Thumbs Up - how yoga helps with stiffness and pain in the hands

 

You might be like many people over 50, who has found that as you age, arthritis in the hands, stiffness and general aging in the joints of the fingers has created certain weakness or discomfort when you try to use your hands for certain tasks.  

I often have students ask me about the painful joints in their fingers and hands, could be the thumb joint, could be overall arthritic hands.  

One task I often refer my students to is the Jam Jar Exercise.  How easy do you find it to open a jar?  Believe me, the manufacturers of jam jars have not made them any more difficult to open than 20 years ago!  But your hands might well have lost the strength they once had to open a jar. 

Many yoga methods or approaches do not give specific attention to the hands or fingers, which is why in my joint renewal approach (which is designed specifically for folks over 50) I spend a lot of time teaching my students how to deal with strengthening and developing grip and dealing with other issues in their hands. 

My Joint Renewal System of yoga ( which is formed from years of study of the Kaiut and Scaravelli yoga approaches) has a lot of work where you use your hands, in a wide variety of ways in order to put pressure on the joints. 

Putting pressure and squeezing or holding the fingers in positions for an extended period creates a mini-state of hypoxia (low oxygen levels) in the joints.  You squeeze which temporarily prevents blood circulation, deprives the area of oxygen, and then when you release, pressure is released which gives a flood of new blood, oxygen and nutrients and this flood also helps clear toxins away. Studies have shown that even within a few minutes of hypoxia can promote stem cell production 

Stem cells are vital for good joint health, rejuvenate and help restore the bone, cartilage and other cells in the body.  Stem cells do not have specific roles in the body, they are undifferentiated and offer potential for tissue regeneration and anti-inflammatory effects. They are in abundance and activated as a baby when you were growing in your mother's womb.  The womb has a lower oxygen level than outside life, which is why hypoxia (low oxygen levels) is good for stem cells production and activation. 

Today, professional athletes train in higher altitudes, because the lower oxygen levels puts some stress on the system and creates an overall state of very mild hypoxia, which can enhance stem cell production,  rejuvenation and growth. 

Yoga for The Hands

Lie on the floor.  Extend your arms back over your head,  be sure to straighten and extend the elbows.  Try and get all 10 fingernails (especially the THUMBS) onto the floor or cushion behind you.  If you cannot reach the floor use a bolster (as shown) or a cushion, stool or even a chair so that you can extend your arms straight. 

Variation: 

Press the tips of your thumbs quite strongly together so you to use the thumb joint strongly.  No other part of the hand touches just the tips of the thumbs. 

Strapwork:  work with a strap (scarf or belt).   And the strap work demands gripping of the hands around the strap with the thumb pressing hard.  (In my Kathy White Yoga Membership classes 51, 52, 53  of the 1-100 have lots of excellent handwork).

As you can see in your everyday life, simply moving the thumbs and fingers in any way can be very helpful to prevent them stiffening, I personally find that using Chinese boading balls to move the fingers and get all the 27 joints of the hands active is an excellent way to provide regular movement. 

And don't forget that when we focus on any part of the body, although that area might be giving you issues, it's not only in moving that part that will bring relief.  

Your wrists, forearms, elbows, shoulders, spine, neck and so on for your whole body is what your hands relate to and therefore it is never in isolation that we must treat a particular joint. 

If you would like to try some Joint Renewal Yoga I have three free videos (just 5 minutes each) you can use to Break The Pain Cycle in your body, so you can feel free, fit and active as you age. Ideal for those of you over 50 who want to keep your joints healthy and pain free. 

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