How To Strengthen Wrist? 13 Wrist Strengthening Exercises

Finger flicks build up the strength of the muscles that extend the fingers. It is a great way to warm up the wrist before engaging in this exercise, as it aids in pumping the blood and increasing its flow to the hand. 

Steps To Do:

• Be seated on a chair.
• Either outstretch your arms forward or place them on your thigh and make tight fists.
• Flick all fingers out wide and straight as possible.
• Again make tight fists and flick.
• Do it for 10-30 seconds.

This exercise improves the range of motion of the wrists and strengthens them. It is another great method to warm up the wrists. 

Steps To Do:

• Seat on a chair and rest your elbow on the table.
• Extend your one arm in front and up facing the palm forward.
• Straighten your fingers up towards the ceiling.
• Slowly slide your fingers down to reach the bottom of your palm.
• Reverse your finger movements up and come back to the initial position.
• Repeat it for 5-10 times.
• Do it on the other side.

Prayer stretch targets the wrist and relieves the tension. It is an easy workout that provides strength and helps the wrist to be flexible.

Steps To Do:

• Bend your elbows and press your palms together with the fingers pointing upward.
• Lower your hands while keeping your palms pressed together.
• Feel the stretch in your wrist.
• Hold for 30 seconds.
• Release the stretch and do it for 4 repetitions.

It's a simple wrist workout you can do with a light dumbbell, ideally weighing around 1 to 3 pounds. This exercise strengthens your wrist, helping it perform at its best.

Steps To Do:

• Seat with your forearm resting on the armrest of a chair.
• Allow the wrist to hang over the edge with the thumb facing the ceiling.
• Hold the end of the dumbbell like holding a hammer.
• Slowly rotate your wrist so that your palm faces up towards the ceiling.
• Be in that position for a few seconds and bring it back to the initial position.

Wrist pronation exercise is similar to wrist supination in which the wrist is twisted to the side, but your palm faces down towards the ground.

Steps To Do:

• Sit in a chair resting your forearm hanging your wrist over the edge.
• Take a dumbbell and hold one end of it.
• Slowly rotate your hand down, facing your palm towards the floor.
• Hold the position for a few seconds and return to the starting position.
• Do it for 10-15 repetitions.
• Repeat on the other side.

Wrist extension with a dumbbell is an effective exercise for building muscles around the wrist and increasing strength.

Steps To Do:

• Sit in a chair and rest your forearm on a table or a chair armrest.
• Take a dumbbell (2 or 3 pounds), hanging your wrist over the edge.
• Face your palm down to the floor and slowly lift your hand moving the wrist up to the ceiling.
• Extend it fully, hold it for a few seconds, and slowly lower it downward.
• Repeat it for 10 to 15 times.
• You can do it on both hands at the same time or alternatively.

This wrist-strengthening exercise is performed by flexion movement that stretches tendons and muscles in the wrist joints.

Steps To Do:

• Place your hand on the table facing your palm to the ceiling.
• Grab a dumbbell and flex your wrist up.
• Hold the position for a few seconds, then bring it back to the starting position.
• Do it for 10 to 15 repetitions of three sets.

This workout targets the muscles that are active while the wrist is turned side to side. You can add light weights to make it more intense.

Steps To Do:

• Be in a seated or standing position and bend your elbows to 90 degrees.
• Start by making fists, with your palms facing down to the floor.
• Rotate it towards the ceiling.
• Go back to the initial position.
• You can do it with both hands simultaneously.

Towel squeeze is another simple exercise that you can easily perform at home. It focuses on the muscles to increase grip strength, aiding in activities like grabbing a jar or picking up things. It prevents you from getting objects slipping down easily from your hands and making a mess.

Steps To Do:

• First, roll up a towel and place it on the table.
• Sit on a chair.
• Rest your hand on the table and hold the towel roll with your palm facing down.
• Squeeze the towel by clenching your hand.
• Focus and squeeze as hard as you possibly can.
• Let your hand relax.
• Do it 5 to 6 times and repeat on the other side.

This is an improved version of the towel squeeze that activates the wrist muscles extending to the higher parts of the forearms. You can perform it either sitting or standing. 

Steps To Do:

• First, roll a towel and hold it up with your hands extending a foot apart.
• Make sure your palms face down to the floor.
• Twist the towel as you move your right hand down towards you. Meanwhile, your left hand must move up and away from your body.
• Feel the tension and release it to the original position.
• Now, do the same in the opposite direction.

