Which Active Hands Gripping Aid Is Right for You? A Guide to the Different Options

Limited hand function or reduced grip strength can make some gym exercises, sports and everyday activities difficult, even when you have the strength and movement required to perform the activity itself.

Active Hands produces a range of gripping and exercise aids designed to help overcome this problem. Rather than relying entirely on finger and hand strength, these aids can help secure the hand to weights, bars, handles, gym equipment and sporting equipment.

But with several different options available, choosing the right one isn't always obvious.

The General Purpose Gripping Aid, Hook Aids, D-Ring Aids, Looped Exercise Aids and Angled Gripping Aid are all designed for slightly different applications. This guide explains the differences and where each option works best.

Quick Guide: Which Active Hands Aid Do I Need?

General Purpose Gripping Aid: A Versatile All-Round Option

The Active Hands General Purpose Gripping Aid is Active Hands' most popular and widely used gripping aid. Designed as a versatile all-round option, it can be used across a wide range of exercise, sport and everyday activities.

The aid sits around the wrist and hand, with a strap that wraps over the hand and around the object being held. Tightening the strap gently pulls the hand into a gripping position and helps maintain the grip without relying solely on finger strength.

This makes it useful across a particularly wide range of activities.

In the gym, it can be used with dumbbells, barbells, rowing machines and many other handles. Outside the gym, the same aid can assist with holding tools, gardening equipment, paddles, cues, bottles, mugs and other everyday objects.

The General Purpose Gripping Aid is available individually for the left or right hand, so you can purchase one or a pair depending on your requirements.

Who is it best suited to?

The General Purpose Gripping Aid may be suitable for people who:

• Have reduced grip strength or limited hand function
• Can position their hand around an object but struggle to maintain their grip
• Want one aid that can be used across several different activities
• Want gripping assistance for both exercise and everyday tasks

It comes in Small, Standard and Large sizes (with both standard black and pink options available), with the correct size determined using both wrist circumference and the distance from the wrist crease to the tip of the middle finger.

View the Active Hands General Purpose Gripping Aid

Hook Aids: For Closed-Ended Bars and Handles

The Active Hands Hook Aids take a different approach to the General Purpose Gripping Aid.

Instead of wrapping the hand around the equipment, stainless steel double hooks provide the connection to the bar or handle. This can be particularly useful for pulling exercises and equipment where the end of the bar is enclosed and a loop cannot simply be slid over it.

Typical applications include:

• Pull-up bars
• Closed-ended gym handles
• Exercise machines
• Hand bikes
• Other bars and handles used under pulling tension

An elastic finger loop helps keep the hooks positioned correctly when reaching forwards or overhead.

The Hook Aids also include optional silicone tubing that can be fitted over the hooks. This can improve traction on slick or padded surfaces, reduce movement between the hook and bar and provide some additional padding.

When should I choose Hook Aids instead of General Purpose Gripping Aids?

The General Purpose Gripping Aid is designed to help your hand maintain a grip around an object. The Hook Aid works differently, with the hooks themselves providing the connection to the equipment.

For exercises involving closed bars or handles under pulling tension, the Hook Aids may therefore be a more practical option.

D-Ring Aids: For Cable and Pulley Machines

If you regularly use cable machines at the gym, the Active Hands D-Ring Aids provide another option.

Instead of holding a conventional cable attachment, the D-ring can connect directly to the carabiner on compatible cable and pulley machines.

The wrist section is secured using Velcro, allowing the pulling force to be transferred through the wrist rather than relying on grip strength.

This can be useful for exercises such as cable rows, pulldowns and other upper-body cable exercises where an appropriate direct connection can be made.

Because the D-Ring Aid doesn't depend on wrapping the fingers around a handle, it can also be a useful option for some people with limb differences or very limited finger function.

D-Ring Aids are supplied as a pair and are available in Small/Standard and Large.

Looped Exercise Aids: For Open-Ended Bars

The Active Hands Looped Exercise Aids are another wrist-mounted option, but instead of connecting to a carabiner, they use a strong loop that can slide over an open-ended bar or handle.

