If your wrist feels sore after lifting at the gym, you may benefit from improved wrist strength and wrist flexibility. Your wrists could be sore from under use.
Even though you use your wrists every day for activities like texting, typing, driving, and opening doors, you might not really be exerting them.
So, when you go to the gym and workout, your wrists could be put under a lot of strain. You may wince with pain as you lift the barbells or feel strain as you use the pulleys.
If you know how to increase risk flexibility, that may help with these kinds of issues.
Would you like to have stronger wrists with a wider range of motion? Would you like to experience less wrist pain after doing strenuous activities exercising?
I’ll show you some methods for how to increase wrist strength and flexibility so that you have the confidence to do any kind of exercises you want to.
There’s no need to avoid some of those weightier workouts, and you don’t need to shy away from some of the exercises that have been putting strain on your wrists.
Let’s talk about what you can do to improve the health of your wrists.
Wrist Flexibility- How to Increase Flexibility & Strength
There are so many simple stretches you can do that work your wrists in a way that doesn’t place stress on them.
I want to share a few of these with you now, and if you do them repeatedly throughout the day, they can make a huge impact on the flexibility and strength in your wrists.
Fist Clenching
From a seated position, place your hands open on top of your thighs with palms facing upwards. From that position, close your hands slowly until they become fists, but don’t squeeze them tightly.
Keeping your forearms in contact with your legs, lift your fists off your legs and bring them toward your body, making sure to bend at the wrist joint.
Hold that pose for about 10 seconds, and then release your fingers and open your palms completely. From there, return to the starting position.
Arm Extensions
Stretch one arm upward with your palm facing the ceiling. Use your other hand to press on the floor with your fingers.
Pull the fingers back to you and then hold that position for about 20 seconds. Switch arms and repeat the stretch, and then do this exercise a few times with each arm.
Praying Stretch
This is one of the simplest stretches you can do that helps to improve wrist flexibility. From a standing position, put your palms together so you look like you’re praying. At the same time, touch your elbows to one another.
Move your hands up to where they hang in front of your face, and ensure that your two arms are in contact with each other from fingertips to elbows.
As you keep your palms closely pressed, open up your elbows. At the same time, bring your hands down to your waist. Stop the movement as your hands hang in front of your belly button or when you start to feel a pull on your wrists.
At that point, you should hold the pose for about 20 seconds and then go through the entire motion again.
These methods for how to increase flexibility and risk are very simple and put very little strain on your wrist. Only stretch as far as you start to feel a little pull in the wrist. You don’t want to go past them at first.
As you do these exercises, you can try to increase the range of motion a little bit and push yourself a little further.
Yoga Stretches You Can Do
You can use yoga to strengthen your hands and your wrist as well.
The strengthening exercises I’m going to recommend here may be some you already do in yoga class, so making them a more regular part of your workout routine can be beneficial for wrist strengthening and improving your range of motion.
These are great exercises if you’re looking for how to increase wrist flexibility for front squats and other common workout moves.
Reaching Overhead
This is known as the overhead reach where you stretch your arms over your head. It is a relaxing move that releases tension from your muscles, helping you get rid of stiffness in your joints and alleviating muscle soreness.
It’s also a great way to stretch out your wrists, as you’re extending your arm fully and working your wrists as you do the move.
Eagle Arms
If you are familiar with the eagle pose for yoga, you’re already partially familiar with this wrist exercise.
Start by extending your arms fully forward and make them parallel with the floor. Cross one arm over the other and then bend your elbows. From that position, place one elbow into the crook of the other elbow. At this point, the backs of your hands should be touching.
Move your left hand to the left and you right arm to the right. You should allow the thumb of one hand to move by the small finger of the other and your palms should be facing inward toward each other.
From there, put your palms together, stretch out the fingers, and raise your elbows. Your fingers should be pointed upwards. Try to keep your shoulders in place as you raise your arms.
Hold this pose for about 20 seconds and then switch the arms around to start over again with a different hand.
Figure Eight
Begin this move by locking your fingers together and interlacing them in front of your body. Tuck your elbows close in by your ribs and moving a figure eight motion with your interlocked hands.
Rotate in such a way so that one hand lays on top of the other. Switch around the hands so one rests on the other and alternate for about 15 seconds.
Stop the movement for a short period and then repeat it.
You can also add to this exercise an additional component. As you’re seated, raise your arms above your head and lock your fingers while keeping your palms pressed to one another. As your fingers are locked, open your palms up and face them upwards.
You can lock your elbows completely or bend slightly. Hold this stretch for a few seconds, and then lower your arms and repeat the stretch.
Wrist Exercises and Medical Conditions
There’s some evidence to point that exercises like these not only strengthen your wrists but also help to treat a variety of medical conditions related to the wrists, like carpal tunnel syndrome.
Yet they can also benefit people who have sprained or injured their wrist muscles, as long as their doctor has approved the exercises.
Anyone with ulnar tunnel syndrome or tendonitis can benefit from these stretches as well.
Regularly stretching using this method can help prevent conditions like these and improve wrist health for those who are being treated for certain medical conditions related to the wrist.
If you’re not sure if certain exercises are safe for you, you should take time to consult with your doctor. For most people, these are very beneficial exercises that will help them to avoid health problems in the future and that can correct some of the symptoms of currently existing health problems.
Remember to do these exercises several times a week. You can incorporate them into your workout sessions or fit them into your day.
Most of these exercises are very easy and quick to do, taking just a few seconds. They also require no exercise equipment and very little space.