An easy yet effective exercise to try is the finger lift. As you lift your fingers, it stretches the muscles around your wrist, helping to improve mobility and increase strength.

Steps To Do:

• Sit in a chair and place your palm firmly on a table.
• Slowly, lift your fingers one by one.
• Start by lifting your thumb up to the ceiling. 
• Bring it down and raise the remaining fingers serially.
• Feel the muscles stretching and return to the normal position.
• Do it 10 times.
• Repeat on the other side or you can do it together.

Internal rotation stretch improves mobility and strengthens your wrist, reducing the risk of getting injured. But you have to be more careful as you practice this exercise because you have to hold your body weight as you do it.

Steps To Do:

• Seat on your knees.
• Place your hands on the floor and rotate them while pointing your fingers towards you.
• Slowly move your body to and fro.
• Feel the tension and muscles stretching on your hand.
• Do it for 15 seconds.

Stretching fingers is as important as doing other workouts to improve the condition of the wrist. You have to separate your fingers and stretch them.

Steps To Do:

• Extend your one arm and fingers pointing forward.
• Spread your every finger. 
• Bring another hand to press two fingers from the side.
• Put force with your fingers in an outward direction.
• Do it with other fingers as well.
• Repeat it on the other hand.

Wrist-strengthening exercises improve the overall function of our hands, fingers, and forearms, ensuring smooth movement with a full range of motion.

Since we use our wrists frequently in daily tasks, having strong hands brings many benefits when tackling household chores. Let’s look into some benefits of doing these exercises:

1. Enhances wrist stability

Wrist pain is often caused by weak wrists. If your wrists are strong, you're less likely to feel pain while doing tasks like wiping windows, gardening, carrying objects, or even overworking with typing or texting. Wrist-strengthening exercises help build stability, making it easier to handle your daily activities.

2. Improves grip strength

To be able to hold things on hand requires grip strength. Not being able to grip things properly would create a mess as you do your work. Wrist exercise benefits to improve your hand grip, avoiding the slip of objects from your hand.

3. Strengthens overall arm

The wrist shares muscles with the forearm that allow your hand to move to its full potential. Engaging in wrist-strengthening exercises can directly impact other parts of the arm, helping to make it stronger.

4. Better wrist mobility

Wrist muscles allow flexion, extension, pronation, supination, and radial/ulnar deviation movements. Wrist stretches involve a range of motion and promote better mobility. They also reduce the risk of injury by stretching the ligaments in the wrists.

5. Healthy wrist joints

Various movements are essential to keep joints healthy. Lubricants in the joints are produced after performing different motions in the wrist, which helps maintain healthy wrist joints. Repetitive motion injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome are less likely to occur. 

One effective way to perform these exercises is by understanding the correct form and technique. Here are some common mistakes to avoid while doing wrist strengthening exercises:

1. Poor Posture

Even though this is a wrist workout, the movements performed during practice can create tension and stress in other parts of the body. In particular, we should keep the spine erect, as this stabilizes the body and engages the core. Maintaining proper posture enhances effectiveness and balances overall mobility.

2. Ignoring Pain

Ignoring pain is the biggest mistake a person can make. It leads to serious consequences by making the pain worse. Slight discomforts might occur but never ignore the sharp pain that is caused while doing the workouts.

3. Using Excessive Weight

Many people make the mistake of grabbing heavy weights right away which puts unnecessary stress and tension on the body. Instead, we should start by using lighter weights that are recommended or even just focus on bodyweight exercises as beginners.

4. Not Warming Up

Disregarding the warm-ups before exercise could lead to injury. A light stretch is necessary because it makes the body ready for different activities by enhancing blood circulation.

These wrist stretches shouldn't be done if you have an injury to your hand or have recently undergone surgery. If you have a cut or wound near your wrist, it’s best to avoid these stretches for a few days until your wound has fully healed; otherwise, you could worsen the situation.

After engaging in exercises, muscles become sore and occasionally create slight discomfort that ceases after some time. But if you get your wrist swollen or have acute pain as you perform the session, stop it completely. Consult your physician for help if the annoying sensation does not go away.

Disclaimer: The information mentioned above is for educational purposes and general use. It should not be taken as formal medical advice.