Because the majority of video games don’t require a lot of movement, people tend to think that there’s no way you can hurt yourself playing a game. Unfortunately, no matter what your game or controller type choice is, you still need to worry about the stress you put on your hands. Our hands are delicate parts of our body, with many tiny muscles that can get sore just like any larger one. We’re going to go over some hand stretches every gamer should know to help save you a lot of future pain during long gaming sessions.
Prayer Position Stretches
Prayer position stretches are perfect for loosening up your forearms and wrists, which can start to hurt a lot after extended time with a controller or mouse and keyboard. You can do prayer position by putting your palms and fingers together in front of you with your forearms parallel to the floor, so it looks like you’re praying. Slowly raise your elbows until you feel the stretching in your wrists and arms. Reverse prayer position is similar, but you put the backs of your hands together, fingers facing down, and slowly lower your elbows instead.
Pronated Extensions and Supine Flexors Stretch
These are important hand stretches every gamer should know when you’ve kept your hands in one position for a long time. Fully extend your arm out in front of you with your palm facing up. Then, use your other hand to gently pull your hand down so that your fingers point to the floor, while keeping your arm straight out in front of you. This is the supine flexors stretch, and it shouldn’t hurt while you do it. The pronated extensions stretch is very similar, but start with your palm facing down instead of up before bending your wrist to point your fingers downward.
Joint Distraction Stretches
Joint distraction stretches can help relieve a lot of pain in your fingers after using them for so long. These stretches are rather simple, but you must do them slowly, to not accidentally harm yourself. All you need to do is face one palm toward your chest and use your other hand to gently pull each individual finger outward while holding them by their tips.
Thumb Extensor Stretch
Every gamer that uses a console controller knows they can do some damage to your thumbs. The thumb extensor stretch can help relieve that pain. All you need to do is close your fingers over your thumb while it’s in the palm of your hand. When your hand is closed, slowly roll it in the direction of your pinky finger. You should feel the muscle on the back of your thumb stretch as you roll your wrist.
At Glassy Eyewear, we’re dedicated to making sure gamers are in the best health possible. That’s why we sell our gaming eyewear to protect your eyes from the harmful blue light that screens emit.
