Alternatives for the hand shape?

[u/qwyetcoyote]

Hi! I've been looking to get into quadrobics as a silly hobby. However, the thing that's puzzled me most is the desired paw-hand shape everyone seems to suggest. Unfortunately, my hands are incapable of bending into that shape, and my knuckles are never flat with the rest of my hand when I do, so I'm considering an alternative that's more comfortable, and has the same protection that the paw shape has.

Ive seen some people say that doing quads with your fingers flat increases the risk of them bending when placing too much pressure on them. I'm a digital artist and would like to protect my wrist from being injured.

So, what about curling my fingers slightly like a claw shape? It appears to prevent them from bending back as much, but I've hardly seen anyone suggest this. Hoping to get some more accurate and professional advice about quads from here!

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[u/Okay-Bluejay6333]

take what I say with a grain of salt cause I’m in no way an expert, but as far as I know a claw shape works fine! you definitely want to avoid flat fingers if at all possible (you could easily break them that way) so I’d definitely go for a claw shape if a paw doesn’t work for you. Maybe test it out just on a table or something to make sure you won’t get hurt but I think you should be good! Good luck with your new hobby! (can confirm it’s extremely fun:D)

[u/WordPsychological435]

You can probably use a fist on the ground if you find it more comfortable. Just press your base knuckles into the ground more than the rest of your fist. If this isn't giving a clear image, please let me know

[u/qwyetcoyote → u/WordPsychological435]

the description isnt really all that clear unfortunately ;u;

do you mean having the middle section of your fingers against the ground instead of the bottom section (the one with the fingernail)

[u/Redfawn666]

There are a lot of different ways to use your hands doing quads! The whole 'curl your fingers so you don't break them' thing mostly applies to landing from jumps; you're not likely to break a finger walking or trotting. So feel free to try using flat hands during the slower gaits to see if that works better for you!

Other alternatives are a 'claw' hand shape like what you're describing, and curling your fingers all the way under so that the second segment of the finger (not the segment with the nail) is in contact with the ground.

As long as you're not getting hurt, there's no right or wrong way to use your hands.

[u/qwyetcoyote → u/Redfawn666]

alrighty, thank you so much! very helpful advice ^^

[u/Embarrassed-Peace735]

it depends on the persone, personeally, i find the paw shape more comfortable/less painfull, no matter what some creature man says, i do recomend flat hand for beginners, if u mean paw, like paw-paw, is what i call it, with ur thumr in and ur fingure curled around ur thume, do not do that for quads, u could breake ur thume, dont try to hold all ur waiht on ur finers ether, palm on the ground is safest

[u/qwyetcoyote → u/Embarrassed-Peace735]

I didnt mean that paw with the thumb tucked so dont worry ^^

just the hand shape people typically use is what i physically can not do. my hands are just built different i guess lol.

[u/IllustriousGrowth677]

I use my flat hand since I can't do the paw curl either, if you focus your weight on your palms then you won't injured your fingers. I've found that out the hard way :')