So I’ve been yoyoing for a month now and my throwing middle finger gets strangled a lot by the slipknots, to the point where it hurts and I need to stop for the day. I thought at first that this would go away with practice, my finger would get used to it, but so far nothing.
Does this happen to you aswell? Did it ever happen? How can I make it less of an annoyance? Do gloves help (most don’t even cover the throw finger)?
For me, I started putting the slip knot over 2 fingers.
My middle and ring.
And I place it on the knuckle.
I don’t feel the strangle at all, but it might just be my preferences.
Experiment!
Gloves do help, or you could also try the yoyo tape that’s sold here… Using softer string helps too cuz the slipknot doesn’t have as strong of a grip.
This happened to me the first started throwing but now the string dosnt even leave the finger red.
Pretty normal for the first month, more if you throw a lot. the skin in your finger eventually get tougher and it not as bad.
you can also try shifting the location of the slipknot up and down the finger to relieve the pressure for a bit.
After about 1-2 hours of yoyoing my finger just gets numb and I ignore it.
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This is common when starting out. Soon a callus will form, but until then here’s what I’d do. Buy some medical tape. Play until it hurts too much to continue, then wrap some medical tape around your finger and keep on playing! The reason to play until it hurts is so the callus will form.
Some string gets really tight.
Thanks for the responses. I’m glad it will eventually be a non issue by itself.
I consider usually a month of adaptation time quite a lot. My body has gotten used to way more abusive things than a strangling string in a month.
For now I do not want to try using weird slipknots, as I’m still trying to learn the proper way before adapting to my own way, but I’ll try double finger slipknots when my finger dies out.
I’ll also eventually try using some sort of tape, bandaid is the one I’ll have easiest access to so that might be it at first.
Glad that my finger is not a wuss and that everyone goes through this.
Thanks for the helpful advice, and if you have something to add, please do.
What string do you use? You could try using softer string so it doesnt restrict as much. You will still develop a callous but with less pain 
A year later and mine still gets aggravated sometimes. I have to pause to loosen the slipknot, and as suggested, move it up or down the finger for a while. I think it has gotten better with time…? But maybe not. It still happens, that’s for sure.
Unluckily, I rarely have time for more than an hour of throwing in a session, which isn’t too hard to survive at this point.
well, you said you’ve gotten used to much more abusive things in less than a month. I’m not sure what you meant, but maybe they were mental battles (mind over body). Because building a callus is like a scab healing. It takes time and there’s nothing you can do about it. But hey, I dunno.
I do have a tip though! Bandaids work very nicely. And I mean real bandaids. Fabric and junk, The whole package. I see you said you’ll start with bandaids, so I’d just ‘stick’ with that. (Eh, eh?)
Whatever string comes into the yoyo, until I think it’s in a bad enough condition for a replacement. I’m using pure Poly string, right now is normal kitty.
Nah, exercise over body, like working out at the gym without gloves, in a couple weeks my hands will grow callus and my muscles will get used to the exercise and stop crying out pain.
When I first started my middle finger turned red and raw at first. Eventually it got to the point to where it bled. After that I had to wear a Band-Aid to throw. Once I was able to take the Band-Aid off there was a callus there, but after a little while it completely went away and my throwing finger is as soft and smooth as it was before but now I could throw all day and it wouldn’t leave a mark. Just keep it up and soon you won’t have to worry about anything like that.
I’ve got noticeable calluses there. Every once in a while if the string pulls particularly tight or I’ve been playing for a while, it does feel irritated, but it’s not really an issue I have to think about much anymore.
…also just a random addition, I’ve been in threads like this before and seen someone post a picture of their destroyed finger, and the rest of their hand is ashy and dry as a desert. MOISTURIZE PEOPLE. It makes a big, big difference for your throw finger with regards to cutting and bleeding…and it never hurts to have nice hands.
One thing I used to do is put the slipknot closer to my second knuckle once my finger was hurting. Then when that spot starts to hurt move it back. 