This makes them particularly useful on gym equipment where there is an exposed end that the loop can be placed over.

Like the D-Ring Aids, the connection is made through the wrist rather than depending on the fingers maintaining a grip.

The important distinction is:

• D-Ring Aid: connects directly to a carabiner or compatible attachment point.
• Looped Exercise Aid: slides over an open-ended bar or handle.

The design of the machine or handle you want to use will often determine which of these two options is more suitable.

The Looped Exercise Aids may also be suitable for some people with significant limb differences because they do not rely on the fingers wrapping around the equipment.

Angled Gripping Aid: For Racquet and Bat Sports

Most gripping aids are designed around holding an object relatively straight across the hand. That works well for many gym and everyday applications, but it isn't ideal for every sport.

The Active Hands Angled Gripping Aid positions the grip at approximately 45 degrees, allowing sporting equipment to sit in a more natural position.

It has been designed for activities including:

• Tennis
• Wheelchair tennis
• Table tennis
• Cricket
• Baseball
• Other racquet and bat-based sports

It can also be useful for certain tools or other activities where an angled grip is preferable.

What If I Use Lots of Different Gym Equipment?

One gripping aid won't necessarily be the best option for every machine in a gym. A dumbbell, cable machine, pull-up bar and open-ended exercise handle all present different gripping challenges.

For people who train regularly and use a broad range of equipment, the Active Hands Gym Pack Deluxe combines several different solutions in one kit.

The pack contains:

• 1 Pair – General Purpose Gripping Aids for free weights and rowing machines
• 1 Pair – Looped Exercise Aids for open-ended bars
• 1 Pair – D-Ring Aids for cable and pulley machines
• 1 Pair – Hook Aids for closed-ended bars such as pull-up bars
• 1 Pair – Heavy Use Gripping Wraps
• 1 Pair – Thumb Protectors
• Drawstring Gym Bag with the "Get a Grip" slogan

Rather than trying to make a single gripping aid work with every piece of equipment, the pack allows you to select an appropriate aid for different exercises and equipment.

What About Limb Differences?

The amount of hand and finger function required varies between the different Active Hands products.

For customers with limb differences or missing fingers, Active Hands also produces a dedicated Limb Difference Gripping Aid, which may be more appropriate than the General Purpose Gripping Aid depending on the individual's needs.

For gym use, the D-Ring Aids and Looped Exercise Aids may also be worth considering because they attach around the wrist and do not depend on the fingers maintaining a conventional grip.

The most suitable option will depend on the individual's hand or limb difference and, importantly, the activity and equipment they want to use.

If you're unsure which design is appropriate, contact Wheelchair Outfitters before ordering and we can help you compare the available options.

Choosing the Right Active Hands Aid

A useful way to choose is to start with the activity and equipment you want to use rather than the product itself.

If you want a versatile aid for weights, exercise and everyday activities, consider the General Purpose Gripping Aid.

If you primarily use closed-ended bars and pulling equipment, consider the Hook Aids.

For cable and pulley machines, look at the D-Ring Aids.

For open-ended gym bars and handles, the Looped Exercise Aids may be more appropriate.

For tennis, table tennis, cricket and other sports where equipment is held at an angle, the Angled Gripping Aid has been specifically designed for this type of application.

And if you regularly use many different types of gym equipment, the Gym Pack Deluxe combines several of these options in one kit.

Active Hands in Australia

Wheelchair Outfitters stocks a wide range of Active Hands gripping aids, recreational and exercise aids and daily living products in Australia.

If there is an Active Hands product or variant you're looking for that isn't currently advertised on our website, please get in touch. We can order products from the wider Active Hands range as required.

For non-stocked and out-of-stock products, our Active Hands supplier orders are currently placed on the 1st of January, March, May, July, September and November, with products generally arriving approximately two weeks after the order date.

You can browse our Sport & Fitness range and General Mobility Aids range, or contact Wheelchair Outfitters if you need help choosing between the different Active Hands products or would like to enquire about a product that isn't currently listed.