Hand Arthritis
Exercises for hand Osteoarthritis
How many should I do and how often?
Aim to do these exercises 2-3x daily.
Make sure that you avoid bracing while doing the exercise and focus on smooth, relaxed movement.
You may find it easier to do them after taking pain relief or using a heat/ ice pack.
You may only be able to manage a few to start with: that’s fine. Make a note of how many you can do and repeat this each day until it starts to feel easier. Gradually increase how many you practise over time (this often takes several weeks).
What if the exercise is painful?
Exercising in pain is acceptable. It’s worth knowing that pain during exercise does not mean you’re harming yourself. As a general rule, if you experience pain at a manageable level, which settles within an hour and is not worse the next day, this is fine. However, if you experience more pain than you can comfortably tolerate and it fails to settle within an hour or so, you may want to scale the difficulty back next time. If this happens, don’t worry, you can try fewer repetitions and then gradually build it up again. If this still hasn’t helped, then seek professional help for further guidance.
Hand and wrist exercises from Versus arthritis
Tailored stretching: Finger, hand and wrist exercises (for arthritis and joint pain)
Thumb specific ideas
Warm up
Level 1 exercises
The first type of exercises are called static exercises, they make the muscles work but they do not move the joint. This is a simple way to start to strengthen the muscles and should not cause any discomfort.
Do 3 to 5 repetitions and hold the exercise down for 5 seconds. You can increase this as pain allows.
Level 2 exercises
Perform all the exercises resting on little finger side of the hand and wrist slightly back, unless otherwise stated. Keep the top two joints of the thumb slightly bent.
Repeat all exercises 10 times unless otherwise stated. If you feel any discomfort, reduce the frequency and/or repetitions.
Level 3 exercises
Only move to this next level if you are comfortable and happy with all of the level 1 exercises.
Complete the warm up exercises before the level 2 exercises.
Start with an easy strength rubber band. Different strength bands are available from online stores.
