Why Do I Get Wrist Pain While Exercising?
Wrists in Our Daily Lives
Our wrists are intricately linked to our activities we perform on a daily basis. They assist us in gripping, carrying and manipulating objects, opening doors, and typing/texting. Most of us take our wrists for granted, not realizing all the things they do for us. However, we really see how important they are when we start to have wrist pain and difficulties.
The wrist is a complex joint structure that is formed by the end of the two forearm bones (radius and ulna) coming together with the tiny bones in the hand; these eight carpal bones allow our wrists to move in a complex manner. All of these structures working together allow our wrist and forearm to move into pronation (turning palm down), supination (turning palm up), wrist extension (bringing the hand up), and wrist flexion (bringing the wrist down).
There are many ailments that can arise that affect the function of our wrists. DeQuervain’s syndrome, carpal tunnel syndrome, osteoarthritis, fractures, and ganglion cysts, just to name a few. To know exactly what is going on, an in-person physical examination is usually required but in general there are a few things that you can do to address stiffness in the wrists.
Wrist Stiffness With Exercising
Many active people start noticing they have difficulties with certain exercises such as planks, push-ups, and Pilates/Yoga activities. These exercises require the wrist to move through a large amount of range of motion and pressure. Stiffness of the wrists can really make your exercise routine difficult and uncomfortable. Like most other musculoskeletal issues in the body, it is important that we do a proper warm-up. Here are a few tips to get your wrists moving better:
Start with moving your wrists in slow, large circles (both clockwise and counterclockwise)
Then move your wrist up and down and use your other hand to apply a little extra pressure, hold for 10 seconds
Get into a push-up position against a wall with your hands at shoulder height and leaning your body slightly into the wall. If you feel tightness in your wrist hold that position for a little while and then as it loosens up you can start to move your hands down the wall slightly, feeling progressively more tightness as you move down the wall.
As the above exercises become easier, try a similar exercise in an all-fours position. On the floor, get onto your hands and knees. Start with your wrist direction under your shoulders and hold that stretched position. As that becomes easier you can move your hands closer towards your knees as you feel progressively more of a stretch in your wrists.
Disclaimer: these exercises are for generalized wrist stiffness, if you believe you have something else going on then you should seek additional consultation.
Stick To The Routine
This routine will be most helpful when performed before your normal workout. Keep in mind that stiffness can take a while to improve and requires consistent work. Therefore, start these exercises on a daily basis (takes 5 minutes a day) and keep working on them even if you don’t see immediate changes. It is important to stay the course. Persistence will pay off!