Wrist Strengthening Exercises

Aim

The exercises on this sheet are designed to improve strength of the wrist.

General advice

It can be ‘normal’ to feel some aching or discomfort when you first start exercising, but these symptoms should settle quite quickly. If you feel the exercises are causing you intense and lasting pain (eg: for more than 30 minutes), change the exercise by doing it less forcefully or less often and let your therapist know next time.

Instructions

• You should work through the exercises in a slow and controlled manner as advised by your therapist.
• Complete these exercises ………….. times each ………….. times a day.
• You can grasp the band or create a loop in the band to complete these exercises.

Exercise 1

• Grasp the band with the palm facing down and place the band over the back of the hand as shown in the image.
• Control the upward movement of your wrist against the band, then bring your wrist back down to the starting position and repeat the movement.

Exercise 2

• Grasp the band with the palm facing the ceiling.
• Control the upward movement of your wrist against the band, then bring your wrist back up to the starting position and repeat the movement.

Exercise 3

• Grasp the band with the wrist with the palm facing the floor, in the position shown in the photo below.
• Control the movement of the wrist rotating to bring the palm to be facing the ceiling and then bring the wrist back to the starting position.

Contact numbers

We hope that you have found this information useful. If you have any questions, you can contact the Hand Therapy Department on 01305 255931.

About this leaflet

Author: Felicity Tucker
Written: January 2026
Approved: January 2026
Review date: January 2029
Edition: v1

If you have feedback regarding the accuracy of the information contained in this leaflet, or if you would like a list of references used to develop this leaflet, please email patientinformation.leaflets@dchft.nhs.uk