What Are the Benefits of Finger Squeeze Exercises?

Your hands and fingers are probably the last body parts you would think to include in your fitness routine. However, their strength and flexibility are not only essential when working out, they are also important when doing many household activities, such as tearing apart packages, inserting screws into drywall or furniture, carrying heavy grocery packages and typing. Of course, most sports also involve a high degree of upper arm strength and you need strong fingers to help you do pulling exercises, throw and catch a ball, swing a golf club and perform martial arts. Doing finger-squeeze exercise will provide a host of benefits.

  1. Building Bigger Forearms

    • Building strong forearms offers a wealth of benefits.

      Forearm strength and flexibility may be more important than you realize. You need them to crush, clinch, grip and pinch, and to support your upper arms to bear the brunt of carrying something heavy. While many muscles comprise the forearms, the primary forearm muscles include the flexors, which you use to close your hands, and your extensors, which you use to open them. Finger squeeze exercises can strengthen and develop these muscles, which will make it easier for you to hold weights longer at the gym and boost your tennis backhand, for example.

    Hand Endurance and Dexterity

    • Increased finger strength can help in many daily actions.

      When you do finger-squeeze exercises using even a simple, inexpensive tool such as a rubber ball, you increase your ability to apply force with your hands for longer periods of time. You'll find your hands are less fatigued when lugging home bags of groceries or housewares. Hand grips and similar equipment will also help build the fingers of each hand independently. People who depend on their fingers -- typists, pianists, seamstresses -- will especially benefit from increased hand dexterity.

    Greater Upper-Body Strength

    • Doing finger exercises will help you in the gym.

      Having a strong grip translates to having a stronger upper body in general. For example, using simple spring-loaded hand grips can help you rely more on your hands to lift more weight at the gym -- or elsewhere. A powerful grip especially helps you when you perform exercises such as deadlifts, rows, pull-ups, and chin-ups. You'll be able to do more repetitions if you can hold longer, which means you'll burn more calories, build more muscle and lose more fat.

    Squeezing Out Your Rehab

    • Doing some fingertip push-ups can prevent tennis elbow.

      Weak grip strength also can be a symptom of tendonitis or tennis elbow. Using your forearm to perform certain exercises can worsen the condition. If you suffer from tennis elbow, the doctor will prescribe a rehabilitation regimen, which may include finger squeezing exercises. You can use a rubber ball to do these exercises almost anywhere. However, don't perform these exercises without being supervised by a medical professional. You may end up increasing your discomfort if you perform the exercise too frequently or incorporate too many repetitions.