Oh, the things we put our arms through.
Gripping a steering wheel. Computer and office work. Cooking and laundry. Yard work, carrying your kids and their stuff around, and lugging shopping bags. Squeezing and clenching and buckling and writing.
Sports and exercise can be hard on your arms. You get it.
We put our hands and forearms through an awful lot of stress every day. And yet, when I start to massage a hand and forearm, I often hear, “Oh! I had no idea my arms were so sore!”. It’s a common comment, but not really a surprise.
Arms get sore. And when they get really overworked, we end up with carpal tunnel, tendinitis, trigger finger and a whole host of other issues.
Start at the top. Using the opposite hand, gently squeeze the meaty, fleshy areas just below your elbow. Squeeze on the inside of your arm then on the outside. Gently is the key here – don’t be jamming your thumb in there hard and causing pain. It should feel good, and if it doesn’t, back off a bit.
If you want to get fancy, roll the wrist around and wiggle the fingers as you squeeze. Do that light squeezing all the way down to the wrist. Do this a few times, up and down the forearm to cover all the territory there.
Then move to the hand, using a light pincer grip, squeeze that meaty area at the base of your thumb. Lightly squeeze up and down all those finger bones through the palm, and up each finger. When you find a good spot, stick around it for an extra minute.
Whatever feels good to you is just fine. Then, switch hands and do it again on the other arm. Better yet, find a buddy and massage each other’s arms and hands.
Another option is to roll a golf ball or two on your arms. That way you are getting a good amount of pressure without using the muscles of your other arm much.
If you’ve got carpal tunnel or tendinitis, or just achiness and pain that you can’t figure out, you may need even more attention to keep those issues at bay. Come on in and I can work on those issues to let you keep doing what you want.
