Finger Excersize

[SantaClawz]

I was just thinking about how my current program works every single muscle or way of moving my hands and fingers and I was very happy. Suddenly, I realized something...which should have been obvious in the first place. I have never heard of nor ever done any excersizes to strengthen the muscle that moves the fingers sideways.

To try to locate what muscle in my hand moves the fingers side ways, I held my hand and moved the fingers on the hand and located the muscles that move the index and pinky fingers. On the back of your hand, underneath the index knuckle, there is muscle there which actually moves the index finger sideways. Underneath the pinky finger on the palm of your hand you have all probably noticed some muscle. That muscle moves the pinky finger sideways. I haven't located the muscles that move the other fingers yet.

I have decided to begin working these muscles by putting some (very little) weights in a big and putting each finger through the handle of the bag and lifting, solely by moving the finger sideways. I will do this for each finger, in both directions.

I think this will have a few results. First, it will obviously strengthen my fingers. Second, it will probably add a bit of mass to my hand (which I am not all too interested in, strength is far primary).

I have just remmembered that I actually did see an excersize in Mastery of Hand strength about this, it was called finger walking. I did not actually like the idea because it works two fingers at a time and is not very precise, unlike my idea. It only works the fingers in one sideways direction also.

What do you guys think? Anyone think this might help me with grippers too?

[tarudriller]

Could this be another situation where rice or sand in a bucket can be used?

Chris

[SantaClawz]

I thought about that Chris, but if you do that, you are only moving each finger to one side, and the middle finger would not move.

[SqeezeMasterFlash]

I've got a key ring with coins that have holes drilled in them on it. Attached to a carabiner, this could be a good way to work these muscles. I'll have to give it a try. You could be like Thomat Topham. He could crush the bowls of pipes between his fingers through sideways motion

Edited October 11, 2004 by SqeezeMasterFlash

[SantaClawz]

Ahh thats a great idea. I need to find a key ring, because I tried it with bags and they kept sliding off my finger. Good idea!

[Cunny]

They are the extensors,lots of stretching exercises for them in the hand health book.

[climber511]

I haven't tried it but it seems like you could use rubber bands pretty easily for this.

[foggymountainmuscle]

Finger walking and reverse finger walking, finger tip pressing, finger tip pushups, 1 and 2 finger pinching, IM outer limit loops, plate curls, bar twirling, and mountain climbing are good exercises to name a few.

[SantaClawz]

The muscles that are used to move the fingers sideways are extensors?!

[foggymountainmuscle]

No, extension is away from the body. Extensores are what straighten the fingers. The muscles that move the fingers sideways would be medial and lateral deviators. I don't know their specific names but they are not extensors, though sometimes when describing extensor work we may be refering to working all the muscles that aren't flexors of the fingers, treating it like a misc. catagory.

[Jonathan McMillan]

Amaury has been doing scissor type exercises for his fingers for a while, maybe he can chime in with a description on them??

Jon@han

[raziel]

I had to dig this post out because I tried some lateral finger work last night with a light ankle weight (2lbs) attached to my eagle loops. I put my hands thumbs up and worked one finger at a time in a scissor motion.

Today at work, my index finger has been twitching laterally, so it must be working something!

I'm thinking that working these smaller muscles up to a much greater strength will aid in overall hand strength (greater balance and stabilization) and hand health, much like extensor work does for me now.

[toshindo]

Sounds interesting, I'll have to try it.

[foggymountainmuscle]

Lateral finger work definately helps and is important for a forceful squeeze. The closing of the hand from an open position invloves lateral motion, in addition, they form a tight seal between fingers making them more resistant to being pried open.

[chuck]

I use rubber bands for this. The position I use is to put one hand on top of the other with elbows bent 90 degrees, wrists close to body and fingers pointing straight out from body. The heel edge of one hand is sitting on top of the index finger edge of the other hand.

By slightly V-ing the fingers, keeping the heel of the bottom hand contacting the base of the thumb of the top hand I can put a rubber band on the end joint of one finger of each hand (usually the same finger - i.e. index to index, pinky to pinky, etc.) Now I simply move the top finger up at the same time as I move the bottom finger down. Repeat for reps or work static holds, using as many rubber bands as needed for the required resistance.

Switching hand positions works the opposite direction of movement for both sides.

Another fun way to work an aspect of between finger strength is by trying to bend bottle caps between the second knuckles of your fingers.

Perry Rader wrote in Iron Man about himself and some other old time strongmen being able to do this simultaneously with 4 bottle caps at once - one between each finger plus the thumb. Ouch!

[Roper]

I have a Trigger Point book where these muscles are talked about. They are situated between or/and around the finger bones from knuckles down towards the wrist. I used to do a lot more dexterity ball work, with the palm down, and after a couple of months these muscles grew enough to show quite clearly through the skin. J. Brookfield mentions in Grip Master`s Manual,as well, that it made his hands appear much more "sinewy". Rotating the balls work just this movement of bringing the fingers out and in from each other,and doing it upside down increases the pressure needed to the level where it`ll start growing the muscles. I`m now working up to be able to do this with my new larger marble balls, which weight at least .5 kilos a piece.