Hand Wrapping

Welcome to our hand wrapping page, Below you will find sections on hand wrapping for competitions, hand wrapping for training and sparring and also storing and cleaning your hand wraps.

Hand-wrapping for combat has been around for millennia. In 688bc the ancient Greeks wrapped their hands in preparation for boxing events at the ancient Olympic Games. These particular wraps were called HIMANTES and were made of soft ox-hide leather. Later, as they developed into gloves, wool was added as padding and they were called OXEIS HIMANTES. Himantes, Oxeis himantes, Caestus Primarily, hand-wraps were designed to strengthen the wrist and steady the fingers. They later evolved into weapons when the Romans added iron or lead studs and these were called CAESTUS. Similarly, the ancient Thais wrapped their hands not just for protection but to add as a weapon when in battle. They used hemp rope and bound their hands, wrists and forearms tying knots to protrude out from the knuckles. Once bound, they would dip them into water. When the water dried the hemp would shrink so as to fit tightly against the warriors hands. Legend has it that the Thais dipped their wraps first in resin and then into ground glass, but I could find no historical facts to back this up in my research. (Other than in Jean Claude Van Damme's, wrongly titled, “Kickboxer” movie!). As battlefield fighting skills became obsolete and fighting sports/arts evolved, so did the need to wear wraps as weapons. Hemp rope was, and still is, used for Muay Boran (old style Muay) contests but with the addition of Queensbury rules style of fighting the cotton wraps replaced them. Dependant upon their style of fighting, be it predominantly kicks or more clinching and punching, depicted how high the wraps travelled up the arm. A strong kicking camp would have shorter wraps whereas a predominantly striking camp would require more support in the arms and wrists. Hand wraps are mandatory throughout professional competitions in Muay Thai and must adhere to specific regulations. The World Muay Thai Council (W.M.C) states the following in item 4 of its rules and regulations of Muay Thai: “Item 4: BANDAGES Only a soft material type is allowed, size 2 inches x 6.5 yards (5 cm x 6 metres). Plastic or plaster types are strictly prohibited. The use of adhesive tape, size 2.50 cm. x 2.50 metres is only allowed for covering the back of the wrist and must not be used to cover the knuckles.” In addition to offering support and protection to the knuckles, fingers, thumbs and wrists, hand-wraps also act as an inner glove for bag-mitts and boxing gloves and provide a barrier against bacteria that harbours in sweat filled leather gloves.

Greek pottery depicting boxers with hand-wraps Greek statue of a boxer wearing HIMANTES Hemp hand-wraps of the Thais

Tape, hand-wraps and scissors in preparation for the fighter	Applying the first wrap	Building up the knuckle with zinc oxide tape
Applying final support tape after second bandaging	Safety scissors for removing taped wraps	Removal of the wraps

1. Begin by holding the wrap between the thumb and forefinger	2. Gripping tightly, pass the wrap over your knuckles	3. Cross the back of the hand (towards little finger side)
4. Travel under the wrist and out at thumb side	5. Over the back of the wrist...	6. And under
7. Over the thumb...	8. ...And under	9. Round the back of the wrist...
10. ...And under	11. ...Over the thumb again...	12. ….And under
13. Round the back of the wrist and under	14. Through the index finger	15. Loop round towards thumb side and back over hand
16. Under wrist then through middle finger	17. Looping around towards thumb side and back over hand...	18. Under wrist...
19. Through little finger	20. Looping towards thumb then across towards wrist	21. Under wrist
22. Over back of hand towards little finger	23. Pass over knuckles going under hand	24. Alternative view
25. Passing over knuckles	26. Crossing diagonally over back of hand……	27. …..Under wrist
28. Tie off – Through middle finger...	29. Alternative view	30. Anchor through palm (a)
31. anchor through palm (b)	32. Tie off	33. Front view
34. Top view (a)	35. Top view (b)

To increase the shelf life of your wraps it is important to fold them correctly and keep them clean. In addition cleaning will alleviate any chance of bacteria developing from sweat and reduce that “smelly Socks” odour! When rolling up your wraps tie one end onto the bottom ropes of the boxing ring or use a handle or door knob (illustrated).Keeping tension throughout, begin to roll your wraps ironing out twists and kinks as you go along. You can clean your wraps by placing them into a soap net (see illustration) and washing them on a low temperature cycle. Once dried, store them folded. At Chao Phraya Academy we offer our students a diploma course in hand-wrapping, teaching the following: Basic quick hand-wrap Wrapping for class Fighters wrap/heavy bag wrap All our trainers are qualified in advanced wrapping and taping. Quite often fighters and students alike do not realise the importance of correct hand-wrapping and it is often too late after they receive an injury to the thumb, wrist or knuckles. ENSURE YOU WRAP YOUR HANDS FOR ALL CONTACT TRAINING WHETHER IT’S DURING CLASS OR COMPETING.

Tying off Rolling up Using a soap net for washing wraps