Acrylic nail extensions are a popular choice to enhance the appearance of your natural nails.
However, if you’ve got acrylic nails, you might be wondering the best way to bowl.
In this article, we will cover some key information on bowling with acrylic nails, including the 5 best ways to bowl with acrylic nails.
Let’s get started.
Can You Bowl With Acrylic Nails?
Yes, you technically can bowl with acrylic nails. So, don’t worry if you’ve recently been to the salon and think you’re going to be left out of all of the fun.
That being said, you will need to take some extra precautions that you otherwise wouldn’t need to when wearing acrylic nails.
5 Best Ways To Bowl With Acrylic Nails
There are various ways you can bowl when you’ve got acrylic extensions. That being said, today, we’ll cover the 5 best ways to bowl with your acrylic nails.
These include:
Cover Your Acrylic Nails With Nail Protectors
Using protection products for your acrylic nails is a good precaution to take to ensure that your nails don’t break and you’re not in danger of injuring yourself whilst you are bowling.
One of the best and most common products for ensuring you’re safe when you are bowling is a set of nail protectors. These protectors sit over your acrylics and are great if you want to minimize the risk of injury.
The nail protectors mean that your nails are saved from direct contact with the bowling ball, meaning that you can bowl normally and even insert your fingers into the finger holes as you normally would.
This allows you to have a relatively normal bowling experience, despite the fact that you’ve got longer acrylic nails.
Use The Granny Style Bowling Technique
One of the most effective ways to protect your nails, while still having a tonne of fun with your friends at the bowling alley, is to adopt the granny style of bowling when it comes to your turn.
This technique allows you to throw the bowling ball without it interfering with your acrylic extensions. This comes down to the fact that you’re handling the ball with your hands, as opposed to your fingers.
How To Bowl Granny Style
Step One – Choose Your Ball
First, you are going to need to choose the right bowling ball. Once you’ve selected the want to hold the bowling ball with both of your hands.
Step Two – Stand Behind The Line
Following this, you will need to stand directly behind the foul line. This is important, as this style does not require you to take a long approach.
Step Three – Get In The Right Position
Now, you will need to stand with your legs hip distance apart, bend your knees down, and bring the ball between your legs.
Step Four – Bowl The Ball
Following this, you will swing the bowling ball back and forth for a while until you get the right speed and movement.
Now it is time to bowl the ball, and hopefully, you’ll knock some pins over!
Applying Bowling Tape
Bowling tape is another way you can protect your nails if you want to enjoy bowling with long acrylic nails.
In normal circumstances, bowling tape is used only for the thumb to prevent it from twisting or bending when you launch the ball down the lane.
However, you can use bowling tape to prevent your fingernails from breaking or tearing. Wearing bowling tape couldn’t be simpler, as you just apply the bowling tape around each fingertip, and you’re ready to bowl!
The bowling tape is good for creating a layer of protection around your fingernails and thumbnail, in turn helping your long nails to remain intact and be protected from any direct contact or breakage.
Bowling Ramps
Bowling ramps are portable inclined slides that are specifically designed for bowling balls. Bowling ramps allow you to direct the bowling ball without making direct contact with the bowling ball, as it rolls down the ramp with you only having to contribute minimal effort.
Bowling ramps are usually used by children, the elderly, or people with disabilities as an aid. This allows them to have a great bowling experience without having to exert as much effort into the activity, and the same can be said for people with acrylic nails!
When you want to use one, simply ask for a bowling ramp. When it’s time to bowl, you will need to line the bowling ramp up with the target arrow of your choice.
Position your bowling ball at the top of the bowling ramp and let it go. It really couldn’t be more simple! Not only does this mean you can still interact and have fun, but your long nails remain safe in the process. It’s a win-win situation for everyone involved.
Finger Cots
Last, but by no means least, we have finger cots. Finger cots are essentially gloves for your fingertips.
Although they are made of soft cotton, they are great at keeping your fingernails safe even with the addition of acrylic nails!
Providing a layer of soft protection to your long nails, your acrylic extensions won’t come into contact with the bowling ball directly, meaning they’ll be both protected and won’t interfere with your game either.
Which method you choose to help you bowl with your acrylics will depend on you and your preferences, as there’s no right or wrong answer.
