by Larry R. Shockey

This is part 2 in a 4-part guide to anal fisting by Larry Shockey, organizer of Hell Hole San Francisco and Fist Fest.
• Part 1 – Learning the Basics
• Part 3 – The Mind-Body Connection (Headspace Before, During and After the Scene)
• Part 4 – Keeping It Safe, Clean and Disease-free

ADVICE FOR THE FISTING TOP

Supplies

Nail clippers • Gloves • Emery boards • Paper towels
Disposable tubs for lube • Newspapers/floor covering • Hand sanitizer
Masking Tape • Trash bags • Permanent Marker
Dawn Dishwashing Liquid • Simple Green cleaner • Bleach 10% solution

What’s All This Stuff For? Nail clippers and emery boards are for trimming nails. Paper towels for wiping hands and butts and generally cleaning up messes. Newspapers or some sort of pads are used to protect the flooring and to help prevent slipping. Soapless hand sanitizer is used with or without gloves to further clean hands and arms. Trash bags, because you’ll make lots of trash. Dawn for cleaning your body and Simple Green for cleaning up other surfaces.

Disposable tubs, masking tape and permanent markers?? Probably some of the most important supplies you can have on hand. Why? Because you NEVER share lube. Let’s say you are using Crisco and you’ve bought the standard size can for your little party so everyone will have plenty of lube. NOTHING but a clean spoon should ever go into that can and nothing should touch the spoon other than the Crisco or a clean paper towel. The spoon dips into the Crisco can and dispenses lube into the individual disposable tubs. Put a strip of masking tape on the tub and use the marker to write your name on it. That’s YOUR lube—the lube that others will dip into to use on you, not for you to use on other people. Using the same disposable tub of lube to grease up several other people results in cross-contamination, which is something you want to avoid. If you run out of lube, get a clean tub to dispense it into.

Where To Fist. A sling is the most common platform for fisting, but let’s face it, not everyone has one, and there aren’t a lot of sex clubs anymore where it’s really conducive to fist. So what to do if you don’t have a sling? Where can you fist? A rope or a leather strap attached to ankle restraints and run under the bottom’s shoulders works equally as well. As far as positions go, use your imagination.

Just remember that if you’re going to be in your living room, you need to cover the carpet, your couch, chairs, etc with plastic to prevent lube from getting on them or you’ll be living with the stains and the smell for a long, long time. Same thing goes for your bed.

Choosing your lube

What kind of lube, or mixtures of different lubes, is a matter of personal preference. You’ll decide what works best for you after experimentation. Personally, I like a blend of Safeway brand shortening and J-Lube or JPax, but the Elbow Grease with Cloves is nice too.

• Slam Dunk. A great choice. Comes in scented and unscented and linens clean up easily using mild soap and warm water.
• Shaft. A relatively new product from Mr. S Leather. It’s odorless, is water soluble (meaning easy cleanups) and it’s very slippery. I’ve used it and like it, and I’ve heard good reports from others.
• Crisco. Comes in cans and in single serving, foil wrapped bars. (If you don’t mind smelling like you’ve been baking cookies all day.)
• Grocery store brand shortening. Just as slick as Crisco without having to smell like a bakery.
• Elbow Grease (Plain or with Clove Oil)
• J-Lube. Can be a little messy and is a definite slipping hazard if it gets onto a solid flooring surface such as finished concrete, tile, or wood. BE CAREFUL. There are some J-Lube recipes online here. Mixing tip: Get one of those protein drink shakers from your vitamin store. They have a grate in the lid that facilitates mixing the J-Lube and water!
• J Pax. Yup the veterinarians are up to it again! Much like J-Lube, but comes with a bottle that’s just the right size and little single serving packets. Just empty the packet or packets to desired consistency, into the bottle, fill it with water and shake it until all the powder has dissolved. My only criticism is that the bottle could be just a little bigger to facilitate mixing the powder. The same use precautions for J-Lube apply. It’s slick!

To glove or not to glove?

From a strictly safer sex standpoint, you should always wear gloves when you top, and you should insist that your top wear gloves. From a harm prevention standpoint, here are some tips and pointers, as some prefer to fist or be fisted without gloves.

If you are not going to use gloves, tops should make certain that:

• fingernails are clipped and filed almost to the point of non-existence. You can tell if your nails are short and smooth enough by running your tongue over them. If you feel sharp edges, get back to the emery board; and,
• the skin on your hands, fingers and forearms is completely in tact. If you have a recent scratch, cut, or even a hangnail, you should wear gloves. Unbroken skin is a barrier to HIV and Hepatitis. Any breaks in the skin make the risk of transmission much higher. To check for cuts, thoroughly “wash” all pertinent areas of your hands and arms with hand sanitizer (not soap). There is enough alcohol in the sanitizer that if you have a cut, you’ll know it. Glove up.

