Hand Swelling in AP

[tedmosby7]

My grips feel a little different from practice to practice and match to match. I would assume swelling or similar things to blame.

Is there a way to keep this more consistent? I dry-fire to get the feel for the day but curious if there are other ideas.

TIA

[David M]

Part of every match setup is to adjust the grip for feel.
Hands do swell and change all the time, temperature, fluid levels etc.
That is why palm shelves are adjustable.
Air and Standard not too bad but Free grips always need adjusting,
sometimes even during a match. Usually not much, maybe 1-3mm.

[B Lafferty]

It's likely not indicative of heart/circulatory issues, but it can be depending on the amount of edema. Best to have your physician check it out, especially if you're of a certain age. That said, if you are retired and rely on Medicare, the annual "wellness" check will not ordinarily include an ekg. You'll have to make a specific heart related complaint of something like angina to get a real physical evaluation.

[m1963]

Humidity, health, diet, and exercise all play a role.

In the US it is possible to be shooting in a low humidity environment one day and a high humidity environment the next. How one stores/transports the pistol can effect this as well. (ie, not storing the pistol in the trunk of a hot/cold vehicle.)

Health issues can lead to water retention, increasing hand swelling especially when it is very warm.

(It is sort of like putting a ring on your finger, some days it fits fine, some days it is snug, and others it is very tight. Have you ever tried to put on a ring, after a hot shower?)

Diet (especially salt intake) can change the size of your hand, due to water retention. Finally, exercise increases blood flow and can lead to swelling, but it does reduce within an hour or so.

How to deal with it? Maintain a regular diet 24 to 72 hours before shooting. (Caffeine and alcohol intake should be considered, and reduced/eliminated if it changes your shooting.) Regular water intake helps to 'level off' some of the internal changes. During sighting and preparation time make small adjustments to grip fit, as needed. Lower salt intake, whenever possible, and avoid high salt foods the day before a match. When possible, exercise moderately (walk/jog) about 2 hours before a match, and be sure to allow your body to recover- remember, a hot shower can briefly cause swelling, so perhaps go with a luke-warm shower.

At the end of the day we believe the fewer changes one makes to the pistol on match days, the better. Stick with what has been working during training.

[B Lafferty]

Humidity, health, diet, and exercise all play a role.

[snip]

How to deal with it? Maintain a regular diet 24 to 72 hours before shooting. (Caffeine and alcohol intake should be considered, and reduced/eliminated if it changes your shooting.) Regular water intake helps to 'level off' some of the internal changes. During sighting and preparation time make small adjustments to grip fit, as needed. Lower salt intake, whenever possible, and avoid high salt foods the day before a match. When possible, exercise moderately (walk/jog) about 2 hours before a match, and be sure to allow your body to recover- remember, a hot shower can briefly cause swelling, so perhaps go with a luke-warm shower.

At the end of the day we believe the fewer changes one makes to the pistol on match days, the better. Stick with what has been working during training.

Good advice that mirrors what one of the top Soviet chess Grandmasters recommended and followed before tournament and match games. Spassky or Korchnoi, IIRC.

[tedmosby7]

Great info folks!

Been thinking about those who travel around the world to shoot. Keeping it all consistent seems to be the key!