Stretches to Prevent Repetitive Strain Injury
In our last post, we covered how to prevent repetitive strain injury (RSI), a debilitating injury that is caused by overusing your hands and wrists to do a repetitive task. By being mindful of your posture as well as how you’re using your computer, you can work and play without worry of chronic pain to your hands, wrists, and forearms. In this week’s post, we’ll cover some stretching exercises you can do to further prevent RSI.
Finger Stretch
Extend your arm in front of your body, with palms facing away from you and fingers pointed down. With your fingers spread apart, gently massage each finger from the base to the tip. You can also hold the tip of each finger and gently stretch it towards your chest. Start with your pinky and end with your thumb.
One-Arm Wrist Stretch
Similar to the finger stretch, extend your arm in front of your body with palms facing away from you and fingers pointed down. Keeping your shoulder down and relaxed, grab the tips of all your fingers with your other hand and stretch them towards your chest. To stretch the top of your wrist, flip your hand so that your fingers and palm are pointed down. Grab the tips of all your fingers with your other hand and stretch them towards your chest.
Wrist Rolls
Make both hands into a soft fist and roll your wrists in circles 10 times in each direction. After that, make a prayer hand and touch your inner wrists together. Roll your wrists so that your inner wrists touch, and then your outer wrists touch, and so on. Your fingers should be following the movement.
Finger-Wrist-Shoulder Stretch
Interlace your fingers and stretch your arms horizontally out, with palms facing away from you. Keep your shoulders pressed down while you’re doing this. After holding this stretch for 20 seconds, keep your fingers interlaced and slowly move your hands and arms over your head, palms facing the sky. Focus on keeping your shoulders pressed down and engage your core. Hold this stretch for 20 seconds as well.
Shoulder Rolls
Roll your shoulders up towards your ears then back down in a circular motion. Visualize it as a circular shrug. At the height of this stretch, you can hold your shoulders still for a second, then come back down. Do this stretch 5 times, then repeat in the other direction.
Forearm Stretch
Standing next to a desk or table, place both hands down with fingers pointed towards you. Keeping the base of your palms on the table, slowly shift the weight of your body to your heels while leaning back. You should feel a nice stretch on your forearms. Be mindful to not hurt your low back while you’re leaning back.
Enerskin Compression Wrist Strap
If you’re experiencing RSI symptoms, the first thing you should do is check with your doctor. After that, if it’s a recurring issue, practice the stretches noted above and consider an Enerskin Compression Wrist Strapto help with recovery. Our wrist strap helps secure and protect your wrist. The layer of soft, elastic silicone taping below the strap enhances action without interfering with wrist movement. You can also adjust the pressure to the desired strength. Even if you’re not experiencing RSI symptoms but have a demanding job that involves strain on the wrist, consider our wrist strap as another prevention tool.
Sources:
https://www.onemedical.com/blog/live-well/repetitive-stress-stretches/