Hand weakness is encountered by many in their lifetime. People find it difficult to hold a glass of water, lift their phone, and experience a weak hand grasp. Hand weakness due to neurological causes requires a customized exercise program, though generalized hand weakness is treatable with hand-strengthening exercises. Hand exercises will help you gain range of motion and better hand flexibility and strength. Besides this, we use our hands throughout the day for multiple tasks. Hand-strengthening exercises will help you perform those tasks more efficiently by improving hand endurance and fine motor coordination. For stronger hands, do the following exercises.

1. Claw stretch -Bend your fingertips to touch the base of each finger joint. Hold for 30 seconds and release. Repeat five times on each hand. One more variation of this claw stretch is to use both hands in the claw stretch position to hook both hands at fingers. For this, place one hand with palm up and the other facing palm down in a claw stretch position. Now, pull both hands in opposite directions, hold for 5-10 seconds and repeat five times. It is a good stretch for the fingers and the upper arms too.
2. Grip strengthening exercises– Hold a softball in your hand, squeeze it tightly for ten seconds, and release it. Repeat ten times. In place of a ball, putty or clay can also be used. Using a putty will allow more range of motion at the finger joints. Make a ball again with putty and squeeze it. Repeat 5-10 times.
3. Finger Lifts-Place your hand flat on the table, then gently lift each finger. Hold the lift for 2-3 seconds. Repeat this exercise ten times for each finger.
4. Thumb to finger pinches-With your thumb, touch the tips of each finger one by one, starting from the index finger to the little finger. Hold each pinch grip for 2-3 seconds. Repeat three times.
5. Rubber band stretching– Wrap a rubber band around two adjacent fingers just below the fingernail and try to pull the fingers apart. Repeat ten times on each finger pair. This exercise will involve the interossei muscles of the hand. The deep muscles of the hand strengthen with this exercise.
6. Stacking coins- Take coins of different sizes, pick them up one by one and stack them with the bigger ones at the bottom. It will help with fine motor coordination and improved dexterity skills.
7. Paper grip exercise-Hold a sheet of paper between your two adjacent fingers tightly. Now with the other hand, try to pull the paper sheet out of the fingers. Hold for five seconds. Repeat for each finger pair.

STAY HEALTHY! STAY STRONG!

• Hand Conditions