Wrist pain when push-ups are a common complaint. If this happens to you, try to check your technique first, to make sure you don't make mistakes that put too much pressure on your wrists. If you don't make mistakes or if you still feel pain after correcting them, there are variations of the exercise that can prevent the problem. However, you should seek medical advice to make sure the pain is not caused by wrist injuries.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Perfecting the Technique
Step 1. Warm your wrists and hands
You probably already do a general warm-up before you start exercising, but if you plan on doing pushups, you should also focus on your hands and wrists, particularly if you normally feel pain.
- To warm your wrists, hands, and improve joint flexibility, stretch one hand out in front of you and spread your fingers.
- Starting with the thumb, rotate each finger a couple of times clockwise, then counterclockwise. Imagine drawing circles. Try not to move your other fingers during the exercise.
- If you can't make circles with one finger without moving the neighboring ones, it means that your hand and wrist muscles are weak, so you should train them. Continue with your whole hand, doing what you can to move only the affected finger, then switch to the other.
- Once this simple warm-up is complete, your wrists and hands should feel warm, loose, and more energetic than when you started.
Step 2. Check the position of the hands
By holding them too loose or too far in front of you, you put more pressure on your wrists. Turning your hand in or out and holding it at an odd angle can also lead to unnecessary strain.
- Take the position you normally hold during pushups, stop and look at your hands. They should be facing forward, with all parts of the hand and fingers planted firmly on the ground.
- If you keep your palm curved or your fingers raised, put all the pressure on the hard part of the hand; this can cause pain in the wrists.
- Make sure you keep your wrists directly under your shoulders when you fully extend your arms, not forward or backward. It may be helpful to ask another person to check your technique, so that you can be sure that you are holding your hands in the correct position and making any necessary adjustments.
Step 3. Avoid bringing your elbows outward
As a beginner, you may have a habit of doing pushups by bringing your elbows to the outside of your body instead of holding them close and bending them against your chest.
- While this technique makes pushups easier for beginners, continuing to use it can lead to straining your wrists too much. Furthermore, by not correcting this mistake you also risk injuries to the elbows and shoulders.
- When doing push-ups, you should bend your elbows back and keep them close to your body, at an angle of about 45 degrees.
- If you are unsure about the position of your elbows, do some pushups and ask someone to observe you and look at those joints. Usually an outside observer has a better perspective than you.
- Practice proper technique by pushing a wall while standing. This way you will better understand what it feels like to bend your elbows in the right way.
Step 4. Contract the core
Push-ups don't just work the upper body. If you do these exercises with arm and shoulder strength alone, without using your core, you put too much pressure on your wrists, which can hurt you.
- When you do push-ups, you don't use your core properly if one part of your body moves later than the others; for example, if the hips are lowered or if the lower back rises after the upper one.
- If you notice that your back sways or arches in the lower part, you may need to do additional core-strengthening exercises before continuing with the pushups so that you can do them correctly without putting unnecessary pressure on your wrists.
- Doing planks instead of pushups can help you develop core strength. You might start with a semi-plank, where you hover over your forearms and not your hands to limit the pressure on your wrists.
Method 2 of 3: Modify the Exercise
Step 1. Try rotating your wrists
Rotating pushups work those joints less, while strengthening them, along with the forearms. As those parts of the body have become stronger, you will be able to perform traditional pushups without pain.
- Close your hands into fists and begin the push-up with your knuckles on the ground. Rotate your fist forward, trying to bring the tip of your thumb to the ground. In the final position you should have your arms outstretched.
- When you twist back, you reverse the movement, but this time, try to bring the base of the fist to the ground. The elbows will bend, causing the triceps to contract and you should feel the stretch in the wrists. To do the twist push-ups, continue this back and forth motion for the same number of repetitions you were used to for the traditional version.
- You could start this variant on all fours, in order to better support your body weight. Gradually move your knees further and further back until you can do the exercise in the normal position on your toes.
Step 2. Distribute the weight on the fingertips
To perform this variation of push-ups, when you assume the starting position, imagine that you are trying to hold a basketball in your hand, pushing against the floor with your fingertips.
- Keep your palms flat and not curved. You simply have to distribute the weight away from your wrists, so as not to put too much pressure on them, as they will not have to support your weight or absorb the force of the exercise.
- Be careful to keep your fingers flat as well, instead of curling them on the floor. Failure to do so will put too much pressure on your finger joints.
Step 3. Elevate the upper body
Changing your hand position can help limit wrist pain during pushups as well as planks. Keeping the upper body higher reduces the percentage of body weight that must be supported by the hands and wrists.
- For example, you can get your hands on a bench or step a few inches off the ground. The rest of the exercise is identical to the normal version.
- Be careful to use the correct technique anyway. You should bend your elbows back, close to your body and keep your back flat, so that the whole body rises and falls in unison.
