am afraid to try certain moves, like belly rolls, that could potentially rip it off. Removing it before every class is not a good option either. Every time I take it out I have problems with putting it back, and even without the ring, the pierced area stays tender. Perhaps covering it with tape is a good solution.