Wakeout pack — 37 exercises

Hand Health

Targeted exercises for fingers and wrists to maintain flexibility and prevent stiffness.

sitting / standingdesk / living roommidday / eveningdo anywhere37 exercises

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Hands and wrists ache from typing or phone use — wants mobility, not strength.

Why this happens

Typing and phone use load the hands in a remarkably narrow range. The fingers stay slightly flexed for hours, the wrists hold static extension over a keyboard, and the thumbs do repetitive abductions on phone screens that are not what the joint was designed for. Over time, this shows up as stiffness, tingling, or the dull ache that lives between the base of the thumb and the wrist. The mechanism is partly tendon-related — the long flexor tendons pass through the carpal tunnel with synovial sheaths that need gliding motion to stay healthy — and partly circulatory, since static postures restrict blood flow to the hands. Repetitive strain injury (RSI) and carpal tunnel adjacency both start here. This pack is mobility-focused: finger extensions, wrist circles, thumb opposition, and gentle nerve-gliding movements that take the hand through ranges it doesn't get during work. No equipment, no grip work — that's what handStrength is for. This is the opposite: restoring motion to tissue that's been stuck.

About this routine

Best for typers, coders, writers, phone-heavy workers — anyone whose hands feel achy or stiff by afternoon. A few minutes at the desk, no equipment. Skip if you have an active hand injury, acute carpal tunnel flare with severe numbness, or post-surgical hand — those need a hand therapist, not a mobility routine. Safe during pregnancy. Not medical advice. If pain radiates up the arm or comes with persistent numbness, stop and see a physician; hand mobility is for stiffness, not nerve entrapment.

The routine

37 exercises in this pack

Backward Finger Stretch

Beattle On Its Back

Ceterpillars

Claw Pull

Finger Bow

Finger Curls

31 more in this pack

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The iOS app plays all 37 exercises in order, with audio cues, countdown, and a streak that keeps you honest.

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Built for these moments

Relax My Hands

Very specifically for hands. This should only include hand health and strength.

Why this pack: Perfect match - pack specifically targets hand flexibility and strength with exercises for fingers and wrists

Frequently asked

What people ask about hand health

Does hand mobility actually help prevent carpal tunnel or RSI?

It helps, though it's not a guarantee. The mechanisms matter: carpal tunnel involves compression of the median nerve in the wrist, often worsened by tendon inflammation from repetitive gripping and static wrist extension. Regular mobility work keeps the flexor tendons gliding freely through their sheaths and maintains synovial health, which reduces inflammation risk. It doesn't undo damage already done, but consistent hand movement is one of the few evidence-backed preventive interventions for office-worker RSI.

My hands go numb sometimes while working. Should I do these exercises or see a doctor?

See a doctor if numbness is frequent, persistent, wakes you at night, or follows a specific finger pattern (thumb/index/middle suggests median nerve; pinky/ring suggests ulnar). Those patterns point to nerve entrapment, which mobility alone won't fix. If numbness is occasional, brief, and clearly tied to a specific posture, the mobility work in this pack plus ergonomic adjustments usually helps. The rule of thumb: numbness that comes and goes is often mechanical; numbness that persists is medical.

What's the difference between the hand pack and the handStrength pack?

Hand is mobility — restoring range to stiff, overused hands with no equipment. HandStrength uses a pen to actively build grip and finger strength for musicians, climbers, or anyone whose hands need to be stronger, not just looser. Use hand when your hands ache from typing. Use handStrength when you want to train them. Different audiences, different goals, and they work well together if you want both.

How often should I do hand mobility during a workday?

Once an hour is the realistic target for heavy-typing jobs — even a minute is enough to break the static-loading pattern. Two or three times a day is a reasonable minimum. The evidence on preventing RSI is strongest for frequent brief movement, not longer rare sessions, because the injury mechanism is cumulative sustained loading. Set a reminder if you won't remember; by the time your hands ache, you've already been in one posture too long.

Packs built for the same body, a slightly different moment.