8 Hand Exercises For Arthritis To Ease The Pain Effectively

Arthritis gravely impacts the joints and the flexibility of the muscles around in the limbs and the areas affected. Hand exercises for arthritis have been found to be quite beneficial in handling that condition altogether.

Hand exercise to ease arthritis pain can be of varying types. It all comes down to how you are performing them that helps assess the effectiveness of the same.

By the end of this article, you will have a fair idea about the arthritis hand exercises that can help restore the flexibility and even get rid of the pain that accompanies the condition.

8 Best Hand Exercises for Arthritis

Given the severity of the condition, it is not at all surprising that best hand exercises for Arthritis do stem from the prospects of recovery and better pain relief altogether.

Some of the best hand exercises for arthritis include:

1. Make a fist

This might not seem like a lot but is considered as an amazing way to handle the condition of arthritis, especially if the same is focused on the hands and the palms, to be precise.

It relieves the stiffness of the digits and even helps in getting rid of the pain that accompanies the condition.

What to do?

1. Open your palm and spread out your fingers
2. Gradually, bring your fingers to the centre of your palm, ensuring that your thumb is facing outwards
3. Hold the fist for a few seconds, ensuring that you don’t put any kind of excess pressure
4. Release the digits gradually again
5. Repeat this multiple times throughout the day

2. Finger Bends

Finger bends is yet another one of the effective hand exercises for arthritis pain.

This is quite helpful in easing the pain and the stiffness of the fingers that many often tend to complain about.

If you have been struggling with arthritic pain, this is actually a good enough way to deal with the struggles altogether.

What to do?

1. Spread out your fingers and hold the palm upward
2. Gradually, bring your thumb to the middle of the palm and hold it there
3. Release the thumb and get it back to the original position
4. Next, do the same thing with the index finger as well
5. One after the other, do the same with all the finger in either hands
6. Repeat this multiple times throughout the day

3.Thumb bends

Thumb bends are yet another form of hand exercise that can be quite beneficial in warding off the signs and symptoms associated with arthritis.

This is nothing different than what you do with the normal finger bends, the only difference being the fact that it focuses on the thumb only. Experts suggest that, for the most part, people suffering from arthritis tend to have the most problem with their thumb.

This form of hand exercise does help in restoring the flexibility and gets rid of the pain and such.

What to do?

1. Start off how you did with the previous exercise with your fingers spread out and your palm facing up
2. Gradually, bring your thumb to the middle of the palm and hold it in that position for a few seconds
3. Once done, release the thumb and repeat the process again

4. Make a C or an O

Making a C or an O with the hand is another one of the effective hand exercises to ease arthritis pain.

This is actually very helpful in easing the pain and the stiffness that many people with arthritis often tend to complain about. If you have been consistently struggling with the pain and the lack of flexibility of the digits, this is a good way to ward off the problem altogether.

What to do?

1. Spread out your fingers and keep them relaxed
2. Curve the finger inwards towards the centre of the palm till all of them come in contact
3. Ensure to do so till you form an “O” with your digits
4. Hold this position for a few seconds and the release the finger gradually
5. Repeat this multiple times throughout the day

5. Thumbs Up

The mention of a “thumbs up” might seem like a very common prospect but this exercise can prove out to be a hackle for the ones suffering from arthritis.

Doing this specific exercise is a bit different than doing a normal thumb up.

What to do?

1. Loosen your hands and keep your fingers spread out
2. Place your pinky finger on the desk and then work your thumb to make the thumbs up position
3. Point your thumb up to make the thumbs up position
4. Relax your thumb after that and then put it down gradually
5. Repeat this a few times throughout the day for effective relief from the pain and stiffness

6. Table Bend

Table bend is also an effective hand exercise that works magic for arthritis.

This resembles the shape of a thumbs up position when complete, but is actually quite beneficial in bringing back the strength into the hand.

What to do?

1. Bring your digits (except for thumb) towards the middle of the palm, keeping your thumb pointed upwards
2. You can either do the thumb first or then bring the other four fingers into the middle of the palm or the other way around
3. Hold this position for a few seconds and then release the fingers altogether
4. Repeat this for 10 times in one set and do this multiple times throughout the day

7. Finger lifts

Finger lifts are actually quite effective in getting rid of the pain and the lack of flexibility of the fingers. If you have been struggling with the pain encircling the condition, it is always best suggested to opt for finger lifts because of the fact that it has been proven effective in relieving the condition effectively.

What to do?

1. Place your hand on the table, with your palm facing down
2. Securing your palm on the table, gradually lift one finger after the other
3. Once lifted, hold the finger in that position for a few seconds and then bring it back to the original position
4. Repeat the same with all the fingers of one hand and then alternate with the other hand

8. Wrist Bends

Wrist bend or wrist stretch is yet another one of the best hand exercises for arthritis.

As mentioned before, arthritis does impact the overall prospect of mobility and stretchability of the joints. Many often tend to just focus on the fingers and don’t pay close attention to the wrist which is even often affected because of arthritis.

What to do?

1. Hold out your hand with your palm facing down
2. With your left hand, put pressure on the right hand to bring it down until you feel a stretch in your wrist
3. Hold this specific position for a few seconds
4. Gradually release the palm again to get back to its initial position
5. Repeat this 10 times for one set and do this multiple times throughout the day

Tips for Hand Exercises for Arthritis to Keep into Account

When it comes down to discussing the hand exercises to ease arthritis pain, the possibilities are endless. While we did mention the top 8 of them, it is very important to keep some factors into consideration before you start off with these specific arthritis hand exercises.

• The very first tip to keep into consideration is to ensure that you do these exercises throughout the day for beneficial impacts. For the best of results, it is always best to do them in a few hours intervals to keep the digits flexible and without any kind of issues whatsoever.
• The next thing to keep into consideration is to ensure that you do indulge in the activity without stressing the process. Be gentle with the fingers or the wrist and avoid putting excessive pressure on them.
• Holding the posture of the hand exercise for a few seconds is important. Don’t rush through the process, instead, try and ensure that you hold the position for a few seconds before indulging in doing something else.
• Being mindful throughout the exercises is very important. Instead of rushing through every prospect, be slow about it and take your time to breathe in and out during the process as well. This helps in ensuring that you get the best of benefits from the hand exercises to ease arthritis pain.

Hand exercises for arthritis are very effective and do have positive impacts in relieving the condition associated with the pain and the stiffness around the joints. If you have been personally struggling with everything surrounding that, it is always best to opt for the hand exercises and do them regularly.