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Our hands hold a lot of tension. We use them for everything. (Think about it). Yes, you can do this massage for yourself. It is called a self-massage. Any time you feel your hands getting tight take this little break.
When I am at home or
work doing a lot of typing I can feel my hands tense up. So I will just do a
couple of these steps to limber up the finger joints.
You can just take a
couple minutes at your desk to do any of the steps 3-6. You can do 1 step or
more. Depending on your time and how you feel. You can repeat the step 2 or 3
times for a quick break from your task. Go at your own pace. It’s just a little
break to release some tension.
You will need to apply
some lotion or massaging oil (maybe not the oil at work) to your hands first.
This will help with sliding fingers along and not pulling or jumping the skin.
You don’t want to drag your fingers across your skin. This doesn’t feel good.
These self-massages
quickly provide health benefits. This can be done to relieve tension, reduce
pain, stress and encourage blood flow.
Massage Benefits:
- Can
increase productivity - Stress
and pain relief - Improves
range of motion - Better
circulation - Relaxation
for better sleep - Can
reduce swelling - Give
you energy
Self-Hand Massage:
First-Stroke the top of
your hand; firmly pushing toward your wrist, then gently back to your fingertips.
4-6 times.
Second-Turn your hand over; palm facing up. Support the back with your fingers (other hand). With circular movements and pressure from your thumb, work all over palm from wrist to base of fingers. With big sweeps you can also circle along your wrist. 4-6 times.
Third-Grasp other hand
finger, in between first and second finger; at its base and pull gently to
stretch while sliding your grip up the finger and off the tip. Do this for each
finger and the thumb. (You will feel a slight pull) your joints may also “pop”,
(tension released).
Fourth- You can hold
each finger (don’t forget thumbs) and rotate circles left, and then right.
(You’ve probably done this with arms, etc. during aerobic exercises). I’d say a
couple times would do.
Fifth-Take each finger
and slightly bend back, away from you (this may also cause a “pop”).
Sixth-With finger-tips
together, plant elbows on knees/legs for support; rock /bend hands to left then
right. 4-6 times.
Seventh-To finish; palm
down gently brush top of hand; wrist to fingertip. 4-6 times. (Feel good?)
You can also rotate your
wrist left, and then right. 4-6 times. Depending on your time, Steps 3-6 can be
improvised. Go with what feels good!
Self-Foot Massage:
You can also do these
steps on your feet. You might want to apply more pressure to your heel since
this bares a lot of our weight. Then as with your wrist do large circles along
your ankle bone.
End the day with a foot
massage if you spend a lot of time on your feet and for all the walking we do
day after day. Those tired feet can
really hurt. This is great to do before bed to help you relax.