The following kinds of gloves are available at any Walgreens or Rite Aid or other drug store as well as those warehouse discount stores. To find “opera” length, you’ll have to go to a specialty store.

• Nitrile. Two thumbs up. They have become readily available in recently. They used to be an atrocious color, and one-size-fits-all, but can now be found in ivory and black in small, medium and large. They fit very snugly and don’t tend to roll, wrinkle or bunch like latex. Also there is much more tactile feeling with them.
• Latex. Readily available. Come in three sizes: small, medium and large. Good idea to have one of each available.
• Vinyl. I’ve used them a few times. Don’t like them, but will work in a pinch.

REMEMBER: The reason you are using gloves is to protect both the bottom and the top from harm. Your hands (or your gloved hands) are only as clean and sanitary as the last thing they have touched. The last thing you should do before touching a bottom’s butt is to sanitize your hands and to put on gloves. I’ve seen lots of tops glove up, put the bottom’s feet into the stirrups, adjust the chains, arrange the papers on the floor, and then reach for the lube. NO! NO! NO! I’ve even had tops drop a glove on the floor and bend down to retrieve it to put it on. NO! Gloves are cheap. It’s easy to forget. Just throw away the contaminated glove and get a clean one.

ADVICE FOR THE FISTING BOTTOM

Your Diet

Eat very lightly the day before. Vegetables move through your system in about 12–18 hours. Meat takes about 24 hours. This is what you’re going to be dealing with on play day. The day of, consider skipping breakfast. Have a light lunch consisting of mostly proteins. For dinner have some carbohydrates such as pasta or rice, as you’ll need some energy to get you through the evening. Have some munchies, including yogurt to replace digestive microbes, for after-play relaxation with your buddies. It’s a great way to relax and debrief.

Cleaning Out

This is very important, and something that bottoms many times overly stress out about. While it’s good to be clean, don’t overdo it. This should be a slow, gentle process, so allow plenty of time. Don’t wait until the last minute or you may feel rushed and be unable to relax enough to do a good, thorough job. If you are just getting into fisting, allow at least 3 hours–2 hours to clean and one hour to rest. As you become more experienced, your prep time should decrease.

Your goal should never be to get out the last bit of fecal matter because you won’t be able to, and besides, you don’t need to. Most of us only need to clean so far as the sigmoid or descending colon. The “to the shoulder” guys have more work to do.

When you clean, the water should be between 98.6F and 100F. Any colder and your colon may tense up and any warmer could cause injury. Of the devices listed below, I prefer the shower shot. They attach easily to any showerhead. Once you’ve adjusted the temperature, set the flow so that, with the nozzle pointed toward the ceiling, the stream is no higher than the width of the palm of your hand. People have actually ruptured their colon by setting the water stream too strong. You are not steam cleaning a sidewalk. Take it easy.

Shower Shot ($40) • Turkey Baster ($5 or $6) • Enema bottles (Fleet) ($3) • Hot water bottle with hose ($15–$25)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Larry Shockey has been a member of the kink and fetish communities for more than fifteen years, and for almost that long, he has been leading discussions, workshops and presentations on safer fisting techniques. Larry has led programs for Leathermen’s Discussion Group, The SF Ring, Leather Levi Weekend, The Citadel, led discussions on creating the proper headspace for fisting bottoms and tops, developed a hands-in 4-hour workshop for intermediate players and has facilitated discussions for advanced players.

In September 2008, Larry brought a public fisting venue back to the SF sex scene for the first time since the closure of The Sling. Known as Hell Hole, this monthly play party has been widely and well-received by men not only in San Francisco, but from across the US and around the world. He is also organiser of Fist Fest, a series of men’s weekends at locations throughout the US where men come together to enjoy handballing. And finally, The Handball Academy is a nonprofit organization which provides safer sex education, training, and social opportunities to persons who engage in high-risk sexual activities.

Larry recently accepted a position as an individual director on the San Francisco Bay Area Leather Alliance and will be working with the Alliance on the mental and medical health of the communities and helping develop a kink community center which will celebrate us in all our various flavors.

This article is extracted from the booklet The Sacred Art of Fisting: Practical Tips & Considerations for Men who Engage in Anal Fisting. You can download the complete guide from The Handball Academy.