How to Perform Wrist Arthritis Exercises

Wrist Flexion Stretch

This stretch addresses the wrist extensor muscles in the forearm while keeping all of the little joints  within the wrist itself moving (there are 8 bones that all interconnect in each wrist!). Do not force this stretch if it makes your symptoms worse.

• Stand or sit comfortably
• Stretch your affected arm out in straight in front of you (elbow straight and shoulder between 45 and 90 degrees of flexion) with the palm facing the floor
• Use your opposite hand to grab the top of your outstretched hand and bend the wrist and hand down toward the floor
• Continue moving until a stretch is felt in the wrist and/or top of the forearm
• Stay relaxed and hold for 30+ seconds for 2-3 sets total

Double Wrist Extension

This exercise is great for stretching both wrists at once. This time, the stretch is addressing the flexor muscles, tendons, and other connective tissue.

• Place the palms of your hands together with the fingers pointing up toward the ceiling
• Bring your hands close to your chest as you attempt to get the forearms parallel with the floor while still keeping the hands together
• Get your forearms as parallel as possible with the ground without causing pain
• Hold for 30+ seconds for 2-3 sets
• This move also stretches the carpal nerve, if you experience tingling simply modify the stretch or take a break to prevent nerve irritation

Hand Closing and Opening

This basic exercise is perfect for promoting blood flow, healing capabilities, and keeping the tiny carpal joints in the wrist lubricated for everyday life.

• Bring your fingers into a tight fist and hold for 2-3 seconds
• Loosen your fist and then straighten and spread the fingers away from each other as far as possible, again holding for 2-3 seconds
• Alternate between gripping and spreading the fingers while keeping the wrist in a neutral position
• Repeat for 10-15 repetitions for 2-3 sets total

Any type of rhythmic motion like this is great for general joint range of motion and health. Additionally, you can add other rhythmic motions similar to the stretches listed above, such as slow and controlled wrist flexion and extension or wrist pronation and supination.  

Full Finger Spread

This simple finger exercise strengthens the finger extensors and abductors, essential for establishing balance and stability in the hand and wrist.

• Bring all of your fingers and thumb together so that they touch in the center of your palm
• Place your rolled cylindrical putty around the middle of your fingers in a tightly closed circle (or a resistance band or finger extensor)
• Spread the fingers apart from each other against the resistance as far as possible
• Repeat 10 times for 2-3 sets
• Additionally, you can focus on only 2 fingers at a time by placing the putty around the middle of two fingers at a time and spreading them apart (rather than all of them at once)
• If you want to focus more specifically on finger extension strength, you can also place the putty or band around one finger at a time while pulling your finger straight back to complete finger lifts 

Gripping

Loss of grip strength is one of the most detrimental factors when dealing with wrist arthritis progression. Keeping your grip as strong as possible is important.

• Grab a ball, your putty, a soft towel, or anything else that you can comfortably squeeze for resistance
• Place your tool in the center of your palm with the wrist in a neutral position
• Squeeze as hard you can without causing excessive pain
• Hold for 5-10 seconds for up to 10 repetitions
• Repeat for 2-3 sets total 
• Increase the intensity of your squeeze as tolerated 

Pinching

Being able to effectively pinch your fingers together is also a vital part of functional hand use. A painful or weak pinch can make everyday tasks feel impossible.

• Grab a piece of putty and roll it into a small cylinder, otherwise grab a small soft object that you can pinch between your fingers, like a small wash cloth
• Place your thumb and index finger opposite of each other on the putty
• Push the pads of your fingers closer together as you pinch them while keeping a relative “O” shape with your finger and thumb
• Hold for 3-5 seconds at a pressure that you can tolerate
• Repeat for 10 repetitions for 2-3 sets
• You can also do this exercise in sequence with the thumb and the other fingers as well to boost dexterity- moving to to the middle finger, ring finger, and pinkie finger
• Additionally, you can practice a full finger pinch between the thumb and all the fingers at once by using a bigger piece of rolled putty- this time keep the middle joints of the fingers flat as you finger them against the thumb

Wrist Extension

The wrist extensors can get sore and stiff, keeping them strong and moving can help.

• Sit or stand comfortably near a table, counter, or other flat surface that you can rest your forearm on
• Rest your forearm so that the hand is free and hanging off the table with the palm facing down toward the floor
• Place your weight of choice in your hand, always starting light
• Slowly extend the wrist as you bring the top of the hand up toward the ceiling
• Move as high as is comfortable and hold for 1-2 seconds before slowly returning to the starting position 
• Keep the forearm firmly planted on the surface while keeping the upper body relaxed
• Repeat for 10-15 repetitions for 2-3 sets total
• To progress, increase the weight, hold time, or range of motion (letting the wrist actually bend down toward the floor in between repetitions) 

Wrist Flexion

Good wrist flexion strength is essential for stability with most daily hand use, such as reaching, lifting, and more.

• Set up your wrist the same way as the wrist extension exercise above, except this time your palm will be facing up toward the ceiling 
• Once again, place a weight in your hand
• Bring the palm up toward the ceiling slowly as you bend the wrist as far as possible
• Make sure to keep good posture and the neck relaxed
• Hold for 1-3 seconds before returning to the starting position
• Repeat for 10-15 repetitions for 2-3 sets total
• Progress again by adding weight, increasing the number of repetitions or sets, or going through a fuller wrist range of motion (in both directions) 

Radial Deviation

This subtle wrist movement is so important for wrist stability and can be taken for granted until it becomes weak, stiff, or painful.

• Set up your arm again like you did for the two exercises above
• This time turn your hand so that your thumb is facing up toward the ceiling
• Once again, grab your weight
• Keeping the forearm on the table, bend your wrist sideways so that the thumb side of your hand goes up toward the ceiling
• Go as high as is comfortable (this move is meant to be small) and hold for 1-3 seconds
• Slowly return to the starting position and repeat
• Continue for 10-15 repetitions for 2-3 sets total

Pronation/Supination

Finally, wrist pronation and supination provide your wrist with the strength it needs for twisting motions, essential for things like using a screwdriver or opening any type of jar.

• One last time, set your arm up as you did with the three exercises above
• Just like you did with radial deviation, turn your hand so that your thumb is facing up toward the ceiling with your weight in hand
• Keep your elbow in place as you slowly rotate your wrist back and forth (your forearm will move with this one), alternating between your palm facing the floor and the ceiling
• Go as far as possible in each direction without pain, pausing to hold for 1-3 seconds at the end of each movement
• Repeat for 10-15 repetitions for 2-3 sets total
• To progress (other than the ways listed above) you can change the position of your weight to increase the lever arm resistance, do this by holding the weight closer to the bottom so that more of it is above your hand

Therapy Putty

Often used in physical therapy sessions, therapy putty is another great resistance tool that you can use at home on your own. A lot of these exercises use therapy putty to work the joints in your hands, fingers, wrists, and forearms to build strength.

Learn More About the Benefits of Therapy Putty