If you are someone who spends a lot of time on their computer (or maybe a lot more lately), or maybe you carry around toddlers all day, or maybe you spend a lot of time in the kitchen, or maybe you are all of this or none of this – regardless, our wrists need TLC just like any other part of our bodies.
Wrist pain might be the new low back pain. Wrist pain can start to creep up on us as we are older or increase of frequency in use. The bummer about wrist issues is that they kind of sneak up on you and are probably a problem before you “feel” the problem. And not to mention, you literally use your wrists in about everything you do from day to day.
The best part is that it doesn’t take long to stretch out your wrists. Even right now, while you are reading this article, take a couple minutes and follow along on how to stretch out your wrists and forearms.
A Quick Wrist and Forearm Stretch
- Begin on the ground sitting on your knees. Lean forward and gently place your hand, palm side down, on the yoga mat with your fingertips facing toward your knee.
- With your other hand, begin lifting one finger (of the hand on the floor) at a time off the floor for a moment or two. We like to start with our thumb and end with the pinkie finger.
- Once you’ve raised every finger, pick up your hand off the mat and shake out your wrist.
- Repeat on the other side.
There isn’t a set time on how long you should lift each finger off of the ground for but just don’t try to rush it. You might feel like you want to hold some fingers up longer than others. Just go with whatever feels right. Don’t stress about if you can’t lift your fingers very high or if you cannot get your heel to stay on the ground. Either way, you’ll feel a nice, deep stretch in the front of your wrist up the forearm. And if you don’t feel anything, then there is a good chance your wrists aren’t that tight.
Benefits of Loose Wrists
It might seem silly to think about the looseness of our wrists but weak wrists can mean weaker grip strength. Again why are we worried about that? Well, if you can’t do things due to your wrists this could really impact your quality of life and mental health, according to some studies.
Remember to take those moments during your day to really pay attention to how often you have daily wear on your forearms and wrists which should be motivation enough to make sure they are getting their TLC they deserve.