Make sure that you prioritize your comfort and your safety when making your choice. If you don’t feel confident in one choice, you don’t need to force yourself out of your comfort zone.
While one option might work for someone else, doesn’t mean it’ll work for you – and that’s okay! You’re much more likely to enjoy the experience and have fun if you’re comfortable with your choice, so be sure to pick the right one for you.
Is It Safe To Bowl With Acrylic Nails On?
It can be safe to bowl with acrylic nails provided that you take the necessary precautions to protect your nails.
However, this doesn’t mean that there’s no risk involved. If you’re going to bowl as normal, like you would when you didn’t have acrylic nails on, you might land yourself in hot water.
Respecting that wearing acrylic nails can alter your technique, even if you’re an experienced bowler, is a good way to ensure that you remain safe during your bowling session.
Bowling might not seem like a dangerous sport, particularly if you do it often, but when you consider launching a bowling ball down the lane with the addition of long acrylic nails that are attached to your real nails, accidents can occur.
As bowling involves placing your fingers into the grip holes before launching it down the lane, there is an element of risk when you’ve got acrylic nails on.
So, what are the risks you’ll need to be aware of before you hit the bowling alley?
Nail Or Skin Injury
The biggest risk when you’re bowling with long, acrylic nails is the potential to cause a nail injury.
If your acrylic nail gets stuck inside the holes of the bowling ball, when you launch it down the lane you could rip the nail off, and you might even draw blood if you do not protect your nails well while you are bowling.
In addition to this, you can also cause damage to the surrounding skin and your natural nail should you accidentally break the acrylic nail in the process of bowling.
If you break the skin when you’re bowling and end up with a cut, you will also need to contend with the bacteria that is likely in the bowling alley and on the bowling balls. Bearing this in mind, the cut will need to be thoroughly cleaned with antiseptic and treated properly.
Broken Nail(s)
Another risk of bowling with acrylic nails is this could lead to broken nails, even if this doesn’t cause you any pain or harm.
Placing your acrylic nails into the bowling ball without the necessary protection can jeopardize your nails and increase the chances of them breaking.
A full set of acrylics isn’t a cheap investment, and the potential of breaking a few nails in the process of bowling can quickly lead to an expensive visit to the salon to have them reapplied.
You should bear this in mind when you’re weighing up which option is best to protect your nails.
In addition to these risks, you will also want to consider:
Your Technique Might Suffer
It’s also important to note that when you’ve got acrylic nails on, no matter how skilled you are as a bowler, you’re going to be at a slight disadvantage.
As a result, your technique will likely be less accurate, meaning that you could end up losing more games than you’re used to if you’re not used to bowling with them on.
While this might not necessarily be a problem for you if you’re a beginner or if you infrequently bowl, this could be a significant disadvantage to someone who normally takes bowling seriously.
There is little to no point in getting a full set of acrylic nails done if you’re just going to end up breaking them by bowling, so protecting them is important.
You Might Be Slower Than Normal
There’s no getting away from the fact that having acrylic nails will alter how you would typically bowl.
This comes down to the fact that you’ll be compromising to accommodate the acrylic nails.
Bearing this in mind, you should be aware that having acrylic nails might slow you down as a bowler, as you will constantly be accommodating and thinking about protecting your nails.
While this might not be an issue for a beginner, you might struggle to keep up and find them frustrating if your hobby is bowling.
It’s also important to remain realistic! Having acrylic nails might not be the norm for you, so of course, your bowling technique might change as a result of this.
If you decide you prefer bowling without them, then you know this for next time! It’s not the end of the world to have a session that you’re slightly out of whack for.
In Summary
Just because you have acrylic nails, doesn’t mean that you have to miss out on all the fun when your friends go bowling.
That being said, it’s important to protect your nails to prevent damage and injury. It’s also crucial to know that acrylic nails can be a hindrance to your technique, particularly if you’re not used to bowling with them.
We hope this article has been helpful and you have a better understanding of the 5 best ways to bowl with acrylic nails.
Good luck and have fun bowling!
I wanted to create my website to inspire others to pick up their bowling balls and get to their local lanes. There’s nothing quite like enjoying a friendly game of bowling with your friends and family, so what are you waiting for?
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