Step 4. Use dumbbells
Holding dumbbells while doing push-ups leads you to keep your wrists straight, relieving the pressure on them. The size or weight of the dumbbells doesn't matter, because you will keep them on the ground. You just need something big enough to hold and that weighs enough not to move during the exercise.
- Put a dumbbell under each shoulder. When you get into the starting push-up position, wrap your fingers around the tool handles, palms facing in.
- If the handlebar grip burns your palms, wrap it with a small towel to make it easier to squeeze.
Method 3 of 3: Stretch and Strengthen Your Wrists
Step 1. Do exercises with your fingers or palms
Pushes with your fingers or palms can help you strengthen the muscles in your hands and wrists. You can also use this strengthening exercise as a warm-up for your hands, fingers, and forearms before doing pushups.
- To do finger thrusts, place them on the floor on the floor with palms raised and push down. You can do this while sitting or on all fours to better support your weight; do not try the exercise from a push-up position. You should feel your finger flexors stretch and relax with each thrust. Complete about ten repetitions.
- Palm thrusts are similar to calf lifts, where you lift your heels, keeping your toes and toes on the ground; the only difference is that you will make your forearms work. Strengthening those muscles helps prevent wrist pain during pushups.
- To perform palm thrusts, you need to keep your hands flat and planted on the ground, just below your shoulders, as in a normal push-up. You can do this on your lap to better support your weight. Raise your palms keeping your fingers and the base of your knuckles on the ground, then gently bring them back to the ground. Do 12-24 repetitions of this exercise.
Step 2. Stretch your wrists
You can do this exercise sitting or standing and you will be able to stretch your wrists and hand muscles, loosening your wrists so that they support the pressure better during pushups.
- Extend your right arm in front of you, palm facing the ceiling. Bend your wrist down and back, so that your palm is towards you and your fingers towards the ground.
- Spread your fingers apart, then use your left hand to pull your thumb back until you feel a pull. Hold the position, breathing deeply and spreading your fingers, which may have a tendency to curl or stretch. Resist that movement, always trying to keep them wide.
- After a couple of breaths, release your thumb and switch to your index finger. Continue the same movement for all the fingers of the right hand, lower the arm and repeat the exercise with the left.
Step 3. Try the gorilla pose
This is a yoga posture that can help you stretch and strengthen your wrists. It is a deep forward bend that ends with the hands palm up under the soles of the feet.
- Stand up straight and spread your legs hip-width apart. Bring your torso forward to the height of your waist, bending your knees as much as necessary to bring your hands firmly to the ground.
- Bend your wrists forward so that the backs of your hands are on the floor and your palms are facing up. Lift your toes and slide your hands under your feet. You should keep your toes pointed towards your heels.
- As you breathe deeply, massage your wrists with your toes. Hold this position for up to twenty breaths before getting back on your feet.
Step 4. Improve wrist mobility
The muscles and tendons of the hands and forearms move the wrists and joints of the fingers. Doing regular exercises that improve range of motion can help prevent wrist pain during pushups. Do these exercises with one wrist at a time, making sure to repeat them with the other as well.
- Place one forearm on the table so that your hand is just over the edge, with a rolled-up towel on the edge for protection. Slowly move your hand up until you feel it pull, hold the position for 5-10 seconds, then release it and return to the starting position. Do 10 repetitions of the exercise, then turn your arm so that the palm is facing up and complete another 10 repetitions.
- You can work on supination and wrist pronation by standing or sitting with your elbow bent at 90 degrees, so that your palm is facing the ground. Then rotate your forearm to bring your palm up, hold the position for 5-10 seconds, then bring it back down. Do 10 repetitions of this exercise.
- The ulnar and radial deviation are the lateral movements of the wrist. Using the rolled-up towel on the edge of the table again, rest your forearm on the surface with your hand on one side, as if you're about to shake someone's hand. Move your hand up until you feel a pull, hold the position for 5-10 seconds, then bring it back to center. Then move your hand down until you feel a pull. Also hold that stretch for 5-10 seconds before bringing it back to center. You have completed one rep. You should do 10 per arm.
Step 5. Increase strength in your hands and fingers
By doing strengthening exercises for the muscles and tendons of your hands and fingers, you will be able to better support the weight of your body when doing pushups, relieving the pressure on your wrists.
- Holding your hand in front of you with fingers wide and thumb out, move that finger slowly to the other side of the palm. Hold the position for 5-10 seconds, then return to the starting position. Do 10 repetitions of the exercise to work on the flexion and extension of your thumb.
- Hold one hand in front of you and stretch your fingers forward, as if you want to ask someone to stop. Close your fingers up to the phalanges, holding the position for 5-10 seconds, then extend your hand again. Fully close your fist, hold the stretch for 5-10 seconds, then return to the starting position. Finally, close your fingers on the palm without curling them, hold the position for 5-10 seconds, then extend your hand again. Do 10 repetitions to complete one set of the exercise, then switch to the other hand.
