12 Simple Hand & Wrist Stretches and Strengthening Exercises

If your body was a sports team, your hips, legs, lower back,  even your arms and shoulders would be its star players. You know, the ones getting all the press interviews and commercial deals. It’s not that they don’t deserve the attention. They work hard.

But it’s about time they share the spotlight with the unsung players whose efforts contribute to win after win—your hands and wrists. Life (and yoga) demands  a lot from these smaller and underappreciated parts of the body to keep you pulling, pushing, grasping, typing, lifting, comfortably Downward-Dogging, Planking, and more. Yet your everyday yoga class doesn’t include all the ways they need to stretch and strengthen.

That means you need to move your hands and wrists in ways you typically don’t in order to prevent and address discomfort. Consider it off-season training.

12 Hand and Wrist Stretches and Strengthening Exercises

The following movements focus on moving your hands and wrists through their full range of motion and also building strength. Practice all or a few of them throughout your day. However, practice them consistently, and you’ll likely notice that everyday hand and wrist movements become a little—or a lot—easier.

You’ll need a small looped resistance band or a full water bottle you can grasp in one hand, as well as a ping-pong, tennis, or golf ball.

1. Wrist Circles

Find a comfortable seated position. Interlace your fingers and press your palms together. Circle your hands in one direction, moving through your full range of motion. After several rounds, circle your hands in the opposite direction.

2. Paint the Fence

From your seated position, straighten your arms in front of you with your hands roughly in front of your hips. Point your fingers down toward the floor. Keeping your fingers pointed down, lift your arms overhead. Flip your hands so your fingertips are pointing toward the wall behind you. Slowly lower your arms back down and once they’re at the lowest point, flip your hands again so your fingers are pointing down toward the floor. Repeat 4 more times.

3. Piano Hands

Position your forearms and palms so they’re parallel to the floor. Moving from your wrists, point both sets of fingers away from each other toward opposite sides. Then point both sets of fingers toward each other. Continue alternating directions until you’ve reached 5 times toward each side.

4. Tendon Gliding

Flatten your hands and face them toward each other, about 10 inches apart. Slowly curl your fingertips down toward the palms of your hands. Then squeeze your hands into tight fists with your thumbs on top. Gradually uncurl your fingers and flatten your hands to return to the starting position. Repeat 5 more times.

5. The Duck

Flatten your hands and face them toward each other, about 10 inches apart. Keeping your fingers together, touch your fingertips to your thumbs, forming a shape that looks like a duck beak. Then extend your fingers and flatten your hands again. Repeat 5 more times.

6. Fingers to Thumb

Press the index finger of each hand against the thumb of the same hand and lightly squeeze. Then release and touch the middle finger of each hand against the thumb and lightly squeeze. Repeat with your ring fingers and pinkies. That’s one round. Continue for 9 more rounds.

7. Hip Circles

Come to your hands and knees. Press into your fingertips and feel your palms flat on the mat. Draw small circles with your hips, moving them back toward your heels, toward the right side, forward, and toward the left side. As you move, feel the outer edges of your palm gently press into the mat. Repeat 4 more times, then circle your hips in the opposite direction.

8. Palms-Up Pushups

From your hands and knees, tuck your toes and shift your hips back so most of your weight is in the balls of your feet. Your wrists should be slightly ahead of your shoulders. Flip your palms to face the ceiling and gently press the backs of your hands into the mat. Bend your elbows and lower your chest toward your palms. Straighten your arms and return to the starting position. Repeat Palms-Up Pushups 5 more times.

9. Heel-of-the-Hand + Fingertip Lifts 

Come to your hands and knees with your shoulders stacked over your wrists and your hips stacked over your knees. Slowly lift the heels of your hands off the mat and gently press into your fingers. Pause here, then lower the heels of your hands back to the mat. Slowly lift your fingers off the mat and gently press into your palms. Pause here, then lower them back to the mat. Alternate between lifting the heels of your hand and your fingers off the mat for a total of 5 times each.

10. Band Pulls

Come to kneeling with your knees and feet together and the tops of your feet resting on the mat. Sit back on your heels. Untuck your right leg and plant your right foot on the mat a couple inches in front of you. Place one end of a looped resistance band underneath your right foot. Prop your right forearm on your knee and hold onto the opposite end of the resistance band with your right hand so it’s taut. Make a fist with your and hold the band parallel to the mat as you continue to grip the band. Alternatively, fill a water bottle and grip it in your right hand.

Keep your forearm still as you lower your knuckles toward the mat, then lift your knuckles toward the ceiling. Continue moving from your wrist 5 times in each direction, then switch to your left side.

Return to the starting position on the right side. Rotate your wrist so your thumb is on top of your fist. Tilt your wrist down toward the mat as if you were pouring tea from a kettle. Then reverse the motion and imagine drawing your thumb toward you. Continue moving your wrist side to side 5 times in each direction.

Switch to your left side.

Return to the starting position on the right side. This time hold your hand flat with your fingers extended and your palm facing the ceiling. The band should lie at the base of your fingers. Slowly draw your fingers into your palm to make a fist and curl your wrist to draw the band closer to you (imagine a bicep curl but with your wrist). Then uncurl your wrist, and extend your fingers, returning the band to the base of your  fingers. Repeat these wrist curls 5 more times, then switch to your left side.

11. Hand Massage

Kneel on the mat and place a ping-pong, tennis, or golf ball between your right palm and the mat. Gently press against the ball as you move your right hand on top of it in small circles or however feels good, giving a gentle massage. Move intuitively for however long you like. Then switch sides.

12. Forearm Massage 

Take the ball in one hand and roll it against the opposite forearm. Apply as much or as little pressure as you like. You can also roll the ball against the inside of your forearm between your wrist and inner elbow. Continue for as long as feels good, then switch sides.

Come to your forearms and knees. Shift your hips back toward your heels. Draw your forearms closer together. Place the ball between them so they’re gently squeezing it. Move one forearm forward and the other back, then switch. The ball should give your forearms a mini massage. (It’s okay if the ball rolls away and you have to start over!)